oogins Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 I currently have the Quintets for speakers, and I'm not satisfied with their music performance. So, I've been looking at some bookshelf speakers to play on my B switch. More specifically, I'm looking at the RB3's and RB5's, and I have one question. Why do the RB5's and the RF3's cost the same? The RB5's are obviously smaller, don't play as low, have one less driver, and don't play as loud. So why do they cost the same as the RF3's? ------------------ -Paul AMD T-Bird 900 Asus A7V Micron 256 MB PC-133 IBM 30 GB 7200 rpm ATA 100 Pioneer DVD-105 Slot-Load (16X/40X) 3Dfx Voodoo5 5500 AGP Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer 5.1 (soon to be Hercules Fortissimo II) NEC MultiSync M700 17" (soon to be Sony CPDG420S 19") Razor Boomslang 2000 w/Everglide Giganta These speakers are for my computer, not a HT Receiver: Kenwood VR-409 (soon to be Denon AVR-2802) Speakers: Klipsch Quintets (5 sats. soon adding Klipsch KSC-C1) Sub: Sony SA-W305 mini-sub (soon to be HSU Research VTF-2) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougdrake2 Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 Paul - Fair question. Most of the price difference is in the finish. The RB-5 uses real wood veneers in 3 varieties, the RF-3 comes with black vinyl. DD2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oogins Posted August 29, 2001 Author Share Posted August 29, 2001 Does the finish affect the sound any? Does wood have a better effect with sound than the vinyl, or is it just for looks? ------------------ -Paul AMD T-Bird 900 Asus A7V Micron 256 MB PC-133 IBM 30 GB 7200 rpm ATA 100 Pioneer DVD-105 Slot-Load (16X/40X) 3Dfx Voodoo5 5500 AGP Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer 5.1 (soon to be Hercules Fortissimo II) NEC MultiSync M700 17" (soon to be Sony CPDG420S 19") Razor Boomslang 2000 w/Everglide Giganta These speakers are for my computer, not a HT Receiver: Kenwood VR-409 (soon to be Denon AVR-2802) Speakers: Klipsch Quintets (5 sats. soon adding Klipsch KSC-C1) Sub: Sony SA-W305 mini-sub (soon to be HSU Research VTF-2) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougdrake2 Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 I don't believe the finish affects the speaker's sound. Sound reflections are happening on the inside of the cabinet (and they are both the same there - MDF) and where the sound leaves the speaker box itself (the speakers/ports). I think, though, that the finish might affect the sound in the listening room, like "Wow, what a cool looking speaker!" DD2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P_a_r_a_d_i_g_m Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 Actually the RB5 costs the same becuse it is a better speaker. First off, the cone on the rb5 is of higher quality than the RF3. also the RB5 is much cleaner and plays more acurate than the RF3. So if you want a thumping bass louded speaker get the rf3, if you want a real high quality, clear audophile speaker get the RB5. As for the bass just get a sub woofer with the RB5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BobG Posted August 30, 2001 Share Posted August 30, 2001 Paradigm offers slightly inaccurate information. The woofers in the RF-3 and the RB-5 are virtually identical except for the voice coil impedance. The dual woofer RF-3 must have different impedance than the single woofer RB-5. Other than that, they are the same design and materials etc. The cost difference is due to the much greater expense of the RB-5 cabinet which is veneered inside and out (to prevent any warping over time). We build it by hand in Hope while we build the RF-3 vinyl clad enclosure on a different assembly line. Vinyl clad box building is highly automated and lower in cost. Sonically, the cabinet veneer (wood or vinyl) will not make a difference. The RB-5 is intended to offer performance of a floor standing speaker in an attractive bookshelf package. In fact, the specs are quite similar to our SF-2 but with better resolution and dynamics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drobo1 Posted August 30, 2001 Share Posted August 30, 2001 I AB'ed the two speakers and I think the RB-5 sounds better. It also has a better finish which may be the reason it's similarly priced but with fewer parts in a smaller package. drobo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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