Showdown: RF vs Polk

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

i know i'm being a b**ch but i can't make up my mind...

Rockford Fosgate Power T1652-S for $170

or

Polk Audio MM6501 for $200

?

In the mail, I have coming a pair of Rockford T-1652 coaxials for my rear stage, and a Hifonics ZXi150.4 amp with these specs:

150w x 4 @ 4Ω (.05% THD)

300w x 4 @ 2Ω

S/N 80dB

damping factor >180

If i dislike the sound of the rockford coaxials i get, i'll clearly go with the Polk. But i've seen pretty much only good reviews about both. The Polks supposedly handle 25 more watts and have 2.7 ohm impedance; so by my calculations they will receive 222 (right?) watts instead of 150, meaning i can lower the gain to achieve the same loudness relative to the rockfords. But the T1s will match my rears, and they look damm sexy (which is a plus, because they will be exposed in my temp setup, and maybe perm) and i'm also guessing they might be underrated.

Help? I'm assuming since they are fairly popular/common products, i might be able to find a few people who have heard both. I think Misfit is one of those people.

Click to read more...

 

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

Phoenix Gold RSD65CS 6.5" 120W Component Speaker System

thanks for the suggestion!

power handling might be a little too low though? i forgot to mention that i plan on cranking the Zues. not turning the gain up to 100% (i want it to last lol) but i'm hoping to get at least 2/3 of its rated power out of it, or as loud as possible without risking the safety of the amp/speakers. Not only will i be listening to music in the car, but also for tailgating where i might turn it louder than usual. This is a kind of temporary setup, but it will be used for at least a few months, and might use whatever i end up getting for my new car when i get it

 

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

bump. opinionz?

 

[bigaudiofanatic 10+ year member]

Polk over RF everyday for speakers

 

[Suicide Bobb 5,000+ posts]

Polk over RF everyday for speakers

This ^^^

 

[FlexnInLa 10+ year member]

Hybrid Audio Imagine series?

 

[kevin lu 10+ year member]

Hybrid Audio Imagine series?

for sure

 

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

haha i've heard of those. i've seen mixed opinions. how do they handle power? they don't list the specs on their site

 

[BassnTruck 10+ year member]

thanks for the suggestion!
power handling might be a little too low though? i forgot to mention that i plan on cranking the Zues. not turning the gain up to 100% (i want it to last lol) but i'm hoping to get at least 2/3 of its rated power out of it, or as loud as possible without risking the safety of the amp/speakers. Not only will i be listening to music in the car, but also for tailgating where i might turn it louder than usual. This is a kind of temporary setup, but it will be used for at least a few months, and might use whatever i end up getting for my new car when i get it

You set your gains according to what is feeding the amp. It is not a volume knob. I am sure there are plenty of write ups around here on the subject.

 

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

You set your gains according to what is feeding the amp.

what? that's what the transformer inside the amp is for

It is not a volume knob.

well, yes it basically is. it's a potentiometer affecting the amplitude of the output signal...

 

[FlexnInLa 10+ year member]

haha i've heard of those. i've seen mixed opinions. how do they handle power? they don't list the specs on their site

Never heard a bad thing about the HAT Imagines, only comparisons to speaker that cost twice as much or more.

Manual says 100 watts continuous, 230 watts peak.

 

[BassnTruck 10+ year member]

what? that's what the transformer inside the amp is for


well, yes it basically is. it's a potentiometer affecting the amplitude of the output signal...

/facepalm

 

[emilimo701 10+ year member]

/facepalm

dude seriously. i pwnd u. if for still for some reason you think you can explain what you were trying to say then say it. dont try to cover up by doing a cute /facepalm thing!

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

if you can successfully explain the magical difference between a gain & volume potentiometer (besides how some may integrated at different points on the circuit -- different means to same end) i will mail you a cookie. chocolate chip.

 

[FlexnInLa 10+ year member]

Can I have a cookie if I explain. And seriously, listen to the HAT Imagine series if you can, or higher up in the series if your pockets are deeper than mine.

 

[fasfocus00 5,000+ posts]

Polk over RF everyday for speakers

this.

Polk only makes/sells speakers, if they have any series of speaker that sucks the whole company will fail. if RF has a speaker that sux, ppl just use their amps/wire/signal processors/etc... Polk will not put out a bad set of speakers unless they have other types of products that can keep their business running.