Polk R50 vs. Infinity Alpha 50...both are $599 at Circuit City

pbc74
pbc74 Posts: 63
edited March 2004 in Speakers
Flame suit on. Try not to be biased about this one. Circuit City just lowered the price on the Infinity Alpha 50 from $999 to $599. Even though I prefer Polk Audio, I'm always looking for an upgrade in sound (and I can make this upgrade practically free of charge at CC). Do you think the Infinity Alpha 50s are better than the Polk R50s when both are priced at $599?
Main system:

Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
Cable- Monster Cable XP

Bedroom Setup:

fronts- Polk R50
surrounds- Polk R30
center- CS1
sub- Sony 50 watt
AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
Cable- Monster Cable XP
Post edited by pbc74 on
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Comments

  • PolkThug
    PolkThug Posts: 7,532
    edited March 2004
    You've got apples and oranges there. The R50 is Polk's lower line and the Alpha's are Infinity's mid-line. CC raised the prices of the R50 when Polk ran the free subwoofer promo. You need to compare the Rti8's(or 10's) to the Alpha 50's. I like the Rti8's better.

    Regards,
    PolkThug
  • pbc74
    pbc74 Posts: 63
    edited March 2004
    ^^^^ yeah, so if I can get infinity's mid line for the same price, then it's a better deal right?
    Main system:

    Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
    Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
    Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
    Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
    Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
    Cable- Monster Cable XP

    Bedroom Setup:

    fronts- Polk R50
    surrounds- Polk R30
    center- CS1
    sub- Sony 50 watt
    AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
    Cable- Monster Cable XP
  • trinhl
    trinhl Posts: 36
    edited March 2004
    Hi,

    I had the Alpha40 and Rti70 side by side at home for about a month. I picked the RTi70 and returned the Alpha40. The RTi70 sounded very balance overall which I prefered. The Alpha 40 didn't sound balance at all, the high octave dominent over the lower octave. One problem I had with the RTi70 is the magnetic distortion with my TV, tried two pairs and Polk customer service couldn't help. I ended up with the Lsi7 without any problem and very happy with them, open up soundstage, high and mid frequency were livelier than the Rti70.
    Just my opinions but you can try the Alpha50 at home to compare.

    LT
  • faster100
    faster100 Posts: 6,124
    edited March 2004
    Not always true, what he is saying i think? is you have to compare to like speakers.. Don't let price dictate your speaker decision, listen to them with comparable speakers and see what you like best.. I first started with a low line of Infinty towers for about a week, tried the now oop Rt55i's from polk which was a book shelf and was blown away how much better they sounded for almost the same price...
    MY HT RIG:
    Sherwood p-965
    Sherwood sd871 dvd
    Rotel 1075 amp x5
    LSI15 mains
    LsiC center
    LSIfx surround backs
    Lsi7 side surrounds
    SVS pb12/plus2


    2 Channel Rig:

    nad 1020 Pre-amp
    Rotel 1080 stereo amp
    Polk sda 2B
    kenwood grunt Tuner
    realistic lab 450 TT
    Signal cable IC
  • PolkThug
    PolkThug Posts: 7,532
    edited March 2004
    The Alpha 50's should sound "better" than the the R50's. However, your 500 series Onkyo is going to have to work really hard (The Alphas are probably being powered by a 900 series Onkyo in the CC dislplay). How much are Rti8's going for at your CC? I think they would be a better match (and better sounding) for your system.

    Regards,
    PolkThug
  • pbc74
    pbc74 Posts: 63
    edited March 2004
    the rti8s are going for $699
    Main system:

    Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
    Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
    Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
    Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
    Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
    Cable- Monster Cable XP

    Bedroom Setup:

    fronts- Polk R50
    surrounds- Polk R30
    center- CS1
    sub- Sony 50 watt
    AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
    Cable- Monster Cable XP
  • pbc74
    pbc74 Posts: 63
    edited March 2004
    faster100- I'm prolly gonna go listen to them tonight after work. I'll compare the 8s to the Alpha 50s.
    Main system:

    Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
    Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
    Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
    Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
    Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
    Cable- Monster Cable XP

    Bedroom Setup:

    fronts- Polk R50
    surrounds- Polk R30
    center- CS1
    sub- Sony 50 watt
    AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
    Cable- Monster Cable XP
  • bigsexy1
    bigsexy1 Posts: 557
    edited March 2004
    The Alpha 50 will DESTROY the R50. They are not in the same ball park. Hell, they aren't even in the same league.
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    the R50's are also not worth $599 retail.

    I purchased a pair of R30's from CC in June 2003, for $199, FOR THE PAIR. The R30's normally are priced $399 per pair.

    If you could get the R50's for aroud $300-350, then go for it. I love my R30's for sure, but the R50's only add an additional midbass driver. That is not worth $599.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • PolkThug
    PolkThug Posts: 7,532
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by gmorris
    the R50's are also not worth $599 retail.

