Warrenh
There is no disputing taste. You like(love maybe?) your monitors so of course, they are perfect for you. That doesn't make pbawcutt option of Polk's LSi9s any less valid. I'll repeat what I said earlier though, if you get a chance, listen to those speakers without any prejudice and you'll see they are very impressive. |
Warren:
Just out of curiosity; have you heard the Polk LSi9's?? I ask you because if you're thinking polk sound from Circuit City, then you're off. This speakers are another beast altogether and are very, VERY good sounding speakers. If you're dissing them just because of the "Polk name" I think you might be missing the big picture. Polk is a big company with resources that small speaker manufacturers could only dream about. If they put their minds into it, they can create good things because of those resources...and that's precisely what they attempted with their LSi line.
I have listened to the LSi9s and LSi15s and let me tell you; they are a screaming bargain at the price. The LSi9s are revealing speakers, with a very natural sounding midrange, and very extended, sweet highs. By the way, they use one of the best tweeters availables, Vifa's Dual Ring Radiator Tweeter(also used in Krell speakers, AudioPhysics, and some Sonus Faber's more expensive speakers). I think pbawcutt would do fine in changing his source, and his speakers will reveal how good the new source is.
I would suggest, if you haven't, you give those speakers a listen(hint: you won't find them in Circuit City) preferably on a good rig. Try to be objective, and forget about you "not being a fan" of Polk...
If you want to read some GLOWING reviews go to:
http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/polk_lsi9.htm here Doug Schneider of Soundstage.com! reviewed the lsi9, or you can go t:
http://www.onhifi.com/product/polk_lsi15.htm
http://www.onhifi.com/product/2002_productsoftheyear.htm
where Wes Philips raves about the Lsi15s and even gave them the product of the year award for 2002. |
Warrenh:
Add me to that list...The Revels(the M20s anyway) are technologically impressive, and have many virtues to them, but they were clinical, to my ears. Again, its all a matter of preference and not about whether or not one is absolutely better than the other. |
Pbawcutt:
I think you're right in upgrading your source. Since you already have a Simaudio integrated, why don't you try one of their CD Players like the Moon Nova or Moon Equinox. That Rotel player you talked about has gotten some good reviews, and is creating a bit of a buzz, so maybe you should check it out. Your LSi9 speakers will reveal changes made upstream, and will only get better as your surrounding equipment gets better.
One thing about the LSi speakers is; they like power. Their impedance is a bit low, so they like amplifiers with high current capability and a high damping factor(very low output impedance).
I now run a system that among other things uses a pair of Polk LSi15s, Perreaux R200i integrated, and a Simaudio Moon Nova LE CD Player. By audiophile standards, I'm nuts(which is why I'm not an audiophile but a music lover). You see, no audiophile would ever consider mating over $7500 of electronics to a pair of $1500 speakers, but guess what?? I am extremely happy with it.
I may(or may not) upgrade my speakers eventually, but believe me, I've gone through several amplifier, source, and cables upgrades already without touching my speakers. In fact, right now I'm actually considering a power conditioner solution more so than I'm considering a speaker change.
Hope this helps... |
Warrenh:
You said: "True, I've never heard your monitors, but I have heard much more expensive Polks, that couldn't go tete at tete with any of the monitors I mentioned."
That right there, says it all...I don't mean to knock on you, but like a friend of mine said once: "If you don't know, you don't know".
Until you listen to those monitors in particular, you really can't judge. You can't judge their sound from what you heard of other Polk models from the past, no matter how expensive they were, because they are different. Technology evolves, so does speaker building knowledge. The LSi line is quite possibly the best line of speakers Polk has ever built, regardless of what previous models costed.
I'll tell you what something. I've never listened to your monitors, but I've listened to the Revel M20s, for all their virtues(and they have many), to my ears they seem clinical. I've listened to the B&W N805, and I prefer the Polks...That doesn't mean I haven't heard speakers I didn't like more than the Polks. I heard a pair of Thiel CS2.4 at a friend's house, and those are DAMN impressive speakers. But even those, are not without drawbacks.
