Price Paid:  $250.00 from Circuit City

Summary:
I went into Circuit City to buy the Bose direct-reflecting bookshelf speakers. I figured I'd listen to others, just for the hell of it. The Bose really sucked compared to these. It seems like the Bose were made much cheaper, paper cones, etc. The RS3s were head & shoulders above them. These really have have nice clean bass for the size. The highs are very clear. I had to take one of them back for warrranty work twice. The woofer stopped working completely, 2 times within the 1st year. Circuit City allows you to drop them off at the store for service, so it was really not a big deal except the week without the speaker. I have used them for over 2 years since, no more problems. Still going strong. I use them as the front speakers in my home theater and for music in stereo. You will probably want to add a sub to use these as main stereo speakers, but they are adequate without. A Sub will make them sound excellent. I don't know if I just just got a faulty speaker or the quality is questionable. The Infinity sound is great enough that I'd try them again next time around. I bought these when they first came out, they are much cheaper online now.

Strengths:
Size, clarity

Weaknesses:
For the price, none other than the repair work needed.

Similar Products Used:
Pioneer Floorstanding. Bose

Price Paid:  $135.00 from mercata.com

Summary:
Picked these up on closeout of the model some time ago to upgrade Boston Acoustics bookshelf speakers. At the time, I was amazed at how these were much more crisp and clearer than the Bostons. As an initial foray into home theater, they left something to be desired constantly distorting; however, at the pricepoint, one cannot complain too much, especially for mass produced speakers.

Have since upgraded to a Klipsch system and not looked back.

Strengths:
Price, mid range.

Weaknesses:
Not the most efficient speaker on the market, prone to distortion - especially when used for home theater applications, lack clarity on highs, require a sub to capture lows, cheap grill.

Similar Products Used:
Boston Acoustics, Klipsch

Price Paid:  $199.00 from Crutchfield

Summary:
An excellent speaker for a decent price. This model is widely available as an overstock last season's model. That is what makes it a steal. The silk dome tweeter seems to produce very nice and crisp highs and the 6 1/2 woofer doesn't do too bad either.

If you do not have a lot of space for front speakers, using RS-3's as you main and a subwoofer for all the bass will do pretty nicely. As long as you make sure the RS-3's are placed on speaker stands so that the tweeters are about at ear level. Overall, the RS-3's seem to be more efficient than their 89 dB sensitivity rating would suggest. For their most recent price (under $200) it would be hard to beat these in terms of both sonics and appearance.

One last thing to note, while these speakers are attractive, their plastic, rather than fabric covered front grills, as well as the grey woofer (visible through the grill) may make it hard to match other non-RS Infinity speakers with them. (Especially the new Infinity line). But if you don't care that much about precicely matched asthetics or can find matching RS series speakers for home theater, this is definiately a speaker worth considering!

Strengths:
Very Compact Speaker, Nice Appearance, excellent sound quality.

Weaknesses:
A little bit expensive if you paid the original $350 price

Similar Products Used:
paradigm, dcm

Price Paid:  $135.00 from online

Summary:
I'm currently building a new A/V system from the ground up. My room is relatively small and I am trying to keep costs down. I started with a Kenwood VR-4080B receiver (more than I need but couldn't pass it up for the price) and added 4 RS3s.

These speakers are small and light, but sound fantastic in a small to medium size room. Placing them on secure stands about 6" or 8" from the wall created more than enough punch, and I plan to add a sub which should round out the low-end quite nicely. They could be a bit more bright but that may be resolved after a brief break-in period, and if not a little midrange boost from an EQ should suffice. I've only used these in a stereo setup and they have proven to be suitable for music, I am looking forward to adding video gear and using them as mains and rears - they should be fantastic.

I have had the RS3s for only a few days but so far I am satisfied; I imagine that after break-in I will have a better idea of their worth but I seriously doubt that a break-in will result in poorer quality.

The only other speaker in its class that I was impressed with was the Paradigm Titan (another great deal for the money) but I grabbed the RS3s for about $60 less per pair and have no regrets. There absolutely are better speakers to be had, but I doubt that you can find any in this price/size range.

Strengths:
Smooth sound from top to bottom. Gold binding posts. Nice size, weight, and build. Looks good with or without grilles. Excellent value.

Weaknesses:
Grilles do not appear to remain secured to cabinet.

Similar Products Used:
JBL HLS-16, Paradigm Titan.

Price Paid:  $200.00 from crutchfield

Summary:
I bought these speakers at the closeout. when I got them I was stunned at the clarity. granted they are no klipsch or b&ws, but they also are now about 100 less. with the klipsh being a 100% i would give the inf. an 89-92. with the b&ws being a 100% i would give the inf. a 78-83. excelent buy. get them.

Strengths:
crisp highs, tight bass, and well presented mids

Weaknesses:
imaging, although that might just be how i placed them

Similar Products Used:
klipsh sb2/3, csw 17, and b&w 302