Polk audio vs Sonodyne

[ghatgepatil]

Even if sonodyne comes in gold platted, it will produce only crappy sound. It gives high decibel sound ,like the loud speakers used in road side meetings and temple festivals; giving head aches to every one.If we don't have any alternatives,if govt bans all imported audio stuffs then we can look for those sonodyne speakers.Meanwhile enjoy the quality audio with quality speakers.

A pseudo statement this, sir! The Rupee is 'honestly' down today just due to such a mind-set.

I have heard virtually the entire range of Polk. They are HT speakers ... period! (to my ears). Also heard the Sonodyne FS (2 models). They sounded pretty ok as HT speakers, BUT, far better to Polk in music. I am a 2-channel person and whatever I listen to would sound more acceptable with Sonodyne than with Polk ... all this, with almost similar comparable pairing.

 

[RMCWS]

Sonodyne and Polk both sucks. You guys can donate the speakers too me. I will bear the shipping.

 

[ramanujb]

Hi everybody, this post has taken a turn towards a comparison of brands, specially comparing Sonodyne with others, I guess I could've put a better subject line. I had listened to Sonodyne when I was 10 years old, I had never heard something so good. I knew that Uranus didn't just mean a planet in the solar system. Budget constraints (always tagged along) made me buy Creative Inspire 2100, Altec VS 4121 etc. and I was always happy with my purchase. Last year my uncle gave me his Marantz SR 5200 and I needed to do justice to the AV receiver. After making technical compatibility checks I planned to test Sonus 2504. I had to test Sonodyne, I always dreamt of buying Sonodyne. Last saturday when I went to their store in M Sqr mall, Calcutta, to my utter disappointment I found that they didn't sound good. This phrase 'sound good' is a function of the following things - a. matching with my amp b. my preferences. I did not want to buy Polk, a $250 product costing 28K here, I was sure I would be happy with Sonodyne. But I finally decided to test Polk, and I kind of liked TSX 330T. This is the first proper audio set up I got (many of you won't agree with the use of 'proper') and my ears are still not trained, and there are loads of brands I haven't tried. But it sounded good and I finally bought them. I still wish Sonodyne matched. But I surely have one thing to say, the sales person at Sonodyne lacked enthusiasm and interest, he had no suggestions. Where as at Pro FX I was given a demo with mupltiple speakers, I finally liked the product and went over my budget and bought the speakers.
Sorry, this is a longish post, but I wanted to clearly state why I chose one over the other. Nothing against Indian brands.
I have one more question, I need to buy good connectors for DVD with the avr and my budget is about 1K, would you have any suggestions? I was thinking of Bandridge BAL4202 2 x RCA M 2.m.

 

[RMCWS]

Was 2504 and 2605 both were available at Mani Square? Was there any discount? Please let me know.


Thanks.

 

[Premblr]

Ramanuj, congratulations and enjoy your purchase. Even I have the same speakers and I graduated from a Bangalore based brand called Rontek. Yes there is a huge price difference when you compare to my old setup but it all boils down to the 'wows' I receive when people listen to my new setup.

BTW, The $250 you quoted is for a single Polk tower, for a pair it is $500, so with todays exchange rates, they are a very sensible buy and getting it at a price lower than US.

Hi everybody, this post has taken a turn towards a comparison of brands, specially comparing Sonodyne with others, I guess I could've put a better subject line. I had listened to Sonodyne when I was 10 years old, I had never heard something so good. I knew that Uranus didn't just mean a planet in the solar system. Budget constraints (always tagged along) made me buy Creative Inspire 2100, Altec VS 4121 etc. and I was always happy with my purchase. Last year my uncle gave me his Marantz SR 5200 and I needed to do justice to the AV receiver. After making technical compatibility checks I planned to test Sonus 2504. I had to test Sonodyne, I always dreamt of buying Sonodyne. Last saturday when I went to their store in M Sqr mall, Calcutta, to my utter disappointment I found that they didn't sound good. This phrase 'sound good' is a function of the following things - a. matching with my amp b. my preferences. I did not want to buy Polk, a $250 product costing 28K here, I was sure I would be happy with Sonodyne. But I finally decided to test Polk, and I kind of liked TSX 330T. This is the first proper audio set up I got (many of you won't agree with the use of 'proper') and my ears are still not trained, and there are loads of brands I haven't tried. But it sounded good and I finally bought them. I still wish Sonodyne matched. But I surely have one thing to say, the sales person at Sonodyne lacked enthusiasm and interest, he had no suggestions. Where as at Pro FX I was given a demo with mupltiple speakers, I finally liked the product and went over my budget and bought the speakers.
Sorry, this is a longish post, but I wanted to clearly state why I chose one over the other. Nothing against Indian brands.
I have one more question, I need to buy good connectors for DVD with the avr and my budget is about 1K, would you have any suggestions? I was thinking of Bandridge BAL4202 2 x RCA M 2.m.

