I've been lurking here for the last few months, trying to absorb as much info as possible before parting with my hard earned cash. Finally settled on Polk and HK. There doesn't seem to be many reviews on the items listed, so I thought I might give it a bash. I love music, but I'm new to the audiophile thing. Although I don't consider myself an audiophile, I do know what I like and maybe others here have similar preferences.
I was originally considering a JBL cinema SB400 soundbar, until a member here pointed out the error of my ways. My initial budget was around the R8K mark. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I missed that mark by quite some margin.
My taste in music is mostly rock and dance music. (psytrance, trance and progressive house) I also like to listen to it loud, so I had to choose something that would cater to that without completely bankrupting myself. A far more daunting task than I originally anticipated, considering the sheer amount of information I had to wade through. Also, most manufacturers like to confuse the matter by deliberately posting specs that don't seem to be worth the paper they are printed on.
Anyway, enough background info.
Many years ago, I listened to a pair of polk speakers at a sound shop in centurion. They blew me away. I had never heard anything like it. The system I was using at the time was one of those boxed HT sony setups. I loved that system, and it served me well but it couldn't compare to the demo I was given. So when shopping around this time, I was naturally drawn to Polk. The more reading I did, the more biased I was to the brand. Read about the 550's and decided this was what I was looking for. Went to audition them at Audiotronic and was impressed, although in hindsight I should have taken my own music with. Choosing an amp proved a lot more difficult. I only had about R7K left to spend, and nothing in that price range really cuts the mustard. I was considering stretching my budget again, when I stumbled onto the HK STR3770. On paper, it seemed to tick all the right boxes for me. I was unable to audition it, and had to rely solely on specs and some dodgy user reviews.
I've had the system now for about a month, and I am extremely happy. It is exactly what I wanted, and then some. Let me get the obvious out of the way. It is loud. Really loud. At approx. 60% power (guesstimate) it sounds like you are standing on the main dance floor of a club. The bass is really impressive. You can feel it in your chest if you crank up something like "Coming Soon - Badass Disco". I knew from the reviews I read that the speakers could deliver at lower frequencies, but I didn't expect it to be quite so spectacular. There is absolutely no need for a sub when listening to music.
There is plenty of detail as well. Something I didn't realise was lacking in the system it replaced. (another sony system) One thing that surprised me, was how good the system sounds at lower volumes. At low volumes, it still manages to fill the entire area with sound and doesn't lose much detail. I don't usually listen to music at anything less than moderately loud, so that was never a concern for me. Just a nice surprise. With the previous system, it didn't sound so great in certain sections of the room. Directly in line was fine and outside was great. This system seems less fussy in that regard. I'm not sure how that works. They look great as well. Especially with the covers off. Mine are the cherry veneer jobbies. Even though it is not real cherry wood, it certainly looks it and they have a nice solid feel to them.
The amp has a fairly impressive list of features for the price, and the 120w/channel is nice. The same forum member, warned me about the hazards of clipping so I've been too scared to really crank it. It doesn't matter though. As mentioned above, there seems to be enough power to really enjoy the system without approaching the limit. I'm still tempted to go a little louder though. LOL!
Bluetooth on the amp works extremely well. Had my laptop and phone paired with no hassles. Very easy if you follow the manual. Don't try and figure it out yourself though. I had to download a manual as well, because the one they supply you with is useless.
Now on to the not so great.
I download alot of music. I always try and download 320kbps examples, but that is not always possible. It doesn't like poor quality files. It sounds very messy and shrill at anything under 224kbps. I suppose this is not really the systems fault. Just something worth noting. Even some of the older CDs I ripped (AC/DC) into WAV don't sound so great. Plenty of clarity, but can sound a little shrill at higher volumes.
The amp is a bit on the flimsy side, and I think it might be prone to over-heating. There is so much ventilation in the case, it looks like a cheese grater. Also, the manual repeatedly warns about over-heating and suggests 30cm of clearance on all sides. Luckily, I have it set up on my desk alongside my laptop. So it isn't an issue. If you are placing the amp in a wall unit, you might pick up some problems.
