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Weatherproof Outdoor Speakers

2166 Views 19 Replies 10 Participants Last post by Punter16, Aug 22, 2021

Jeff11214

Discussion Starter · Aug 5, 2021

I have Niles HD-525 in-wall speakers connected to a speaker switch (Jobsite S-6VC) and that's connected to a Denon S640H. I'd like to buy outdoor speakers that will also connect to the speaker switch.

I believe the speaker switch handles 100w per channel.
I believe the Denon receiver handles 150w per channel.

Would "Polk Audio Atrium 4" be a good choice?

I believe each Polk speaker handles 80w max per channel so I think it's 160w a pair?

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Mike Lang

· #2 · Aug 5, 2021

Just to clarify, the Denon AVR-S640H is a 75 watts per channel receiver & the Polks are rated as up to 80. It should work well on a quality switch.

Punter16

· #3 · Aug 5, 2021

Jeff11214 said:
I have Niles HD-525 in-wall speakers connected to a speaker switch (Jobsite S-6VC) and that's connected to a Denon S640H. I'd like to buy outdoor speakers that will also connect to the speaker switch.

I believe the speaker switch handles 100w per channel.
I believe the Denon receiver handles 150w per channel.

Would "Polk Audio Atrium 4" be a good choice?

I believe each Polk speaker handles 80w max per channel so I think it's 160w a pair?

You absolutely get what you pay for with outdoor speakers. Bigger = Better. The speakers you referenced are not great.

Here's a write-up we did on a few pairs.

Best outdoor speakers for 2021 - Martin Logan vs Klipsch, Monitor Audio vs Episode

Best outdoor speakers for 2021 - Martin Logan vs Klipsch, Monitor Audio vs Episode

www.airetheaterdesigns.com

Any of these reviewed would work with your set-up.

Jeff11214

Discussion Starter · #4 · Aug 5, 2021

Punter16 said:
You absolutely get what you pay for with outdoor speakers. Bigger = Better. The speakers you referenced are not great.

Here's a write-up we did on a few pairs.

Best outdoor speakers for 2021 - Martin Logan vs Klipsch, Monitor Audio vs Episode

Best outdoor speakers for 2021 - Martin Logan vs Klipsch, Monitor Audio vs Episode

www.airetheaterdesigns.com

Any of these reviewed would work with your set-up.

The Polks have excellent reviews and fairly inexpensive, but I think the Klipsch AW-650 look far more superior. Is it worth $130 more?

gbonney

· #5 · Aug 6, 2021

You might look at RSL. They sound/play way above their price point.

Reactions: 1

Punter16

· #6 · Aug 6, 2021

Jeff11214 said:
The Polks have excellent reviews and fairly inexpensive, but I think the Klipsch AW-650 look far more superior. Is it worth $130 more?

Absolutely. The Klipsch AW650 will give you more fullness and crisper highs.

When reading reviews, keep the place of the product in mind. The Polk are a very entry-level outdoor speaker. A very basic product might be well-reviewed for what it is...an entry-level product that gives you better performance than its peers. That doesn't make it necessarily up to your needs.

I liken it to a scene in the movie 'Rain Man". Raymond Babbitt loves K-Mart. He loves K-Mart probably because he has an IQ of 65 but also because they provide the basic underwear that he needs. It serves the purpose and probably his budget. I'm sure Raymond Babbit's underwear would rank well in Consumer Reports. Charlie Babbit, however, is privy to fine underwear and the trappings of better stuff. Hence the famous line: Charlie Babbitt: "K-Mart sucks.".

If you have any of these mounted in a corner, it will help amplify the fullness and bass.

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geo1267

· #7 · Aug 6, 2021

I have owned the Polk Atrium 4s for almost 15 years. I bought them at the time for $99/pair because of the reviews on Amazon. They have been installed on the outside wall of my garage fully exposed to the elements the entire time I have owned them and are still going strong. They are great speakers for background music when we are hanging out on our 10x15 ft patio. If you are planning to use the Polk's for background music over a small area you will probably be happy with them. If you are looking for something that plays louder and covers a larger area of your property you will probably want something else.

Jeff11214

Discussion Starter · #8 · Aug 6, 2021

I'm sure the Polk Atrium 4 would of been fine, but I decided to go with the Klipsch AW650 since they're larger and I want to fill the backyard patio and pool area with decent sound. Definitely a step up from the portable Bluetooth speaker!

Thanks for all the comments!

Punter16

· #9 · Aug 6, 2021

Nice! Those are head and shoulders above what the Atrium4s can provide. You'll be a happy human.

Elihawk

· #10 · Aug 6, 2021

I have owned those Polk Atriums 4...just not very good, IMHO...I then audition Def Tech AW650 and Kef Ventura 6s and kept the Kefs….finally, one of the Kefs has a short after 8 years, but great outdoor speaker for 7 years.

