# Polk vs Klipsch



## Richard in Idaho

First, let me say I hate which is best type questions. That is not what I want here.

Am looking at Polk RTiA7 and Klipsch RF82 II. Local store has both at the same price. I listen to all kinds of music.

The questions is way would you buy one over the other?

Also why would you pay an extra $300 for the Polk RTiA9 over the others?

Thanks


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## IrishStout

I too have been down this road.. not that I am in any way close to an expert of as knowledgeable as many on this board.. but I have a feeling many might tell you.. what do your own ears tell you?


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## DanTheMan

Generally the Polk will be less efficient than the Klipsch but may be a little easier to listen to in the long run. That later part may not be the case, but that's probably how many people will see (hear) the issue. For that money I'd look to the Mackie HR series, but that's just me.

Dan


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## Guest

How do they sound to you?

Do you like the sound of the horn?

The Klipsch has one major advantage over the Polk, and that is it is much more efficient. What size room and amp do you plan on using? How loudly do you want to play your music/movies?


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## GranteedEV

Honest answer:

I would not buy either. 

Not trying to sway your decision, but audition lots of speakers before you make an investment. Bring well recorded albums which you are familiar with and listen for long periods of time. Read as many objective reviews (ie with measurements) as you can. If you can, look around for some Infinity 363s among many other speakers. During any auditions, make sure to pay attention to the midrange. That is where most of the heart of music tends to be. A bit of extra bass or forward treble might impress you initially but don't try to go in looking to be "impressed" or to impress others. Try to listen for balance and vocal clarity. The last thing you want is a speaker where the midrange is drowned out or lacks detail. Speakers with big paper woofers at the entry level in particular will give you a muddy mid range and usually excess bass and bright highs.

Consider directivity too. "Does this speaker sound good at one spot, or at many spots? Would this speaker function well in my room?". And on that note, once you've found speakers which sound right, try to audition in room. What sounds good in a big, wide, padded room may not sound good in a small, reflective room. 

FWIW if I had to choose between the two I'd go for the klipsch as I feel they are more dynamic but I also feel they are somewhat colored loudspeakers.

I'm a believer that rushing into any purchase without patience and research is a bad idea. While not everyone gets buyer's remorse, I do feel there's usually better bang for buck for everyone if they make their shopping patiently. Also consider DIY kits if you've got the woodworking ability.


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## vann_d

The klipsch gen II ref series sound a lot warmer than the previous IMO. The efficiency is also great to have. I'd choose them over the Polk but you need to listen for yourself.


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## Dale Rasco

I to would slow down and audition other brands. There are a lot of quality speaker manufacturers out there that are well within your price range that I personally feel would be better than either of the two you mentioned. Try to find a place that has a listening room that is similar in size to your own room as well.


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## mdrake

GranteedEV said:


> Honest answer:
> 
> I would not buy either.
> 
> Not trying to sway your decision, but audition lots of speakers before you make an investment. Bring well recorded albums which you are familiar with and listen for long periods of time. Read as many objective reviews (ie with measurements) as you can. If you can, look around for some Infinity 363s among many other speakers. During any auditions, make sure to pay attention to the midrange. That is where most of the heart of music tends to be. A bit of extra bass or forward treble might impress you initially but don't try to go in looking to be "impressed" or to impress others. Try to listen for balance and vocal clarity. The last thing you want is a speaker where the midrange is drowned out or lacks detail. Speakers with big paper woofers at the entry level in particular will give you a muddy mid range and usually excess bass and bright highs.
> 
> Consider directivity too. "Does this speaker sound good at one spot, or at many spots? Would this speaker function well in my room?". And on that note, once you've found speakers which sound right, try to audition in room. What sounds good in a big, wide, padded room may not sound good in a small, reflective room.
> 
> FWIW if I had to choose between the two I'd go for the klipsch as I feel they are more dynamic but I also feel they are somewhat colored loudspeakers.
> 
> I'm a believer that rushing into any purchase without patience and research is a bad idea. While not everyone gets buyer's remorse, I do feel there's usually better bang for buck for everyone if they make their shopping patiently. Also consider DIY kits if you've got the woodworking ability.


