Infinity Systems RS8 Floorstanding Speakers

Infinity Systems RS8 Floorstanding Speakers 

DESCRIPTION

Equivalent to RS-4 with the addition of a 100 watt 8" powered sub in each speaker

USER REVIEWS

Showing 1-10 of 15  
[Aug 03, 2001]
Nilesh Ganatra
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Crisp Clear sound, Digital sound compitible, Slim and cute model, Back pannel equiped with terminal choice.

Weakness:

Not that I know of yet.

I bought this speekers from Ubid. I never thout that I am going to have hi-end speekers at the prise I paid. This speekers are awsome. There may be better speekers for more money, but these are more then what I expected for the prise I paid. Specially the Buil in Power Subwoofers deliver very strong bass.

Similar Products Used:

Jenson-???

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Dec 01, 1999]
James
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Great sound and bass output is wonderful!

Weakness:

Slight hum from subs before they switch off in auto mode. Bass adjustment knob has no center detent for a reference point.

I bought these from U-Bid for $249 each plus shipping. I consider them to be a great value for the money. The speaker are great sounding to me and will play very loud. The bass output is also great, but I am still going to add a BU-120 for DD and DTS. As I said above, the only weakness is a slight hum from the sub amps. This seems to be a theme that runs throughout many Infinity powered subs, maybe they will take notice and fix future products not to do this. It would also have been nice to see a center detent for a reference point on the sub adjustment knob. When you reach around behind the speaker it is hard to tell where the knob is set at and how close you have the left and right to each other. My current system consist of an Onkyo 777 receiver, Toshiba 3109 dvd, Infinity CC-3 center speaker, and Infinity P-QPS surrounds.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Mar 22, 2001]
Jose
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Power Handling, tight sound.

Weakness:

Bass management. Bass is more responsive when you use the speaker level bass inputs instead of the line level input.

I have owned the RS-8's for almost a year now. I have been waiting to write a review to get them broken in and to let those little bothersome things become truly annoying. The good news is that I only have one annoyance- the fact that the bass is much more responsive with speaker level inputs instead of line level inputs. This may not be a problem, however, if you have a decent digital receiver with bass management for the speakers, or you mate it with a sub. I deferred buying the sub to get these speakers and save $$ for better wiring. I must admit, that with the front speakers set to "LARGE" on my Onkyo and no sub, there is plenty of bass to shake the house. Which, of course, annoys the crap out of my wife, but oh well, she still leaves her bras in the bathroom ;-). I would also recommend (and this probably goes for all speakers, but especially higher-end speakers) that you set aside some $$ for good wiring. Initially, I did not, using cheapo 16 gauge wire. When I upgraded to Monster 12 gauge, the sound (and bass) was noticeably tighter and more detailed. This may seem obvious to the audiophiles, but for a long time, I could not bring myself to spend the $100 for the wiring. For those of you, that like me, are on the fence, believe me, the sound is noticeably better.

Finally, for a poor man like myself, the 5 year warranty on these things is key.

Anyways, I hope this helps those of you that like me, would like to be audiophiles, but are poor (ie, have a wife and kids) so can't incur the costs. Overall, I give 5 stars for value (if you can get these at the price I did) and 4 stars because the line level bass is not very good- relegating me to the speaker level inputs.

Oh yeah, my system includes:
Toshiba 36" TV
Onkyo TX-DS575x Receiver
Monster 12 gauge wire for front stage (L/C/R)
Monster Superflat 12 Gauge for rear (LS/RS)
Pioneer DV-F727 301 DVD Changer
Old Toshiba VCR
Echostar/Dishnetwork 4900 DD Satellite Receiver (Toslink Digital Audio)

Similar Products Used:

SMALL polk rt's. Really not much to compare to, as these are my first powered subwoofer speakers.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Dec 17, 1999]
edward ro
Casual Listener

Strength:

efficient, powerful, clear, and bass

Weakness:

not enough bass for real HT, slightly muddy midrange

I have the rs-8, cc-3, and minuttes for the rear. Sounds great for HT but lacks the house shaking bass. For music, the mids sound very warm but lacks the clarity. The bass is also a little weak at low volumes. Needs a sub to cover the below 30 hz range. Can go very loud and decent looking.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Oct 13, 1999]
steve
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

great mids, crisp highs, strong bass

Weakness:

a little harsh on the mids when pushed

this product does a great job blending in the music and creating hours of listening pleasure. The bass isn't that overwhelming at 8" but it does hold it's own on dolby digital. The mids do sound a little harsh when the volume is increased but that's probably because it's not broken in yet. Great value if you don't plan on buying a seperate sub. Can use the speakers for dolby dig also (LFE). Overall good value and good design.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
4
[Jun 06, 2001]
Josh
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Excellent sound under $1000! Clarity and lack of coloration.

Weakness:

Off-axis listening is noticeably poorer. Sub problems (see review)

I'll preface by saying I am a bit dissapointed with these speakers. I am an audio enthuasist not an audiophile. I bought these speakers and an entire HT system as soon as I started my first job. I like many others here got a great deal so therefore I am not overwhelmingly dissapointed. Had I paid the $1200 retail price I would be pissed.

