Ok Polk, YOU have MY ATTENTION. Reserve R600 Review!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 มี.ค. 2021
- #R600 #Reserve #Review
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I love that you measure. I've been tracking the back and forth chatter around subjective and objective for a very long time. And this chatter can be explored by anyone through the entire history of audio. I love that you move between/correlate measurement and listening. One is a check or control on the other. I also like that your listening often anchors the sonic experience with how convincing reproduction is. Does the system create a compellingly palpable sonic illusion of the entire captured performance.
Awesome review Ron! I've been a Polk fan since 1983 when I got the Polk 10, then moved on to the RT16. Had a full HT setup with RT35, RT25, CS400 and Polk sub.
Great review Ron, I hope we get your impressions of other speakers in this line such as the R700.
It's nice to see that you can still get a great sounding speaker without spending an arm and leg. Good job Polk👍👍
Well there not really hitting the audiophile territory, 43hz some bookshelf almost hit that low of hz
I thought he said its in the mid too low 30's hz range.
Hey Ron, great channel man. After seeing your reviews on the NAD M10 and the Polk R600s, I decided to pull the trigger on both. I also added a 1977 Pioneer Spec 4 power amp and I couldn’t be more pleased. Sounds fantastic. Thanks for the tips and reviews. You and Randy keep it going.
That’s awesome!
Ron just want to commend you on your journey...great job slick production 👏 keep the collaborative content up bravo to Polk for stepping up their game. My first audiophile speakers were the Polk 7bs...imaging for days!
Thank you!
I agree, the ring radiator tweeter design is superb with the correct implementation. I have Aerial Acoustics 7T's which use them and they are so clear. I think Polk gained the reputation, weather fair or not, of being a bargain basement brand due to their Best Buy series. Thanks for the great review. If I were in the market I would definitely check them out.
Very pleased with my R600s. Last Polks I purchased in 1990 Monitor 5s. Back in 1990 Polk was a respected American made speaker. My 5s where made in Baltimore MD. They still sound great. They could use a tweeter upgrade thats about all. I hope to enjoy my new R600s as much as the Monitor 5s. I waited 30 years for an upgrade. Glad Polk is back!
My very first pair of speakers were a pair of Polk Audio bookshelf speakers from the mid 80s. Back in the 80’s Polk was considered to be a relatively high end speaker brand. This was before they were bought out by United Audio and they went mainstream. These Polks are like a throwback to those early Polks that I remember as a kid. They were a lot of fun to own!
I still have Monitor 5s from '91. They still amaze me and make me say "wow" quite often. I loved them back then, and still do. You are correct, Polk's were considered high end, and you couldn't find Polks except in high end stores. I auditioned them against Klipsch, B&W, Paradigm, Mirage, and, Definitive Tech. I liked the Polk's best.
Bought a pair of R700’s based on your very thorough and balanced review and boy am I happy I did! Your description of the sound is spot on and couldn’t have been better. My listening room requires a bit more bass which is why I opted for the R700. I went from a pair of rti-a5’s with sub to just the R700’s and it’s a much more balanced, fuller sound with an astonishing soundstage. Thank you and keep up the good work!
Nice upgrade! I had the RTi-A5's and upgraded to the LSiM 705's. They sound much fuller, but I do miss the soft dome tweeter. I also kept my subwoofer. I need to listen without the sub sometime.
I'm finding myself eyeballing the r700's. I wonder how they compare to the LSiM 705's.
What did you pair them up with?
@@GirishKolanthra I’m running them through my old Onkyo TX-NR818 in bi-amp config. Very happy but the DSP chip is giving trouble now so looking at getting an Anthem MRX 540 or NAD T578. Anyone tried these two with the Polks?
