Clarity, smooth highs, natural mids & great bass. Good value for the $$$.

They need lot's O' power, not necessarily a weakness, but wouldn't recommend them with an under $ 1K receiver, but would - with upper end Denon, Sony ES, Pioneer Elite, Marantz or separates that can provide the current to deliver the goods.

I have a friend who is a high end audiophile with components the likes of Anthem and B&K. I was in the market to upgrade my home theater speakers and was looking at the Polks & Klipsch. He was in the av store picking up a couple things, said they had a sale going on and did I need anything? I had listened to the Klipsch RF7's earlier and asked him if they had a set of RTi12's that he could give a listen to. He called me back later and said they did and........ to to buy them - he liked their sound, I'd be happy with them. So I had him pick them up with a CSi5 and Rti6's to go as a package. He brought them over in his truck and help me set them up in my system, also showed me how to tune them according to the room and location using a couple of test cd's he had.

They are very heavy at 88 lbs a piece and can be a chore to move once you have the spikes into the carpet. Fit and finish are first rate, mine are in cherry, real wood veneer.

I have the RTi12's biamped with a pair of vintage Kenwood M2A's and The RTi6's running on a single Kenwood M2A power amp [some folks may have heard of these M2A's-high quality power amps]. The Sony Strda 777ES runs the CSi5 center. I do have a custom 2500watt subwoofer which I left off to see how things shaked out.

Let me just say this.................. for the money spent [under $2K], WOW.

With the most delicate of music or the best action movies you can find, these speakers are awesome.............. with plenty O' bass. I will say - as most have, they do require a lot of power. With that power connected, they will deliver extreme dynamics, with a clarity that you'll have trouble finding with most other brands. You really don't need a sub with these but, with.......... look out. My hat's off to Polk for getting these right.

The Kipsch RF7's hwever are very nice, bright and extremely powerful but lack the smoothness of the RTi12's. 'Nough said'

Customer Service

Haven't hurt em yet so...... don't know

Similar Products Used:

None like these - replaced a quad set of Cerwin Vega Q1 reference speakers and a CV center with the Polk system.

Sony STRDA777ES dolby digital / dts receiver
Denon AVR 3000 class A / dolby prologic receiver
Sony Grand Wega 60" XBR2
Kenwood M2A's triple power amps
Sony BDP-S300 Blu-ray disc
Sony DVP 600D 5disc dvd
Sony SDP-E800 dd processor
QSC PLX2402 sub power amp
DBX-120X subharmonic synthesizer
Audiobahn 1805x's

Soild construction, excellent sound (prepared to be impressed), tight bass responce, power handling ability, and flexable amping setups. Very good bang for the buck. Polk provides a free eviction notice if you live in an apartment or attached housing. These speakers can also provide you with a great opportunity to meet your local law enforcement. Rock on!

Outriggers were a little weak (plastic). Size and shape are a bit awkward. No weaknesses to really be conserned over.

These speakers are very good for the money. Compaired to others in this price range, these puppies have them beat hands down. They are tight and bright. After hooking up these speakers I ran the RTA on my Behringer Ultra Curve (1/3 oct. eq) and the results were amazing. The auto eq made hardly and changes in the specturm. I could take it in and out of loop over and over with less than 5% difference in total sound quality and freq responce. I double checked my reference microphone hook up and re-ran the RTA over again to make sure I was seeing the right thing. Amazing, the speakers completely made up for all the room fault that I had been "tuning" for the past 2 years.

Like other people have stated in thier reviews, you have to drive these speakers. High current amps with true/clean wattage is the a key player in the preformance. You will find very quickly that you need the extra wattage for (lack of a better term) headroom. Don't expect find a sutable preformance in a any big box electronic store receiver.

I have also found that bi-amping is a major player in getting the best preformance. At both low and high volume bi-amping makes 110% difference in sound quality. By powering the lower drivers with a few more watts than the top end, you can tone down the brightness a bit and eleminate the need for sub. It also dramatically improves the tone quality at lower volumes for causual listening.

