Polk SDAs blow away Genesis APM-1s??

My good friend passed away and left me his pair of Genesis APM-1s. For fun, I a-b'd them with my beloved Polk SDA-2 speakers and...maybe I'm not setting the Gens up right or something, but the Polks far and away blew them out of the water for clarity, presence, warmth, you name it. The only thing the Gens have going for them are the hernia-inspiring amped woofers that can shake the house, but not being a fan of that sort of thing anyway, it's not a factor. The Gens sure look beautiful, I'll give them that. But given their original retail prices, and their rep, I expected them to be way better.

Am I doing something wrong? Comparing the two with an Oppo 103 and a Yamaha 6160; maybe the latter is the culprit but it should do for a simple head-to-head comparison, I mean, the Polks would sound better with more juice too. Played some DCC's and MFSL discs, it doesn't matter the genre, same outcome. Any thoughts from those who've heard both? I've checked the APM manual, no help.

 

SDA's are underrated speakers to begin with. Add Polk's replacement tweeters, crossover upgrades and some other tweaks they become world class.

You are correct about your power source though. It's not close to being right for either pair of speakers.

 

I think the the adjective "beloved" has something to do with this. I would expect that if you spent a fair amount of time setting the APM-1 up optimally, which means moving the SDA-2 to a sub optimal location, that you'd find the newer speakers to offer higher resolution. The woofer would need to be integrated properly with the room and the system for best performance. I like the SDA -2 myself and even though I have a set for sale here now and would like to believe you, I can't help but imagine some sentimentalism going on over there.

-Bill

 

There's more to quality sound reproduction than higher resolution, which by the way can be easily achieved with the SDA's with some basic upgrades. However, what SDA brings to the listening experience cannot be obtained with the Genesis APM-1.

 

I own 3 pair of SDA's a listening experience indeed,my modded 2.3 tls sound fantastic with a SS amp and a Vincent tube preamp, my 2Bs sound great also don't plan on ever parting with them. I never heard a pair of Genesis APM-1s so I can't comment on those.

 

I have a pair of SDA 2b's which have been updated and TL'd. I also have a pair of Yamaha NS-1000m speakers which by all accounts, are superior. Regardless of that fact, I enjoy listening to the 2b's more. Not that the Yammies don't sound good, the do. They do some things much better than the Polks. The Polks just seem more musical and engaging.

 

So I need to sell these Genesis APM-1 speakers. One of the subwoofers is not working. I saw a pair of these on eBay for $2000, and neither subwoofer is working in that pair.

Cosmetically, I don’t think you could find anything close. They are near perfect, no exaggeration. But that subwoofer…any idea what a fair price would be? My departed friend’s widow really needs the money but I don’t want her to get ripped off.