Zarkoff500

· #11 · Aug 6, 2021

I have these under my patio and previously had a set of KLH outdoor speakers. The Dayton's are quite decent with an open and airy sound and decent bass with the passive radiator. I have mine positioned horizontally with the tweeters outboard and was pleasantly surprised to find a center image about 15 feet away in a lawn chair. There is also an 8" version with more bass but considerably larger.

www.parts-express.com

Home

Dayton Audio IO65XTW 6-1/2" IP66 Indoor/Outdoor 2-Way Speaker Pair with Radiator White Dayton Audio IO65XTW 6-1/2" Indoor/Outdoor 2-Way Speaker with Radiator WhiteUtilizing a passive radiator, the Dayton Audio IO65XT Indoor/Outdoor Speakers delivers a surprising amount of low-end while remaining...

www.parts-express.com

HDVidGuy

· #12 · Aug 7, 2021 (Edited)

I listened to many outdoor speakers and have owned Paradigm and Niles for many years.
This may be out of your price range, but they far above all the recommendations above - B&W AM-1. I have four outdoor, fully exposed to sun rain and snow.
They actually have great bass and very clear mids and highs. Klipsch will sound louder, but nowhere I’m the same sound league as the AM-1’s.

squared80

· #13 · Aug 8, 2021

The Klipsch AW-650's are awesome. I bought 2 pairs because I have a massive yard. But we installed just one pair, and it's MORE than enough.

Kyle76

· #14 · Aug 9, 2021

I thought about the Polk Atrium 4s to replace my existing outdoor speaker, but I just couldn’t imagine 4.5-inch woofers indoors, much less outdoors. I’ve got a pair of RSL Outsider IIs on the way with free shipping, no tax and free returns if I’m not happy. They’ve got 6.5-inch woofers and seem well regarded.

Punter16

· #15 · Aug 9, 2021

HDVidGuy said:
I listened to many outdoor speakers and have owned Paradigm and Niles for many years.
This may be out of your price range, but they far above all the recommendations above - B&W AM-1. I have four outdoor, fully exposed to sun rain and snow.
They actually have great bass and very clear mids and highs. Klipsch will sound louder, but nowhere I’m the same sound league as the AM-1’s.

What this guy says. The B&Ws are pretty nice. There are huge differences in sound quality between outdoor speakers. If you think about how long you might have these (5-15 years?) and amortize the cost over these years, it can be worth it to enjoy your sound when you're outdoors.

BBCO = Buy best, cry once.

Jeff11214

Discussion Starter · #16 · Aug 11, 2021

I installed the Klipsch AW-650 and use Amazon Music to cast to the Denon receiver. The sound is okay and thought it would be louder, but sound gets distorted when volume is up. It seems the volume increments is too large. Maybe there is a way to set smaller volume increments?

squared80

· #17 · Aug 11, 2021

Jeff11214 said:
Maybe there is a way to set smaller volume increments?

Use the HEOS App to control the volume. We listen to it at around 75-80 without issue.

Punter16

· #18 · Aug 11, 2021

If your sound is getting distorted most likely it is the speaker selector. Try hooking the Klipsch speakers directly to the receiver and see what happens.

Reactions: 1

Jeff11214

Discussion Starter · #19 · Aug 22, 2021

Very frustrated. So, the HEOS app worked to control the volume in 1% increments, but I still didn't get the clarity when volume was up high. I also connected speakers directly to receiver without speaker selector, but made no difference.

Now, I cannot cast music at all from Amazon Music because the HEOS app keeps crashing. I read others online had this issue with no solution. I tried a million things to troubleshoot like resetting the HEOS app, removing the HEOS app, removing device from Alexa, removing HEOS skill from Alexa, power-cycling receiver... did all above countless times to no avail.

Finally, with HEOS and Alexa/Denon removed from my iphone, I can airplay to Denon which does work, but I get hiccups when music plays. Maybe Amazon Cast uses better technology because I didn't have the hiccup issue when it was working.

Today I discovered the WIFI antenna cable broke off one antenna.. probably the reason for the hiccup. I did a search to find a replacement part and I can't believe how difficult it is to find. On this antenna, the cable assembly is built into the antenna. Poor design. If anybody knows where to find exact replacement, please let me know.

Just having bad luck with all these unrelated issues. I still have a couple weeks to decide if the Klipsch speakers are worth keeping or send them back for refund.

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Punter16

· #20 · Aug 22, 2021

What kind of loud volume are you talking about? If you have it at level 5 million, it will never be clear. If it is turned up so you need to talk louder in a conversation to hear over the music and it isn't clear (insinuating that it is turned up a bit but not ridiculously loud), there is something else going on.

Are there volume controls in addition to a speaker selector? If so, bypass the volume control and see how it sounds.
Are the speakers wired out of phase?
What sources are you listening to?

Airplay can sound bad. Amazon Music can sound bad if it isn't their HD stream. Are you sure it sounds good at low volume and it isn't just that you can hear the issues at higher volume?

If you are sure that it sounds good at low volume but not at high volume, there is most likely a problem with problem #1 or #2 above.

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