@@jacqueslombard6487, I'm in here late, answering. But I recently bought the r700 (along with r300 & r100) and run them with NAD T778. I know it's not the 758 so maybe not completely relevant, but I must say it drives the r700's great! Especially in stereo mode, it's impressive! I got a good sub at the same time, but went on accidentally listening without the sub in stereo mode, and it took me 2 days to notice the sub wasn't playing! 😅 It took some songs with really deep bass to notice. Never been so happy with a speaker purchase! Feels like my end game speakers, at least for a long while. And that while spending less than half of what I was expecting on the floor standers to get the sound i wanted.
Yeah can't wait to try these out ! I am very impressed with my Polk Lsim 703 amazing speaker that deserved much more reviews ! I have the only pop the hood video of the lsim series on utube!!
Thanks Ron !
And I appreciate your videos Tee!
@@LeoRousseau thanks leo !! Idk if the R can compete with the lsim i am ready for a comparrsion video not a review 😃
Nice Review mate. Really good to see some actual measurements included along with the aural assesment. I'd really like to see a review on the R700 which I'm considering purchasing. Cheers.
Cool review. Especially dug the background music. It lends more of casual presentation rather than the usual classroom lecture style. Hope it was the Polk R 600's laying down that smooth bass track.
Merry Christmas and get well! I love your reviews and really need to say thanks for all you do
I have a pair of 30 year old Polk Monitor 10b speakers. They sound terrific to me. I've looked at higher end and comparable speakers, but haven't found any that I liked enough to spend money on. They are amazing for a home theater set up and they don't need a subwoofer.
They aren't the most accurate or dynamic, but I love them. I am looking for a pair of nice speakers for the office and the Reserve line will definitely be ones that I audition.
Ron - another great video. Mathew Polk started with (physical) time alignment with his first speakers. He intended to manufacture speakers with good engineering....but money, large market share, mass marketing, profits dominated the direction of the company. The SDA gimmickry didn't help good sound either - back then. Looks like Sounds United is taking this storied speaker manufacturer on the right track.
I'm so over the commercials kicking me out of the comment sections on youtube
Makes me angry at least once a day especially when it does it twice in a row.
Yet another fantastic review, Ron! Love your content - keep up the excellent work!
That was a great review. I could live with those. I'm almost considering being done with what I have and calling it a day . But I'm crazy and will run two sets of speakers at the same time and I need to clean up the look. It's pushing a little ghetto sounds like heaven. You definitely have me thinking on these Polks. I like my sealed enclosure folks there's nothing really wrong with them at all for what I use them for
Ron, ya know, every time I watch one of your videos I learn LOTS of good stuff. Thank you!
Hi Ron, I initially watched this video when you posted it March 2021. I kind of did not believe the R600's or especially a Polk product could deliver this grade of sound quality that you mentioned. I was starting my new speaker shopping at that time and thru my in store listening, I quickly eliminated anything below $4000.00 USD per pair and was and still am prepared to spend up to $6000.00 USD per pair. Most sounded good but I really was not getting what felt to be a better sound worthy of my budget. So, I did not rush into things like I normally do when I want something.
Today, I revisited the Polk R series and caught up with newer videos on the model range. It's like you set the template for what to hear and expect. My wife and I are disappointed that we are not going to get a real fine wood veneer at this price. But, for $2000.00 USD per pair for the R600's and near $2800.00 USD per pair for the R700's, I'm going to give it a serious consideration. Never thought that I would ever take a Polk product over a Paradigm Founder or Triangle EZ tower speakers. But again, if I get the sound that I want I'd be happy listening to my Polk's knowing that I saved quite a sum of serious coin. Comment to all; I think it takes guts for a audiophile reviewer like Ron and other colleagues of his (Sean and Andrew) to honestly go out on a limb and give props to a speaker company that most people would not associate as producing something at this price point with a reference grade sound. There is a fear that you, as a reviewer, would not be considered a real good experienced judge of what a quality sounding speaker should sound (even though it's always subjective and a personal preference). Ron and others are out there telling us that 10K plus is not high end HiFi no longer. Looks like Polk R -Series is the new game changer. Thanks again Ron. Love your channel.
If you have the chance to audition the R700, then do it. Never have I felt the need to recommend a speaker as much as this one. At the price, it’s a game changer and accompanied with good electronics it will sound much better than one would believe.