Amen, I think for the money they are asking you can do better with SVS or another less marketed brand. Diy is another great option!

Matt


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## lsiberian

Look at SVS, and Infinity too.


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## Richard in Idaho

They will have to be in my liing room which is 13.75' by 16.25' with a 7.5 ceiling.
I am very limited as to what I can listen to locally. Both of the above are at RC Willey. There is a Stereo shop the has PSB Image T5 and B&W 683 on the floor. That is it. I am not in a hurry so will try to check out others when I am in larger cities. 

Thanks for the replies so far.


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## DanTheMan

Read this: http://seanolive.blogspot.com/2009/04/dishonesty-of-sighted-audio-product.html
Know that you, me, he, she and they are not above sight bias. Look into the McGurk effect to see just how powerful sight is. Blind listening exposes audible differences more accurately. Blind listeners prefer loudspeakers that have a flat on and smooth off axis response with a flatter wavefront/wider dispersion being 'heard' as more detailed and spacious. Then check out these databases of loudspeaker measurements:
http://www.soundstagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=16&Itemid=18
http://www.stereophile.com/category/floor-loudspeaker-reviews
http://www.stereophile.com/category/stand-loudspeaker-reviews

This thread is a good one with some real meat starting here:
http://www.hometheatershack.com/for...o-monitors-2030-others-active-passive-11.html
That whole thread is chock full of great stuff. This is the best I can do to teach a man to fish. Everyone is going to have their individual favorites during sighted listening. Blind, the variance narrows dramatically.

Dan


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## GranteedEV

Richard in Idaho said:


> They will have to be in my liing room which is 13.75' by 16.25' with a 7.5 ceiling.
> I am very limited as to what I can listen to locally. Both of the above are at RC Willey. There is a Stereo shop the has PSB Image T5 and B&W 683 on the floor. That is it. I am not in a hurry so will try to check out others when I am in larger cities.
> 
> Thanks for the replies so far.


PSB and B&W make quality speakers. Definitely two brands worth an audition. (So is Klipsch just not their lower end stuff.)

Also , many internet direct brands allow you to audition their products in your own room for a couple weeks and if you're not satisfied, you can return. A couple will even pay return shipping, but at worst you really only end up paying for just shipping, and at best of course you've saved hundreds of dollars in performance. The savings to be had in internet direct are rather noticible in my opinion as these brands rely on word-of-keyboard and good objectively measurable results rather than a certain :first impression: approach. 

The afformentioned SVSound, just for example, has this policy:



> 45 day money back guarantee.
> 
> If you are not completely satisfied with the performance of your SVS speaker or subwoofer, return it to us for a full refund of the purchase price. Just a few minor stipulations should you choose to do this:
> 
> * Products must be returned in original shipping boxes.
> * E-mail SVS for a return authorization number and display this on the outside of the box.
> * Subwoofer and/or speaker must be insured during return shipping.
> * Shipping costs are not refundable.
> 
> 3 Year Warranty against defects in materials and workmanship for subwoofers and associated components. Any product in need of repair must be returned to SVS, with shipping pre-paid. SVS will repair or replace any item at its discretion and return to the customer as soon as possible. Naturally, this warranty does not cover any product subjected to misuse or accidental damage. Products which clearly have been abused will be subject to cost-based charges for repair. In some cases repair parts can be sent when appropriate to expedite a "return to duty".
> 
> Except as provided above, SVSound North America makes no other warranties expressed or implied. Some states do not permit limitation or exclusion of implied warranties, so exclusions may not apply to the purchaser.
> 
> The Bottom Line: We’re proud of these subwoofers and speakers, and want you to be as happy owning them as we are selling them to you! Anything less is simply not acceptable. E-mail us if you have any warranty questions.


