For those out to buy a center-speaker for your home theater system or just listening pleasure (these are not for studio purposes) under the $1000 mark, do look at the R300, R350, and R400 from the Polk Reserve series.
In summary, the fairly recent Reserve series from Polk is a line of loudspeakers based on some of the salient features from their flagship Legend series, albeit with a more affordable price tag and some unique features of their own. The Reserve R300, R350, and R400 are all center channel speakers from the series. All three sound remarkably balanced and clear and come with a legit high-end look and build. They differ in price and output power in ascending order (the R300 being the most affordable and less powerful of them all and the R400 the priciest and most powerful). All three are certified as Hi-Res. The R400 is the only one that is IMAX certified, though.
Let’s have a closer look.
Design
While the Reserve series doesn’t look as premium-luxury as the Legend series does, its overall appearance is definitely one that says 'high-end' at first glance in a quite surprising manner in this price range.
Those familiar with the Legend series will be no stranger to the turbine cone with the specially shaped fins inside designed to reduce unwanted resonances at higher resonances (the infamous ''break-up'' mode). More on that in the Sound section.
The overall look, though, is that of a solid, hi-fidelity center-speaker system that blends in as well into a posh, plush, leather living room decor as it does in a minimal, sparse aesthetic.
The removable rubber feet are a great addition as well, which help you keep it firm on smoother surfaces.
Color Options
The Polk Reserve R300 and R400 are both available in black and walnut brown. The R350 gives you an additional option of white.
Dimensions
- Polk Reserve R300: 19 x 6.8 x 8.9" / 482.6 x 172 x 226.5 mm (with Feet)
- Polk Reserve R350: 30 x 5.6 x 7.4" / 762 x 141 x 187.5 mm (with Feet)
- Polk Reserve R400: 24.2 x 7.7 x 13.8" / 615 x 196.6 x 350 mm (with Feet)
Weight
Sound Quality
Have you ever noticed that there often tends to be quite the opposite opinions about a speaker?
I can understand this for more "personal taste" kinda products like clothing, for example.
But for engineering products like speakers? Personal tastes and preferences probably still play a role. But shouldn't it be less?
Why is it that we can't set a universal metric for sound quality?
First time I asked this question to myself has been a pivotal day.
Because it turns out that in the mid 90's, Electrical Engineer PhD Floyd Toole came up with a method called Spinorama. This is exactly what he accomplished with this. Turns out that his book Sound Reproduction is like the bible of audiophiles.
Put it simply, Spinorama is a set of measurements that gives a comprehensive overview of a speaker's performance from various angles.
It allows you to compare the performances of different speakers before even laying your ears hands on them.
Isn't that amazing?
This is why Spinorama was apparently groundbreaking news for audio industry. Hence in the mid-late 2010's, most brands and magazines began publishing Spinorama measurements, despite the challenges of making such measurements.
Fortunately, now we have the Spinorama data for a bunch of quite popular speakers. Pierre Aubert put all this untidy data together and put it into https://www.spinorama.org/. This is a stunning source. Pretty valuable stuff from him right there.
All good up to this point.
Now there comes a caveat.
Since the sound speakers propagate are in the form of omnidirectional waves, all measurements are obtained in anechoic or semi-anechoic chambers (a super-quiet room where soundwaves don't bounce back, here's how different that room sounds [a mind blowing time-adjusted video]).
This is a problem because it means that Spinorama alone, unfortunately, won't give us all we need. Placement and reflections play an equally important role there too.
This is why most A-class brands (like SVS, Bang & Olufsen, etc) often come up with room correction features, adjusted either manually or automatically. The EQ adapts itself to the placement (room, corner, center, etc) for a better (deeper and more accurate) sound. Which is great.
Additionally they often emphasize the importance of placement, here is an example: https://www.svsound.com/blogs/subwoofer-setup-and-tuning/75365187-the-art-of-subwoofer-placement
Anyways...
The source code under Pierre Aubert's work is licensed under GPL (General public license). He didn't perform any of the measurements himself, and instead he compiled all of them into one place, so that makes sense.