Thank you for a great review, from Cape Town. Will be buying these
This was a brilliant, well structured review. Thanks for the thoroughly enjoyable impressions.
Now please have Polk send you the R700s for review so I can decide between the two! I'll be pairing with dual 12" Subs in a dedicated room..so bass tone & clarity is far more important than output for me. Thanks again.
What speakers did you end up getting and are you happy with them? Andrew Robinson did a great review on the R700s. I’m considering them or the Martin Logan 60XTi which have dropped in price and many consider them to be as good as $5,000-10,000 speakers.
I have owned 2 different Polk speakers and loved them both. I wish I were in a place where I could buy their newest top of the line but my wife would kill me. I currently own 5 sets of speakers and there is no way I can bring home another set. Thanks for the review.
Very nice video Ron! These look like excellent speakers
My problem with Polk is that I bought the specials at a large chain. As I listened to these inexpensive speakers, I kept hearing what sounded like crickets. It was quite annoying to me. I also had to knock out quite a bit of midrange to balance out their presentation. I accomplished this with an equalizer. Once I bought the Micca RB-42, all those problems went away and I could just run them and bypass tone controls altogether. Also, all those crickets took a hike. Now I have budget speakers that have no issues at all. I guess now I need to not judge a brand with the bargain bin model. Great review. Good job Polk, and Ron.
Because of your review I recently purchased these speakers. They come in soon and I can’t wait to hear them. Keep up the great videos.
And how are the r600s?
I absolutely love them. Paired with a R400 for center and r100’s for sides it’s just perfect. Great for both home theater and music. And he is right. They put out more bass than you would expect. The clarity is amazing to me.
very interesting review , i once had Polk RT4i and after using quality caps and resistors on the tweeter it sounded amazing ...20 yrs ago... If these will go on sale for say 700usd a pair it will be tempting proposition , 1500usd is much more steep territory
Wonderful review! Can't wait to try them out :)
Great review and great job Polk!
Fantastic review!!!! Thank you!
Just recently found your channel in the last couple weeks. Absolutely love what I'm hearing and seeing. Great stuff brother jam on and thanks for all the fantastic info
These look amazing. Great review Ron!! I'm on the fence between these and the Triangle Bro8s which you already reviewed. Any words of wisdom on which speaker is a better all - arounder (good with all music) and which one gets the toes tapping just a little bit more?
Thank you very much for the great review! I'm not sure if I should go for the r600 or the r700, I have two SVS Micro 3000 that I would pair them with, so the r600 might just be enough for me, but the r700 definitely are very tempting, but not sure how big of an upgrade they would be considering that I have two subs for the bass department.
Hey Ron awesome review thank you. My question is, do you think the R600 would be overkill for my 13x13.5x8.5 LR? Should I consider the R500 instead?
I've had lots of polk gear. I keep a pair of lsi9s I love that also use the 2.5 way crossover setup. One woofer handles 200 hz and below. The other does 200 hz to like 2k where the tweeter takes over. Had some rti12s for a long time too along with some of their surround speakers you can switch from bipole to dipole. I feel like their cabinets in their price range always seemed a notch above the rest.heavy builds and bracing with nice finishes. These new drivers with the dimpled cones reminds me of older car audio midrange. I had some kenwood excelons like that and even seen it with other companies.
Nice video! How far from the wall do you suggest on these ones? Does the down firing port change that much. Zero fidelity had the r500's and liked them 18" out. These might just be my next purchase, just debating between the 500s and 600s.
I like to do speaker builds with dual ring tweeters because they can be crossed very low. Some have an FS low as 500hz.
Wow. Polk still bringing the goods. My SDA1c's may have found there replacement!!!
I like the coordination with CheapAudioMan!
He’s the best!
@@Newrecordday2013 with both of you guys teasing speaker reviews yesterday, I was excited to see what you guys would review this morning 👍
The shape reminds me of the old wave pattern in Kenwood subwoofers from back in the day.
fantastic review!
