RTi70 vs. R50

[BrettSelinsky]

I just put a bid on some RTi70 for 325.00. Was this stupid?? Is the RTi70 better then the R50??

Thanks
POLK CRAZY
AKA "Brett"

[Early B.]

Good move.

[BrettSelinsky]

Thanks!!!!
It was one of those impulse moves. Makes me feel better. + I WON!! Hey wait you dont have any Polk in your system???

Brett

[fireshoes]

No contest.

[Dennis Gardner]

I won't part with my 70s they are some of the better theater towers I have heard. They look good along side a big TV or screen also.

Nice buy!

DG

[gmorris]

I'll throw in my $.02....

My first pair of Polk speakers were the R30's, which I traded in at CC to get my current pair of RTi70's. I paid $300 + tax for my RTi70's about 12 months ago.

As far as sound quality, the R30's & the RTi70's sound quite similar to me. They both have the warm, smooth, laid back sound for which Polk is known. In terms of bass, the RTi70 walks away in this contest. Try as they might, the R30's really had no bass. My current RTi70's are connected to a 50 Wpc Rotel RB-850, and continue to surprise me with the deep, tight bass they make.

Where both speakers lack, in my opinion, is in their resolving power. These speakers are very enjoyable to listen to, but sacrifice some detail in the process. The biggest gripe I have with the RTi70's is with seperation. Soundstage width & seperation between instruments is not great. It is good, just not great. (this could have more to do with my small room, but I've heard systems in rooms smaller than mine that seperated far bettter than mine)

I have an Onkyo TX-SR601 receiver for Home Theater, which is also connected to the RTi70's. The sound is far better with the Rotel, obviously. I would recommend you get a quality amp if you don't already have one. A receiver will just not do the RTi70's justice.

[BrettSelinsky]

Could you explain this amp thing to me? Whats the difference in the Yamaha Rx-v2500 reciever (what I have) vs. a dedicated amp. Why is it so much better? How can 50 watts be better than 120? Not being smart here I really just dont know?

Thanks

[gmorris]

There are a million reasons why a quality 2 channel amp is better than a reciever. Before I explain a few, you must realize that 50 watts vs. 120 watts has nothing to do with why my Rotel amp sounds waaaaay better than my Onkyo reciever.

A two channel amp is just that, a two channel amp. It has no other parts or functions outside the 2 channel amp. A rec. on the other hand, is full of signal processing chips, an AM/FM tuner (yuck) a DAC, a preamp, and the amp channels. Compromises are the key word here. There have been compromises made to the amp section of a reciever to keep the costs down. These compromises are not an issue in a dedicated 2 channel amp.

Start a new thread here at the forum and ask your question again, more people will see it.

And I forgot to mention it earlier, but you made a super decision to buy the RTi70's. I like mine very much, and I'm sure you will too.

[aaharvel]

Is the RTi70 better then the R50??



um.. yeah.

[Shizelbs]

As an owner of R40s (similar to R50s) and a big supporter of them as a good entry into music and HT, I will say this; you made the undeniably correct choice.

[Drewsmith]

I'm another that went from R30's to the RTI70's no contest to me the 70's blow the R series out of the water. Good choice in MHO

[BrettSelinsky]

Thanks for the info on the amp.

Now do I move the r50's to the rears or keep my RTi15's back the there and sell the r50's? The r50's are only 3 mo. young.

Woops they are RT15i's

Thanks

[aaharvel]

sell the 50's.

unless you have a room of unusually large size- i couldn't imagine towers as surrounds-

but i'm sure that you'll find alot on these boards that like a full-range surround.- to each his/her own

good luck!

[TheReaper]

For posterity, as I have both the RTi70s and the R50s, here is my opinion on the differences. For context of my opinions, I have an Onkyo TXSR702 and a 15' x 13' room (probably sitting too close to the speakers).

- RTi70 has more of a high rolloff than the R50
- RTi70 has deeper bass than the R50
- RTi70 is uglier than the R50 (I have the black wood veneer R50s)
- RTi70 takes more power to get the drivers going good than the R50
- RTi70 is more laid back sounding, R50 is more forward sounding
- It sounds to me like the tonality of notes is a little off on the R50 way up high, where as the RTi70 sounds correct.
- RTi70s can go louder

RTi70 sounds better for music than the R50

Un-equalized, for low volume late night TV/DVD watching, the R50 is better than the RTi70. With equalization it is a toss-up.

At volume for HT, comparing RTi70s=mains + CSi40=center, to R50s=mains + R50=center, for both using psw404 subwoofer and four R30s for surrounds. It is a toss-up, the R50s have more detail with more center impact, the RTi70s have more overall impact with stronger lows.

[kberg]

Sounds like a good score on those 70's!

[VR3]

Originally posted by gmorris
Where both speakers lack, in my opinion, is in their resolving power. These speakers are very enjoyable to listen to, but sacrifice some detail in the process. The biggest gripe I have with the RTi70's is with seperation. Soundstage width & seperation between instruments is not great. It is good, just not great. (this could have more to do with my small room, but I've heard systems in rooms smaller than mine that seperated far bettter than mine)

I have wondered a LONG time, how long it would take someone to say the same exact thing I've been saying for the past year, in a more polite form...and you did it by the book! Good job...

Glad -someone- hears what I heard.

The R series as a whole isnt close to anything in the RT series. IMO, not sure about the Monitor series though.

And tower surrounds are AWESOME. Thats the only reason I am saving my mini-towers, for future surround use. Full range surrounds are the only way to go!

[Sami]

Originally posted by gmorris
These compromises are not an issue in a dedicated 2 channel amp.

Not that simple. Just because an external amp doesn't have prepro and tuner built in doesn't mean it can't have compromises in the design. It can and it will, just like a receiver. I would still take a heavy duty receiver over cheap separates.

[gmorris]

Originally posted by Sami
Not that simple. Just because an external amp doesn't have prepro and tuner built in doesn't mean it can't have compromises in the design. It can and it will, just like a receiver. I would still take a heavy duty receiver over cheap separates.

I was obviously speaking in the most general of terms.

I'm sure if you took the latest $5000 Denon reciever it would have a better amp section than my 10 year old Rotel, which I grabbed off Ebay for $100.

When we are talking about a $500 reciever, like my Onkyo TX-SR601, and an amp like my Rotel, the Rotel is by far the better sounding of the two.

I am only trying to point out, that with a very small investment, (in my case a $100 Rotel) the RTi70's will sound far better than with the Yamaha reciever.

[Sami]

Originally posted by gmorris
I was obviously speaking in the most general of terms.

Of course. An external amp costing the same as a receiver should be better.

I didn't notice any improvement by using my receiver as a preamp and amping the speakers with an external amp (I auditioned several well regarded brands and models in my home, all used). I didn't buy any and continue to power my speakers with the amp I have in the receiver. Granted it has a 70A power supply so it is IMO a heavy duty receiver.

I switched from the RTi-series (70's and 150's) to LSi7's. The jump in sound quality is as big as going from the R-series to RTi, propably even a bigger leap. I still have the RTi's (2*RTi150 & 1*RTi70) if someone local is interested.