Putting together Polk 5.1 system

[alexgill04]

Hey all,

I have a yamaha htr-5550 reciever
2 x Polk r30 speakers

I am bad at distinguishing the difference between good and bad speakers and these sound great to me. Don't want a sub because im upstairs in a condo. I watch alot of movies. Want a decent set up on a budget! Would love some input :D

Thinking of getting a csr center and perhaps two polk m50 towers from Polk;s refurb store on ebay and putting the r30's in back. Or would it be better to stick to the R series and just get some r300's on special from outpost? I know the m50s are better but there is an issue of series matching? Thanks for all the ideas.

[McLoki]

Matching is not as important for rear speakers. (but can still make an impact.) If you were purchasing them all now - I would recommend matching all the way around. Since you already have a set that you can move to the back as rear speakers, you would be fine with your fronts (left, right and center) from one series and your rear speakers from another.

I used a pair of Polk RM speakers (think cube speakers) as rears when I got my LSi fronts. I did end up replacing them after about a year, and their was a quality difference when they were replaced as you would expect. Should I have waited that year to upgrade anything and left the RM series all the way around while I waited - not a chance.

The front stage carries most of your sound information in home theater. They should be your highest quality speakers. In an ideal world, your rear speakers would be just as capable - In a non-ideal world with different front and rear speakers, it can still sound pretty darn good.

Welcome to Club Polk,

Michael

[alexgill04]

Thanks for the reply. So Im looking at the polk refurb store.

I could get the monitor 50's and the..
cs2 center
put the r30's in the back

For my newbish understanding of sound is it worth the extra 150, money is not the issue, simply wondering if there would be tangible benefit for me?... The other option follows....

two r300's and the....
csr center
both of which would be new

Thanks for helping to finalize my decision :-)

[alexgill04]

also if i go monitor series....
room is about 18 x 13

would i want the monitor 60s over the 50s...and would that center i mentioned work for both?

thanks again

[McLoki]

I do not have much experience with the monitor series (well the current monitor series anyway). I do have a friend that has 4 r50's for his front and rear speakers and he is pretty happy with them. Circuit City and American sell the monitor series. You will really have to head out and give them a listen to determine for yourself it the added dough is worth it to you or not.

If you live or travel around Central Il. You are always welcome to check out my speakers.... (LSi's in home theater, RTi6's in the bedroom (with a borrowed Polk MicroPro sub) and the classic Monitor 10's in the basement).

Get your listen on and let us know what you like and if you consider them worth it. Your opinions will be very valuable to others as we head into the holiday shopping season...

For the center channel - it should match watever your front speakers are. (be from the same series) so I would decide what fronts you like first and then purchase the center that goes with them.

Michael

[alexgill04]

thanks alot. I think I'm going monitor 50's for my fronts and a cs2 center. Then i'll put the r30's in the back.

By the way. What setting would i use on the receiver for 5.1? I run stereo now. Would it be pro logic 2?


Again, thanks. You have been very helpful. I'll let you know how it all goes.

[McLoki]

I assume the setting will be dolby digital (or DTS depending on the source). Do you have a subwoofer?

[apple916]

Thanks for the reply. So Im looking at the polk refurb store.

You can get brand new here. All 5 same speakers, no worries about matching. PM for details:

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.p...231126979&item

[McLoki]

The monitor series will kill the RM's in sound quality. (they are much larger though)

[alexgill04]

thanks a lot Mcloki. You have been very helpful.

I think the monitor 50s will be good for my size room. I will get those from polk direct as well as the cs2 from crutchfield. No sub for now. I am upstairs and already we get complaints occasionally. Perhaps down the road. I think this will be a nice starter 5.1 set for me.....

much better than the fluance sx series i was originally considering. :-)

[rdb2001]

thanks a lot Mcloki. You have been very helpful.

I think the monitor 50s will be good for my size room. I will get those from polk direct as well as the cs2 from crutchfield. No sub for now. I am upstairs and already we get complaints occasionally. Perhaps down the road. I think this will be a nice starter 5.1 set for me.....

much better than the fluance sx series i was originally considering. :-)

I have the monitor 50's for my fronts and monitor 40's for my surrounds. I bought my monitor 50's from polk direct for 150 shipped and they looked brand new. I got my 40's from new egg 160 brand new for the pair.
new egg also have the monitor 50's for 99 each plus shipping brand new. I am very satisfied and i think you would be.