 

[Premblr]

And let me post the picture that sums it up...

 

[ramanujb]

Was 2504 and 2605 both were available at Mani Square? Was there any discount? Please let me know.


Thanks.

RMCWS, both are available in Mani Square, I had asked them a month back about discounts, they said there were none.

 

[ramanujb]

Prem, thanks for your information on the price. A $500 product for something less than 28K is a pretty comforting feeling given the quality it delivers.

 

[Santy]

And let me post the picture that sums it up...

I have a few observations, do not get me wrong. Nothing can be really concluded by this banner.

It says Polk is no. 1 selling 'brand' in India. It talks nothing about the specific model discussed here. For that matter several leading brands claim they are no. 1 in their respective fields. Read again, it says no. 1 selling 'premium' speaker brand. Definition of premium can be skewed by anyone who is using that adjective. Read once again, it says they are no. 1 selling premium 'speaker' brand in India, which means that brands who are into products other than speakers may not be in this competition.

I am not taking any sides here (having amazed by the performance of Lsi series speakers from Polk and also greatly satisfied by performance of RTi series, I have nothing against them) but just suggesting not to fall any 'No.1' claims. Best way to buy expensive audio gear is to shortlist speakers using help of FMs, listen if possible and then decide. And it is not moral to bash another brand to prove that one is better.

As for as the pricing goes, yes, the Polk TSX 330T is very attractive compared to its selling price in US. Very few products are priced lower than that in US.


BTW congrats ramanujb. I am sure you will enjoy your new speakers.

 

[Premblr]

Santy, very valid observations. I posted that picture in context to the whole way this thread was going in another direction.

As for the model, The LSi is a premium offering and out of bounds for many. The RTi series is expensive compared to TSi or TSx, so the most common model that may be selling may be the TSi or TSx series which we are discussing.

Anyways, when you proclaim you are the "no. 1 selling 'premium' speaker brand" and if I am another company who sells more in the same space, I will surely take note and refute that claim. I may even take legal action.

 

[drkaushik]

Hi everybody, this post has taken a turn towards a comparison of brands, specially comparing Sonodyne with others, I guess I could've put a better subject line. I had listened to Sonodyne when I was 10 years old, I had never heard something so good. I knew that Uranus didn't just mean a planet in the solar system. Budget constraints (always tagged along) made me buy Creative Inspire 2100, Altec VS 4121 etc. and I was always happy with my purchase. Last year my uncle gave me his Marantz SR 5200 and I needed to do justice to the AV receiver. After making technical compatibility checks I planned to test Sonus 2504. I had to test Sonodyne, I always dreamt of buying Sonodyne. Last saturday when I went to their store in M Sqr mall, Calcutta, to my utter disappointment I found that they didn't sound good. This phrase 'sound good' is a function of the following things - a. matching with my amp b. my preferences. I did not want to buy Polk, a $250 product costing 28K here, I was sure I would be happy with Sonodyne. But I finally decided to test Polk, and I kind of liked TSX 330T. This is the first proper audio set up I got (many of you won't agree with the use of 'proper') and my ears are still not trained, and there are loads of brands I haven't tried. But it sounded good and I finally bought them. I still wish Sonodyne matched. But I surely have one thing to say, the sales person at Sonodyne lacked enthusiasm and interest, he had no suggestions. Where as at Pro FX I was given a demo with mupltiple speakers, I finally liked the product and went over my budget and bought the speakers.
Sorry, this is a longish post, but I wanted to clearly state why I chose one over the other. Nothing against Indian brands.
I have one more question, I need to buy good connectors for DVD with the avr and my budget is about 1K, would you have any suggestions? I was thinking of Bandridge BAL4202 2 x RCA M 2.m.

