Klipsch vs Polk Audio (Upgrade time)

[Petrol]

So how bout that comparison from the Klipsch SW12II to the Sub-12?

coming from polks myself, I was set to buy a Synergy F3, C3, B3 but intead chose to go the Referance route... Not because I thought so much less of Synergy, I just liked Referance better.

<b> As for the subs... Night & Day my friend !! </b>

Subs have come a long, long way in just the last couple years, let alone the last 12 since our subs were new...

while I think the SW12II is great for most music (I still have & love my old SW10II) you will find it can easily be overwhelmed by action movie sound tracks (war of the worlds had mine smacking the excursion limit harder then a 2x4 hitting your head) & bass heavy techno & hip-hop that the new (and very BadASS, imo) Sub12 easily handles... especially when listening at 'realistic' levels

personally, I have been struggling over justifying a Referance series RW12 over the Sub12 and as such have not yet purchased either (I also want to replace some widows in our house before upgrading subs as well since I am bothered by there rattles far to often)

[ironwoods]

[quote user="ironwoods"

This couldn't be more wrong. Size of sub is not the determining factor in how it sounds. Build quality of sub, enclosure, and amp are all factors. An SVS PC Ultra or a Klipsch RSW 12 will be night and day better than a sw 12II, but both are 12s. Sunfire true subs use 10" and 8 " drivers and they also are significantly better than a sw 12II.

Bobby, If he already has a sub, I doubt he will be blown away by a new-fangled one. I still wouldn't do a thing, 'till the choice of mains has been decided. And I'd give it a good month of audition and placement experimention/ integration before heading out to spend a grand or so on a new sub. Call me frugal, but not wrong. [:|]

[BobbyT]

If he went to a SVS PC Ultra he would be blown away and it would be a major difference. And saying one 12 is not much different from any other 12 is very wrong. Or everyone would have the cheap Sony 12 and be done with it and SVS would be out of business. So on this particular matter you are mistaken. I do agree he should pick out his speakers first, but he did ask about the subs also.

[Petrol]

Bobby, If he already has a sub, I doubt he will be blown away by a new-fangled one. I still wouldn't do a thing, 'till the choice of mains has been decided. And I'd give it a good month of audition and placement experimention/ integration before heading out to spend a grand or so on a new sub. Call me frugal, but not wrong. [:|]

It always seems to be far to easy to tell other folks how to spend their money and I commend you for being the lone 'frugal' voice...

Heck, I have yet to drop a dime on replacing my near 13 year old SW10 II on a new sub myself. I recommended to him to from my own experiance that the new Sub 12 is a better sub for movies and bass heavy music then his current SW12 II, let alone my old SW10 II.

The specs below don't mention it but I remember the SW12 II amp as being about 160w

Specifications

FREQUENCY RESPONSE:

28Hz-120Hz±3dB

MAXIMUM ACOUSTIC OUTPUT:

107dB SPL

LOW PASS CROSSOVER:

Continuously variable from 40-120Hz, 24dB/octave slope above 120Hz

SUBWOOFER:

K-26-K 12" (30.48cm) Fiber-composite cone woofer / KD-122-K 12" (30.48cm) Fiber-composite cone passive

PHASE:

Switchable 0 or 180 degrees

ENCLOSURE MATERIAL:

Medium density fiberboard construction (MDF)

ENCLOSURE TYPE:

Bass reflex via passive radiator

INPUTS:

2) Line level RCA phono jacks and 2) High level speaker terminals

OUTPUTS:

2) Line level RCA phono jacks (fixed 80Hz HP - 6dB/octave slope) and 2) High level speaker terminals (fixed 120Hz HP - 6dB/octave slope)

DIMENSIONS:

23.5" (59.7cm) x 15.625" (39.7cm) x 16.49" (41.9cm)

WEIGHT:

60 lbs. (27.2kg)

FINISHES:

Whitewash, Light Oak, Medium Oak, Cherry, Walnut, Black Satin veneers, Black vinyl

BUILT FROM:

1994

BUILT UNTIL:

1996

[BobbyT]

I'm not trieing to spend his money. He also asked about subs. It was stated that the difference between 12" subs was negligible and that to make a difference he needed to go to a 15" or 18" sub. This just isn't the case. He will notice a difference between the subs he asked about. How the poster ultimatly spends his money is up to him. I just wanted to make sure he is well informed.

[DrWho]

The Sub-12 is by far the best bang for buck subwoofer on the market...you can't even beat it going DIY for the same price! It will completely demolish your old sub, both in output and quality.

As far as the F3's go...think of the psychology involved. No matter what, people are going to claim the reference sounds better, if for nothing else because they are prettier and cost more (so they have to sound better). Now I'm not trying to say the reference sounds worse, because it in fact sounds better, but the magnitude of better just isn't as extreme as we'd like to think...They are both very similar designs (dual woofer tweeter) that will have the same inherant distortions and design limitations. The reference simply has more money dumped into minimizing the same flaws that are present in both.

