Speaker choice, Tsi 400, RTi 8, Monitor 70.

CrazyJimmy

I am upgrading my speaker system and I am considering Polk above all others due to great reviews and reasonable pricing.

My current set up is a Pioneer Elite vsx-21 powering Boston CR -75 mains and CRC center with a Boston PV 600 sub (10 inch 150 watts). No rears.
The room is 14 by 20 ft with the system set up across the shortest section.

I watch movies 50% and listen to jazz mostly.

I was considering floorstanders, the Tsi 400 or RTi 8's but now I see a smokin' deal on Monitor 70's.

I have a few questions,

Are the 70's overkill considering I'll be about 10 feet in front of them?

Will the receiver be sufficient to power them? ( 110w per channel).

Can I ditch the sub with the 70's?

If anyone thinks the Tsi 400 or Rti 8's are the way to go, which of the two would you recommend.

Thanks in advance!

LandShark

Welcome Jimmy! I can only speak for the 70's and I'll leave the other speakers to the pros. IMO I don't think the 70's will be overkill and 110 WPC will be good enough to power them. Although ditching the sub won't be an option I'd go with. The 70's have a crisp clear sound but not the most imposing bass. The Tsi is not much better than the monitors from what I've read and I'm guessing most will say the Rti 8's you mentioned will be the best for home theater. Although they need more power. Good luck and keep us posted.

wutadumsn23

+1 Landshark, couldn't have said it better myself. The RTi series would be the best option for HT, just have a bigger price tag and for what the 70's can be had for these days, they are a steal. I love mine. Welcome to Club Polk.

-Jeff

cnh

Welcome to Club Polk!

In reality, M70s can handle more power than Rti-8s according to Polk's stats.

That said..I'd listen to either the RTis or the M70s and see which you like...both of them will put out MORE sound than the TSI-400s.

As said above your AVR will power 'any' of these speakers...but the M70s and 8s benefit from more power also. But you're good for now!

What kind of speaker is the Boston CR75--a bookshelf...because if so it would make a good surround. Boston also used a treated fabric tweeter (Kortec) that is not radically different from a Polk silk dome.

cnh

GTB

I'm running RTi8's with a CSi5 Center, they are a perfect match. I also have Monitor 40's for my rear surrounds, and a PSW10 sub.

I'm VERY happy with the RTi8's. Clear, airy sound with an excellent sound stage. Very detailed. Highly recommended when paired with a subwoofer, which is a must.

I ran the Monitor 40's as fronts on 18" stands for about a week waiting for the RTi's to be delivered. I was very impressed, and assuming the bigger Monitors are similiar they should be an excellent choice also.

Greg

mystik610

I've upgraded from the Tsi series to the Rti series. Rti series hands down.

CrazyJimmy

Yes the Boston CR 75 is a bookshelf with a 6.5 inch co-polymer woofer and a 1 " Kortec tweeter.

So sounds like the Rti is the best bet for me. What center would you recommend with an Rti 8?

Which Polk sub would be ideal to blend with these? One of the faults with the Boston setup is the sub is kind of loose or boomy sounding and is hard to blend with the speakers when listening to music, I am constantly tweeking the settings.

Thanks to all who responded,

cnh

The DSW mpro-600 should do you fine....for a more musical sub and more cost a 3 or 4000 would work...but that's gonna cost. The CR75s are pretty good BShelf...and will do well as rears.

cnh

jax3822

Hi,
Just purchased a pair of Monitor 70's on friday of last week. The dealer (high end shop), had a pair of the 70's next to a pair of the RTIa8's. I did not demo them side by side, but his opinion for the money get the 70's because they sounded better, with more bass.
The difference in price was about 75 bucks in the 2 pair, 270 for the 70's and about 350 for the rti's. I am driving them with a 100 wpc integrated amp. The bass, even though I read some complaints is very strong around 40 hz, with some serious drop off to the 31.5hz region. More than enough bass for most types of music.
If you are going to definitely be using the sub, go with the speaker with the better top end as you will be using the sub to round out the bottom end. When i was strictly using a av receiver for both music and ht, I kept my front setting to large and let the reciever decode the signal for 5.1 channel. I kept it crossed over at 60 hz to 80hz depending on my fronts at the time. 2- channel sources would only be the fronts because no signal is sent to the sub on that setting in stereo. If price is an issue, go with the cheaper one, based on my expierence with the 70's, I can recommend them.
Hope this helps.

