Polk Audio

I really didn't know who started the discussion about Best Buy ZD, but thanks for stepping up to the plate and admitting it.

While I agree with you that sales personnel in the Mini-Magnolias probably don't have the expertise to properly system match and sell someone high end goods, I will not make this same comment of a Magnolia stand alone store since I have never gone to one. Maybe they are qualified to properly guide someone to designing a high end system and I will leave someone who has been to one to comment.

Regardless though, I applaud Magnolia for bringing components of this caliber to the market as more and more B&M HIFI stores are closing due to lack of interest by the consumer and of course ID companies and internet sales in general. I hope they succeed. So even if the sales folks are not qualified at Magnolia, is it any different than buying off the internet that is a trend we are all moving toward? The consumer better be educated and know what he or she wants because it is a self service world we live in! Finally, in my area we once had over a dozen specialty HIFI shops and are now down to three. At least having this equipment available at Mini-Mags and now Design Centers, bring our total up to 4 B&M outlets. For an area of over three million people!

I have had a pair of Rti-a9 speakers for over a year. Very happy with them. Would like to upgrade but not even sure what to, as speakers better than these cost a lot more. Any suggestions anyone?
As to the Polks. I am very satisified with them. They take a lot of power. I had them hooked up to a 250 watt per channel Hafler 9505 and it couldn't handle the speakers. I ended up Bi-amping them with a Hafler XL-600 on the low end and the 9505 on the tweeters/mid range. Sounds Great. Not fatiguing. I can listen to them for hours no problem.

Paraneer,

All of your points are excellent and make sense. That said, I still partially disagree. The vast majority of people have no idea what high end audio is. Given the lack of B & M stores, the most likely way an average person will come in contact with better gear is by walking into a BB store. Here's my fear of what they will say upon leaving BB: "Those damn BMW speakers are way over priced, just like their cars. The speakers I have at home sound every bit as good.". You have to admit, its a possibility.

I had two pairs of Polk Audio RTi for a surround system. I also tried them with music.... They are terrible for both applications, not even worth a two line review. Sold and gone.

"Those damn BMW speakers are way over priced, just like their cars. The speakers I have at home sound every bit as good.". You have to admit, its a possibility."

Thanks for seeing my points ZD and I can see yours too. Nevertheless, I still advocate Magnolia bringing these brands to market. As a consumer, the more choices and venues the better. So, I'll take my chances that Joe Six Pack may be confuse B&W with the Ultimate Driving Machine and walk out of the Magnolia room to go buy a soundbar in the Best Buy main store.

BTW...I bought my Vienna Acoustics speakers at Magnolia. They were the only ones in my area that carried VA. I had auditioned these after lengthy auditions of a Dynaudio set at a specialty HIFI store. Being a soft dome tweeter guy, it was down to these brands and VA won out even with the mainstream electronics that Magnolia had them hooked up to. And I will admit, the Dynaudio salesperson had a lot more knowledge and much better electronics. In the end though, armed with some favorite music and my two ears, the VA's from Magnolia are the ones that went home with me. For my tastes, I know I made the right decision. If Magnolia did not carry them, I never would have had an opportunity to audition VA's unless I boarded a jet to some other city. Happy listening ZD!