Polk Audio Monitor 60 Floorstanding Speakers
Polk Audio Monitor 60 Floorstanding Speakers
USER REVIEWS
[May 06, 2021]
chaples19
Strength:
Bought at a low cost. The sound is very clear, detailed, staging, and excellent mids. Very open and natural sound compared to other brands. | Douglas Fir Lumber Supply Weakness:
It has lower frequencies. Purchased: New
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[May 02, 2020]
RonnieB
Strength:
I have had these speakers since 2006'ish. I bought them new and honestly don't remember if I paid full price or sale price. I would wager sale price, I also purchased the CS2 center channel. I was shopping for new towers and center channel and it dawned on me that I have yet set the crossovers. I set the lows to go to my klipsch reference 12 and found a sweet eq setting, with a little more adjusting. I found what these speakers are truly capable of. They are great, with a nice even flow. The highs are not too high. And the mids aren't too punchy. I guess some people call this flat? I call it rich and flowing. Ive had these speakers for 15 years? And they are still going strong. Weakness:
Must have a good subwoofer, grills are very weak, speaker terminals are fragile Price Paid: 300
Purchased: New
Model Year: 2006
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[Aug 27, 2010]
Mark grile
Audio Enthusiast
With audio equipment, especially speakers, the idea is to not "color" the sound from the original source material. Although the Monitor 60's do not reach the basement in low frequencies, the DO reproduce an exceptionally uncolored sound all the way down to the lows that the do produce. When used in conjunction with a decent subwoofer ( I like the PSW505) you have a killer combination. Music AND movies sound GREAT! With mylar caps (trust me, you want mylar capacitors in the crossover) these are a HUGE value!!!!!!! Find them. Buy them & ENJOY!!!!!!!!! |
[Nov 19, 2009]
Tim
Audio Enthusiast
I wanted speakers that were accurate,musical, and esthetically appropriate for my listening room. These were to replace wharfedale emerald 93's. The Polk Monitor 60's were the design and size for what I wanted and were a great price. They are great with music in combination with a sub. They are clear and crisp in TV and DVD presentations. |
[Jun 05, 2007]
Lee
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
bang for the $$$, clear, detailed, staging, excellent mids. very open and natural sound.
Weakness:
lower frequencies, cheap plastic spikes. fragile grill.
I went out to buy a set of speakers, without any clear preference. I went to a store I trusted, with a selection of CDs and DVDs of my own. I liked the Monitor 60 right from the start. they were a little out of my budget, but after an hour of switching back and forth, between those and the other speakers in the price range, I have decided I have to buy them. even if it means paying a little more.
Similar Products Used: Tannoy , JBL , wharfedale. |
[Jun 05, 2007]
Lee
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
bang for the $$$, clear, detailed, staging, excellent mids. very open and natural sound.
Weakness:
lower frequencies, cheap plastic spikes. fragile grill.
I went out to buy a set of speakers, without any clear preference. I went to a store I trusted, with a selection of CDs and DVDs of my own. I liked the Monitor 60 right from the start. they were a little out of my budget, but after an hour of switching back and forth, between those and the other speakers in the price range, I have decided I have to buy them. even if it means paying a little more.
Similar Products Used: Tannoy , JBL , wharfedale. |
[Dec 01, 2004]
nightflier
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Loud, crisp, in-your-face speakers. Better that similar speakers from Sony, Pioneer, and the rest of the low-priced stuff out there. In my view, they bested speakers 2-3 times their price as well.
Weakness:
The plastic/rubber feet are not ajustable or removable. If you have uneven floors, that might be a problem. I will probably add my own spikes, instead. The front grilles are a pain to take off, but they hide a rather cheap-looking silver front (unless you prefer the college-dorm / high-tech look). Also, the bass does not dip very low, but what is does produce is loud and clear. I was going in to purchase a pair of Polk LSi 7 bookshelf speakers and stumbled on these. Tweeter had a sale on them so I checked 'em out. I compared them to Polk's higher-priced RT series speakers as well as both bookshelf and tower speakers from Mirage and Saphire, their own brand. These speakers were noticeably better than any of the others. Before buying, I came back later with my own CD's (selections from Massive Attack, Marsalis Classical, and Dave Brubeck Jazz, all tracks that I am very familiar with). I didn't expect these Polks to have good bass, certainly not at that price, but I was pleasantly surprised. Since Bass is harder to reproduce, it weighs heavily on my buying decision. The Monitors didn't break up in the low frequencies even on volume levels as high as +5 (we switched between Pionneer Elite and Denon receivers). The bass was not that deep, to be sure, but at the 40-100Hz frequecies, it was loud, full, and I could feel it in my chest. The larger speakers were also loud and could even go lower, but their bass seemed more muffled and less clear. But the Monitor 60's really shined in the mid ranges. Where the other speakers sounded further away, the Monitors where very detailed and "close." The higher frequencies were also strikingly sharp, fast, and in-your-face, even at the highest volumes. I know that the bookshelf monitor models are badly reviewed online, and Tweeter didn't have these for comparison, but the Monitor 60 towers were very alive to my ears. Maybe the addition of the woofer and the tower cabinet makes all the difference, I'm not sure, but I cannot think of any speaker at that price-point that can compare (they were on sale: $175/50% off, so maybe at $350, it's not that good). Anyhow, I bought them that day. I am now comparing all my other speakers to them, in my listening room. Some would say that these speakers are a bit too forward and even metallic sounding, and I can see why. But The clarity of these speakers is astounding. They are definitely not laid back. Compared with a pair of Infinity Primus towers that I am borrowing and that are about the same price, they are more lively and forward, so if you're looking for laid-back, these are not your speakers. When I got them home, I compared them to my Klipsch RB5's. These are horn-loaded bookshelf speakers that have been my reference speakers for years. The Klipsch's are more spacial and I can better make out where instruments are in a complex symphonic passage, but the Polk's do not dissapoint. Although they are not as deeply spacial, the sound is closer to the listeing position. Although they are not up to par with the Klipsch's, they certainly hold their own. I also compared them with a pair of Polk RT600i towers with the foot-vented port. I felt that this was a fairer comparison since these were the low-end standard 3-4 years ago, albeit at a slightly higher price-point. These have always had excellent bass and are a joy to listen to, especially with classical music. However, the Polk Monitors where much more detailed in the high frequencies. While the RT600i's do go a tad lower, they will break up in the lower Hz at higher volumes if not coupled with a good sub. The monitors could go much louder w/o a sub and where a much better speaker overall. I still love the quality construction of the RT600i's while the Monitors look rather cheap with their plastic silver fronts, but they were a better speaker, performance-wise. I have not thrown everything at them yet. For example, I have not used them in a home-theater setup. They certainly sound like they are geared towards this, though, since they are crisp, clear and loud, but I haven't tried this out. Overall, an excellent value. Polk has not advertised these well, there are very few reviews and I have only seen them at Tweeter. I heard they were designed exclusively for resale through Circuit City stores. This is probably not a good outlook for them. That said, if these can be scooped up for less than the MSRP, it should be a steal. Coupled with a low-Hz capable sub, they should be an incredible value. I am rating these a 4/5 because of the construction and the $350 price tag, but the performance is top-notch. Similar Products Used: Infinity, Yamaha, Other Polks, Klipsch, Axiom Audio, Pioneer, Boston Acoustics. |