[alexgill04]

I just ordered the 60's from polk direct. I should get them; i bid up to 175.00 and most other auctions ended at 155.00

I will get the cs2 from amazon.com

I'm very excited. Will update with my experiences.

Now I just need to decide if the 10 inch monitor subwoofer will piss off my neighbors too much. :-)

[alexgill04]

btw, any ides on what speaker wire I need? Was just going to purchase 100ft of some 16 gauge terk. Is that the right gauge and is there something better?

[McLoki]

btw, any ides on what speaker wire I need? Was just going to purchase 100ft of some 16 gauge terk. Is that the right gauge and is there something better?

Without getting into a large debate about cable lengths, speakers and quality. I would get at least 14ga and not worry about it. (the 16ga would probably do fine, but I just like a little added buffer.) For the series of speaker you are using and what you are trying to accomplish, it should be good.

Michael

[alexgill04]

So,

I won the monitor 60s for 147. I will get the cs2 center tonight.

Will go 14 gauge wire. Perhaps if i can get something for vibration dampening I will check into a 10 inch psw sub later on. Thanks again, I feel very good about my decision and think I can enjoy this for a number of years. :D

[Upstatemax]

Congrats on the new speakers!

I love my Monitor 70's and CS2, I think the Monitor series is very hard to beat for the money.

[McLoki]

since you can place the sub close to your listening position, often a sub will be less intrusive in an apartment setting.

[Chitown_Badger]

So,

I won the monitor 60s for 147. I will get the cs2 center tonight.

Will go 14 gauge wire. Perhaps if i can get something for vibration dampening I will check into a 10 inch psw sub later on. Thanks again, I feel very good about my decision and think I can enjoy this for a number of years. :D

Good thing you went for the 60s over the 50s. If you didn't, upgraditis would have set in soon after. Regarding the sub, you don't need to necessarily go polk, as other manufacturers produce a better product in this area for the same price. Lots of good options in the $100-250 range.

[alexgill04]

I got the monitor 60s today. They sound incredible compared to the r30s. Very clear and realistic sound. I my have to sell the r30s and get the monitor 30s or 40s. Not one single cosmetic defect and they work perfectly; could have told me they were new and I would have gone for it. Still waiting on the cs2; will mount it above my 50 inch plasma. I'm one happy man ;)

[Chitown_Badger]

I got the monitor 60s today. They sound incredible compared to the r30s. Very clear and realistic sound. I my have to sell the r30s and get the monitor 30s or 40s. Not one single cosmetic defect and they work perfectly; could have told me they were new and I would have gone for it. Still waiting on the cs2; will mount it above my 50 inch plasma. I'm one happy man ;)

congrats! I'm still working on the last two elements of my upgrade...center channel and receiver. Hoping the holidays are the right time to be shopping.

By the way, if you get Palladia, THAT is the channel to check out when you have your new system. One of the best HD pictures, and the music they feature is crystal clear. I was listening to DMB in Piedmont Park last night, and my only regret was that I couldn't crank it up louder.

[Upstatemax]

A lot of the stuff they play on Palladia is also on Blu-Ray. Better pic, better sound, more tracks usually and NO COMMERCIALS.

[alexgill04]

so now i have the center channel as well. Wow, sounds good. Once I mount it on the wall I may need help with settings and configuration; setting the volumes and assigning them a value; large / small; hard to tell which is best Seems like the center is pretty dominant; maybe too much so. Its truly amazing for movies.

[xcapri79]

btw, any ides on what speaker wire I need? Was just going to purchase 100ft of some 16 gauge terk. Is that the right gauge and is there something better?

16 gauge is plenty large enough for what you are using.
Spending more on 14 gauge would be a waste of money IMHO. The last time I checked, Radio Shack had decent prices on their speaker wire. Be wary of the overpriced Monster wire. Hope I wasn't too late with the advice.

Enjoy your system, but I bet you will be looking for Monitor 70's on sale. Upgradeitis hits us all.