GTB

CrazyJimmy wrote: »

Yes the Boston CR 75 is a bookshelf with a 6.5 inch co-polymer woofer and a 1 " Kortec tweeter.

So sounds like the Rti is the best bet for me. What center would you recommend with an Rti 8?

To match the RTi8, the CSi5 is perfect. In fact, there isn't a closer match. Just be aware that this center is a beast, you need to be able to have the space for it. Look at its specs under Recent & Vintage Models under Products on this website.

Greg

danz1906

WElcome to the Club!

RTi series

potee

Welcome to PC. I don't think you can make a mistake with any of them. There all good.

CrazyJimmy

Thanks guys for the welcome!

I expect matching the center speaker for the 70's would be a lot cheaper than for the RTi8's, I can pick up a CS2 cheap right now.

Not sure about the actual cost of the CSi5. Would you recommend a CS2 for use with RTi 8's?.

I was thinking a DSW 600 or Micropro 1000 as a sub, also available fairly cheap online.

mystik610

CrazyJimmy wrote: »

Thanks guys for the welcome!

I expect matching the center speaker for the 70's would be a lot cheaper than for the RTi8's, I can pick up a CS2 cheap right now.

Not sure about the actual cost of the CSi5. Would you recommend a CS2 for use with RTi 8's?.

I was thinking a DSW 600 or Micropro 1000 as a sub, also available fairly cheap online.

You can use a CS2 with the RTi8's and it will sound fine. It won't voice-match perfectly, but Polk centers can be interchanged with different series fronts and voice-match pretty well.

RTi8's + CS2 would sound better than Monitor 70's with a CS2.

CSi5's can be found for under 200 bucks if you keep your eyes peeled. Also check out the Polk Ebay store for the CSiA6, which can be had for a little over 200.

CrazyJimmy

Or should I hold off on the sub and get some Rti A7's from Polk Direct?

It's only money! Hah;)

CrazyJimmy

Ok so I did indeed buy the RTiA7 instead. I bought them from Polk's Ebay store. One speaker looks brand new, the other has obvious wear and the metal carpet spikes were not in the box, not what I was hoping for but since they are refurbished can I complain? I guess I should at least ask for the spikes.

I was disappointed with the sound initially although I just discovered the polarity was incorrect on the right side connection, my bad. Since correcting that faux pas the sound has improved dramatically. I bi-amped them using the spare channels from the 7.1 receiver, that also makes a difference to my ear. Overall a very nice sounding speaker for the money.

I'm having a little problem, unrelated to the speakers, with my receiver ( Denon 1910). The picture from my HD cable box flickers sporadically and the audio drops out for a fraction of a second. Never had this problem with the component outputs I was using before. I am using a very inexpensive HDMI cable from the cable-box to the receiver and then out to a Panasonic G10. Anyone have issues with cheap HDMI cables before?

I should not Hijack my own thread. Any thanks for the advice on the speakers!

wutadumsn23

I'm sure Polk will be more than happy to send you a set of carpet spikes, all you have to do is call them and ask. This is the first time I have heard anything "negative" about Polk Direct as far as condition is concerned. Usually everyone raves about how the speakers look like they are brand new, but like you said they are refurbished so can't really complain. As for your HDMI issue, check your connection and make sure it is snug at both ends, I had a similar issue with my Sony TV and I soon realized it was caused by a loose HDMI connection on my TV. Also, try swapping the cable to another input on your AVR and your TV and see if the issue follows, if it does then it may be the cable. If not then it is one of your inputs/outputs and you can isolate from there. I have 3 different HDMI cables in my rig ranging from free (Comcast guy gave me one he had in his truck) to $50, and they all perform the same. I have switched and swapped all cables and IMHO, can't tell a difference between the three. Hope this helps, and you are back up and running in no time.

-Jeff


1-800-377-POLK (7655)
9AM-5:30PM EST Mon-Fri

CrazyJimmy

It's not the cable. I bypassed the AVR and went straight to the TV, problem gone. So the Denon is having difficulty dealing with the cable box signal. Damn.

mrbofus

I'm running RTI8 and am pleased with them, The RTia7's would be a good choice too.

lmacmil

CrazyJimmy wrote: »

It's not the cable. I bypassed the AVR and went straight to the TV, problem gone. So the Denon is having difficulty dealing with the cable box signal. Damn.

From what I read on AVS Forum, this is a very common problem. Just run HDMI direct from cable box to TV and optical or coax from cable box to receiver. There's nothing more than 5.1 on TV anyway so you won't miss anything, soundwise.

curved

mystik610 wrote: »

You can use a CS2 with the RTi8's and it will sound fine. It won't voice-match perfectly, but Polk centers can be interchanged with different series fronts and voice-match pretty well.