I recommend as bare minimum setup, you give provide 100-135 watts per speakers. As an optimal setup, I would highly recommend bi-amping; with 150-200 watts on the high end and 200-250 watts on the low end of the cabinet.

Anyone not satisfied with the output of the cabinets or complaining they need a sub, does not have these speakers setup or powered properly. I would only recommend addind a sub if you room size is larger than 25x25. Even then, I believe it you could compensate by proper placement and bi-amp balancing. If you just can't get enough air moving for your taste, I would recommend using a Polk PSW600 or PSW1000. I haven't heard that first hand but it has to be awsome.

As far as the tone quality of the cabinet, the top end is very transparent and bright. The low end of the cabinet has very little coloration to the sound due to the twin cabinet ports. Every detail and every instrument can be heard crystal clear.

Construction is rock soild. I have heard many people complain about the front grills. They are not that bad. They are a bit fragile but, on the other hand, they are not ment to be taken on and off daily either. I wouldn't worry about them. Just be carefull when removing them and only do it as needed.

As far as the outriggers go, I tbelieve that metal would have been a much better choice insted of plastic. The sharp pointed feet seem like they would be damaing to hardwood or just plain annoying on tile. I would like to have seen an additional set of feet in each box that were flat bottomed. I haven't currently had an issue with this becuase I have carpet but, I can only imagine that it could be frustrating.

Overall, I don't believe you will find a better bang for the buck. These speakers are not quite audiophile equipment but, they are as very close (to low end audiophile gear). For the money, I don't think anyone will go wrong. Just remember, power is the key.

Customer Service

I purchased these from Crutchfield so customer service was awsome as usual. They are known for their hand holding and lifetime customer support. I haven't had to deal with Polk directly yet so manufacture service is unknown.

Similar Products Used:

Other Polk loudspeakers. B&W, Infinity, JBL, and more.

Presence, clarity, attention grabbing command of your audio senses.

They do need big power. Hooking these straifght into a 5, 6, or 7 channel amp at 100-150 watts just won't cut it in my opinion. You really need to give them a quality amp at around 300 watts per side.

These are FANTASTIC. They have a presence and depth that is unbelievably distinguishable, but you MUST have heavy power to drive them. Remember there are three 7.5" woofers, two 5.25 midrange and a 1" tweeter. That;s a lot of magnets to drive. I have a pair of Adcom Monobloacks at 300 watts into 8 ohms and they don't even need a subwoofer. I have heard others say they were a little weak here, but I must question if you provided sufficient power to get them really working.

That being said they are rich and articulate. Set up off the floor on there spikes they sit out by themselves and draw your attention to their weightiness. I don't think could be more pleased with my decision to go with these.

Clarity and detail

Bass but in this price range any speaker that sounds this good will not have a ton of bass, well unless it boomy.

These are really good speakers. After first hooking them up, was a little disappointed. Played with placement and then WOW! Great clarity and detail. Very accurate but a tad analytical. Hooked up my tubes amps and that little issue was solved. Bought more for music and was surprised how they improved the home theater experience. A sub helps these speakers but they have very fast and accurate bass. For the money you would have a difficult time buying a better speaker. These sell new to the door for less than $1200. Listened to and owned many speakers. Have used in both large and small room with great results. These were purchased for temporary use but now no hurry to upgrade.

Similar Products Used:

Thiel, B&W, Vanderteen, Magnapan and Paragim.

Great Prices and friendly service. was able to speak to someone everytime I called with a question. Received my Polk Audio Rti12's in great condition. Ecellent place to get your stuff!!

The best sounding speakers (for the money) if you put a HUGE sub beside them. So.. the best high/mid range speakers or around 1k.
Better looking than the Klipsch - if that matters to you......

Not that great of low end. Must drive the hell out of them. Must be accompanied by a subwoofer (big one).

