Polk Noob hopes he mad the right choice

[slowhat]

hello ladies and gents. I've read so much of this forum in the past weeks, i figured it was time i joined and posted something.

i've had polk speakers in a my car in the past and loved them. i had a little polk HT sub and loved it. but now i've stepped up my game and began to build a decent HT setup.

Here's what i just sent to hell (i.e. sold on Craigslist):
(don't flame me on the Bose...i was in college at the time)
2x bose 301
1x bose vcs 10 center
2x el cheapo sony bookshelf
1x polk psw 120

all gone.

last week i got 2 polk monitor 40s and a cs1 center channel to go with my recent purchase of an Energy ESW-V10 Sub. I love the combo. the speakers are being pushed by a Denon AVR 788 receiver (90w x 7). (not the most powerful, but thats what i've got for another year or 2...gotta ease the wife into this whole thing.)

last night i saw on newegg polk monitor 70s for 179 each. i bought 2. merry xmas to me. :D

now...i know the cs2 may be a better choice, but i will live with the cs1 for a while. and i don't think i can bi-amp with my AVR so i will not be doing so until i upgrade. Will these speakers still sound decent with 90w going to them?

A) are there any other caveats?
B) should i feel bad for having purchased these?

sorry for the long post but i've been lurking for a long time.

[Pycroft]

Welcome to the Polk Forums...

I think that is a very nice beginner setup! I also started with Polk Monitor's for my home theatre, although I had 50's, 30's and the CS1. I do agree that the CS2 would be a better fit, but you should be fine with what you have until the upgrade can happen. I may suggest doing the auto calibration, and you'll probably have to bump the volume of the CS1 a bit to handle the balance with the Monitor 70's. I don't think there are any caveat's to look for. The AVR will do a fine job running those speakers and subwoofer, although it can always get better with a more powerful amp. That can be said for any system - if you have a 200x7, it could be better with a 400x7, but that's not to say what you have won't sound great!

Enjoy, and check in when you get it hooked up and let us know what you think!

James

[slowhat]

thanks for the welcome.

i think i'll stick around here a bit. the ego's don't seem as bloated as most other A/V forums

and thanks for the reassurance. the avr upgrade might be a in the not so near future...but in the meantime i really wanted to get these while the price was right.

so maybe next year an amp and new avr. but for now as long as i'm not in any risk with my setup i am looking forward to the UPS guy stopping by!!

[mole']

welcome to CP, i myself started off with the Monitor series too. Monitor 50/40 and then added Monitor 70s and a CS2. cs1 should do fine til you can find a CS2.

[tonyb]

Keep the volume dial within reason and you'll be ok untill you can upgrade the receiver. I would gather in surround mode, your pushing only 50 watts or less, depending if you have 7 speakers or 5.

[slowhat]

i have a 5.1 set up. and i'm not planning on going outside of reasonable volumes. i like movies loud, but nothing ridiculous.

thanks for all the input!

[TECHNOKID]

Welcome to the Polk Forums...

I think that is a very nice beginner setup! I also started with Polk Monitor's for my home theatre, although I had 50's, 30's and the CS1. I do agree that the CS2 would be a better fit, but you should be fine with what you have until the upgrade can happen. I may suggest doing the auto calibration, and you'll probably have to bump the volume of the CS1 a bit to handle the balance with the Monitor 70's. I don't think there are any caveat's to look for. The AVR will do a fine job running those speakers and subwoofer, although it can always get better with a more powerful amp. That can be said for any system - if you have a 200x7, it could be better with a 400x7, but that's not to say what you have won't sound great!

Enjoy, and check in when you get it hooked up and let us know what you think!

James

Welcome to Club Polk slowhat :) I am on the same page as Pycroft. Nice starter system, you should do more than fine until budget allows you to upgrade. Watts are not everything so don't worry for now. Your denon 788 had good rating at the time so it should do you fine until you are actually ready for something else.

Cheers!
TK

[djperez81]

welcome to Club Polk

Im a pretty new member myself i was amazed how nice and helpful members are to new people. I myself put my system together on a budget and have to deal with a wife:(. I am in the process of starting to upgrade some of my gear now but what you have sounds like a good starting place. I have been wanting to get a pair of monitor 70's but i love my rta 11t's too much and they sound great with my cs2 and im only running 90 watts a channel.