    Agreed. Like I said, CC raised the price to $599 a pair only after the free sub (202) promo started. Before that, I believe they were $399 a pair, around the same time, I bought a pair of Rti70's for $599 a pair which was the regular price. I remember thinking that it was pretty low of CC to jack the price of the R50's up, but most people never noticed because the two models are kept in seperate rooms.
  • fireshoes
    fireshoes Posts: 3,167
    edited March 2004
    I hate the Infinity Alpha series for music. They're fine for movies. Very brittle highs and terrible build quality for they normally retail for. Just go knock on one of the cabinets to see what I mean. $299 ea is a good deal on them if you like the sound though. I would probably take the R50's over them, and definitely would do the RTi8's first. My store occassionally runs the R50's at $199 each, so you can do better on the price there.

    BTW the Alpha's are being discontinued so you might continue to see better prices on them. The Beta series replaces it.
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    I don't mean to drop a **** in the punch bowl, but at that price point you really should get out of CC and into a specialty shop. There are tons of bookshelf speakers in that range that will kill both the Polks and the Infinities. (B&W comes to mind)

    check out soundstage.com, go to the equipment archives, and read up on the many speakers in the archives that are in that range.

    There is a Von Schweikert dealer in my area that will sell me the VR-1s for $750. If you've never heard the VR-1s, they are one of the most amazing speakers I've ever heard. The term "holographic" imaging was coined for speakers like these.

    My point is, get out and check out some other brands.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • PolkWannabie
    PolkWannabie Posts: 2,763
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by gmorris
    The term "holographic" imaging was coined for speakers like these.
    It was ? ... I must be in the wrong place.
  • sterling bug
    sterling bug Posts: 228
    edited March 2004
    I have the R50"s and I like them very much. Paid $400 for the pair back in Nov. 02. $600 seems pretty steep though.
  • Ceruleance
    Ceruleance Posts: 991
    edited March 2004
    I use polk speakers for music and infinity for HT. My lower priced polk speakers sound better than my infinity's imo, but for home theater it doesn't really matter.

    EDIT:
    also, for the past couple months i've been driving my polk's with a $2500 amplifier and my infinity's with a $900 receiver, so my perceptions on the differences in the way each sounds are probably skewed
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by PolkWannabie
    It was ? ... I must be in the wrong place.

    Not sure what you mean by this.... explain please....
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • PolkThug
    PolkThug Posts: 7,532
    edited March 2004
    gmorris,

    I think he's doing the CC upgrade plan, where you can turn in your speaker pair within a year for a more expensive pair, which would limit him to CC.

    Regards,
    PolkThug
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    PolkThug, how does that upgrade plan work?

    In my case, I bought a pair of R30's in June 2003. Could I take them back and get a pair of say, RTi70's (if they had any left) and pay the difference? I'm not sure how that works.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • PolkThug
    PolkThug Posts: 7,532
    edited March 2004
  • PolkWannabie
    PolkWannabie Posts: 2,763
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by gmorris
    Not sure what you mean by this.... explain please....
    Although the Von Schweikert's are nice speakers, regardless of what their advertising says, they don't employ any technology that would allow for holographic imaging, do they ?
  • pbc74
    pbc74 Posts: 63
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by gmorris
    I don't mean to drop a **** in the punch bowl, but at that price point you really should get out of CC and into a specialty shop. There are tons of bookshelf speakers in that range that will kill both the Polks and the Infinities. (B&W comes to mind)

    check out soundstage.com, go to the equipment archives, and read up on the many speakers in the archives that are in that range.

    There is a Von Schweikert dealer in my area that will sell me the VR-1s for $750. If you've never heard the VR-1s, they are one of the most amazing speakers I've ever heard. The term "holographic" imaging was coined for speakers like these.

    My point is, get out and check out some other brands.


    I would if I could but I'm using Circuit City's upgrade program so I'm limited to what they carry.

    I went to CC last night and listened to the Alpha 50s and they sound much better than my R50s. I may trade them in tonight. It'll be tough to let go of the Polks. It's like trading an aging superstar. You don't wanna do it but you gotta give your home theater team the best chance at winning. If I do, then I'll also trade for some Alpha 20s for surrounds and eventually the Alpha center.

    Thanks for all the repsonses. They were helpful.
    Main system:

    Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
    Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
    Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
    Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
    Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
    Cable- Monster Cable XP

    Bedroom Setup:

    fronts- Polk R50
    surrounds- Polk R30
    center- CS1
    sub- Sony 50 watt
    AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
    Cable- Monster Cable XP
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by PolkWannabie
    Although the Von Schweikert's are nice speakers, regardless of what their advertising says, they don't employ any technology that would allow for holographic imaging, do they ?