It is not the perfect system, and I'm sure someone with a better ear for these things might find plenty wrong. For me, it is as close to perfect as my budget will allow. I am very happy. If you have similar music preferences, and you're looking for something in this price range then I'm confident you will be just as happy with it.
I was originally considering a JBL cinema SB400 soundbar, until a member here pointed out the error of my ways. My initial budget was around the R8K mark. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I missed that mark by quite some margin.
My taste in music is mostly rock and dance music. (psytrance, trance and progressive house) I also like to listen to it loud, so I had to choose something that would cater to that without completely bankrupting myself. A far more daunting task than I originally anticipated, considering the sheer amount of information I had to wade through. Also, most manufacturers like to confuse the matter by deliberately posting specs that don't seem to be worth the paper they are printed on.
Anyway, enough background info.
Many years ago, I listened to a pair of polk speakers at a sound shop in centurion. They blew me away. I had never heard anything like it. The system I was using at the time was one of those boxed HT sony setups. I loved that system, and it served me well but it couldn't compare to the demo I was given. So when shopping around this time, I was naturally drawn to Polk. The more reading I did, the more biased I was to the brand. Read about the 550's and decided this was what I was looking for. Went to audition them at Audiotronic and was impressed, although in hindsight I should have taken my own music with. Choosing an amp proved a lot more difficult. I only had about R7K left to spend, and nothing in that price range really cuts the mustard. I was considering stretching my budget again, when I stumbled onto the HK STR3770. On paper, it seemed to tick all the right boxes for me. I was unable to audition it, and had to rely solely on specs and some dodgy user reviews.
I've had the system now for about a month, and I am extremely happy. It is exactly what I wanted, and then some. Let me get the obvious out of the way. It is loud. Really loud. At approx. 60% power (guesstimate) it sounds like you are standing on the main dance floor of a club. The bass is really impressive. You can feel it in your chest if you crank up something like "Coming Soon - Badass Disco". I knew from the reviews I read that the speakers could deliver at lower frequencies, but I didn't expect it to be quite so spectacular. There is absolutely no need for a sub when listening to music.
There is plenty of detail as well. Something I didn't realise was lacking in the system it replaced. (another sony system) One thing that surprised me, was how good the system sounds at lower volumes. At low volumes, it still manages to fill the entire area with sound and doesn't lose much detail. I don't usually listen to music at anything less than moderately loud, so that was never a concern for me. Just a nice surprise. With the previous system, it didn't sound so great in certain sections of the room. Directly in line was fine and outside was great. This system seems less fussy in that regard. I'm not sure how that works. They look great as well. Especially with the covers off. Mine are the cherry veneer jobbies. Even though it is not real cherry wood, it certainly looks it and they have a nice solid feel to them.
The amp has a fairly impressive list of features for the price, and the 120w/channel is nice. The same forum member, warned me about the hazards of clipping so I've been too scared to really crank it. It doesn't matter though. As mentioned above, there seems to be enough power to really enjoy the system without approaching the limit. I'm still tempted to go a little louder though. LOL!
Bluetooth on the amp works extremely well. Had my laptop and phone paired with no hassles. Very easy if you follow the manual. Don't try and figure it out yourself though. I had to download a manual as well, because the one they supply you with is useless.
Now on to the not so great.
I download alot of music. I always try and download 320kbps examples, but that is not always possible. It doesn't like poor quality files. It sounds very messy and shrill at anything under 224kbps. I suppose this is not really the systems fault. Just something worth noting. Even some of the older CDs I ripped (AC/DC) into WAV don't sound so great. Plenty of clarity, but can sound a little shrill at higher volumes.
The amp is a bit on the flimsy side, and I think it might be prone to over-heating. There is so much ventilation in the case, it looks like a cheese grater. Also, the manual repeatedly warns about over-heating and suggests 30cm of clearance on all sides. Luckily, I have it set up on my desk alongside my laptop. So it isn't an issue. If you are placing the amp in a wall unit, you might pick up some problems.
It is not the perfect system, and I'm sure someone with a better ear for these things might find plenty wrong. For me, it is as close to perfect as my budget will allow. I am very happy. If you have similar music preferences, and you're looking for something in this price range then I'm confident you will be just as happy with it.