[dcmartinpc]

Great Start! I am also a Bose convert! PLEASE DON'T FLAME ME! :D I simply didn't know any better. My dad had them, so I got them. Anyways.... I still have a pair of Monitor 70's in the living room (AKA the "Accessible to Kids room!") and I love them. A little EQ'ing and you can get some great sound out of them. And the Cherry Finish meets the WAF.

An external amp can do a LOT of good. I ran the Monitor 70's on my Yamaha receiver (110x7) and they sounded good. I switched to an external amp and then found out what these speakers can do! It fills out the bottom end smooths out the sound. When you are ready to make the move, look for used equipment. I have 4 Parasound amplifiers between all my setups, and not a single one I purchased new... I watch for good deals, then jump.

You will find a wealth of information on this forum. The guys and gals here are great and willing to spill their knowledge and share. I thought I knew a lot when I joined, then learned I have a lot to learn :D

Welcome!!!

Don

[cnh]

Among other things, I have a Denon AVR 2807 (110 watts/channel) so a couple of models up from yours. The 788 is pretty much the same as the AVR 1908--which was a Best Buy in one of the Audio Mags a while back.

Denon's sound 'nice' with Monitors. The M-70s which I also have....do benefit from a lot more power but I've run them on an Onkyo 605 which has similar ratings to your Denon at 90 watts and they were fine.

Enjoy the new set up! Then upgrade to a receiver that has pre-outs so you can feed the 70s some more power. They like it!

cnh

[slowhat]

Technokid- i appreciate the welcome and the reassurance!

djperez81 - hey man....sell those speakers on craigslist and go for the m70s! i was shocked that i got $100 for a 12yo bose center, 150 for a pair of 12yo 301s, and 70 for a 12yo polk psw120. all that bought me my monitor 40s and the cs1, and almost one of my monitor 70s that might be here tomorrow! and i ordered last night!

dcmartinpc - dude it's amazing how bose gets a hold of people...we made it out! congrats to us! :D

cnh - a "nice" sound is something i can handle for now until the wife and cash flow allows a new AVR and amp.

thanks again everyone! can't wait to post my impressions of the monitor 70s

[TECHNOKID]

djperez81 - hey man....sell those speakers on craigslist and go for the m70s! i was shocked that i got $100 for a 12yo bose center, 150 for a pair of 12yo 301s, and 70 for a 12yo polk psw120. all that bought me my monitor 40s and the cs1, and almost one of my monitor 70s that might be here tomorrow! and i ordered last night!

You hit the jackpot, building your new system around most of the $$$ you got from selling the system you were replacing

[slowhat]

You hit the jackpot, building your new system around most of the $$$ you got from selling the system you were replacing

yessir!! that was my stipulation...had to sell before i could buy a single thing....but damn, the 2 nights of watching tv with the crappy samsung tv speaker was tough

i survived and have a better system to show for it :)

[ecod123]

yessir!! that was my stipulation...had to sell before i could buy a single thing....but damn, the 2 nights of watching tv with the crappy samsung tv speaker was tough

i survived and have a better system to show for it :)

Congrats on the upgrade. Been there and done that so I do empathize. Enjoy the new equipment and it will be smooth sailing (except for maybe the inadvertent buggy issues and upgradeitis).:D

[Outfitter03]

Welcome to CP slowhat. Good start on a new system and you will like the monitor 70's. Mine took 1-2 weeks to open up in sound so be aware and don't jump too quickly to conclusions with their sound.

I second dcmartinpc opinion on Parasound and Monitors as a pair!

If you want to bring a little low end back in your life watch the deals at Newegg on the PSW505. Be sure to search for coupons also and you can sometimes pick them up for around $230 shipped. Monitor 70's sound great with music on low end for me for everything but techno. They can't put out the cannon fire or rumble of HT like a sub though.

[nooshinjohn]

thanks for the welcome.

i think i'll stick around here a bit. the ego's don't seem as bloated as most other A/V forums

and thanks for the reassurance. the avr upgrade might be a in the not so near future...but in the meantime i really wanted to get these while the price was right.

so maybe next year an amp and new avr. but for now as long as i'm not in any risk with my setup i am looking forward to the UPS guy stopping by!!