Internet direct brands to look into include but are not limited to EMP Tek, Salk Sound, Aperion Audio, Emotiva Audio, and Ascend Acoustics, JTR Speakers, and Funky Waves to name just a few. All of these guys are very open and you can discuss things carefully with them, just like at a hi fi shop.

For brick and mortar brands, PSB and B&W are certainly a nice place to start. Also get in touch with brands like

Revel
Atlantic Technology
RBH Sound
Boston Acoustics
Jamo
Martin Logan
Magnepan
Usher
Quad

to find out if any dealers in nearby towns/cities do carry them. That way you've got a bit of a plan going forward. When auditioning, always make sure to turn the volume to levels that you think you might occasionally listen at, and find out what sort of amplification is necssary (if possible, ask dealers for impedance graphs as they are very useful). While you may normally listen at quiet levels and be fine with average amplification, there may be the occasional evening where you decide to listen/watch movies at cinematic reference levels. You need to know the dynamic capabilities of your speakers BEFORE you purchase. I won't tell you what is an acceptable dynamic capability because that truly depends on _you,_ but the THX certification _usually _is a speaker which can handle 105 db peaks at a reasonable seating distance with reasonable amplification without power compression. 

For DIY kits, Zaph Audio has currently offers two very nice kits via madisound - an SB acoustics kit and a Zaph 5.5tt kit. These are just plain well engineered loudspeakers. Although if you're interested in going that route we can guide you a bit more over at the DIY Speakers forum and give you more suggestions. I just thought I'd make the suggestion. DIY speaker building can be very fun and with a kit, won't be very difficult. You can get it built in the winter, and then decide how you want to finish it once summer rolls around. I won't say you have full control over the looks department, but definitely can make it your own with custom veneers or paint jobs and other little touches.


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## sga2

Hello and welcome to Home Theater Shack! I agree that you should consider other brands and don't be arfraid to deal with internet-only companies. However, to answer your original question between these two... I've owned several Polk lines (currently have LSi7 bookshelves in my living room) and Klipsch Reference (towers, center and surrounds in my home theater). Based on these I would offer the following:

Klipsch Reference wins hands down for home theater and "heavy" music (rock and roll, rap, metal, techno, etc.) aterial and are very easy to drive. Also, the sound quality is about the same regardless of volume level and they seem to have a generous sweet spot.

All of the Polks I've owned handle "delicate" music (classical, vocal, strings, opera, etc.) better than my Klipsch Reference speakers. However, they all really needed to be at moderate to high volumes before they open up sonically. And I think the sweet spot is a little tighter than with the Klipsch speakers.

That said, the next time I need more speakers I will probably audition SVS first. I own two of their subs and could not be happier with the performance or their customer service.

Regards,
sga2


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## ojojunkie

I agree with others to do more audions of different brands available in your area. I don't either because I'm happy with my Paradigm Studio Reference. But it that's your choices I'll go for klipsch which I think more effecient and better quality than polks..


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## vann_d

If you want reference level I suggest the Klipsch.

The Klipsch are rated for what, 98db 2.83v/m? The Polks at 89db? That 9 db difference in sensitivity means you need 8x more power to achieve the same SPL with the Polks. This means increased amp headroom for greater dynamic range with Klipsch. Power them with your A/V receiver...unless you want to spend another $1k on an amp to get you to halfway there with Polk.


