Energy RC-10 vs Cambridge Audio s30 ?

fwiw, i've had experience with both speakers and actually still own the s-30's( got them for $99 open box at audioadvisor a few years ago ) but for same price i'd lean more toward the rc-10's( better bass extention and better high end especially when playing at high volumes).dont get me wrong the s-30's are a great little speaker for its budget.
Edited by smasher50 - 10/18/12 at 3:24am

I've owned both. Kept the RC10's and sold the S30's.

I'm with the other two here...

I owned the RC-10's for almost 3 years... and I've had the S30 in my home on 2 different occasions to demo for a few weeks each time... and I sent them back both times (in all fairness, the 2nd time was to try out as desktop speakers, and not to compare with the RC-10 in my main room).

The S30's are nice though, and would suit someone that prefers something that has more upper midrange and lower treble emphasis... The RC-10 has more emphasis in the midrange and low end, and has a more laid back, warmer overall sound. That said, I think it also has a better tweeter - more detailed, but less edgy. I do think the S30's bass, while not as extended, is a bit cleaner/tighter.

Even the S30 will out perform the Polk Monitor with good detail, and more tight
and controlled bass - and is easier on the ears.

The Energy RC10 should be good for you >> I have only owned the C-1 Energy
speakers, and I much prefer the S30 over them.

Good Luck and have fun.

This is what I used. It works excellent. Aims the tweeters right at your ears when sitting down and minimizes any reflections of the desk.

http://www.dedicatedaudio.com/inc/sdetail/26260

If you're sitting down at your desk wouldn't the tweeter be close to early level already? I guess it depends how high your desk is...Maybe I have a high desk?

I actually have old Energy Encore bookshelf speakers at my home office desk. But they're on a shelf 21" above the desk. Love them up there.

I've only briefly listened to Polk's entry level speakers at Best Buy (I think they were the Tsi series)... and I don't remember much about them.

By laid back, I just mean the RC-10's highs aren't agressive or in your face... It's really that the lower midrange and bass are a little emphasized relative to the upper end of the spectrum... so it's gives an overall laid back sound... but the tweeter is still detailed/extended.

The RC-10s sound way better than the Polk Monito 30. The tweeter on the Monitor 30 can be bright to the point of annoying. Not Klipsch bright but still pretty bright.

In a desktop setting, raising the speaker isn't just about tweeter height, but also to get the woofer away from the surface of the desk and limit the reflections off that surface. Ideally, raising them would accomplish both.

If you don't want to build your own stands to raise the speakers... and the Dynaudio stands are too pricey, some folks seem to like the Auralex Mopads/SpeakerDudes (and other similar products) to raise them a little and angle them upward.

First, just try books. That's what I use with the RC-10s in a desktop setup. Very stable as long as you only need to raise them 6 or 8 inches or so (and you have big enough books). Then you could get a feel for what height seems best before building some stands.