I like to think of the synergy as the maximum bang for the buck, whereas the reference sacrifices some of that for a little extra refinement. It'll be up to you if you think the differences are worth spending twice as much money...

[Spkrdctr]

The Sub-12 is by far the best bang for buck subwoofer on the market...you can't even beat it going DIY for the same price! It will completely demolish your old sub, both in output and quality.

As far as the F3's go...think of the psychology involved. No matter what, people are going to claim the reference sounds better, if for nothing else because they are prettier and cost more (so they have to sound better).

Dr.Who

Those are words of wisdom Dr. Who. Reference may sound better, but at a much, much, higher cost!

[wrench_peddler]

I have 1987 CornerHorns, a 1987 Belle for the center and 1987 Cornwalls for the rears. I have about $4100 in all five. I have a DIY subwoofer that I never need to turn on. I admit, it took about a year of whatching and waiting but I couldn't be happier with the sound. I do understand that my set-up is not for everbody, but that is why it's at my house. :-)

[ironwoods]

Well there ya go..... take the sub out of the equation completely, although you have about 7 square feet of LF drivers employed. There IS more than one way to skin the cat.

You can set that up at my place anytime now Steve. []

[Petrol]

I'm not trieing to spend his money. He also asked about subs. It was stated that the difference between 12" subs was negligible and that to make a difference he needed to go to a 15" or 18" sub. This just isn't the case. He will notice a difference between the subs he asked about. How the poster ultimatly spends his money is up to him. I just wanted to make sure he is well informed.

uh, yea... like I said, I commend you.

I was just adding that the LFE in movies and lots of new music make demands on a sub that will highlight the superiority of the new Sub12 to his old SW12.

[Yoeddy]

Picked up a Sub12 today at BB for $450. I'm still tweaking it and playing around with placement, but folks it absolutely rocks! It runs circles around my SW12II...not that my SW12II was bad by any means. The bass is much cleaner, lower, and detailed! Now I'm wondering what my Parasound gear would do with some mains and center vs what I currently have. This is such a vice for me!!!

[DrWho]

glad it worked out.

Now we gotta get you hooked on the rest of the lineup []

[ironwoods]

Hey Yoeddy, does one have no need for a SW12II now?

I don't think the sub12 should be running around in circles though. That just isn't how a good sub should act.

[Yoeddy]

Well, I have another little 2 channel system in my living room, but I would definitely have a battle on my hands with WAF (wife acceptance factor). That sub is so big, I already know she'd kabosh that request.

[ironwoods]

So, now ya wanna know how to put the kabosh on the WAF? [:-*]

[Yoeddy]

Yes indeed.

[rlr267]

The Synergy line is a great line of speakers in that price range. And would Certainly be an upgrade over the Polks. F-3 vs the RT16: 97db efficiency for the F-3 vs 90 for the RT's That alone is an impressinve upgrade. 7db. I've never been impressed with Polks, so Im biased, but I have always given them a chance. And for the money you can certainly find a better sounding speaker than Polks.

I have auditioned the Synergy line against the Polk RTi-8 and RTi-10, IMHO, the Klipsch sounded better and cost less. More importantly, the same day, I auditioned the Klipsch RF-62, Klipsch RF-35, Klipsch CDT-5800-C, Anthony Gallo A'Diva Ti's and, and Anthony Gallo Refs. Klipsch cost SUBSTANTIALLY less and sounded as good as the Gallo Ref's. Although I did not perform a side by side of the RF-62 with the Polk RTi's, my wife and I both agree, the Klipsch wins hands down on sound, clarity, and performance over the Gallo A'Diva Ti's which I am positive everyone will agree are far superior to Polk's RTi series.

Finally, don't discount the Reference series based on price. I have been shopping, and with a little patience, found a local dealer willing to make a deal (I have 9 dealers within 30 miles of my house, which may help) and I can get Klipsch Reference for less than the local "big box" store wants for the Synergy speakers. In fact, my only hesitation is that I have been offered the RF-35 and the RF-82 for the same price and I can't choose (I have not been able to perform a side by side.)

[DrWho]

In fact, my only hesitation is that I have been offered the RF-35 and the RF-82 for the same price and I can't choose (I have not been able to perform a side by side.)

Ah, that's a no brainer. The tweeters in the newer reference are definetly superior to the older ones. And being a newer line you will have much better support in the off chance something bad happens (and further down the road there will probably be more replacement parts available).

[rlr267]

Thanks for the recommendation Doc. I was seriously leaning toward

the RF-82 for the sole reason it is the "new" version. In fact, I

just placed the order for two RF-82s, a RC-62 center, a RW-10

sub, and 2 CDT-5800-Cs for the rear with plans to add two more CDTs

later to make a 7.1 system all powered up by a Yamaha RX-v-750 that my

loving wife gave me for Christmas .

Anyone interested in buying Klipsch in the DFW area, should talk to my

dealer, the speakers I ordered today came in less than $2K.