Lmao those cut-ins of Randy for the bass were amaaaazing.
I'm working on a DIY bookshelf using a ring radiator tweeter (Peerless XT25TG30) in a Visaton WG148R waveguide.
An advantages of a ring radiator is that it doesn't experience breakup as badly as a dome tweeter and it happens at a much higher frequency. The breakup of both soft domes and ring radiators however both tend to happen above 20kHz where you wouldn't assume you could hear a difference. Soft domes also don't tend to have excessive ringing in the audible spectrum that would be avoided via a ring radiator.
As you showed in your measurements however, ring radiators really take a dive above 10kHz off-axis, thus your power response/in room response will start sagging up high.
Is this good? Bad? Not sure, but the Peerless/Scan and SB Acoustics rings are well loved and they integrate with a waveguide more easily than a dome in my experience.
Hi Ron thanks for the review. Are these better than ELAC towers that you reviewed not too while ago ?
Very clear review. I was wondering how these compare with the SVS Prime Pinnacles that you reviewed some months ago. Looking at that review you had said also that the top end was no harsh but clear. What’s the best in that regard in your opinion?
Great Review! You have earned a new subscriber.
Hi Ron, great review. I have asked this with other speakers you reviewed but how are these a low volume listening. Do these need to be cranked up to come alive ? Your thoughts ? Have you heard the Legend L600 ? Are they just a better version of these ?
They look great! Awesome video!
Thanks Mike!
Excellent review 👌 Thanks for spending time making this informative video.
I need some suggestions from you. Currently I am using B&W 603 towers and B&W HTM6 as center for my home theatre. My AV amp is Denon 8500H. Surrounds are old Yamaha tower speakers. However since I bought these speakers (though really liked them at audition time) I really couldn't able to love them! And after 3 years I have kind of decided to replace them. I have auditioned the Reserve R700 and the R500 along with the R400 centre. Could not get a chance to audition the R600. I loved the sound of these speakers! I have two 12" subs (qAcuastics QB-12). My AV room is not a dedicated room and shared with my living room. My MLP distance is roughly 12 ft from the front LCR. Should I go for the R600 pair or the R700. Center I have decided on the R400. Thanks much for your time.
I think that Hershey Kiss in the middle of the tweeter might make me want to eat chocolate every time I played a record...
Looks like Polk just shipped out all their speakers to the TH-camrs,
More videos than you can Polk a stick at 😉
The best pun/come back to this marketing push. Kudos on this usage. Love it.
They have found where the effective marketing is at.
@@nc3419 ..Following in behind SVS wisely.. I support. Its the best kind of news to be seeing when I wake up. Had enough of mainstream news BS.. #MoreSpeakers !!
And they’re not gross.
That was great!
Please review the r700's if you can. Thanks for the great review!
Would be nice to know how they compare to elac uf52. Great review Thanks
Late to the party but great video. Any reason to go to the r700 over these? How do the polks stack up to 8000f? Why don’t I see much on the KEF Q750/950; Do they compare the the Klipsch/Polk. Would love to get your opinions. Thanks!
As a DIY'er speaker builder, I only use ring-radiator tweeters... Best sound to my ears!
What i really want to see is a modern version of the sda srs..10x 6.5 high excursion mid bass..5x super tweeters ..18" passive radiator..super inert cabinet and finish
Great video, thank you!
Ron, how's this compare to triangle br08? I am considering getting one of these speakers. Would love to get your take on it since you reviewed both. Thanks!
Hi Ron, thanks for all your amazing work on hi fi, please answer short and sweet:;Polk r600 or Triangle Borea 8? Who is better? Thank you.
Wow this is a professional review can you please do a review for the r700
Hi, thinking of getting this but other choices are B&W 603 s2, Focal Chora 826 or ELAC Debut Reference. Any ideas which one would be the best? would be using it for 60/40 music and movies
Wonder how these compare to say; the smallest Magicos? On seeing these, it was my 1st thought of what they remind me of?...with all of the superlatives bounty about!? ( I applaud the narrative given! Well done!)...