    As far as technology goes, I don't think there is anything special. Just well designed cabinets, drivers, and mostly crossovers.

    What I meant by "holographic" imaging was that these little speakers image so well, and produce such a 3 dimensional soundstage, that it is like looking at a holograhpic image. They are just super speakers in the areas of imaging & soundstaging.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by pbc74
    I would if I could but I'm using Circuit City's upgrade program so I'm limited to what they carry.

    I went to CC last night and listened to the Alpha 50s and they sound much better than my R50s. I may trade them in tonight. It'll be tough to let go of the Polks. It's like trading an aging superstar. You don't wanna do it but you gotta give your home theater team the best chance at winning. If I do, then I'll also trade for some Alpha 20s for surrounds and eventually the Alpha center.

    Thanks for all the repsonses. They were helpful.

    Gotcha. Just remember to trust yours ears. It doesn't mean anything just because something is more expensive. That is why I choose the R30's. They sound just fine to me when used with my subwoofer.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • PolkThug
    PolkThug Posts: 7,532
    edited March 2004
    pbc,

    Did you like the sound of the Alpha 50's better than the RTi8's?
  • pbc74
    pbc74 Posts: 63
    edited March 2004
    PolkThug- yeah, I heard the 8s but the speakers I really liked were the Rti110s. I just finished trading my speakers in for the alpha series.

    The key factor was that I was able to trade in all my old speakers for a new infinity set that is on a higher level for under $100 out of pocket expense. I worked the hell out of that upgrade program at CC. I have upgraded 4 different sets of speakers. I started off with some cheap pioneer speakers at CC last April and I kept trading them in for better ones (ex. pioneer towers
    > polk R30
    > polk R50
    >Infinity Alpha 50). I did the same thing with my surrounds and center channel. I couldn't upgrade my subwoofer because I bought it somewhere else but it sounds good to me.

    If I would have upgraded to the higher level Polks, it would have been way more expensive due to the fact that the alpha series is on clearance sale. ...so instead of saving up for a year, I was able to continually upgrade my speakers without spending a whole lotta cheese. I would wait for the sales to hit the speakers I wanted and then I would upgreade. Each time, I would never spend more than $100 to get to the next level.

    Now as far the sound...I like what this set can do. My front towers have a very good full range of sound. I don't have to use my subwoofer when in stereo mode. The Alpha 50s have a good amount of bass on their own. The highs are crisp. The mids are natural. Voices seem to come out a lot clearer with my alpha center than with my old polk csi3. My alpha 20 surrounds were a pleasant suprise. They seem to be more active at low sound levels than my old Polk R20s.

    I don't think that Infinity is better than Polk overall though. They are just different. Polk definitely gives you way more for your money so I would give the edge to Polk by far. I would have never considered infinity if it wasn't for this fire sale at CC. I just had the chance to go from entry level Polks (R50, R20, Csi3) to mid level Infinitys and I ran with it.
    Main system:

    Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
    Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
    Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
    Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
    Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
    Cable- Monster Cable XP

    Bedroom Setup:

    fronts- Polk R50
    surrounds- Polk R30
    center- CS1
    sub- Sony 50 watt
    AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
    Cable- Monster Cable XP
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by pbc74
    PolkThug- yeah, I heard the 8s but the speakers I really liked were the Rti110s. I just finished trading my speakers in for the alpha series.

    What is an "Rti110"? Did you mean the RTi100, which is a powered tower, or maybe the RTi150, which is just a plain bad ****?
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • pbc74
    pbc74 Posts: 63
    edited March 2004
    I meant to say the rti10. They had them on display playing the first Matrix and they sounded amazing to me.
    Main system:

    Fronts: Infinity Alpha 50
    Center: Infinity Alpha 37c
    Surrounds: Infinity Alpha 20
    Receiver: Onkyo TS-XR607
    Subwoofer: Pioneer S-DW1-K
    Cable- Monster Cable XP

    Bedroom Setup:

    fronts- Polk R50
    surrounds- Polk R30
    center- CS1
    sub- Sony 50 watt
    AVR- Onkyo TSXR502
    Cable- Monster Cable XP
  • young
    young Posts: 22
    edited March 2004
    i picked up my set of R50's for $200 from outpost.com a couple of weeks ago. i see them on ebay for about $300/pair.
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    right.

    I think that is odd how they kept the "RTi" part of the name, but change the numbers. In the case of the RIi100 & the RTi10, they are not even comparable models.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.
  • gmorris
    gmorris Posts: 1,179
    edited March 2004
    Originally posted by young
    i picked up my set of R50's for $200 from outpost.com a couple of weeks ago. i see them on ebay for about $300/pair.

    Now that is a bang up good deal...

    How do you like them? I had the R30's until two days ago. I loved those little buggers. They imaged great. Even had decent bass.
    Bob Mayo, on the keyboards. Bob Mayo.