Just a quick review to say that these speakers are still an incredible value. They pop up on ebay fairly regularly and usually go for under 200 bucks shipped! As others have said, the bass response is incredible for bookshelf speakers (though they are very large bookshelf speakers!), and the imaging is smooth with a deep and wide soundstage. For true full-frequency response, you do need a sub as others have mentioned, but the low frequency response of these speakers make them very easy to blend with a sub. The also look very cool on a nice pair of stands with the grills off, but because of the size, vinyl woodgrain enclosure, and plain big-box appearance, they score pretty low on the WAF (my wife is a musician so while she appreciates the way they sound, she says I have to put them away when we sell our house because they are that ugly. Oh well...) In short, it would be very hard to get a pair of speakers that sound this good for the used price.

Imaging, detail, clarity,

None that I can think of.

This review is to follow up on a review I wrote for these speakers yeears ago. I gave them a 2 rating because I described a rattleing woofer. As I have grown and evolved in this hobby I realize that this was most likely becuase of the amp I was using and the insane volumes I would play at without a sub(probably alot of clipping). I am in the process of replacing the bad woofer, and have been able to revisit these old speakers w/ much better source and amplification hardware over the recent past. I can almost say I like the sound of these better than newer polk offerings like the rti38. The RT7's seem to be a bit more open/detailed in the highs, and a bit more bloomy in the mid-bass. The rti38's a tad more laid back and tame(not a bad thing). Excellent speakers, some of the best I have heard/owned.

Similar Products Used:

Boston, Paradigm, Ascend, other Polks.

STRENGTHS: Excellent soundstage reproduction. Very good bass response, and smooth overall frequency response. REVIEW: Let me begin by saying that I have owned these speakers for about 7 years now, so I have listened to alot of music (classical, jazz, rock/pop) and watched numerous DVD's using them. I auditioned them before purchasing and was very pleased with their sound espicially the bass output (test song was Madonna's Vogue). Over the past couple of years I have been gradually upgrading my equipment to take advantage of the home theater experience. Recently, I upgraded my home theater receiver to an Onkyo TX-SR600. Wow! The Polk RT7 speakers really do a good job as my front theater speakers with the receiver (80W/ch.) My favorite music is classical. The RT7 speakers perform excellently as far as giving a realistic sound stage and ambience. I will never forget attending the Magic Flute opera with my wife and listening to the overture. We have listened to the overture at home numerous times. Immediately, I recalled how accurately the Polks had reproduced the ambience and sound stage. I looked at my wife and commented to her about it, and she agreed! That in itself says alot about these speakers. Oh yeah, the song Vogue really thumps on the bottom end with these speakers. I am constantly surprised by the bass these speakers can put out, and I enjoy watching the woofers move to produce the lower frequncies. I recently coupled these boogers with a PSW650 sub (Polk Audio), and the result has been astonishing. I would say this system will easily compete with much more expensive products. The sub pushes the lower response to 25hz for an overall frequency response of 26 kHz-25Hz for a total cost of about one grand (counting what I originally paid for the RT7s). Count yourself lucky if you can find someone willing to part with theirs. I for one am not ready to say good bye to mine yet. They have improved with age.

Excellent midrange and highs, better than many at much higher prices.

A bit weak on the bass, but what do you want from a bookshelf speaker?

These are a great value. I think they should be paired with a powered sub, and when you compare the total cost of the RT7s and a sub, there is nothing that sounds as good for the price.

Everything mentioned below.

none

These speakers are the real deal! There's no way a $300 pair should sound this good. Voices, subtleties, imaging are all there. I've used them with a Yammy RXV 992, DSPA1, Adcom GFA 7500 amp fed from the DSPA1, Adcom GFP 750 preamp feeding two Marantz MA500's. Same result, they shine in every set up. CD sources were a Yammy CDC 765, and an Adcom GCD 700. I currently have these speakers set up in my wife's system consisting of an Onkyo TX 8410 stereo receiver( This receiver puts out approx. 100 watts x 2, and it has a selective tone button that augments the midbass region around 10 HZ, a gentleman in a previous review stated that the bass can bottom out too easily. No way, I think maybe the amp section in this reviewer's set up was the cause of this, but then again, who am I to judge right.), Yamaha CDC 765, Audioquest Ruby interconnect, and Kimber Kable 4 TC. Get the best possible speaker wire your budget can afford, you will be surprided to see how much richer , full soundidng, and smoother your system will be. Any hint of brightness I had when I was using Monster 12 gauge is now completely gone.