I have a Sonus Faber Cremona Auditor and Concertino Domus. They both have ring radiator tweeters. To me they are the most beautiful sounding tweeters I have ever heard. Best of both worlds. Not too bright, not too mellow. It's just smooth and graceful. With enough extension. I have never experienced it with Polk. But from the reviews that i have read it sure sounds good.
How would these compare to the SVS Prime Pinnacle?
How do these stack up to the Uni-Fi 2.0’s? Which way would you lean if you had to pick?
I know its apples to oranges but how does it compare to the Harbeth p3esr? I have the harbeth on my 2channel system and I love how it sounds. I'm thinking of upgrading my home theatre speakers with the Polk reserves.
Been running Sandy Gross Definitive Towers for over 23 years BP7001's fronts and BP7002 rears w/ CLR2002 Center speaker for home theater w/ Marants SR7013 receiver and Emotiva XPA-5 GEN3 amp...........I wanted a tangible with the Polk Reserve as I have been wanting a change. I picked up the Polk Reserve R400 Center as they say the Center channel is the most important within a Home Theater setup.......who's they? I don't know! BUUUUuuuut the Polk R400 Center Speaker is FANTASTIC.....needless to say the R700's were ordered.
Every speaker I've heard with a ring radiator tweeter have sound awesome I can remember sonor audio is one
Would love your thoughts on the R700s....I just ordered a couple now that they are back in stock.....momentarily that is. lol
I’d love to see you review the JBL Studio 590’s.
I couldn’t believe when I woke up to 4 new videos from different creators, all about Polk speakers
It's a good strategy, I trust youtube reviewers way more than publications like What Hi-fi where they write full reviews without telling you what the speaker actually sounds like!
I like how they each received a different size to review.
@@georgetek haha true! And then youthman got a whole home theatre
@@georgetek Advertising, all different models reviewed same time. I believe they are very good and the timing is too ! Great review as usual.
I agree to a very small extent The 'major' writers/reviewers, i.e. TAS, Stereophile no comparison! The rest, meh! I believe Ron is one I hold in the highest degree/respect of dedication, sincerity & passion to online reviewing! The rest, meh!...my 2 pennies...
Hello, I just saw this video and liked it. I will purchasing the Polk Reserve series which include the R600's you reviewed in this video. I have two questions. Will the R100 bookshelf speakers pair well with these as rear surrounds since they only have a 5.25 inch cone. And does the R600's do well at low volumes or do you need to crank it to get great sound, thanks
I had a pair of Polk T50’s, never warmed up to them, kept blowing tweeters. Had a bookshelf pair with 2 maybe 6.5 drivers and a tweeter, too much midrange for me. The SDA models seemed to be too much of a hassle, with having a special cable routing. These might sound good, but up to this point I’ve never heard a Polk speaker that knocked me out, and special details on the speaker cones and on those that are rear-ported kinda leaves me cold.
Right now hifi is on it. I literally bought a system for 1500 that's better then the movie theater I was going to. Comparable to the imax I've been to. In this Corona world having this it's a beautiful thing
Two channels I value the most .yours and recovering audiophile.
Hey Ron how are you doing. Are you going to do a review with sound clips soon. I am in the market and these six in towers look great and from you review and others I am excited to hear them on you site. I am also waiting for Randy's review on the Q Acoustic 3030i but may purchase the 3050i based on the review. I've always loved Polk but the ones I owned seem lacking in midrange. What other towers you reviewed recenlty would you compare the Polk 600 to. Thanks
Good one!
I'm thinking that these would be a substantial upgrade from my 28 year old Klipsch towers. lol I'm kinda torn between these and the Tannoy XT6Fs. My dac is a Denafrips Ares ii into an M2si. My listening room is my living room which is 12 x 18 with the speakers on the long wall, so that gives me a 7' distance from ear to tweeter. Any opinions? I listen to everything.
