Customer Reviews

Polk Audio RTI A3 Bookshelf Speakers (Pair, Cherry)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Over the past few months I've been replacing my speakers, going from a piecemeal 5.1 setup with a Boston Acoustic center, Bose surrounds, and old Altec 3-way fronts to an all new setup using the RTi-A series from Polk: Polk Audio RTI A7s for my fronts, a Polk Audio CSI A6 Center Channel, and these RTi-A3s for rears. I also bought a Polk Audio PSW505 subwoofer to round the system out, which I previously reviewed. I've had these RTi A3s for 2-3 weeks now, so I've had a chance to break them in a bit - and I'm very impressed with the sound and performance. I tested these out as the main speakers on my receiver when I first got them and I was surprised at how full the sound was for such a small unit. These are rated at 50Hz -3dB limit, so there is very little bass lost except at the ultra low-end, all things considered. Needless to say these are pure Polk, and as such the mid- and high-range response is excellent. When pushed they can get a bit shrill, but that's only when I really peg it (I'm running these through a Yamaha RX-V1800). I should note that both music and entertainment sound great; these are not one-dimensional units at all.
The fit and finish are excellent, with a stylish curved cabinet design finished in black oak and a pewter-accented grille. The product is sturdy and well-built although not too heavy (16 lb. each).
Overall this is a great speaker at a great price. Fantastic serving as rears, but these little guys are more than adequate as fronts if you don't have space for the bigger models - the A5s, A7s and A9s are all over 40" tall, while these stand just 14.5" - just make sure you get a sub. I'm very pleased with the sound quality for the money, as these speakers sound better than anything else in this price range. Heartily recommended.

I have my RTiA3 speakers set up in a den that is about 12' x 12'. They are installed on built in bookshelves in opposite corners of the room. I have them connected to a vintage Denon receiver which puts out about 100W x2. Sound from a Sony Playstation 3 and a Sony LCD TV is fed to the receiver. The sound from this setup is warm and spacious without excessive brightness and can be listened to without fatigue for hours. I listen to a very wide variety of source material (opera, country, pop, electronica, hip hop, classical, jazz and more) and I find these speakers up to all of it. In my application, vocals are well centered without a center channel speaker. Watching movies is a pleasure since dynamic sounds like gunshots, explosions, helicopters come through with impact. I feel no need for a larger home theater setup. Maximum output is well into the pain range before any audible defects are noted.
Speaker construction is solid and the black satin finish with a simulated wood grain is easy on the eyes. The midbass driver and front bass port have satin silver surrounds and the tweeter and housing are silver. You won't have to be coy about leaving the grilles off - the speakers look quality. The grilles are plastic and of only average quality. I find that the silver plastic edges of the grille impart a low cost look. A sturdy bracket and rubber feet are provided for wall mounting. A noteworthy limitation of these speakers is that at 15" deep (rear hardwire to front grille), they may be too large for an average bookshelf. In addition to the 15" of depth you should allow for at least 3" of additional space because the bass port is on the back of the speaker and this will be one of the ways of modulating bass output.

Really pleased with these speakers. They look and sound great. Beware, they are much bigger than you might think. Measure very carefully and/or make an effort to see them in person before buying, but buy with confidence, you'll love them.

After having another pair of Polks for over ten years, we decided to purchase another pair for our living area. True to form, these are some of the best sounding speakers I've heard. They emit a beautiful, warm sound with rich highs and nice lows. Highly recommended for those wanting full sound. These speakers fill a room on low volume.

I sold my Klipsch RB-61's because I could not handle the harsh tweeter. The highs were tiring and it got to the point where I didn't want to listen to them. I have listened to my new Polk RTI-A3's for about 20 hours. In that short time I have been very impressed by the un-harsh clarity of the highs, the clear and clean mids, and the amount of bass that comes out of these speakers. Although the amount of bass is fairly impressive, it is not as tight as I would prefer which is why I have allocated 4 stars instead of 5. Don't get me wrong. The bass is not overly mushy or boomy. It's just not real tight. Esthetically, these speakers deserve 7 stars.
I have the RTI A3's hooked up to a Yamaha RX-797 stereo receiver. When playing my "better quality" CD's, I feel as if I am at a live performance! The instruments and vocals are very clear & clean. The highs are not harsh at all (as at least one reviewer complained of). Marc Antoine's "Madrid" CD(classical acoustic guitar)sounds magnificent. Bruce Hornby's "The Way It is" blows me away. It sounds as if he is playing his piano in my living room. And FM radio sounds great, too. I feel like a kid in a candy store. I am re-discovering my CD collection and I'm having a great time in the process. If you are in the market for a quality pair of bookshelf speakers and you don't want to spend a rediculously high price for so-called audiophile speakers, the Polk RTI-A3's would be a smart choice.

These sound amazing, fills the whole room with crisp sound. Plenty of bass and power in a small package, slick design, and Polk Audio quality.

Looks:
These speakers are absolutely stunning, featuring a real wood finish and curves that are sexy and sophisticated. I have them in the black finish, and I absolutely love it. Most people I have spoken with prefer the cherry finish, but I think that the black is sleek and blend in nicer (although that obviously depends on the room's furnishing).
The feel of these speakers screams quality, as they weigh more than your typical speaker (I believe about 16 pounds). They are also LARGER than your average speaker, so double check your space will allow you to fit these "bookshelf" speakers. I'm not sure what bookshelves Polk thinks these will fit on, but my shelf is only about 10" deep. These puppies are an imposing 15" deep including the bass port in the rear.
The grill is attached using four plastic plugs, not magnetic like some fancier speakers I've seen. It holds on solidly though, so I am not complaining. The grills have a silver plastic edge all around them, and I'm not sold on that aspect of the look, so there's the only con I can think of in the looks department. The "Polk Audio" logo is a nice sleek silver and looks great on the grills. These speakers look awesome naked too, so don't be afraid to pop off the grills and play them!

