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Best speaker out of these three?

post #1 of 11
12/5/06 at 7:27pm
Thread Starter 
I know it's all subjective but here goes:

Which would you choose for a 2 channel set up:

Paradigm Monitor 11
Axiom M60 v2
Polk Rti10

Axiom is mail order only so I can't go listen to them, but I have heard good things about them.

Thanks !!
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post #2 of 11
12/5/06 at 8:42pm

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

I personally do like Polk's sound. To be totally honest a couple weeks back I auditioned the RTI8 & 10, the 8's sounded better to me. More immersive and better sound stage. It looks like you're in the same price range as I'm currently looking in. Take a look at HTD as well, I'm sure Luis will be in shortly to recommend the same thing.

What are you planning on driving them with. The RTI10's are supposed to be a little power hungry.
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post #3 of 11
12/5/06 at 8:57pm

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

You may also want to consider Paradigm Studio 60 v4's (same price as the Monitor 11's), they would be my first choice. What will you have driving these speakers?
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post #4 of 11
12/5/06 at 9:25pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

Thanks for the input guys. I'm a newbie and starting from scratch so I need a amp/receiver as well. I'm leaning towards a basic receiver like the HK3480(120 watts x2) or the Marantz SR4021(80 watts x2). I do plan on using the speakers to watch movies and a lot of concert dvd's(just bought the Eagles HFO and Farewell concert).
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post #5 of 11
12/5/06 at 9:42pm

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

The HK gets my vote over the Marantz, no question
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post #6 of 11
12/6/06 at 7:52am

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

I am a huge fan of Paradigm, so that is the brand I would suggest. I have been a happy owner of Monitor 7s for almost nine years. If you can swing it budget-wise, I also think you should look at the Studio line.

Speakers are truly the most subjective part of a sound system. Let your own ears be the judge to what is the best speaker. Most importantly, have fun looking for equipment and enjoy the wonderful world of home theater.
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post #7 of 11
12/6/06 at 12:01pm

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

I am running Monitor 11 V.4s for my fronts. They are run off a Crown XLS402b for power and a Pio Elite 56TXi for processing. I have been very pleased with them. They can handle huge amounts of power and are very dynamic. I cannot comment on the Polks but I do prefer the 11s to the M60s.

You really need to listen and decide which ones YOU like better.

-Eli
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post #8 of 11
12/6/06 at 5:05pm

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

I agree with the suggestions to look at the studio line. I like them a lot. I almost bought the studio 40's before I heard Ascend Acoustics. While I liked the studios a lot the Ascends were cheaper and I totally love their sound. They dont offer a tower but the 340 is a very large bookshelf. I just wanted to throw that out there.
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post #9 of 11
12/14/06 at 4:36am

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

I would check out some Paradigm Studios.
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post #10 of 11
12/30/06 at 7:14pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

Hi Guys,

I just thought I would check back in with an update. My wife bought me the HK 3480 as a Christmas gift so that's what I will be using for now. I really want a quality pair of floorstanders that I will be happy with for years to come. I mainly listen to rock and R and B. No classical, acoustic, opera, etc. My room is 15 by 20 feet with a vaulted ceiling that starts at 9 feet and peaks out at 16 feet. One end of the room has a small half wall and is open into the kitchen.

I auditioned some speakers at Tweeter the other day. I listened to several sets of speakers in a room the salesman called the "high end speaker" room. I believe they were hooked up to a Cambridge integrated amp(640 ?). I listened to the Polk Lsi 15, JBL L890 and some Focal's( which were way out of my budget). I was very impressed by the JBL's. The other listening room had some Polk rti's and a few other brands, but I felt they couldn't match the JBL's. They were a very dynamic, rich, full sounding speaker. VERY different from the Polk LSI. So maybe the JBL's may work well with my type of music and my room? Next week I will go to my local Hi Fi house and audition the Paradigm Monitor and Studio line. It's a shame I can't "A/B" the Paradigm's next to the JBL's that I liked so much! I will not be using a sub right now and I have no plans to ever move up to a full surround set up. I also saw some good prices on line for the Athena Fs2 ($400 before shipping) and the Infinity Beta 50's ($600 plus free shipping), but I have no local shops that carry these brands so I can't audition them. I'm thinking they are a step down from the JBL 890 and the Paradigm's anyway. Any ideas or opinions would be appreciated.

John
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post #11 of 11
12/31/06 at 10:00am

Re: Best speaker out of these three?

Hi John

It is really hard to judge how any speaker will sound in YOUR room compared to a showroom. Just keep in mind that speakers almost always sound brighter in your listening room than they do in a showroom. I have JBLs and several other brands of speakers that sound good. There are a lot of different ways you could go to achieve excellent sound. Do you have a subwoofer? You need to decide about a subwoofer before choosing speakers.

Happy New Year

PS

There is no way you can get a real full range experience without a subwoofer without spending a lot of money...please feel free to send me a Private Message to discuss this subject and anything else you might wish to discuss.
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