These speakers were doing double duty( music 80% HT 20%, my musical taste varies from big band to jazz, rock, metal, folk, salsa, and voices;D. Krall, G. Estefan, Nat K. Cole, E. Fitzgerald, F. Sinatra, H. Connick etc.),hooked up to my DSPA1. I did feel they were not as dynamic with movies as they were with music. Thus I went out and picked up a pair of RT55's and these did a better job of movie reproduction, at the expense of music. There definetely was something missing musically with the RT 55's. So after three weeks I took them back and exchanged the 55's for the RT 1000's. Instant dissapointment, they were WAY too bright. I broke them in for a couple weeks, tried different placements, set ups, wire. Still too bright. My brother liked them (he listens to rap) so he bought them from me. I then auditioned the RT 3000's..YESSS!! This was definetely what I was lookinf for. I bought the RT 3000 satelites( top half only, please read my review on these I will post one this weekend) and they now sit in my home theater. Hey, for the price they are asking on the RT 3000's they better sound more exciting, and they do. The midrange is the same(maybe even slightly better on the RT7's), the highs are definetely better on the 3000's as is the low frequency. Imaging and depth, are comparable. You are not losing much if you can't afford the big brother in terms of musical quality.

Bottom line is, I couldn't part with RT 7's. They needed to stay under my roof. Therefore, my wife became the benefactor of these gems. These are truly classics. If you come across a pair of these BUY THEM! you will be so happy you did. FYI, they sit on 24 inch spiked stands approx. 10 inches from the rear wall 7 feet apart slightly toed in. Thank you and enjoy.

Similar Products Used:

Polk RT 55's, RT 3000, various other Boston models. Infinity RS, and OVRT models, Paradigm Studio models

Outstanding sound and clarity

None

I recieved these as a gift from a friend to use as fronts for my HT (a work in progress) and must say that these are one of the best sounding speakers that I have ever heard. Also, my first girlfriend and wife not withstanding, probably the greatest gift I have ever recieved

These are good looking speakers, not distracting to look at. The construction is solid and are fairly heavy. T

The mids and highs are nearly flawless IMHO. The bass is good for a bookshelf speaker but really needs to be paired with a sub. I don't consider this as a weakness as they do exactly what they were designed for flawlessly. Years ago I owned a pair of Boston Acoustic floor speakes (I forget the model #, got a bad case of CRS)that I that were the best I ever heard (that a mere mortal could afford) but I would have to give the nod to the RT7's

I have mine hooked up to a Denon AVR-87 and paired with a couple of different subs/rears.

If you can find a pair, as Polk no longer makes them, get them. Obviously, if you are an audiophile, there are better speakers (for more $$) but for us ordinary HT/music enthusiasts, these are a sure thing!

Similar Products Used:

Many over the years.....

Imaging,Bass extension,Power Handling,Detail

Treble could be a little bit better

I have had these speakers for a while now and am still very pleased with them. I am running them with a Sony STRDA 50 ES Reciever and it is a very good combination. For a long time I couldn't figure out why my system sounded better than all of my friends systems. But I finally realized that it was the RT7'S that separated their systems from mine they just sound great on what ever I feed them. I listen to Jazz, R&B and Rap and they do the job just fine from Coltrane to Badu to Jay-Z. On the Home Theater side of things they really shine paired with the Polk CS350LS Center, RT5'S for surround duty and a Definitive Technology Pro Sub 100. I just upgraded my speaker cables from Monster MCX 2's to AudioQuest Bedrocks and it is like having a brand new pair of speakers. If you can find a pair around pick them up you won't be disapointed.

Clear sound and good bass. Best bang for the buck.

I really enjoy the way this bookshelf speaker sound. I don't really expect a lot from bookshelf speakes but the more I listen to it the more I enjoy it.
I highly recommended them if you can still find them.

Extremely well balanced sound
Extremely "distortion free" sound (extremely clean sound)
Superb dispersion
The RT7's are an extremely accurate sounding speaker
The mid-range is absolutely OUTSTANDING
Very natural sounding throughout its full frequency response range
Superb Depth

None

The Polk RT7 are absolutely "OUTSTANDING". Far superior to NHT, JBL, Infinity...etc. The RT7's are extremly clean, superbly balanced and the sound always seems to come from "around" the speakers and not from inside of them. In other-words, they have superb depth which is a very rare find in a speaker. And to find superb depth from a speaker in this price range is indeed a VERY, VERY rare find.

I already have a pair of RT 55s and like Jeff Gerast, decided to get a pair because of the reviews printed here. I paid $300. for a used pair that arrived in new condition. In opening the box, I was first taken by the unimpressiveness of the speaker. It's not ugly or anything (certainly not as attractive as the RT 55s), I guess I was just expecting more. I picked these up for a basement system more for music but for theater also.
From the moment I set these speakers up I've been thoroughly impressed by the sound generated by these seemingly unimpressive speakers. I later teamed them up with a Polk PSW 150 sub to further compliment them. One thing that stands out in my mind was the first time I turned the volume up to perhaps an eleven o'clock position. I was standing 6-7 feet away and I thought I walked through some spider webs or something because I felt the hair on my arm move only to realize it was air that was being extracted through the front ports of the speaker an this was happening with no distortion what so ever.

Its hard to say which I like best, these or the RT 55s, the truth is each does a better job than the other with different material. Although if my wife told me I must get rid of one set, I think I would keep the RT 7s because of the slight edge I'd give them in staging and transparancy, and because I could sell the RT 55s for more. I'm thankful to have room to accommodate both.

It surprises me to think that the folks at Polk thought they needed to discontinue and update such a fine product.