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Calling all Polkies:Official Polk thread - Page 498

post #14911 of 18700
11/26/12 at 11:47am
I think I'll try the innocent "If you don't want to, it's not a big deal, but would you mind if I bought these speakers that are on clearance for 60% off?" My JBL's aren't bad. Something tells me these Monitor 70's would work for quite a while without a sub. I would be using one of these for a center as well, since my speakers are all behind a DIY Spandex screen anyway. So $450 for 3 tower speakers whose replacement goes for $360 street each sounds pretty sweet to me.
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post #14912 of 18700
11/26/12 at 11:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by XStanleyX View Post

Good to know. If I really like it a lot better than the 505 I may just get a 2nd one and call it good instead of getting a XV-15 later. I used to have a buttload of audio gear
and sold it all before moving to Arizona for a year. Got back into it about 6 months ago. I hope I don't get back into it as heavily as I used to be. I can't afford it as much
now anyways.
Here's a sprinkling of some of the stuff I had:
https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=f5af57802417850e&id=F5AF57802417850E%21175&ref=1&sff=1

Impressive album! I've always had an interest, but never gotten into speakers all that much. When I was single, I was in a condo where I wouldn't have been able to use them that much. Now I'm in my house and there is always someone else around to disturb. Now that I have a reasonably soundproofed theater, maybe I can get into this a bit more!
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post #14913 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by XStanleyX View Post

Good to know. If I really like it a lot better than the 505 I may just get a 2nd one and call it good instead of getting a XV-15 later. I used to have a buttload of audio gear
and sold it all before moving to Arizona for a year. Got back into it about 6 months ago. I hope I don't get back into it as heavily as I used to be. I can't afford it as much
now anyways.
Here's a sprinkling of some of the stuff I had:
https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=f5af57802417850e&id=F5AF57802417850E%21175&ref=1&sff=1

Nice set up. I wish I had those tools to make my own TV stand. It has been impossible to find a good stand for my devices. I'm thinking of buying some tools and wood and making my own.
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post #14914 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Geoff4RFC View Post

Good for you. If you can, go for the A9, better midrange than the A7. You can always do Polks easy pay plan. I bought two pair of A9's and my FXiA6's that way.

Another option is to go for A5s + Sub. A5s also have two mid-range drivers just like A9...whereas A7s only have one, that's why you'll find some reviews complaining about A7s lacking in the mids. Since the only thing A5s lack are woofers...you can just get a powered sub for that. FYI, Polk Audio currently has a buy $499 products and get a free subwoofer offer & each A5 is $349 each....pretty good deal IMO.
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post #14915 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:14pm
^^^
I've pondered doing this before. My question was... is a bass driver really needed, if a powered subwoofer was in the mix? Conversely, is a subwoofer needed, if the towers have good bass drivers? I never got around to asking the question in the open forum.
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post #14916 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by unbridled_id View Post

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?seq=1&format=2&p_id=2801&CAWELAID=1329459430&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CKWIvfHU7LMCFYQ7MgodSlsA6Q
These are really good and the price was right.

How about these: http://www.amazon.com/Sewell-Deadbolt-Banana-Fast-Lock-Technology/dp/B006U3O566/ref=sr_1_fed0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1353919198&sr=8-1&keywords=banana+plugs

Isn't there a risk of electrical shock by using the metallic ones?
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post #14917 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tunafish24 View Post

How about these: http://www.amazon.com/Sewell-Deadbolt-Banana-Fast-Lock-Technology/dp/B006U3O566/ref=sr_1_fed0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1353919198&sr=8-1&keywords=banana+plugs
Isn't there a risk of electrical shock by using the metallic ones?


Those are what I use. They work very well and the quality is good.
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post #14918 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by petaylor View Post

^^^
I've pondered doing this before. My question was... is a bass driver really needed, if a powered subwoofer was in the mix? Conversely, is a subwoofer needed, if the towers have good bass drivers? I never got around to asking the question in the open forum.

It just depends on how bass hungry you are. Some speakers I didn't feel the need for bass with music but a must for me is a sub with movies.
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post #14919 of 18700
11/26/12 at 12:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by unbridled_id View Post

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?seq=1&format=2&p_id=2801&CAWELAID=1329459430&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CKWIvfHU7LMCFYQ7MgodSlsA6Q
These are really good and the price was right.