Welcome... and a word of warning. HOLD tightly to your wallet! My system looked much like yours when I first joined. I must have spent 10k in the time i have been here and now I am building TUBE AMPS! If you have it, they will spend it for you.;);):D:p

Welcome to the happiest place on earth!

[slowhat]

ecod123:
dammit! upgradeitis is already here and i haven't even got my speakers in my possession. my wife's response to all this "first the car upgrades and car forum, now a HT forum? jesus!"

Outfitter03:
hmmmm the psw505 looks nice, but i'm really in love with the way my energy ews v10 works in my room. 300watts with a 10 inch woofer does a lot for the space i'm working with.
my sub here

i appreciate all the input :)

nooshinjohn:

must lock wallet in desk. must not enjoy speakers! (doubt that will work)
this place does seem happy

[raffi]

If you want to bring a little low end back in your life watch the deals at Newegg on the PSW505. Be sure to search for coupons also and you can sometimes pick them up for around $230 shipped.

I just picked up one of these for just under $230 shipped, helluva bang for the $...handily outperforms my Klipsch SW that cost $200 more.

[slowhat]

I just picked up one of these for just under $230 shipped, helluva bang for the $...handily outperforms my Klipsch SW that cost $200 more.

nice deal. i haven't heard the PSW505 in person. i wonder how it compares to my Energy sub.

[cnh]

That Energy sub looks FINE on paper. You can forgo that upgrade for now!

Nice sub!

cnh

[raffi]

nice deal. i haven't heard the PSW505 in person. i wonder how it compares to my Energy sub.

I agree with cnh...as much as I like the 505, I doubt that it's an upgrade from your sub. And congrats on the M70's, I really like mine a lot! But like so many others that have fallen down the rabbit hole, I'm itching to get into more 2 channel & upgrade fever.

[Outfitter03]

Sorry slowhat. I missed the Energy ESW-V10 in your posting last night. It is there bold as can be tonight. So I was thinking you were sub less not saying that the 505 is a lot better than the Energy. My bad!

[slowhat]

hey raffi:
thanks....ups tracking says the m70s are in town and scheduled for delivery tomorrow. may have to leave the office a bit early and get a head start hooking them up

outfitter03:
no worries! i'm ready to hear my new setup.... i may snap a few photos of my setup and post once every thing's good to go

[HTguru1982]

As others would say, "pics or it didn't happen".

[slowhat]

As others would say, "pics or it didn't happen".

LOL. will have proof soon....

[slowhat]

As others would say, "pics or it didn't happen".

it happened....



crappy pic, but this is my front channel/sub set up in the man cave. not pictured :monitor 40s for rear surround.

couch is about 8.5' away. can't wait for these to get broken in.

oh and don't joke the green carpet. we bought this house from an old lady and the upstairs was closed off since the late 70s. haven't had the motivation to change it yet. but i did get rid of all the dark wood paneling

[fatpiggy]

Very nice rig Slowhat very nice.I bet those towers sound sweet.I wish I could afford some nice new towers.One day.Oh and welcome Im a newbie as well.

Fatpiggy

[messiah]

Nice setup Slowhat! I bet you're a happy guy now! Welcome to club polk

[slowhat]

fatpiggy-
thanks! i'm really liking them. over the next year i can definitely see myself changing the AVR and adding an amp. the speakers are very clear, but i bet an amp would add the ability to crank them up. keep your eye on newegg. they have a new deal almost every weekend.

messiah-
thanks for the welcome and the compliment! i'm a n00b for sure, but i think i'll stick around. i'm enjoying the polk setup

[BWilberg266]

Congrats on the setup! My front looked alot like that when I started as well, the Monitor 70's are a great bang for your buck, no doubt about that.

I fear that you may not realize what you have done by letting the Energy sub into your setup The price that the Energy RC series speakers can be found for currently is just amazing. I fell in love with their incredible sound (and look if I may say so) and now I am surrounded by Energy RC-50's and RCR's. If your not carefull you may realize how great these speakers are and get the itch like I did.

Now the only remnants of my original Polks are the TSI-100's in the guest room. I still have nothin' but love for Polk though, really are some great speakers and the community here in the forums is second to none. Welcome!