Cheap Bookshelf Speakers! Polk Audio Speakers POLK RESERVE R200 Review

which is better center speaker for small to medium room, polk r300, r350 or r400?

Bronze 100 over R200, Fully AGREE with Kristi! And personally my ears and wallet do to. Have Bronze 100 paired to a Marantz 100w p/channel amp and oh my goodness, "Are these FUN" -Andrew Robinson

Andrew if you see this, which height Solidsteel stand do you have?

hey i really love your review, i'm thinking to buy evo 4.2, which one is better, Wharfedale Evo 4.2 or Polk R200? and why you recommend them?

What’s the difference between Reserve and Legend then? Legend has real wood finish. Is that it?

How’s this compare to the Wharfedale 80 or 85s?

Where do I buy the entertainment stand and the speaker stands? Thanks!

Would this be a good speaker to replace my Polk Audio Monitor 40 ? I tried Focal their highs are just brutal.

Well done video. Great explanation of what the difference in sound between the polk and comparable other speakers is.
I could almost hear the speakers sound signature as you and Christie went back and forth giving your interpretation of it.

I'm treble sensitive and these speakers, when I had a chance to demo them, were just about perfect for my needs. They're neutral with a mild bass bump. Hearing from the rep at the audio show, they do really prefer to be at least two feet off the wall for optimal performance, and that was how he had them set up in the room. Dude was also running them off of a source stack worth, like, 12 grand, so that probably impacts how amazing they sounded in the room.

Informative but boring

Some people say the sweet spot is r100.. 😏

Hi Andrew,
I bought these speakers to replace a pair of Cambridge audio SX60's. I use them with a CXA61 amp. Listening to several songs I had the impression that the music was a little slower than I remembered. Do you think it's just my impression or could there be an explanation? Thank you for your videos and greetings from Italy 🇮🇹 👋

Will the R400 center sound good with this speaker? I hope so because I already have the R400. It also leaves open the possibility of getting the R700s for the mains. A man can dream.

I'll bring the R200s bass into line with an amp, crossover and 2 subs. I'm looking forward to this.

Of course they have cannibalized the sale of the legend series w the intro of the reserve line. And I have now heard the reserve r700’s and they are phenomenal

Such a great review! In many reviews you also use the Audiolab 6000a for running the benchmarks but that’s not the case with the R200. Does that mean it’s not a ideal match? Will Klispch rp600m II work better with the Audiolab?

Would it be good to mount these Polk R200 speakers up on the wall and use as front height speakers for movies, music concerts and get 3D Auro reciever in a 5.1.2 setup ?

Andrew, what do you think, has the NAD C316BEE2 enough power to drive these Polks? Thanks a lot!

Really digging the R200, been considering ordering them, but most of my listening will be at lower volume so I don't tick off the neighbors. that said, any suggestions? would like to find speakers that sound good at low volume. my living room is about 300 square feet, $1200 a pair is bout my limit

hows the bass

I’ve had these speakers about a year now I previously had the Klipsch 600 RM and in my opinion the Klipsch sounded better to me . I have more than enough power to drive them but they are very power hungry I’m going back to Klipsch .

Please review Monolith B-6 bookshelves speakers by MonoPrice...I would like your honest opinion. A lot of people say there awesome for the price..

I enjoy your wife's comments. Even if everything she says is in up speak
Every comment sounds like a question.

I love Kristi"s imput on these reviews. It is what you hear! Full stop. It can be how a component looks. And it can be about the connectivity of a component. Customers get more for their money when they assess for themselves & prioritize their preferences.

Try a listen to HSU speakers. Their bookshelf speakers and any VTF sub is worth a trial.

To give you an idea on how lasting top line Polks are, I sport a pair of RTA11TL’s I purchased new in ‘88. Still a flagship speaker but not the RTA15

Just a guess, but by lean sounding, I think Kristi might be referring to the mids missing something, maybe due to the tweeter, or maybe the mid cone itself. I think the presentation would still be dense but perhaps, for that denseness, the crucial micro details, tones might be missing or too smoothed over to make the mids sound more right. I found this to be the case with Dynaudio Emit 10 (new series) and voices seemed lacking a bit and piano though weighty, sounded somewhat unnatural. Supposedly, some reviewers feel the Emit series and Polk R series have a similar sound presentation with the Emits highs being more refined, or perhaps too refined?

Would the R100s still be solid for a smaller area while being less fussy about placement? I don't have the space to pull the speakers out so far from the wall like it seems the R200s require. I will be using a subwoofer.

Which is better the R200 or the Q Acoustics 3030i? Thanx

Andrew, nice review sir. I'm going to check these Polk's out. Love the look of your spkr stands. Where did you purchase them?

Which is better the R200 or the new Klipsch RP600M II ? tough decision

Would something this size be too much for a rear surround speaker (with something like the R700s up front)? Kristi's comments in a recent video referring to A Quiet Place II and a pair of Monitor Audio Bronze 100s (I think?) got me thinking that maybe a little bigger speaker for rear surround might not be a bad idea? Or should a rear surround speaker be smaller and just used for 'effects'?

I have the R200 I plan to replace them with the Klipsch 600 i like the sound of the Klipsch better

Strange, you seems positive on these but not nearly as much as the r700....I would expect they are very similar?

I wish the Reserve series center channel was more similar to the L400 center. So I think that not enough has trickled down.

Andrew, how do these compare to the REVEL M16's?

Nice review. I wonder how it’s compare to ubr62

Hi Andrew,
Polkr200, Wharfedale 12.2 or Klipsch RP600M. Out of these 3 what would you recommend?

I use 4 of these on my sim racing rig and they are amazing. The neutral tweeters are perfect for up close listening.

Hello I'm going to bye a bluesound n330 witch speaker should I have for that?

best regards

I work in hifi and l200 kill the klrp600m

hi Andrew, I have a pair of R200 which I intend to set up purely for music. am considering Marantz PM7000N, would the R200 sing well? would you care to suggest other integrated amplifier that I may consider? music source would be from a CD player, Spotify/Tidal and maybe turntable. thank you.

Can y’all tell me more about the R350?
Need a slim center but all I read is that it’s terrible with horrible horizontal dispersion. Would use it with the R600 in a large open concept living room.

I just listened to this R200 with Hegel H120..... This thing is Crazy Awesome for the money. I also have the B&W 606 original. Totally agree with you the top end has more clarity BUT just FAR TOO MUCH. This R200 has wide soundstage, plenty of bass, deep bass not punchy BUT not as refined as those Expensive $5K+ Speakers. This may probably be the best buy for entry level bookshelves. Also I do think it is more suitable for AV.

Enjoyed the discussion between you and Christy..

Would you know how these compare with the MA Silver 100's? Where I am the R200's sit in the middle price wise between the MA Bronze 100's and MA Silver 100's and wondering if it is work the extra expense to go for the silver line?

Love the review of these speakers. Thinking of going with the R700 and 400’for my LCR. Which would be better for my rear speakers these R200 or the R600 towers? Planning on doing a 5.2.4 system

I just took my Polk rta 11t's after 40 years. I hope they still work.... :-D