Eh, know some folks that had issues with usability/quality control with those. But I know lots of folks use them and have had no problems. I myself liked the GLS stuff better than those particular models, I just moved to non DIY cables that come pre-terminated with banana's so they dont do me any good.
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post #14920 of 18700
11/26/12 at 10:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tunafish24 View Post

Another option is to go for A5s + Sub. A5s also have two mid-range drivers just like A9...whereas A7s only have one, that's why you'll find some reviews complaining about A7s lacking in the mids. Since the only thing A5s lack are woofers...you can just get a powered sub for that. FYI, Polk Audio currently has a buy $499 products and get a free subwoofer offer & each A5 is $349 each....pretty good deal IMO.

Actually, the A5's carry a pair of mid/woofer drivers where the A9 had straight midrange drivers, and, I forget the low down now, but the A9 has something unique about it's midrange/tweeter set up over the other towers.

Quote:
Originally Posted by petaylor View Post

^^^
I've pondered doing this before. My question was... is a bass driver really needed, if a powered subwoofer was in the mix? Conversely, is a subwoofer needed, if the towers have good bass drivers? I never got around to asking the question in the open forum.

My A9's have an incredible amount of bass, when hooked up to my amp and run at full band, it delivers bass you feel traveling through the floor. My empire subs OTOH, deliver bass that knocks you in the chest and has the potential to knock you out of your seat biggrin.gif

There is NO substitute for a great sub.
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post #14921 of 18700
11/26/12 at 11:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Geoff4RFC View Post

Actually, the A5's carry a pair of mid/woofer drivers where the A9 had straight midrange drivers, and, I forget the low down now, but the A9 has something unique about it's midrange/tweeter set up over the other towers.
My A9's have an incredible amount of bass, when hooked up to my amp and run at full band, it delivers bass you feel traveling through the floor. My empire subs OTOH, deliver bass that knocks you in the chest and has the potential to knock you out of your seat biggrin.gif
There is NO substitute for a great sub.

Just demoed A5s...you definitely need a good sub with those for movies. Unfortunatley, the sub that was hooked up with the speakers Polk Audio 505 (I think), was too boomy and Not punchy (bad settings??) didn't sound too good with the A5s. Do you guys know of any punchy subs?
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post #14922 of 18700
11/26/12 at 11:46pm
The store where I demoed A5s also had Klipsch RF-62 ii hooked up...I switched back & forth between the A5 and RF-62. For all the talk I hear about RF-62s being bright & RTi being brighter than Monitor series....I actually didn't find any of those bright at all. It could be that the environment wasn't right - since I was at a store with noise etc...but I did have a variety of music with me i.e. Pirates of the Carribean soundtrack, Rock music, Trance music, and Pop music....all sound good to me.

What I did notice was that RF-62s seemed more forward with a narrower soundstage...whereas RTiA5s created a more wider soundstage. How much different do these speakers sound when you set them up in a living room vs store? and how much positive effect would AVR calibration software have on the sound after all the setup?
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post #14923 of 18700
11/27/12 at 2:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Geoff4RFC View Post

Actually, the A5's carry a pair of mid/woofer drivers where the A9 had straight midrange drivers, and, I forget the low down now, but the A9 has something unique about it's midrange/tweeter set up over the other towers.

On he A9's the two 5" midrange drivers and tweeter are in their own sealed compartment, separate from the three woofers. Essentially there is the ported lower section of the cabinet, and a separate infinite baffle for the midrange drivers.

Good to hear from you again Geoff, and thanks for the update on your change in living arrangements.
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post #14924 of 18700
11/27/12 at 6:03am
What amp do you guys use to drive your Polks? I'm using my Denon 1312 right now. It works, but I think I could do better.

I'm looking around at different 2-ch amps for my stereo setup, mostly older amps. The Hafler DH-220, Onkyo M-282, Parasound 1200, Adcom GFA-555, etc.
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post #14925 of 18700
11/27/12 at 6:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tirefoamcan View Post

What amp do you guys use to drive your Polks? I'm using my Denon 1312 right now. It works, but I think I could do better.
I'm looking around at different 2-ch amps for my stereo setup, mostly older amps. The Hafler DH-220, Onkyo M-282, Parasound 1200, Adcom GFA-555, etc.