Sound:
Here's the important part, and the reason you're even reading this review. Obviously sound is extremely subjective, so you have to take these types of comments with a grain of salt, but these speakers are INCREDIBLE. I previously owned the lower-line Polk TSi100's, and these blow them out of the water in every way. The detail in the mids and highs is just incredible. Some sounds I have heard make me wonder whether it is from the movie or in my house. It is that realistic. I use these as mains, and they are more than enough for me. This isn't a home theater as much as a family room movie-watching area, but I watch many Blu-rays with them. The DTS-Master HD Audio and TrueHD Audio codecs are simply stunning. [Note: If you are truly making a THEATER, maybe use these as surrounds and get the RTi A9's or A7's as your mains.]
For the average person, these will more than suffice as fronts. They put out a WALL of sound, the sound stage is deep, and imaging is accurate. If you close your eyes, you may think you have towers.
The bass extension is VERY impressive for the size of these speakers, but that is not that important to me since I'm not allowing them to go lower than 80hz anyway (most will recommend this crossover on this type of speaker).
Many people have said that these speakers are "bright," therefore best suited for home theater and not for music... I have not found these speakers to be overly bright, and have enjoyed lost of quality music listening with these speakers. Yes, they may be BETTER at movies (the RT in the name RTi does stand for "reference theater" after all...), but do not think that these speakers are one-dimensional. They play music wonderfully, although the LSi line is better suited for the musical purists (and the new LSiM line is supposedly even better).

Other:
For home theater, pair these up with the CSi A4 or CSi A6. I found myself being told to get the A6 if there was room since it was a way better center channel, but I went with the A4. It is quite a bit cheaper, but still an expensive speaker (to me). I think that for the A3's, the CSi A4 is a perfect match. So if you're trying to decide, realize that the A4 is plenty good enough to match up with the A3's.
Also, I am writing this review based off of the sound being pumped out from my Denon AVR590. I'm sure a better AVR would provide an even better quality of sound from these little gems.

Final Statement:
Buy these. Don't settle with the A1's. You won't regret this purchase.

I bought these after seeing that Stereophile magazine listed the RTi A1's in their Top 500 recommended components. The A1s are smaller than I wanted for my front speakers so I went with the A3s. I previously had Infinity Beta 20's as my fronts. The Polks sound nicer. The highs are clearer and the mids (the tap of a drum) are a lot cleaner. These speakers are also beautiful, especially on Sanus Natural Foundations stands. I have two really good subs, so I am not concerned with the low end of the Polks, but the highs and mids are excellent. Also, if you have a sub, and want something a little cheaper, I recommend the Klipsch Synergy B-2's. I am using them for my rears. If you don't mind the look, these have really nice highs and mids also. I really like the look of the Polks and that was important for my front speakers, the styling of the B-2's did not appeal to me for that purpose.

Purchased these after my 17 year old Infinity speakers finally gave up. I did a lot of reading of reviews--at Amazon and at other web sites--before making my decision. Unfortunately, there are very few places anymore where you can actually listen to speakers unless you're really into very high end audio. I'm very happy with the quality of these and they were very well priced. I'm hearing sounds I never heard before; I'll have to go back and re listen to my entire CD collection(!)

Speakers were ordered from J & R Music World through Amazon. They were originally supposed to be delivered in 7 to 10 days but I got them in 2. Great service!

I'm using these almost exclusively for stereo music listening, powered by a Sony STR-K840P. Even in the less than ideal environment of my dorm room, the soundstage is expansive (almost as wide as the room and about 4 feet deep) and the imaging is very good. Instruments close to the center and far to the side image perfectly, although instruments between the center and either speaker are marginally less precise. (your results may vary) The sound is extremely realistic; I played some jazz for my friend and his jaw dropped at how vivid the saxophone and cymbals were.

The quality of the mids lags ever so slightly behind the highs, which is not a problem because the highs are INSANELY good. Every sibilant and hi-hat is rendered faithfully. Vocals sound smoother than silk. Drums have just the right amount of impact and snap.

Finally, the bass. Although the listed -3dB cutoff is 50Hz, the dimensions of my somehow room cause prodigious output between 30 and 40 Hz--so much that the door and everything on the shelves vibrates. So you definitely won't need a sub with these in a small room. The bass is abundant but not very tight. Fortunately the rear port is reversible, essentially turning it into a sealed chamber if you want to sacrifice some volume for transient response.

They're not terribly power-hungry; I'd say it takes 25 watts to get them "loud." They do best with techno and hip hop and are awesome for rock and jazz as well. Classical music sounds wonderful, but keep in mind they're not designed for critical listening. They are quite revealing: the difference between 128 kbps and 256 kbps mp3 is blatantly obvious, for example. The best thing is that they are enjoyable to listen to; I've found myself listening to crappy songs in their entirety just because the Polks make EVERYTHING sound good.

I've also heard these in a large living room, and the soundstage/imaging were also fantastic, although they seemed more subdued in the highs and lacked the bass extension, obviously. Could have been due to a different receiver though.

These are each about the size of a briefcase, so look elsewhere for a compact bookshelf. The space is totally worth it for the sound they put out. I would recommend these if you are not an audiophile but enjoy high quality music and movies, or simply want to fill a room with beautiful sound.