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## IrishStout

I am currently auditioning the SVS STS-02 and centre and they are pretty awesome speakers for the cost. The sound much fuller then the T5's. I personally was not sas impressed with them. The T6 althought more expensive was closer in sound to the chepaer SVS's. I am going to go pick up the B&W 685 to compare them to the STS. The B&W's impressed me in the show room, they are a Bookshelf speaker however. I would then compare the SVS closer to the RF82 then the RF62's in regards to fullness. However the STS-02 require a sub whereas with the RF82's you might be able to get away from purchasing a sub for now? Anyway audition and listen.. best advice I have recieved.. just need some patients


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## DanTheMan

Irish, that's part of the reason I say look to the measurements--it's much faster and more comprehensive. Of course the scarcity of them makes it difficult to find the models you've actually heard so you can get a real feel for what those measurements mean. Really, I'd only buy a set of speakers that I either knew how they measured or had reasonable assurance that they'll measure well.

maybe just me,

Dan


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## IrishStout

DanTheMan said:


> Irish, that's part of the reason I say look to the measurements--it's much faster and more comprehensive. Of course the scarcity of them makes it difficult to find the models you've actually heard so you can get a real feel for what those measurements mean. Really, I'd only buy a set of speakers that I either knew how they measured or had reasonable assurance that they'll measure well.
> 
> maybe just me,
> 
> Dan


That assuming you know how to read the measurements, I personally have looked at them and they are a little greek to me. :dontknow:

But for sure hte more tols you have in your decision making usually means that when it comes time to make your decision you should be pretty sure you've made the right one :T


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## GranteedEV

IrishStout said:


> That assuming you know how to read the measurements, I personally have looked at them and they are a little greek to me. :dontknow:
> 
> But for sure hte more tols you have in your decision making usually means that when it comes time to make your decision you should be pretty sure you've made the right one :T


Maybe someone should write a FAQ on how to read, interpret, and apply important measurements (for speakers I guess these would be frequency response, polar response, impulse response, spectral decay, impedance/electical phase angle, power compression?)

I'm too lazy though :whistling:

FWIW SVS speakers have quality measurements from what I've seen. Clearly they take their engineering seriously.


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## DanTheMan

I believe I have some of that info in my blog: http://dtmblabber.blogspot.com/ Not a ton, but the basics boil down to you want a flat listening axis response with a smooth but falling off axis--falling more in the treble. Bass frequencies--under 300 Hz or so are dominated by room resonances/modes and Boundary interferences. IOW, the room is the source there. A broader response through the midband/treble will increase your sense of space and detail. Many say that a narrower will have better imaging. The broad lobe guys will say imaging will be improved by front wall absorption and you need it no matter what. Maybe I should add this in great detail to my blog and just start referring people to it. Call it like "what we hear in our theaters" or something. Dr. Toole's book is filled with all the studies done on this and it's excellent reading. Of course if you have Auddyssey, it sort of does this for you. Still, above the modal region, you can't fix the speaker problem with eq or treatment. You can only make it more listenable.

Dan


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## DanTheMan

IrishStout said:


> That assuming you know how to read the measurements, I personally have looked at them and they are a little greek to me. :dontknow:
> 
> But for sure hte more tols you have in your decision making usually means that when it comes time to make your decision you should be pretty sure you've made the right one :T


OK, I started a little thing on my blog so we can all better interpret loudspeaker measurements. There's plenty more to come, but this will help get a way to reason through things. It's sort of what I see as the very start of what we should look for with a loudspeaker.
http://dtmblabber.blogspot.com/

If anyone has anything they'd like to add or that I need to edit, just let me know.

Thanks, 

Dan


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## Jungle Jack

Hello,
The increased Efficiency of the Klipschs thanks to their Horn Loaded Design cannot be ignored. Especially if using an Entry Level AVR. Provided the Sound Quality is pleasing, the Klipschs ability to output Reference Level SPL's with just a handful of Watts is a major advantage.
Cheers,
JJ


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## Richard in Idaho

I just want to say thanks to all who posted. Only been at the Shack for a couple of weeks. I must say this is the best HT site I have found.:bigsmile:


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## Jungle Jack

Richard,
Glad to be of help. Do let us know what you end up going with.
Cheers,
JJ


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## DanTheMan

Cool! Nice to hear.

Dan


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