I have owned the Hafler and the Adcom. The Adcom will give you much more power than the Hafler. I assume it's more power you're looking for.
The Parasound or the Hafler would be my choices. You won't gain a whole lot with the Onkyo. Don't expect any of them to sound better than your receiver.
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post #14926 of 18700
11/27/12 at 6:37am
I am looking to upgrade my living room 7.1 system with new L/R fronts and am considering the newegg package offer of two Monitor 75t's together with a Polk PSW505 for $580 total. Here's my situation:

When I replaced my reliable old H/K stereo with a Denon AVR-3311, I got the Polk Audio RM705 surround system and paired it with my 30-year-old Technics SB-5000 floorstanding speakers as fronts for the time being with the RM7 satellites as surrounds and FH's. Because it's a living room, form factor is an important consideration, which is why I originally chose the RM705. We don't want the room taken over by the speakers. In particular, I only have room for a center channel with a maximum height of 6". (I've tried out the Polk CS10 and it's just too imposing in the space.)

Alternatively, I'm considering the Energy CF-70's together with a CC-5 center. In this scenario, I would use DT ProMonitor 800's as front heights (or, alternatively, Energy CB-5's) and leave the (rear-wall mounted) Polk RM7's as surrounds. And I might then go ahead and upgrade the RM705 SW with the PSW505 separately.

We listen to about 75% music (jazz and classical), 20% cable TV and 5% DVDs. My budget is flexible but was hoping to do it all (with some comparison shopping) for about $1000.

Any and all advice will be welcome and greatly appreciated. I'm not too confident about the pairing of surrounds with fronts in terms of relative compatibility although I understand it's important to match tweeters, right?
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post #14927 of 18700
11/27/12 at 7:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tunafish24 View Post

Just demoed A5s...you definitely need a good sub with those for movies. Unfortunatley, the sub that was hooked up with the speakers Polk Audio 505 (I think), was too boomy and Not punchy (bad settings??) didn't sound too good with the A5s. Do you guys know of any punchy subs?

Epik makes a killer sub, right now there's a killer deal on the Legend, can't be beat. I have a pair of Empires, I would even upgrade to four if I could.......bass response base response base response
Quote:
Originally Posted by RobLee View Post

On he A9's the two 5" midrange drivers and tweeter are in their own sealed compartment, separate from the three woofers. Essentially there is the ported lower section of the cabinet, and a separate infinite baffle for the midrange drivers.
Good to hear from you again Geoff, and thanks for the update on your change in living arrangements.

Thanks Rob, good to be up and running again.
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post #14928 of 18700
11/27/12 at 7:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Geoff4RFC View Post

Actually, the A5's carry a pair of mid/woofer drivers where the A9 had straight midrange drivers, and, I forget the low down now, but the A9 has something unique about it's midrange/tweeter set up over the other towers.
My A9's have an incredible amount of bass, when hooked up to my amp and run at full band, it delivers bass you feel traveling through the floor. My empire subs OTOH, deliver bass that knocks you in the chest and has the potential to knock you out of your seat biggrin.gif
There is NO substitute for a great sub.

Terrific information! I wonder where the A7's fit in this mix. Do they really fit that in-between spot? Those are the ones that meet my price-point.
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post #14929 of 18700
11/27/12 at 7:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by XStanleyX View Post

I have owned the Hafler and the Adcom. The Adcom will give you much more power than the Hafler. I assume it's more power you're looking for.
The Parasound or the Hafler would be my choices. You won't gain a whole lot with the Onkyo. Don't expect any of them to sound better than your receiver.

I'm looking for good clean power, similar to the Denon or better. Mostly because the Denon is setup to run a small 5.1 system in the living room and I wanted a decent 2 ch system. I'll be driving a set of RT800's with the 2ch amp. I figured around 125 wpc would work fine for these speakers and keep me going for future systems.
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post #14930 of 18700
11/27/12 at 7:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by petaylor View Post

Terrific information! I wonder where the A7's fit in this mix. Do they really fit that in-between spot? Those are the ones that meet my price-point.

If that's your price point, jump on 'em. I deliberated for months over the A9 vs A7 (I hate remorse) and ended up getting two pair of A9's across my front stage.

