There’s no question that over the past decade the performance characteristics of a typical in-wall or bookshelf loudspeaker have been greatly improved.

However, there is also no question that there is no replacing a full-range loudspeaker with their ability to provide high sound pressure levels (SPLs), dynamic sound reproduction capabilities and seamless, multi-octave soundstages.

Polk Audio‘s RTi A9 is an example of how manufacturers have evolved their in-room products to meet the needs of a much different consumer demographic that requires sleek industrial designs, unobtrusive room integration and reasonable price points.

Standing just under 49 inches tall the RTi A9 has a cabinet depth of 21.375 inches and a width of just shy of 9 inches.

Internally, the speaker employs three 7-inch polymer-composite woofers, two 5.25-inch polymer-composite midrange drivers and a single 1-inch silk-polymer, composite dome tweeter that operate together on 12dB crossover slopes (second-order).

The Maryland-based company also utilizes a ported cabinet design that includes its PowerPort Plus technology to help the speaker reproduce a frequency response of 18Hz to 27kHz, and it offers dual-binding post options for bi-wiring connectivity.

The RTi A9s run $1,699 per pair.

Robert Archer - Senior Editor, CE Pro

Bob is a dedicated audiophile who has been writing about A/V for Electronic House sister publication CE Pro since 2000.