Buy Direct M-F 9am - 10:30pm EST 1-866-764-1801

Vist our Online Store
+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 12 of 12
  1. #1

    Member Sales Rating: (13)

    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Central Illinois
    Posts
    696

    Default Odd-looking RTA12s

    Check these out. Third time they're being listed. There not in the greatest shape, hence probably why they're not selling. I've seen all sorts of RTA12s and I own a pair of 12Cs, but this is the first set I've seen on stands. Mine have an extension of the cabinet below the bottom of the grill.

    Is that config legit? What iteration of 12s are they??

    http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=5756130521




  2. #2

    Member Sales Rating: (1)

    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Southeastern Michigan
    Posts
    1,385

    Default

    "YOU WATCHERS MAY AS WELL GO AHEAD AND BID ON THESE IF YOU HAVE NECER OWNES WHAT IS CONCIDERED HIGH END AUDIO EQIPMENT THIS IS YOU CHANCE THEY WILL TAKE YOU AWAY .!!!THE CROSSOVERS ALONE ON THES SPEAKERS... "


    It really can't help to sell something when you put out an ad like that.

    Peerless tweets mounted vertically without the diffraction shield. Interesting; as is the lack of a base but instead with stands.

    The speakers probably sound great, but if you write up an ad like that, you're going to lose a lot of prospective buyers after they read the first sentence or two.

    Two Channel Setup:

    Speakers: Wharfedale Opus 2-3
    Integrated Amp: Yamaha A-S500
    CD Player: Jolida JD200
    Turntable: Rega P5 - TT-PSU
    Cartridge: Clearaudio Aurum Beta Wood
    Phono Preamp: Musical Surroundings Phonomena II

    3.2 Home Theater Setup:

    Fronts: Polk LSi7
    Center: Polk LSiM 703
    Subs: SVS PB 12 NSD X 2
    AVR: Yamaha Aventage RX-A820
    Amp: Emotiva UPA-200

  3. #3

    Member Sales Rating: (11)

    Join Date
    Jul 2001
    Location
    Spokane, Washington
    Posts
    15,830

    Default

    i think this is the second or third time he's tried to sell them. no buyers I guess. I wonder why?

    you're right. those don't look like any speakers i've ever seen.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert

  4. #4
    Old School
    Member Sales Rating: (1)

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Higher & Dryer, Texas
    Posts
    10,174

    Default

    Third listing (now ended)... each one dropping the prices. Seller was asking too much the first two times. Had they been closer, I'd have loved to take a look at them and see if the bases were modified or if this is a very early model...

    I've seen the 12's with vertical tweeters before, in the B and C series.

    Only the crease in the tweeter dome is of any concern. Wrinkles in the "hat" are just due to the frame popping out of alignment... just pops back in. The PR bubbling is no biggie either...
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner

    Rebuilding Maggie 2-ch & Amazing 2-ch... Building 2-ch "wall"... Figuring out the HT

  5. #5

    Member Sales Rating: (1)

    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Cali
    Posts
    1,410

    Default

    My RTA12's have the vertical black Peerless tweeter and same cabinet veneer. The 6.5" drivers and PR have the old style circular grey paper surrounds supporting the bond between the rubber surround and the metal casing of the speakers. I bought these used without any stands. The base of the cabinets are smooth so nothing was ripped off.

    Here is another example with the Polk tweeter and taller stands. http://clubpolk.polkaudio.com/forum/...&threadid=3612
    Notice the left cabinet has the older grey surround mw6500's. The mw6500's on the right cabinet have been replaced with newer drivers.

    I spoke with Ken a few weeks ago and he told me those with the black Peerless tweeters are RTA12's (before the 12a, 12b, 12c). My crossover circuit boards have this in white paint "RTA 12 Filter System".

    Instead of a diffraction shield, the tweeter has a small ramp centered underneath it at roughly a 5 degree upward tilt up from the cabinet.
    Last edited by Polk65; 03-07-2005 at 04:05 AM.

  6. #6
    Old School
    Member Sales Rating: (1)

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Higher & Dryer, Texas
    Posts
    10,174

    Default

    Interesting... cause my RTA12's (with horizontal Peerless) are on a built in skirt ala the Mon 12's, old SDA 1's and 2's, etc...

    Probably all attributable to the "seemless" line changes of Polk's yesteryear....

    EDIT: another thought... Maybe the original RTA 12's were based on the short-lived Polk sub and when it died they moved to the skirted cabinets that were coming in at the time...