These are GREAT speakers!!!! However, you MUST drive them. I fully auditioned Klipsch RF-7 and Polk Audio RTi12. Out of the gate the Klipsch killed em. If you're ONLY going with 2 fronts and want to impress the friends...the Klipsch are the biggest bang for the buck.
Price was a few hundred either way so that wasn't really a factor.
Butt!...If you plan on going the "mile" and have the budget; the Polk are most definitely the winners. The Klipsch are by far the best bang for the buck. But it you have the cash to include the Polk PSW1000, CSi5, and FX rears.....(or something there abouts) that's when they really stand out. If any of you out there like cars - The Klipsch are the Infinity - bad ass out of the gate - the Polk system is the Lexus. Smooth, crystal clear through the whole range (get the sub!!!!! you'll be disappointed without it). I
Had the fortune to know friends who had both and let me bring my amp (Carver Sunfire) to both.
Bottom line:
Overall package review:
Polk wins in MY case... but a LOT more money when considering you really have to buy a huge sub and a MASSIVE amp.
Klipsch RF-7 = the hotrod of the bunch. I've had my system for almost a year and still wonder about my choice......unit I push the volume past where normal people might like it....way past!!!! (Remember..The amp WILL cost you more than your speakers if you go with the Polk.)

Customer Service

Solid product - no issues

Similar Products Used:

Klipsch RF-7

LOOKS, Clarity, Sound Field and BANG FOR YOUR BUCK!!!!!

90LBS

Can't say enough, the sound field and clarity generated by these speakers are awsome. Talk about knocking on high ends door. I got a great deal on this speakers I got them for 900.00 out the door brand new in the box. But one thing you will need is great audio to push these bad boys, like a Rotel RB1090 and of course you need good inter speaker cable as well. My surround sound never sounded to good and music is very rich as well. The only other authorize dealer i know that gives a great deal is JR music online. Good luck.

Similar Products Used:

B&W, Infinity, Klipsh

Very detailed and smooth mids and highs. Room shaking tight bass. Beautifull finish and asthetics.

Very large and heavy (80 pus pounds).

I would just like to add that these speakers, if driven by the proper electronics, can provide awesome clarity and power. I use a Rotel 1090 amp (350 watts/channel) and the 1090 preamp. These speakers are an incredible value while knocking on the door of the "high end".

Similar Products Used:

Carver Platinum speakers.

Midrange detail

Bass thin overly bright only $100 less than the far superior LSi15's

I auditioned these in my local Tweeter and compared them to the other models they sold (Sonus Fabur, Martin Logan, Infinity, and the Polk Lsi series). I knew the manager so he left me alone in the sound room for 90 minutes on my own, showed me how to user the selecter and I was left undisturbed. I must say that I didn't hear the bass in these speakers that the other reviewers spoke of. I had a Denon 3805 AVR running through them and they sounded bright and bass thin to me. I connected a 200 Watt RMS B&K amp in its place and it helped a little...but not much. I must say that this speaker performed the weakest of the bunch. The midrange was clean and detailed. That was the one strength I found in them. Ultimately I wound up selecting the Polk LSi15's. They were only $100 more than these RTi's but had much more bass, better imaginng and soundstage, and looked better to me to boot. The Sonus Grand Pianos were the speaker I really liked the most but at $3500 they were out of my price range. This is not a bad speaker...and they certainly sound better than what you'll typically find at CC and BB...but if you like Polk you really owe it to yourself to check out the LSi's before you buy these.

Similar Products Used:

JBL Century L100's Yamaha NS500 Polk LSi15

Clear sound good bass very good mids & highs

size

Great speaker. It has a real nice range. The bass is so good, that I realy dont need my subwoofer any more. The sound is very clear but you need real good cables (Monster Cable 12-gague). I was worryed that they where going to over power my AMP (I have a Pioneer 100W x 5), but it works perfectly. What a diffrence these speaker makes to my system. I would recomend these speaker to any one that whant a real nice speaker, at a good price.