Again, your ears were fooled by the settings in the SONODYNE showroom.
Profx has a much better listening room.Good acoustics.
SONODYNE listening rooms are crap.
Also profx plays 2 channel from dedicated CD player.
Mani square has no such equipment.Plays from a DVD player.
Take the 2605 beside the polks and play with the same equipment and then compare.Though it is not possible, I know.
I had asked the profx guys to play my CD from a DVDp through a DENON 1912 AVR -POLK Tsi 400 & did the same at SONODYNE South city mall through a Yamaha 667 AVR-Sonus 2605.
Bought 2605.

 

[shibashis]

Now I do not proclaim to have the discerning ear which can pass a verdict but drkaushik has a point here. I bought my Sonodyne 1501 pair back in January during their 26% sale after listening to them in their Mani Square showroom. That is a showroom and does not come anywhere close to being a listening room. They were being driven with their Sia 310 amp and a pioneer DVD player. They sounded alright but not great. I can say with definite confidence that in my room even with ALL sorts of clutter and 'no worries mate positioning', they sound better than they did in their showroom. Their poor, poor presentation is emphasized by the fact that I am driving the speakers with an Yamaha AVR, and my iPod.
Sonodyne used to be a treasured possession/asset for well-to-do cultured Bengali families/in Kolkata or in adjacent territory back in the day, and like you too I grew up hearing Sonodynes at different places. Then they almost vanished and although they are back now, their speakers at least are perhaps not the same.

 

[Premblr]

The place I auditioned, that is Chroma Bangalore has a dedicated Sonodyne amp for 2 channel music, I auditioned twice at the same place with different set of folks and different timings.

At the end of the day, when you get the speakers home, most of us will not have dedicated acoustically sound setup.

I don't understand this logic of blaming everything else to justify speaker performance, too much of apologies involved including blaming the ears of the buyer.

If ProFX has better listening rooms, then they are serious about staying in Business where as Sonodyne is not. You can't keep dishing out this apology and sell the same speakers, it is only people who brought Sonodyne who comes for the rescue of the brand and none of them have absolutely no negatives. Come on...

Again, your ears were fooled by the settings in the SONODYNE showroom.
Profx has a much better listening room.Good acoustics.
SONODYNE listening rooms are crap.
Also profx plays 2 channel from dedicated CD player.
Mani square has no such equipment.Plays from a DVD player.
Take the 2605 beside the polks and play with the same equipment and then compare.Though it is not possible, I know.
I had asked the profx guys to play my CD from a DVDp through a DENON 1912 AVR -POLK Tsi 400 & did the same at SONODYNE South city mall through a Yamaha 667 AVR-Sonus 2605.
Bought 2605.

 

[koushik]

Again, your ears were fooled by the settings in the SONODYNE showroom.
Profx has a much better listening room.Good acoustics.
SONODYNE listening rooms are crap.
Also profx plays 2 channel from dedicated CD player.
Mani square has no such equipment.Plays from a DVD player.
Take the 2605 beside the polks and play with the same equipment and then compare.Though it is not possible, I know.
I had asked the profx guys to play my CD from a DVDp through a DENON 1912 AVR -POLK Tsi 400 & did the same at SONODYNE South city mall through a Yamaha 667 AVR-Sonus 2605.
Bought 2605.

If they sound bad in whatever condition they choosen to do business that is their problem. Why will I sympathize them and anticipate that this might sound good in my room and buy it. This will be only done by someone who have the brand fascination and buy it even though it sounded bad to him/her during audition, thinking rolleyes that this would sound good in my room.

I will only buy if that sounds good to me during the demo and criticize bad sounding rig.

 

[elangoas]

The place I auditioned, that is Chroma Bangalore has a dedicated Sonodyne amp for 2 channel music, I auditioned twice at the same place with different set of folks and different timings.

At the end of the day, when you get the speakers home, most of us will not have dedicated acoustically sound setup.

I don't understand this logic of blaming everything else to justify speaker performance, too much of apologies involved including blaming the ears of the buyer.