And ultimately that's what we're talking about here, preference and taste. Like I said before, there is no arguing matters of taste. Taste(preference) needs no justification, it is what it is...
You like your monitors, God bless you for that. Listen and enjoy them. Now, THAT doesn't make anyone else's choice any less valid. Nor does it necessarily makes your speakers or any of the ones you mentioned any better than the Polks. They are different, and they appeal to different tastes.
Some audiophiles love tube amps and swear by them...as of right now, I wouldn't spend a dime on a tube amp. That's me, that's my choice, but it doesn't make tube amps invalid, or bad choices. Just not my cup of tea. I'm just an engineer who hates putting up with inconvenience...and I'm not an audiophile, just a music lover. |
One more thing Warrenh...
About me being nuts, I know it was tongue in cheek and all so I wasn't offended. But I'll tell you something. Your power conditioner, costs almost twice as much as your CD Player, and as much as your integrated amp. By your own line of thinking, that would be a wrong choice, you should have spent more money on your digital source(and amp), improving it as much as you could(maybe get an Audio Aero Capitole) before addressing the power conditioning solution.
By audiophile standards, that's nuts too. "Adiophile wisdom" says: you should have all of your components in order before addressing power conditioning.
Nevertheless, you're extremely happy with your system. So who's to say you're wrong?? Not me, that's for sure. Hell, I'm happy that you've found audio nirvana. I'm the guy that has over $7500 worth of electronics hooked up to a pair of $1500 speakers...I don't follow "Audiophile Wisdom"...I just buy what my ears like.
Again, is all a matter of preferences... |
Warrenh:
Some things in life defie explanation...taste being one of those things. The Revels are great speakers, and are perfect for people who demand their sound. Great detail, great imaging, very revealing...
Obviously there is a lot of technology going into them. Floyd Toole, head of research at Revel is considered by many people one of the greatest researchers in speaker building. He was head of Canada's NRC, and those people have produced more technical, VALIDATED data about speakers than anybody else...Anyway Revel designs its own drivers, crossovers, etc...
After all is said and done, they don't appeal to me. I respect them and I think they are great speakers, just not my cup of tea...and I certainly don't think that all those virtues make them automatically better than something like The Amphion Argons2, the Von Schweikert VR-1, or the Polk LSi9s...nor the fact that I like those speakers more than the Revels, make them better. They are different.
I'll give you a car analogy...
Mercedes Benz, fine cars, great technology, great engineering...for whatever reason, they don't move me, and that's that. I respect them and I appreciate what they offer, I can see why people love them so much, but they are still not my cup of tea.
Having said all that, I stand by what I said, if you haven't heard the Polk LSi9s then you can't really judge them, because they are not like Polk speakers of the past...
In fact you should listen to them, without any Polk prejudice and WITH a good choice of electronics.
I'm sorry about the delayed and so general response, but work's been kicking my in the rear end all day... |
Warrenh
I got your email. I'm sorry I hadn't responded yet, I was on travel and didn't get to read your email until tuesday. To make matters worse my computer at home has been acting up big time, freezing on me, which is weird because I've never seen that happen with Windows XP. I believe is my video card(cause ever since I installed it, I've been having trouble with it). Anyway I'll try fixing it tonight and responding to your email.
I'll tell you though, first I don't take any of these discussions too seriously, so don't think by any chance I was offended or bothered, or anything like that by you disagreeing with me. Hell, I enjoy a spirited, respectful discussion as much as the next guy.
My whole point about this hobby, is that there is a certain level of performance, where taste starts to become more important than whether or not a piece of gear is "better or worse" than anotherone. I believe the LSi9s approach that level of performance. Like I said, this hobby is about enjoying the music, and the choice of gear is a matter of preference...and there is no arguing preference.
I agree with you on some of the things you mentioned on the email, specially the speakers stands issue. Oh...and no I don't own the LSi9s, but I've auditioned them extensively. I do own the LSi15s which are floorstanding speakers.
Anyway have a good day. I'll try emailing you back later today. |