The A7 is a great speaker and owned by many. The only recommendation I can give you is to give it some power over what your AVR can provide, you can always add an amp down the road. Check this out. http://hometheaterreview.com/polk-rti-a7-floorstanding-loudspeakers-reviewed/
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post #14931 of 18700
11/27/12 at 8:44am
^^
My goal is to keep the front three under $1500 and still get the best bang for the buck. I'm figuring @ 600 per for the left and right, that leaves 300 for the center. A subwoofer is next on my list. But, I haven't thought about pricing. As for the rears, I'll change them out later, if at all. So, thanks... your perspective is invaluable.
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post #14932 of 18700
11/27/12 at 9:00am
^^^^^
I can definitely appreciate the budget. I would have loved nothing more than to put all my cash toward my guilty pleasures. So, I cut and cut where I can trying not to compromise too much on quality while getting the best deals.

Your front three of A7's and the CSiA6 would be an awesome front stage. There are many high quality amps to push that set up. I cut corners and settled on the Emotiva XPA-2, a three channel amp with 200wpc. It gets the job done and you pay a fraction of the costs of higher end amps. It did such a good job for me, I got the XPA-3 and it boosted even better sound from my speakers.

There's always the debate on various forums weather or not Emotiva can get the job done, I haven't had any complaints and I love my set up.

The best to you.
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post #14933 of 18700
11/27/12 at 9:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tirefoamcan View Post

What amp do you guys use to drive your Polks? I'm using my Denon 1312 right now. It works, but I think I could do better.
I'm looking around at different 2-ch amps for my stereo setup, mostly older amps. The Hafler DH-220, Onkyo M-282, Parasound 1200, Adcom GFA-555, etc.

Parasound would be my suggestion. Look around at audiogon.com and usaudiomart.com for good prices on used gear. Ebay you can find stuff but I am always a bit leery from buying there myself. Also any forums you are a member on look at their for sale stuff, best way to get good gear at low prices from respectable sellers.

Quote:
Originally Posted by XStanleyX View Post

Don't expect any of them to sound better than your receiver.
I disagree here. Power from a 2 channel amp v a reciever there will be differences. I moved from a very respectable Integra DRT 5.9 amp section (driving Monitor 60's, CS2 and Monitor 40's) to a Carver AV-705x and there were some pretty nice differences in sound quality. Mostly when I really really cranked it. Also figure if you get better speakers (like the RTi series) those tend to do MUCH better with a power amp than a reciever.

So it does matter what speakers you have now, but a dedicated amp lets you upgrade speakers later on and really be able to enjoy them as they should sound.

Quote:
Originally Posted by chi_guy50 View Post

I'm not too confident about the pairing of surrounds with fronts in terms of relative compatibility although I understand it's important to match tweeters, right?

Its suggested you have speakers from the same line and manufacture for surrounds, but in practice it doesnt matter much. I ran Monitor 60's, CS2 + Monitor 40's for a bit and then moved to use Infinity Primus P162's for my surrounds and actually liked the Infinities better than the Monitor 40's.

The only real no-no is having horn tweeters on some speakers and cone tweeters on others. Otherwise mix and match your surrounds. Fronts must match thought.
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post #14934 of 18700
11/27/12 at 11:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by XStanleyX View Post

I have owned the Hafler and the Adcom. The Adcom will give you much more power than the Hafler. I assume it's more power you're looking for.
The Parasound or the Hafler would be my choices. You won't gain a whole lot with the Onkyo. Don't expect any of them to sound better than your receiver.

I agree. The sound quality won't improve very much at all when considering only the mids and highs. Each receiver you listen to will have some minor nuances or "coloring" if you will. Most of us will have a hard time discerning the differences in the quality of the sound.

With regard to the bass, that is an entirely different story. Bass. especially for power hungry RTiA9 speakers and the like, will definitely benefit from more power. I have 300 WPC into the A9s and they are exponentially more defined and powerful on the bass. I cannot hear any difference in mid's and highs.

To get a true representation of the quality of your speakers and receiver, running a good Bluray movie or uncompressed PCM music will take your receiver and speakers to their potential. I have USB music in FLAC format and it is a hundred times clearer and more detailed than even the best MP3s. The uncompressed PCM from a Bluray is a step above still. I have the Queen Bluray and it has both Dolby digital 5.1 and uncompressed PCM stereo. All I can say is wow! Listening to a great movie like Transformers - Dark Side of the Moon, or Underworld Awakening will blow your mind.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tirefoamcan View Post

What amp do you guys use to drive your Polks? I'm using my Denon 1312 right now. It works, but I think I could do better.
I'm looking around at different 2-ch amps for my stereo setup, mostly older amps. The Hafler DH-220, Onkyo M-282, Parasound 1200, Adcom GFA-555, etc.

