Polk has revealed its new flagship Reserve Series of premium loudspeakers, including nine models available in matte black, matte white, and walnut woodgrain finishes with IMAX Enhanced and that are Hi-Res Audio-certified and compatible with Dolby Atmos and DTS:X.
The Reserve Series is well suited for an array of applications, including immersive multi-channel home theatre systems and classic stereo listening. The nine models include three floor-standing models, three centre channels, two bookshelf speakers, and a wall-and speaker-mountable height module, all designed to give listeners flexibility in terms of configuration by incorporating matching transducers and consistent voicing.
The centre channel speakers are available in three sizes. The R300 centre channel is designed to fit in most AV cabinets, while the R350 is only 5.5-inches tall and wall mountable so it can be used as left, right or centre channel. For the first time, Polk is introducing a height module (R900), which can be placed on the floor-standing speakers or wall mounted. The height module features a toggle switch, which tunes the speaker for the application, whether that be on-speaker or wall mounted.
“The Reserve Series use the same custom-made transducers originally developed for Polk’s award-winning Legend Series loudspeakers,” says Frank Sterns, President of Polk Audio. “Featuring the proprietary Pinnacle Tweeter, Turbine Cone midrange, and Polk’s latest bass-management and resonance control technologies – PowerPort and X-Port – the Reserve Series delivers against Polk Audio’s signature quality sound at an approachable price.
Scott Orth, Director of Audio and Acoustical Systems at Polk Audio says that while Reserve uses the same transducers as Legend, it also features multiple new developments of its own, “including a new patent-pending X-Port filter and advanced cabinet construction to minimize undesirable resonances. In return,” he adds, “you get a classic Polk Audio loudspeaker that is amazingly balanced, offers an expansive sound stage, detailed imaging, smooth mid-range and deep effortless bass.”
The Reserve Series features Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeters that feature a finely tuned waveguide, which Polk says dramatically improves the dispersion of high frequency energy, ensuring a broad sweet spot, while the critically damped rear-chamber helps defeat unwanted resonances. A Hi-Res certified driver, the Pinnacle Tweeter is designed for today’s two-channel music listening as well as multi-channel 3D audio found in music, movies, sports, and video games soundtracks.
The speakers also include a Turbine Cone that combines Polk’s proprietary foam core driver design with molded Turbine geometry to increases stiffness and damping without adding mass. This, says Polk, results in a smooth, detailed midrange across the entire bandwidth of the driver.