    EDIT 2: Found old thread discussing the LF 14 sub, and in it Russman pointed out that the LF14 + tweeter = RTA 12...
    Last edited by Tour2ma; 03-07-2005 at 02:12 PM.
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner

    Rebuilding Maggie 2-ch & Amazing 2-ch... Building 2-ch "wall"... Figuring out the HT

  7. #7

    Member Sales Rating: (0)

    Join Date
    Nov 2001
    Posts
    12

    Default

    These speakers appear to be identical to the Model 12 R.T.A Reference Monitors that I have owned since 1980. The instruction manual does not assigned them a letter as Polk may not have known they were going to produce a B and a C version. If I had a scanner, I would post the cover of the instruction manual which shows a speaker on a stand very similar to the one in the photo but appears to be somewhat taller. The manual refers to the stands as "Polkstands III" (that I don't have) and the Polk manual also states "for the best performance we recommend the use of special speaker cables particularly those of the low-inductance transmission line type such as Polk Audio SoundCables."

    I have used those speakers(hooked up to a NAD 370 during the last 4 years) on an amost daily basis for the past 24 1\2 years for music (mostly classical) and for television sound. I am satisfied with the sound and have not actively searched for replacements except for one exception when, about four years ago, I decided to audition some B&Ws costing over 3 grand. I found those a bit harsh or perhaps too revealing, but I was using an acoustic "audiophile" recording that I find very well recorded. Sometimes, I think one gets so used to a particular sound that we tend to not like a change from it. Perhaps that is why some people maintain that a break in period is required for equipment. Maybe the breaking is happening in the way the brain processes the sound and needs some time to get use to it.

    My speakers are in mint condition, probably because I have kept all the original packing material .
    Last edited by ashuanipix; 03-07-2005 at 02:30 PM.

  8. #8

    Member Sales Rating: (17)

    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Kansas City
    Posts
    5,040

    Default

    I just emailed the guy telling him he needs to revise his listing so you can understand what the hell he's trying to say. $135 isn't a bad price though...
    Never kick a fresh turd on a hot day.

    Home Setup: Sony VPL-VW85 Projo, 92" Stewart Firehawk, Denon 3310 (pre/pro), PS3, Xbox 360, Myryad MA-500 5ch amp, RTi12 fronts, CSi5, FXi6 rears, RTi6 surround backs, RTi4 height, MFW-15 Subwoofer, Sanus UF26 & NF36 Stands, and most wires by Cobalt.

    Car Setup: OEM Radio, RF 360.2v2, Polk SR6500 quad amped off 4 Xtant 1.1 100w mono amps, Xtant 6.1 to run an eD 13av.2, all Stinger wiring and Raammat deadener.

  9. #9
    Old School
    Member Sales Rating: (1)

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Higher & Dryer, Texas
    Posts
    10,174

    Default

    Original packing does help preserve 'em... You probably have the 12A... of course, as you say, they did not know it was an "A" at the time. Brochure I have refers to the RTA 12B which also looks to be identical.

    There a parallel thread on the RTA 12 going on now in the Flea Market...
    Last edited by Tour2ma; 03-07-2005 at 03:27 PM.
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner

    Rebuilding Maggie 2-ch & Amazing 2-ch... Building 2-ch "wall"... Figuring out the HT

  10. #10

    Member Sales Rating: (1)

    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Cali
    Posts
    1,410

    Default

    My RTA12's have the metal guide pins on top for the 'hat'. The 'hat' sides are clear acrylic panels joined with screws. The base 'hat' panel is dark mdf and covering is black grille cloth with staples. There is no way to bend these out of shape, are these an original Polk part?

    Paid a Franklin for mine three months ago, sound is terrific and I plan to keep these a long time. Some slight peeling of the rosewood vinyl and minor scratches from being dragged here and there over the years.

    Though the Monitor 10 is much more popular, I am kind of surprised to see RTA12's selling cheaper than Monitor 10's on EB these past few months. Perhaps someone has some knowledge to share with us about the design of the RTA12 crossover? It has a boatload more components than the Monitor 10.

    ashuanipix: My speakers are in mint condition, probably because I have kept all the original packing material
    kudos ashuanipix!

  11. #11

    Member Sales Rating: (4)

    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Location
    PA
    Posts
    5,845

    Default

    The reason the crossover has so many more components is that the RTA 12 is a more advanced speaker. In order to truely time-align the drivers, you have to have some electronic trickery to get everything right (from my understanding). It cannot alone be done by just moving the tweeter back. But again, that's just the way I understand it...

    Besides, if you were going to mount a crossover on top of a cab, wouldn't you want it to look cool?
    Ludicrous gibs!

  12. #12

    Member Sales Rating: (7)

    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Spokane, WA.
    Posts
    1,664

    Default

    Have had the Monitor 10's and now have the RTA12C's and like the 12's MUCH better!
    "Wish I didn't know now what I didn't know then." Bob Seger

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

     

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts