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Return for refund within: non-refundable unless shipment is refused
Return for replacement within: non-replaceable
Polk's Monitor Series has been the gold standard of speakers since the 1970's. The CS1 center channel is a perfect accompaniment with accurate sound with strong bass and exception aural imaging. Polk made the enclosures out of MDF to be uniform in density and not resonate. They've also included ¾" thick baffles to help produce clear lifelike sound.
The two 5.25" cones are made from a bi-laminate composite for an optimal balance of weight and rigidity. The small driver delivers a wide open sound and exceptional responsiveness. The 1" tweeter is a fabric/polymer composite the responds swiftly to the high efficiency Neodymium magnet. The crossovers between the drivers use Mylar bypass capacitors to let all of the details in the higher frequencies shine through.
No matter how good they sound, they have to look good too. Their contemporary look compliments today's flat panel televisions and modern decorating styles. They are magnetically shielded so you can place them near your electronics.
Pros: Excelent sound and quality. I rated it 4 because I had to match the impedance from 4 ohm to 8 ohm to be able to use it. Otherwise it would be a five.
Cons: Wrong specs: it is a 4 ohm speaker that could blow your amp. Mine turned itself off a couple of times...lucky me. Then I decided to measure the impedance and 4 ohms it was!
The manual does not list POWER RATING and it states that it is COMPATIBLE with 8 ohm systems (whatever that means). It sent my amp into the PROTECTED STAGE a couple of times so I decided to measure the impedance and it happens to be 4 ohms. I solved the problem with a transformer to match the impedance to the 8 ohms of my center channel and it is working fine.
Other Thoughts: As I was very surprised with the 4 ohm measurement I went ahead and measured every speaker in my home, most of them were 8 ohm except for the R50s...again they are 4 ohm speakers and did not get my attention before because my front channel accepts 4 to 8 ohm speakers. If you encounter the same problem, do not usa a 4 ohm resistor in series as it would consume half the power, for example, in a 100 watts/channel, it would take a 50 watt resistor that would get very hot. Instead, use a transformer to match the impedance to that of your amp. I used one with my CS1 to match it to my 8 ohm center channel and it works fine. So it is compatible with 8 ohm systems if you add a transformer...very tricky way of writing the specs for a speaker. Almost anything is compatible if you know how to adapt it.
9 out of 11 people found this review helpful.
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The best value for center speaker
Reviewed By: J.N. on 7/27/2009
Tech Level: average - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month
This user purchased this item from Newegg
Pros: Natural voice, sounds great at low and medium volume (did not test it really high). And, yes cannot believe the sound quality we get for under $80.
Cons: The only cons may be that it is not small (but that is why it has good sound) as my old small Acoustic Research speaker.
Other Thoughts: So if you have 5.1 setup with tiny surround and center speaker (Polk, Bose, AR etc.) this is the first thing to change. Most likely after that the surround setup will have reasonably good sound.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Pros: I purchased this speaker to replace the center speaker that came with a set of Polk RM6750's. I liked the satellites and the sub but the center was weak and you could not hear the dialogue in movies. This does the trick and the sound is much better now. I was worried that it would overpower the satellites but after adjusting the level some it is perfect. Music sounds much nicer too now. I had plenty of space for it under my projection screen.
Cons: Had to paint it black.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Polk Audio CS1
Reviewed By: PrimoG on 10/25/2009
Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year
This user purchased this item from Newegg
Pros: Excellent range and great efficiency so that voices are not "drowned out". The cherry finish matches my Polk front towers and adds a nice finishing touch to my home theater!
Cons: Slightly deeper than I imagined. Just barely fit on my stand in front on my HDTV.
Other Thoughts: SOOO much nicer than my lat center channel "solution".
Currently using Wharfedale WH-2 as my mid-surround speakers and Klipsch SS.5 as my rear surround speakers.
IMHO, these speakers are hard to beat for the money!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Wow - My favorite musicians are in my living room!
Reviewed By: on 10/16/2009
Tech Level: somewhat high - Ownership: less than 1 day
This user purchased this item from Newegg
Pros: First, a little background. I've gotten into SACD Surround on a budget, picking up my first player for $15 becuase of a broken faceplate, Receiver is an ONKYO TRS-304 I got used for $100, had been thoroughly enjoying Jensen JHT-525 5.1 speaker system. Just added the CS1 it's incredible. Alison Krauss LIVE SACD is amazing in those tracks where she is in center channel, last night the London Symphony Orchestra came to my living room to play the Nutcracker. Elton John on Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, with only his voice on center, is also pretty amazing.
It seems to me that there is good dispersion of sound within this one center speaker, with the highest pitches coming from the tweeter and some (good) left-to-right asymmetry across the two 5.25" speakers. It's like I now have a surround system within my center channel. I'm going to complement this with 2 pairs of Monitor 30's or 40's very soon.
Cons: I haven't gotten anything done since I got this thing, too busy listening.
Non-resonant all-MDF enclosure construction with 0.75"-thick baffles ensures cleaner, clearer, more lifelike sound quality.
Reversible-design cabinets can be turned upside down to aim "up" when placed under a video monitor.
Magnetic shielding for safe placement near TVs with no risk of video distortion.
Crossover: 2.3kHz, second order high and low pass
Enclosure Type: Vented via rear-mounted flared port
Introduction
Polk's Monitor Series has been the gold standard of speakers since the 1970's. The CS1 center channel is a perfect accompaniment with accurate sound with strong bass and exception aural imaging. Polk made the enclosures out of MDF to be uniform in density and not resonate. They've also included ¾" thick baffles to help produce clear lifelike sound.
The two 5.25" cones are made from a bi-laminate composite for an optimal balance of weight and rigidity. The small driver delivers a wide open sound and exceptional responsiveness. The 1" tweeter is a fabric/polymer composite the responds swiftly to the high efficiency Neodymium magnet. The crossovers between the drivers use Mylar bypass capacitors to let all of the details in the higher frequencies shine through.
No matter how good they sound, they have to look good too. Their contemporary look compliments today's flat panel televisions and modern decorating styles. They are magnetically shielded so you can place them near your electronics.
Highlights
Horizontal Center-channel Speaker The horizontal center-channel speaker visually complements your flat-panel TV while delivering natural-sounding dialogue and vocals.
Exceptional Sound Quality The Polk Audio CS1 boasts dual 5.25" Bi-Laminate composite dynamic balance drivers and a 1" dynamic balance silk/polymer composite dome tweeter to deliver crisp highs and accurate lows, making it a perfect match for your Monitor series speaker system.
Magnetically Shielded The magnetically-shielded Polk Audio CS1 can be put at any proximity to display devices such as TVs and LCD monitors without loss of sound quality caused by interference.
Reviewed By: Marcelo on 6/6/2009
Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month
