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emaidel
02-09-2010, 05:35 AM
A good friend of mine wants to upgrade his system, and buy a new pair of speakers, so he asked me for recommendations. Since I've been out of the industry for so many years, I haven't kept up with the very latest, and newest, etc. in speaker design, and quite frankly, don't feel at all qualified to give him an honest recommendation.

One thing I did see though, was an ad from J&R Music World for a Polk speaker (model RTi10) for 50% off - $249.95 each, rather than $499.95 each. They also advertise an upscale Polk model - the RTi12 - at the same discount ($399.95 each, as opposed to $899.95 each).

Polk always made decent, if unremarkable speakers, but at these prices I thought they would be a good choice. I really don't know how much my friend wants to spend, but I would assume he would spend at least $500 for the pair, but not as much as $1,000.

He has a decent, but old, Luxman receiver with about 60 watts per channel. Any other recommendations, and am I on the right track with my suggestions?

harley .guy07
02-09-2010, 12:04 PM
Polk audio in my opinion is not the company they once were but they have a couple of speakers that are ok for the money and the two you mentioned are ok if discounted but I would not spend even close to retail for them. There are plenty of choices out there in this price class and if he is willing to buy used on Audiogon he could find a heck of a lot better speaker for the same money. In the 500 the 800 dolllar class I could think of several Paradigms speakers that could kill the Polks in my opinion. If both you and your friend have been out of the audio world for a while I would honestly suggest you go out and find out what kind of sound that your friend is after, If he likes bright and detailed, or warm and non fatiguing. That will have more to do with what brands and models of speakers he needs to be looking for and in today's world there are so many types of sounding speakers out there it really takes a person to listen to the different types to get a feeling for what he is wanting. If there is a high end shop in your area I would suggest you and him go over there and do some listening and see what is out there and what kind of sound he is looking for. Once you find out what kind of sound you like then when you ask us on this forum for speaker recommendations and have a sound character in mind I am sure many many people on this forum will be able to tell you which models will fill the bill the best for the sound you are looking for and will be able to be driven by the power you have to get the best out of them.

emaidel
02-09-2010, 12:11 PM
Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, there aren't any high end shops anywhere near us, and I certainly don't think Best Buy is a decent place to go to listen to speakers, nor for that matter is H.H. Gregg.

My friend adores my Dahlquist DQ-10's and their accompanying Definitive Technology powered sub, but they are far too big for him, and his receiver isn't anywhere near powerful enough to drive them. Now, if there were a floorstanding speaker pair that sounded like the DQ-10/sub combination, that he could buy for $500, THAT would make him a happy fellow! And, I'm sure it would make plenty of other folks happy too!

I never was a huge fan of Polk speakers myself either, but I thought that a 50% off sale might provide at least a decent speaker. I intend to go to our local H.H. Gregg (who sells them) and take a quick listen.

Mr Peabody
02-09-2010, 08:18 PM
I heard a pair of Dali bookshelf driven by some NAD gear that sounded good, they were about $675.00 full retail but not sure the model.

LeRoy is really enthusiastic about the sound of his Mordaunt Short which run a bit over $200.00 a pair.

If his Luxman is like the units I've heard I'd stick with a sensitive speaker that leans to the warm side.

LeRoy
02-09-2010, 08:57 PM
Yes, Mr. Peabody is right. I really endorse the Mordaunt Short Avant 902i bookshelf speaker and it's about $225/pr. Properly set up they can deliver a sound field similar to a small floor stander. These speakers have an immediacy about them that just draws you into the music right away.

If your buddy is more inclined/prefers a bass dominant speaker then the Mordaunt Short Aviano 2 might be a consideration. This speaker is a larger bookshelf than the 902's and retail it's about $500.00. It's not as snappy as the 902's and does not have an edge to the HF like the 902's but it images really great and goes pretty low for a bookshelf.

Here is a link for the AV2 if you're interested.

http://www.accessories4less.com/index.php

Here is the link for the Avant 902i
http://www.needledoctor.com/Online-Store/speakers

Want to read reviews?
http://www.mordauntshort.com/reviews.php