If ProFX has better listening rooms, then they are serious about staying in Business where as Sonodyne is not. You can't keep dishing out this apology and sell the same speakers, it is only people who brought Sonodyne who comes for the rescue of the brand and none of them have absolutely no negatives. Come on...

Ok Buddy.... I have tested my speaker Sonus 2605 with 6 different combos so far.....

Marantz AVR 5200 as Preamp + Sonodyne SPA 202 power amp + Flac files...
Onkyo HTR 540 + Sonus 2605 + Flac files
Onkyo TX NR 818 + Sonus 2605 + Flac files...
NAD C326 BEE + Sonus 2605 + NAD C 541 CD player + Audio CD.....
Sonodyne SIA 320 + Sonus 2605 + Sony DVD player + Audio CD....
Yamaha AVR + Sonodyne 2605 + DVD Player....

The first 4 combos extensively @ my home for minimum a weeks time (or) they have been my partnering equip with speakers until i settled with Onkyo TX NR 818...

The last 2 combos a little less....Not even once i felt it was bad...

You said you have auditioned the Sonodyne Sonus 2605 with Sonodyne stereo amplifier.. What was your source ?

 

[Santy]

If they sound bad in whatever condition they choosen to do business that is their problem. Why will I sympathize them and anticipate that this might sound good in my room and buy it. This will be only done by someone who have the brand fascination and buy it even though it sounded bad to him/her during audition, thinking rolleyes that this would sound good in my room.

I will only buy if that sounds good to me during the demo and criticize bad sounding rig.

It is true that if a system sounds bad in the showroom, nobody would be keen to buy. But going by the same method of making a choice, it also means that you are also prepared to be disappointed if it was fantastic at showroom and performs badly at home.

What drkaushik means is that the performance of the speaker might have been enhanced by good acoustics at Profix showrooms and that the showroom where Sonos were heard is poorer than even room conditions which might have caused to leave a bad impression during demo, which doesn't necessarily make the product inferior. If you want to choose between two cars and with one brand you had a smooth test drive on a highway and with another brand, you drove on a pothole ridden road and concluded the car dosen't offer a smooth ride; its an error of judgement I would say. I think this is what drkaushik meant.

By the end of the day, listening impressions are highly subjective and a choice is affected by many factors including other gears that are in the chain, listening conditions, influence of reviews, even the tracks that are played. But what dosen't matter is 'everything' once the buyer likes it. To each his own. No point in debating which is better unless we could do an A/B with quite a few members.

 

[ramanujb]

Dr. Kaushik, I tested the speakers playing from my basic nokia phone through bluetooth, it is probably the worst possible input. Yes I agree Pro FX has a better listening room. Btw, I did not try 2605, I didn't have the budget for it.

 

[Premblr]

The source Chroma has is a LG Blue ray player, very basic one, Rs. 7000 on sale in Chroma itself.

Ok, now let us blame the BDP and Source... that was one piece which was left out!

Ok Buddy.... I have tested my speaker Sonus 2605 with 6 different combos so far.....

Marantz AVR 5200 as Preamp + Sonodyne SPA 202 power amp + Flac files...
Onkyo HTR 540 + Sonus 2605 + Flac files
Onkyo TX NR 818 + Sonus 2605 + Flac files...
NAD C326 BEE + Sonus 2605 + NAD C 541 CD player + Audio CD.....
Sonodyne SIA 320 + Sonus 2605 + Sony DVD player + Audio CD....
Yamaha AVR + Sonodyne 2605 + DVD Player....

The first 4 combos extensively @ my home for minimum a weeks time (or) they have been my partnering equip with speakers until i settled with Onkyo TX NR 818...

The last 2 combos a little less....Not even once i felt it was bad...

You said you have auditioned the Sonodyne Sonus 2605 with Sonodyne stereo amplifier.. What was your source ?

 

[elangoas]

Ok, now let us blame the BDP and Source... that was one piece which was left out!

.. Not reqd...

 

[Premblr]

I guessed it ... :clapping:

So the point is, you need a high end source and no MP3 files and high end stereo amplifier and no audio video receiver and good room acoustics and this and that and those and ... and ...