Bought Polk TSi 400, need guidance in building the rest

[tanmayj]

Hi,

I got delivery of Polk TSi 400 speakers today. I'm currently powering them using my older H/K AVR 132 receiver.

I'm considering revamping my HT setup in phases, targeting the AV Receiver next. Need some guidance for that.

1) I've seen lot of posts about the hazards of the receiver being too low/ high powered for the speakers. So I want to know what's the ideal receiver wattage per channel to pair nicely with the TSi 400s which are rated at '20-200W per channel'. They've not mentioned the RMS power anyhere. I've asked them a question over email but they are yet to respond. Please let me know if an 80-100W/ channel receiver would be OK, or I need to go any lower or higher?

2)The second issue is the rating itself - apparently there are 3 different standards for measuring wattage - FTC, IEC and JETIA each giving different values! For eg: Onkyo 616 is rated at 100W FTC, 165W IEC and 175W JETIA. Now while pairing with my speakers, which rating should I consider?

3) Thirdly I'm totally confused on which Receiver to buy. I generally like crisp and clear highs. Sharp treble is a must. For this reason, when I audition receivers, I make a beeline for the tone control, pump base and treble up to full and listen in that mode. I didnt like Denon much. I listened to the 1713 a couple of times, but wasnt that impressed. Though the overall sound is nice, the tonal difference between treble at 0 db and +6 db is not much. That is, treble boosting doesnt really make a difference to the sound and doesnt make it as crisp as I would like. Onkyo is great in this dept. Onkyo 515 is an amazing piece of work! Sounds just the way I like it. But so many people have trashed Onkyo so many times in so many forums over firmware and build issues, that I seriously dont feel like buying one! Especially since I'm planning to have it hand-carried from the US and use it with a step-down transformer. H/K AVR 70 was really pathetic (sorry to use that word) in terms of sound quality. Now the problem is that I've run out of receiver brands!

Seeing what kind of sound I prefer, if anyone can suggest any more receivers to me, that'll help a lot. I'm looking for 7.1 (because in future I'll be using the zone B feature). I'm also looking for HDMI 1.4a with all those deep colour/ audio returns etc., ethernet (wireless should be supported either out of the box or via a dongle). I'm looking for something in the range of USD 500.

 

[haisaikat]

If you did not like Denon 1713, I would not recommend Denon but want to suggest at least Denon 2113 or best 3312 for power matching with RTi400. But USD 500 seems a bottleneck here. Regarding brands you can look at Yamaha and Pioneer which are available in your city and I suggest better take your speakers along with you. If your pref had been music I would have suggested a dedicated 2 channel stereo amp but since you are looking for zone b feature hence cannot recommend that.

Regarding FTC, IEC and JETIA these seems to be region specific nomenclature for different ways of measuring power at same / varied impedance of load (speaker).

For your simplicity of power matching consider the FTC figure for continuos music mode (stereo) power output and for onkyo 616 if you look at the brochure http://www.intl.onkyo.com/downloads/product_info/pdf/tx-nr616_euex_leaflet.pdf refer that its dynamic power driving a single channel is 240 Watts at 3 ohm which is close to your speake which can handle continuos power upto 200 Watts and hence dynamic room must be higher than 200 W. But remember one thing to observe in these specs, that higher the power rating they give, more is the THD value. So a costly AVR is supposed to deliver the same or higher power at lower THD figures.

 

[tanmayj]

Actually my speakers are at 8 ohms, so I think the power rating applicable is 120W. Correct me if I'm wrong. One more thing I wanna understand: Shouldnt the receiver power be less than or equal to the max. rating of the speaker? Else wouldnt you risk blowing up the speaker? Could you please explain why dynamic power should be more than 200W?

 

[haisaikat]

8 ohm is the average load resistance or your speakers and in actual action it varies depending on the frequencies of sounds produced which you can say as instantaneous resistance. Hence comes the corresponding dynamic power. So you have to consider all scenarios.

Regarding peak power I will send you a detail explaination.

Sent from my Galaxy Pro Duos via Tapatalk

 

[haisaikat]

Here you go on your other question

http://www.prestonelectronics.com/audio/Impedance.htm

Please do read through end. Let me know if you still have doubts

Crux being amp does not supply current to speakers rather speakers draw current from amp and hence amp must never run out of power. Hence the higher rating sugestion.

Sent from my Veedee E10 using Tapatalk 2

 

[tanmayj]

Understood, thanks.

So on the Onkyo side, we're looking at least at a 616? Or would a 515 be OK? From a features, sound quality perspective etc. I'm OK with a 515. So unless there's a danger to the speakers because of Amp clipping etc., I dont need to go with a 616.

Please advise.

 

[haisaikat]

bigger the better, although both will do, but if it is 515, avoid going into very high volumes.

EDIT: forgot to mention, you must audition before deciding, but my hunch is that bass response will not be pleasing with 515, and 616 may be a bit better though. But remember that with either of these sub will be a must unless you go for higher model AVRs. But do audioton before the final decision.

 

[tanmayj]

Thanks.

Been browsing for surrounds and center channels. I think I'm going to go with Polk Audio OWM 5 for center and a pair of OWM 3s for surrounds.

Need suggestions on how well the whole setup will be matched for wattage: Polk TSi 400s for fronts, OWM 5 for center, OWM 3 for surrounds with either an Onkyo 515 or 616.

 

[haisaikat]

Is your centre channel for wall mounting? Otherwise powerwise centre and surround are okay for both AVRs and they usually do not eat that much power. Although my personal opinion is that it is somewhat better to have sides / surrounds with bass reflex option for producing slight bassy effect although sub takes over everything. But your choice seems okay as well.

 

[tanmayj]

Thanks. No I'm not wall-mounting the center.

 

[haisaikat]

If centre is not wall mounted CS20 is also an option.

 

[tanmayj]

Nah, considered that but the CS20 is physically bulky. I have a smallish room for this setup, got the Polks for the sound, not considering the aesthetics and they already dominate the room. So I wanted sleeker looking centers and rears.

Thanks anyway!

 

[haisaikat]

Also if your budget permits then go for the higher 616 AVR. And do audition your polks with them before buying.

 

[tanmayj]

For everybody who sees this post subsequently, I went and auditioned, and booked a CS-10 center channel. In the near future I will buy TSi 100 surrounds.

I compared the sound quality of TSi 100 vs. OWM 3. The TSi 100 is far, FAR superior.

They are bulky, yes, but offer phenominal sound quality compared to OWM series.

 

[jayantadak]

@tanmayj,

Hi, I too am thinking of getting the Tsi 400 since 4-5 months. But again some friends of mine suggested for the Sonodyne 2504 or 2605. The sonodynes are relatively less expensive than the polks I believe. Do you experience that the Tsi 400 is more suited for the movies than the music or both. I am more into movies than music, reflecting the same tastes as of yours i.e. more punch and inclined towards crisp treble. BTW how much you got it for. I was quoted Rs.2900 for the pair in the month of Sept. 12 at a shop in Vile Parle. Pleas let me know how much it cost now with Bill and warranty.

 

[tanmayj]

'The Shop' D.N Nagar, Andheri West - 26K post discounting. They sound great with Music and movies, but since I've not upgraded my Amp yet (still going with the grossly underpowered H/K AVR 132) I cant really turn them up for fear of clipping the Amp.

I havent heard the Sonodynes, so cant really compare exactly.

You can visit this 'The Shop' place. They are good people - very helpful with auditioning.

And the good thing is that they stock speakers and Amps from all major vendors so you can have any permutation/ combination in terms of auditioning, which you cant get from exclusive dealerships - they have only a fixed speaker-amp combo available.