RTi8's + CS2 would sound better than Monitor 70's with a CS2.

IMO, it doesn't sound better. If you go with the 8's, get the CSi series. If you go with the M70's, go with the CS series.

cnh

lmacmil wrote: »

From what I read on AVS Forum, this is a very common problem. Just run HDMI direct from cable box to TV and optical or coax from cable box to receiver. There's nothing more than 5.1 on TV anyway so you won't miss anything, soundwise.

+1,

That's exactly right..at this point there is no need for HDMI sound from a cable box...optical will do DolbyD 5.1 fine and that's almost all HDTV broadcasts!

cnh

wutadumsn23

lmacmil wrote: »

From what I read on AVS Forum, this is a very common problem. Just run HDMI direct from cable box to TV and optical or coax from cable box to receiver. There's nothing more than 5.1 on TV anyway so you won't miss anything, soundwise.

Agreed

curved wrote: »

IMO, it doesn't sound better. If you go with the 8's, get the CSi series. If you go with the M70's, go with the CS series.

Agreed

cnh wrote: »

+1,

That's exactly right..at this point there is no need for HDMI sound from a cable box...optical will do DolbyD 5.1 fine and that's almost all HDTV broadcasts!

cnh

Agreed

LOL, thanks for doing the hard work for me guys.

-Jeff

CrazyJimmy

Ok looks like that's what I'll do. Thanks guys!

These RTIA7 's are sounding better as they break in, warmer and fuller. My Denon 1910 has no pre outs, I purchased it 'cos it sounded so much better than the Pioneer vsx23 that I started with. Now I'm wondering if I should find another receiver that has the pre outs due to the number of people here that are recommending a seperate amp for these speakers. I'm not looking for volume, just well balanced sound. I have time to change my mind and return the Denon and get the Pioneer, it has pre-outs.

I am currently running the Denon with the fronts bi-amped.

Will I regret not having pre-outs later? I think only Yamaha and Pioneer have pre-outs in my price range.

lynx

^^^
Do you like the way your speakers sound with the 1910 ? If you do, why not stick with it for a while. If you don't like how the Pioneer sounds, chances are you still wouldn't like it even with an external amp.

lmacmil

CrazyJimmy wrote: »

Now I'm wondering if I should find another receiver that has the pre outs due to the number of people here that are recommending a seperate amp for these speakers. I'm not looking for volume, just well balanced sound.

If you don't need the volume, then another amp isn't going to do anything. Every receiver has ruler flat response across the audible spectrum. A different receiver and another amp aren't going to change the sound (unless its setup program comes up with a different analysis and adjusts frequencies accordingly).

CrazyJimmy

Thanks, I'm sticking with the Denon for now.

wutadumsn23

Probably a good idea to keep what you have for a little while. Let those speakers break in and see how it suits you. If you still don't like it, then sell the Denon and try something else.

-Jeff

GTB

CrazyJimmy wrote: »

Thanks, I'm sticking with the Denon for now.

I'm running a Denon 790. Yes, I wish it had pre-outs but overall I'm very pleased with its performance regarding both audio and video.

Since I'm running a 5.1 system my next upgrade step is to bi-amp the RTi8's, which is simply running the wires and then setting the option in the Denon.

Next upgrade is the sub.

wutadumsn23

GTB wrote: »

Since I'm running a 5.1 system my next upgrade step is to bi-amp the RTi8's, which is simply running the wires and then setting the option in the Denon..

Probably won't see much of a difference IMHO, but if you have the wires might as well give it a shot.

-Jeff

CrazyJimmy

Ok GTB,

I would be interested to see if you notice a difference bi-amping the 790. I bi-amped the 1910 and it sounds clearer in the upper bass/lower mid frequencies. Not sure if that's just my ears playing tricks. I believe in the case of bi-amping the 790/1910 Denon the signal that gets sent to the upper drivers is identical to the signal going to the lows, so technically it is not a true bi-amp set-up. Passive maybe.

A true bi-amp system would seperate higher frequencies from lower frequencies before amplifying, then send the signals to the appropriate drivers. Does it give more headroom perhaps? Ultimately the amplifier has only so much power. I notice that many AVR's now have a bi-amp option, so what's the advantage? Maybe we'd have to ask the engineer who designed the AVR.

BTW I'm also researching subs at the moment. Can't decide on a Polk DSW or an HSU.