Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I have these speakers attached to a Rotel pre/power combo which puts out 200 watts per channel. The RC-50s work nicely with my Rotel gear. The bass response from the ribbed drivers is particularly impressive--sounds fast and precise. I expected the combination to be bright due to the nature of Rotel products, but was pleasantly surprised to find the Energy speakers had a nice, smooth frequency response. Truthfully I think this is the best three-way tower in its price point.

Not only does this speaker do a great job with vocals but it looks gorgeous. The wood veneer is nicer than many products costing hundreds more; looks better than some of my furniture. The binding posts are good and chunky and tightly accommodate my banana plugs. Even the floor spikes are nicely finished and come with protective disks for hardwood. Overall construction quality is very good.

I found a huge difference in the sound as I progressed through the break-in period. At first the RC-50s were almost difficult to listen to; guitar sounded almost distorted. After roughly thirty hours of listening the difference was very noticeable. I am very happy I gave these beauties a chance to prove themselves! With the way Energy products are going, I think the reference connoisseur towers may be the last great component energy produces.

Price Paid:  $1200.00

Summary:
From my previous experinces with Mission M73 the RC 50's represented a substantial improvement of my system. The main differences in sound was a much wider soundstage and improved depth. I bought the RC 50's with an Energy S10.3 sub, and in the beginning i credited the sub for the improvement in the bass area, but after disconnecting the sub i realized that the RC-50's do an exellent job with music on their own.

Allthough i still use an old Yamaha AV- reciever as amp (not the best stereo amp in the world...) i'm now able to listen to music at low and moderate volumes, and still get a nice punch in the bass and a very good mid-range reproduction.

In norway i was (unfortunately) only able to get these speakers in black ash, but i still think they look great, and the buid quality is top notch.

I have later suplemented the system with the exellent RC-LCR as center , and i now use the old M73's as surroundspeakers. All in all I am very satisfied with my RC speakers, and i really don't think these speakers get the attention they deserve on the net and in the Hi-FI/Home cinema press in general!

Strengths:
Exellent price/value ratio.
Undemanding - works well even with unsophistcated amps.
Build quality.

Weaknesses:
None, but be aware of substantial improvements during the break-in period. Do not judge these speakers before MINIMUM 30 hours use. After that, they will still improve a lot.

Similar Products Used:
NAD floorstanders (don't remember model)
Mission M73

Price Paid:  $1800.00 from A&B Sound

Summary:
I bought Energy Reference Pro 22's in 1987 and swore I would never change, however a Tweeter went dead and while waiting for repair I went browsing and listened to the new Reference series. After comparing the 30's 50's and 70's and realising that the old speakers were now surpassed, I settled on the 50's due to not only the fantastic sound but also the size of room they would be in. To be honest there did not seem to be that much difference between the 50's and 70' to warrant spending another $700.

Strengths:
After running in for the recommended 100 hours the midrange and highs are clear and the base can be felt when turned to mid volume and is that good that a subwoofer is not really needed. I,ve now added a Monster clear power bar which has improved Radio reception immensely, in fact at one point my Wife thaught a CD was on.

Weaknesses:
None that I can come up with.