LSi & RTi A speakers in a HT setup

[jprussna]

I would like to know if the sound would be comprimised with the following 5.1 system speaker setup.

Front Lsi 7
Center Csi A4
Rear Fxi A4
Sub PSW 303

My receiver is able to support 4 ohm for the front only and why not take advantage of it. Would the setup sound better with the RTi A3 instead of the LSi 7.

Thank you so much for your comments.

[MADGSF]

Welcome to the club jprussna.

I have not tried mixing the front three in my system before. However the general consensus is mixing the front three is not the best idea. Next the LSi speakers will sound better overall if your receiver can drive them properly. Have you considered a LSi-C to go with the 7's?

[Jer.War]

Right now I am running LSI15's for my fronts, with a CSI3 center. The combo is not ideal as the two series of speakers do sound quite different. However, they ARE both polk speaker so it doesnt sound terrible. If you listen to 2 channel at all keep the LSI's as they sound fantastic (IMO of course). I definately notice the CSI3 as a weak point (the mids arent as full, and the tweeter is much brighter) and am hoping to snag a LSIC soon. The LSIc doesn't come cheap, but I think it is well worth the money; also, it is a 4 ohm speaker so beware you AVR may not like it, but you could always use a cooling fan....
Overall I think if you already have the LSI7's dont get rid of them, just use what you have and uprgrade the an LSIC in the future. The 3 speakers together will sound great. When I first got my CSI3 I was blown away by the detail and crispness of the sound. It wasnt until I hooked up my LSI15's that I started to crave more (now I have the upgrade addiction to get the rest of the system caught up). If you have all the gear now, just hook it up and take a listen, but I dont think you will be disappointed though they arent perfectly matched, I have heard many HT setups with center channels made my a completely different manufacterer than the front and they sound fine. The CSI will blend decently w/ the LSI, IMO.

Hope this helps, happy listening :)
Jeremy

[F1nut]

It's called timbre matching, which basically means that the "voicing" matches. When you use speakers with different tweeters/drivers, the voicing will not match and can cause things to sound......well, not quite right.

[PSOVLSK]

I'd go with the 7's, especially if you listen to much music. The 7's sound really good and as mentioned, you can always upgrade to an LSiC in the future if necessary.

[ben62670]

Welcome to Club Polk.
Your receiver may state that it is 4ohm compatible, but really doesn't do the LSI's justice. Look at an amp for at least the L/R speakers. What receiver are you running?
Ben

[jprussna]

I appreciate the warm welcome and valuable responses.

To answer Ben's question, I am running a Yamaha RXV-1700 receiver. I think my wife and I are steering away from the bookshelf speakers for the front in general. Since it is recommended to have the fronts at ear height we have decided to go with some floorstander’s instead of breaking out additional speaker stands for elavation.

So, currently the line-up is:

Front RTi A5
Center Csi A4
Rear Rti A1

We think not to get a subwoofer as we are not big on bass and decided to swap the FXi A4 with the RTi A1 for the Rear as we more listen to multi-channel music than watching movies. If we are on the wrong path here please let us know. Enjoyed hearing from you.

Jens

[ben62670]

If your Yami has preouts you would be wise to invest in an amp for the LSI's. Stick around, and use the search feature. You'll be glad you did.
Ben