At this point, I thought that if there was a tool that combined both the Spinorama with the room acoustics data, it'd be extremely useful.
Unfortunately, it turns out that there wasn't any.
This is where I stepped in and partnered with an Acoustics and Audio Engineering PhD in order to achieve this.
We combined Spinorama data with room acoustics and came up with Soundton. A very simple, 2D online tool that allows you to:
- Reveal optimal speaker positions in a room,
- Test with real speakers from real brands,
- Compare different speakers and different positions in the room.
It can be very valuable for the vast majority.
The colormap provides you the locations with the best (green) and worst (red) listening experience.
It works the best with subwoofers since Soundton processes low frequency response waves only.
- Soundton is going to be, say, 80% accurate. Not 100%.
- Because, other parameters such as the age/materials of the building, furniture/windows in place also have an impact on room acoustics.
- If you want absolutely the most detailed room analysis, then what you need is an acoustics consultant. Mind you that's going to require deep pockets and patience though... assuming you find the right person and they get the job done.
Anyways...
As aforementioned, the sound on all three speakers is extremely transparent, tight, clear, and focused.
The fins inside the turbine cone mentioned earlier have a lot to do with this. Additionally, the actual material used, which Polk calls foam core polymer, comes with a specific kind of density that adds to the overall stability of the build.
This results in seamless output at high frequencies with no break-up artifacts or unwanted noise even at high levels since the tweeter's bandwidth remains unaffected by any excessive movement from the cone.
Additionally, the intricate engineering of Polk's Power Port 2.0 in combination with the new, patented X-Port provides buttery, clear bass without any chuffing or distortion.
Frequency ranges on all three are broad and impressive (check Specs), making pairing with additional speakers a breeze since you’re not left with any holes in specific frequency ranges, as is often the case with cheaper speakers.
Specs
Polk Reserve R300
- Drivers: 2 x 5.25" / 133.35 mm Polypropylene Cone Woofer 1 x 1" / 25.4 mm Tweeter
- Enclosure Type: Sealed
- Ports: None
- Frequency Response: 65 Hz to 38 kHz (-3 dB)
- Frequency Range: 45 Hz to 50 kHz
Polk Reserve R350
- Drivers: 4 x 4" / 101.6 mm Polypropylene Cone Woofer 1 x 1" / 25.4 mm Tweeter
- Enclosure Type: Sealed.
- Ports: None
- Frequency Response: 75 Hz to 35 kHz (-3 dB)
- Frequency Range: 50 Hz to 50 kHz
Polk Reserve R400
- Drivers: 2 x 6.5" / 165.1 mm Polypropylene Cone Woofer 1 x 1" / 25.4 mm Tweeter
- Enclosure Type: Bass-Reflex
- Ports: 2 x Rear-Firing
- Frequency Response: 48 Hz to 39 kHz (-3 dB)
- Frequency Range: 36 Hz to 50 kHz
Check out the Polk Reserve Series Brochure and Comparison Chart in here.
Certifications
Polk Reserve R300
- Hi-res Certification: Yes
- IMAX Certification: No
Polk Reserve R350
- Hi-res Certification: Yes
- IMAX Certification: No
Polk Reserve R400
- Hi-res Certification: Yes
- IMAX Certification: Yes
Connectivity
All three speakers come with standard connections for setting up with your speaker system or using as standalone. No wireless options are available.
Price
While prices may differ depending on your dealer and location, at the time of this article, the Polk Reserve R300 is priced at $449, R350 at $599, and the R400 also at $649.
Verdict
This is how the Polk R300, Polk R350, and Polk R400 stack up against each other:
- Design: Tie. All three are intricately well-designed.
- Sound: Tie. That being said, the R400 is IMAX certified.
- Connectivity: A clear tie again.
- Price: The Polk R300 wins.
In conclusion, all three speakers are winners. Depending on your specific needs, space, and the size of the room, choose the Polk Reserve R300 for more compactness and the R400 if power and IMAX compatibility is your first priority.