Press Releases

Polk Audio Introduces RTS Series Center And Surround Built-in Loudspeakers

Las Vegas, NV—January 8, 2007— Today at Consumer Electronics Show booth 21240 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, Polk Audio announced center and surround channel built-in loudspeakers for the RTS Series of built-in loudspeakers. The RTS Series products meet THX Ultra2 performance standards. THX Ultra2 is a THX product design, performance and certification program reserved for the finest home theater components.

The new RTS-C and RTS-FX models join the RTS105 in-wall and RTS100 in-ceiling models in Polk’s RTS line of THX Ultra2 certified built-in speakers. The RTS100 is the first (and to date only) in-ceiling speaker to meet demanding THX Ultra2 standards of performance. With the introduction of these new models Custom Installation retailers will be able to offer their customers stealth built-in home theater systems with consistent and predictable high performance worthy of the THX Ultra2 certification. These models mark the first time Polk Audio has offered purpose-designed center and surround channel built-in loudspeakers.

Both models feature technologies used in Polk's critically acclaimed LSi Series freestanding speakers to deliver the sound quality of stand-alone models—technologies such as Polk's Ring Radiator tweeter, widely praised for its high frequency extension, clarity and detail. The drivers have Aerated Polypropylene cones, the same material used in Polk's award-winning top-line LSi and LCi Series speakers, for the kind of clear, detailed midrange response usually found only in freestanding audiophile speakers.

The RTS-C is a rectangular in-wall loudspeaker with a horizontal orientation—a form factor preferred by consumers and Custom Integrators. Two 5-1/4” APP cone drivers in a cascade tapered array—one driver plays only bass frequencies, and the other driver covers the bass and the midrange—flanks a 1-inch Ring Radiator tweeter. This technique avoids the "lobing" effects that plague other horizontal oriented, multi-driver center speakers. The result is broad, even sound coverage for off-axis listeners.

A rigid MDF Performance Enclosure is supplied with the RTS-C to ensure perfect and consistent loading for the drivers for predictable high performance as well as to maximize sound isolation with adjacent rooms.

The RTS-FX is a rectangular in-wall surround-channel loudspeaker that features the same active driver materials and technologies as the other RTS models for perfect channel to channel timbre and seamless imaging. It employs dual 3-1/2 inch Aerated Polypropylene midrange drivers and two ¾ inch Ring Radiator tweeters along with a single 6-1/2 inch Aerated Polypropylene woofer. The product has an integrated Performance Enclosure that ensures perfect and consistent loading for the drivers for predictable high performance. The integrated enclosure is no larger than the speaker cutout, making installation in existing construction a breeze. A STL105 Stud Lock Mounting bracket is included with the RTS FX. The STL transfers the speaker’s weight and mechanical energy to the wall studs rather than the sheetrock for fewer wall rattles and better sound quality. The total visible surface area of the RTS FX is only 1.7 square feet, smaller and less obtrusive than many competitive premium in-wall speakers.

The surround radiation pattern of the RTS-FX is selectable between “Solid” and “Diffuse” modes via a front baffle-mounted switch. In the “Solid” mode all drivers and tweeters are in-phase with one another to produce solid, discrete surround imaging and is the THX default setting. In the “Diffuse” mode the rear-facing tweeter array is out-of-phase with the front-facing array for more diffuse and un-localizable surround imaging. This Polk innovation allows users to optimize the imaging of the RTS-FX for personal taste and the speakers’ room placement.

As in all LCi Series speakers, the RTS-C and RTS-FX feature control switches that allow the installer or user to optimize the loudspeaker response when the speakers are placed in less than ideal locations. When flush mount speakers are installed too close to adjacent room surfaces, the bass becomes “boomy” and voices sound too heavy and thick. The RTS-FX employs Polk's exclusive “Wall Distance” switch that lowers output only in the low-midrange/upper bass area to correct for this problem. Competitors’ in-wall speakers attempt to solve this phenomenon by using a simple high pass filter to reduce all bass output. That cures the “boom” problem but at the sacrifice of deep bass response. Polk uses a more complex low-Q pass-band filter to attenuate only the “boom” region without lowering deep bass output. The user hears flatter, more accurate sound and deep bass even when the speakers are located in less-than-ideal locations by necessity or for decorating reasons.

Speakers used in rooms with too many hard reflecting surfaces and insufficient absorbing materials (carpets, drapes, etc.) sound “bright,” harsh and unnatural. Polk's “Tweeter Attenuation” switch featured in both the RTS-C and RTS-FX engages a pass-band filter to compensate for the effect of overly reflective rooms for warmer, more realistic sound.

Polk Audio's built-in product line is segmented into Good, Better and Best series. The LCi Series is Polk's “Best” and contains three product groups: The LCi Standard Group, introduced in 2004, these products are designed for general multi-room audio and home theater use and are full-range products that do not need to be used with a subwoofer. The IP Group, first shipped in early 2006, are the world's first active Internet Protocol-addressable flush mount high performance loudspeakers and represent the pinnacle of built-in speaker performance and functionality.

The RTS Group including the RTS-C and RTS-FX models being introduced here, are specifically engineered for built-in Home Theater applications, are THX Ultra2 Certified, and should be used with subwoofers for full-range reproduction.

The RTS-C and RTS-FX will be delivered to North American retailers in March 2007.

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About Polk Audio
Polk Audio is an award-winning designer and manufacturer of high performance audio products and the largest audio brand of Directed Electronics, Inc. (NASDAQ, DEIX). Founded in 1972 by three Johns Hopkins University graduates, Polk Audio holds over 50 patents for advances in loudspeaker design and technology. Polk's products include loudspeakers and electronic components for home, auto and marine applications, the first satellite radio home component tuner, the world's first audiophile-grade active IP-addressable loudspeaker, the first THX Ultra2 Certified in-ceiling loudspeaker, and I-Sonic—the first entertainment system to include HD radio, XM Connect & Play capability and a DVD player. Polk products are available through authorized specialist consumer electronics retailers worldwide. For more information and the location of a Polk retailer or distributor in your area please visit www.polkaudio.com or call us at 1-800-377-7655 (USA and Canada). Outside of North America call +1 (410) 358-3600.