Basically, I have a few minor complaints and one major one. I start with the nit picking. I live in Manhattan in an apartment building with paper thin walls. So I cannot turn the volume up too loud and am forced to listen to music/movies at less than my preferred level. Which brings me to my first complaint, these speakers don't preform real well at low volumes. The midrange is muffled, there is virtually no midbass and the stupid subwoofer keeps turning off and on which is super annoying. Second, I usually listen to music while wandering around my apartment. The off axis performance of these speakers is subpar, even for their range. You really need to be sitting in front of the center stage to get the maximum performance from these babies. This can be seen as a nit pick but I have owned many other speakers that faired better in this regard. Lastly of the nit picks, to the best of my hearing there is a noticeable dip in the frequency range between the mid driver and the subwoofer creating a mild void in the mid base area of the spectrum. I have toyed with the subwoofer setting but unable to completely overcome this.

Ok, the big complaint. This may be just my speakers but the damn sub keeps turning on and off randomly in either the auto or the on position. I have toyed with the receiver but came to the conclusion it is the speakers not the receiver (tested with an old stereo receiver). This usually starts happening after about an hour of listening time. Maybe they are overheating? Dunno. I have tried both speaker level and line level inputs with the same results. Then the internal crossovers in one of the speakers simple quit working so I can only use the direct method of input which assumes my reciever is crossing over the speakers (which it doesn't).
Overall, I have to say the reliability I have found to be below par. Performance would be quite fair for the money if I didn't have these problems. If any other owners of these speakers have had similar problems or know what I can do to overcome this, please let me know.

Similar Products Used:

many, from polk to dynaudio

OVERALL
RATING
2
VALUE
RATING
5
[Sep 10, 2001]
Ben LaBathe
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Clarity, Bass output, Price, On Board Amp.

Weakness:

Heat sink gets hot, Take quite a bit of tuning.

I really didn't expect much for the price I paid for the speakers, but I am suprisingly satisfied. The speakers have excellent highs, the midrange leaves something to be desired (but are tollerable), and the bass is very good once you learn how to tune the speakers in. I found that the bass was not very clean on the speakers until I turned the power up to the max on the speakers. Now it is very clean and loud bass. Keep in mind that you will need to turn the bass settings on you receiver way down or it will be way to overbearing. The sound outside the listening area is not very good. But, overall excellent value.

Similar Products Used:

Klipsch, JBL

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Sep 20, 2001]
Sean
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Build Quality, Dynamics, Clear sound

Weakness:

No big ones

These where origanally hooked up to a pioneer elite with speaker inupts when they first arrived and the sound was amaizing. Very clear, very loud. After revieving my reciever, Technics SA-DA10 see review, I hooked them up with direct line inputs for the sub and they sound even better. Movies i have watched in DD like Gladiator, 15 Minutes, Seven, are all amaizing. As for music I have played everyting from enya to cypress hill, rock, punk and it can handle all of it. For what i payed for them, i have had no problems because they are refurb's, the value on these are for me, retial i have seen them at over a thousand, is exceptional.

Similar Products Used:

None

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Apr 28, 1999]
Matt Kennedy
an Audiophile

The RS8 is a great speaker. If you like speakers that are a little on the warm side they are worth listening to. I love the powered sub. The bass is clean and great on most music, however the extension capability to reproduce extreme low bass is not as good as some other powered towers I have heard. The highs are very clean, they are not as bright or delicate sounding as some other brands such as Polk, NHT, or Mirage, but they do have a warm, smooth sound that is very difficult to find. Where these speakers excel however is midrange. The mids are extremly rich and full bodied, it seems as if these speakers reproduce an entire layer of sound that most comparable priced speakers can't. They cost about $1200.00 a pair, but for a limited time they come with a free $300 Infinity CC2 center channel if you buy them at Circuit City. Check em' out.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
[Sep 08, 2000]
Eddie
Casual Listener

Strength:

Clear, all around good sound. Highs, mids, lows (thanks to the powered subwoofer.)

Weakness:

None that I can find so far.

I recently purchased 2 RS-4's (rear $69/ea) 2 RS-8's (front $189/ea) and a Video 1 ($59) from Ubid.com They were all brand new in the box and not factory serviced. Full 5 year warranty. All 5 speakers cost $665 before shipping. All in all, an outstanding deal considering they are discontinued. All 5 speakers compliment each other very well. I may add a HPS sub shortly.

All in all, I am extremely happy with the purchase and would recommend them to anyone. The setup is great for both music listening AND home theater.

Similar Products Used:

Cerwin Vega RE-30

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
Showing 1-10 of 15  

(C) Copyright 1996-2018. All Rights Reserved.

audioreview.com and the ConsumerReview Network are business units of Invenda Corporation

Other Web Sites in the ConsumerReview Network:

mtbr.com | roadbikereview.com | carreview.com | photographyreview.com | audioreview.com