I am running the Onkyo TX-NR3009 as my AVR powering the CSiA6 center and two F/XiA6 surround channels. I have the Emotiva XPA-2 powering the RTiA9s and they rock now... Aside from discrete pre/pro, amps, and the lot, it sounds pretty darn good.
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post #14935 of 18700
11/27/12 at 12:10pm
Guys I'm having doubts about my A5 + subwoofer combo. Newegg said that I can refuse the delivery and they'll give me a full refund. Should I just get A9s from polkaudio's ebay store @ $499 each - a bit expensive. The real question is would it really be worth the upgrade? What areas of sound are noticeably better in A9s?
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post #14936 of 18700
11/27/12 at 12:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tunafish24 View Post

Guys I'm having doubts about my A5 + subwoofer combo. Newegg said that I can refuse the delivery and they'll give me a full refund. Should I just get A9s from polkaudio's ebay store @ $499 each - a bit expensive. The real question is would it really be worth the upgrade? What areas of sound are noticeably better in A9s?

It's up to you. If you don't mind spending more for the A9, and you KNOW you will be happy with the A9 then get them.
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post #14937 of 18700
11/27/12 at 12:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GusGus748s View Post

It's up to you. If you don't mind spending more for the A9, and you KNOW you will be happy with the A9 then get them.

I haven't auditioned A9s...only A5 vs RF-62...so I don't know how much better A9s would be vs A5 + sub combo. Has anyone here upgraded from A5 to A9s or heard both...what's your opinion about the differences, worth it?
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post #14938 of 18700
11/27/12 at 1:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GusGus748s View Post

It's up to you. If you don't mind spending more for the A9, and you KNOW you will be happy with the A9 then get them.

While I myself have not compared the two directly, I have heard from others that the A5 performs similarly from the mid-range up to the higher frequencies. I could be wrong but a properly tuned sub woofer and the A5's won't sound dramatically different than the A9's. Hopefully others will share a similar experience.
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post #14939 of 18700
11/27/12 at 2:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by chi_guy50 View Post

I am looking to upgrade my living room 7.1 system with new L/R fronts and am considering the newegg package offer of two Monitor 75t's together with a Polk PSW505 for $580 total. Here's my situation:
When I replaced my reliable old H/K stereo with a Denon AVR-3311, I got the Polk Audio RM705 surround system and paired it with my 30-year-old Technics SB-5000 floorstanding speakers as fronts for the time being with the RM7 satellites as surrounds and FH's. Because it's a living room, form factor is an important consideration, which is why I originally chose the RM705. We don't want the room taken over by the speakers. In particular, I only have room for a center channel with a maximum height of 6". (I've tried out the Polk CS10 and it's just too imposing in the space.)
Alternatively, I'm considering the Energy CF-70's together with a CC-5 center. In this scenario, I would use DT ProMonitor 800's as front heights (or, alternatively, Energy CB-5's) and leave the (rear-wall mounted) Polk RM7's as surrounds. And I might then go ahead and upgrade the RM705 SW with the PSW505 separately.
We listen to about 75% music (jazz and classical), 20% cable TV and 5% DVDs. My budget is flexible but was hoping to do it all (with some comparison shopping) for about $1000.
Any and all advice will be welcome and greatly appreciated. I'm not too confident about the pairing of surrounds with fronts in terms of relative compatibility although I understand it's important to match tweeters, right?

Nobody?

Well, I've decided to spring for the 75t/PSW505 combo package and added the TL250 surround system, which I'll use in place of my RM7's for FHL/C/FHR. The TL2-C fits nicely on my wall unit shelf and should be an improvement over the RM7C. Total for the 8 speakers--$910 shipped. And I'll probably sell my leftover RM7's in a 3.1 package. I haven't listened to any of these new speakers yet so any feedback will be still welcomed.
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post #14940 of 18700
11/27/12 at 2:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tunafish24 View Post

Guys I'm having doubts about my A5 + subwoofer combo. Newegg said that I can refuse the delivery and they'll give me a full refund. Should I just get A9s from polkaudio's ebay store @ $499 each - a bit expensive. The real question is would it really be worth the upgrade? What areas of sound are noticeably better in A9s?

YES, the midrange in the A9's are the best of all the RTiA line up. The A9 is the top of the line in that series. Secure your doubt and go for the big guns, YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.

http://hometheaterreview.com/polk-rti-a9-floorstanding-loudspeakers-reviewed/
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