I appreciate your thorough review I have been leaning towards the JBL studio 570s but I am thinking I’ll be going with Polk I mostly listen to Metal JBL really stands out with this typ of music. Anyone
I own the Studio 590 and when I heard the R700, it walked all my speaker. Trust me, its not even in the same category. Just make sure you have the fire power to drive the 700, the 600 not so much.
Man, I was hoping you'd do the review for the Polk legend 600's...
Acoustic Energy AE22 had a similar high frequency driver!
I'm curious how they stack up to the Q acoustic concept 500 🤔🧐 does anybody know?
Love the review. Only one question: Do they have a center 🤔?! I need to replace my Infinity Classias. I wish Ron did hometheater. I'll have to see what Gene has to say in that department.
I believe they do!
Sounds like what I’ve been waiting for. Do you think 25m2 is big enough to accommodate these, or Should I go for the R500?
Cheers👍👍💥
i just love the sound of the 707.How do they compare to the 707?
Ron would you get the R600 or the Bro8 speakers?
You kid me when you mentioned Knopfler. Not the classic lead vocal. I have all of his albums and he does a good job with production. I will give these a listen soon. Thanks!
How do you compare this speaker or the R700 to the KLH model 5? I am looking to purchase in January.
Any review coming for that TT-15s1 I think I see in the background?
These or the Polk L100’s with a sub? I will be using for 2 channel listening to CD’s and TV. Currently have older Yamaha RX V673 but will be upgrading to an integrated amp shortly.
What will you advice polk reserve 700 vs b and w 702
Yeah, planning on some SB Satoris, their regular ring domes, ehh, nothing special. The midbass cone is interesting, probably stiffens the cone to control break-ups. In vertical freq resp, we can see how the midwoofer starts beaming and how the directivity changes. Hard to change the physics.
I have a Pioneer VSX-919AH-K that does
Continuous average power output of 90
watts* per channel, min., at 8 ohms, from
20 Hz to 20 000 Hz with no more than
0.2 %** total harmonic distortion.
Front (stereo) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90 W + 90 W
Would that be good enough to run a Pair of Polk Audio Reserve R600 or R700 for two channel Listening Till I can afford the Yamaha A-S801 any thoughts?
Can you review the vintage 5jr Polk speakers- ?,, I have them and think they sound amazing !! with no subwoofer,, would like too here your assessment of them.
Nice review and comments. Have you auditioned the R700 or L600? Curious as I am looking at R700 or L600.
Could anyone shed some more light on the 2.5 way design? Is one of the drivers actually electronically crossed over differently? Is one of the 6.5 drivers “sealed” in the cabinet similar to the r700’s midrange driver? Having a hard time finding any official info on the 2-way vs 2.5 way. Thanks!
In your opinion, which speaker do you think is overall better, the Polk R700 and the RTI A9? Thanks.
How far away from the front wall did you end up with these R600's? I know all rooms are a different acoustic jungle, but just curious..
So I’ve had the Polk R700 in for demo at my house for the last 3 weeks and I just cannot believe what I’m hearing. I have them paired with quality electronics, namely Rose HIFI RS250 streamer/DAC/preamp along with a Plinius SA-103 power amplifier and quality cables and judged from an audio standpoint, this speakers perform so good that I truly believe they do compete with anything up to at least $10k, if not more.
One could argue that the more expensive would be considered different, but not convincingly better.
Several loudspeakers have better finish, at least the more expensive ones, but this is honestly the complete package for someone wanting astounding sound from a decent looking speakers in a human price range. Tell me which is “better” in the price range and I’ll happily try them out!
I came from the Diamond 12.4 and R700 and Im now on the Chora 826. If you want clarity, detail retrieval, transparency, huge soundstage pronounced and carved out mids, the Chora 826 is untoucable. The only thing the R700 has over the 826 is the bass, and I mean by quite a bit at that. Im using a couple of subs, so that isnt a problem for me. Give the 826 a try and welcome to the world of 'high definition' sound.