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| Model: | RS-5b |
| Category: | Speakers |
| Suggested Retail Price: | $700 |
| Description: | traditional three way |
| Manufacturer URL: | Infinity Systems |
| Model Picture: | View |
| Review by jonbee (A) on April 14, 2007 at 20:13:41 IP Address: 67.171.27.154 | Add Your Review for the RS-5b |
I bought a pair of RS-5bs listed on Craigslist, in good condition except for the rotten woofer surrounds. The picture shown is the rs-4b. The rs-5b has one 10" woofer rather than 2 8"s in the 4b, and is about a foot shorter.The speakers date from 1985, a period in which Infinity made some classic speakers. I owned some of their more ambitious designs in those years, so it seemd like it might be fun to fix these up and give them a run. I replaced the surrounds and damped the woofer baskets.
I expected them to be pretty good mid fi, but I wasn't prepared for what I heard. Most importantly, the midrange was fast, detailed, natural, and had terrific in room presence. It separates instruments and layers in the mids in a most engaging way. In this regard, I felt it was a true high end performance.
The bass was lively,and went down to around 40 hz. in room, but with an excess of midbass punch. Great for rock n rollers, but not quite accurate. Still, it had the pacing to get the toes tapping. Pretty nice.
The emit tweeter is a known quantity. Detailed, fast, and airy, it nevertheless had a bit too much edge. I have found this to be the case with this driver generally.
So what we have here is a very good midfi speaker, whose faults are pretty easy to live with, particularly if you prefer a punchy, upfront sound. They truly excel at putting the music into the room in a lively fashion. At the used price in good condion of $200-250, these are without competitiion from new models. My previous candidates for best medium sized vintage bargains were the B&O S60, S75, and the JBL L80T. I think these Infinities edge them both by a small margin, per my tastes.
If you find good pair cheap, they would be a great choice in any budget situation where a medium size is desired. Replacement of xover caps, wiring, and adding cabinet damping may well take these up another level, at a bargain price.
| Product Weakness: | Highs a bit sharp, bass a bit too punchy. L-pads can get noisy. |
| Product Strengths: | Fast, open, low coloration midrange. Nice detail definition overall, decent bass extension. Very inexpensive used for the quality. |
| Associated Equipment for this Review: | |
| Amplifier: | sony avd-500 all digital amp/player |
| Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): | none |
| Sources (CDP/Turntable): | See Sony |
| Speakers: | review |
| Cables/Interconnects: | Mapleshade Helix |
| Music Used (Genre/Selections): | Lots, every kind |
| Room Size (LxWxH): | 16 x 12 x 8 |
| Type of Audition/Review: | Product Owner |
Follow Ups:
I remember hearing the RS-5Bs back in the day when I was new to the whole audio thing (a teenager!).The sales guy was quite taken by the then new to CD Telarc 1812 (here we go again!) and wanted to show off these with a then new Onkyo Integrated (don't remember which model, but it was about 100w/pc and boasted a pretty high current output). I think he was trying to super impress the bunch of us that had gone to the store to check things out.
He turned up the disc to near deafening levels, and as soon as those cannons "kicked in", the woofers promptly pushed outward in a vulgar display of I don't know what, and the amp promptly shut down... and one woofer stayed stuck in the out position...
Needless to say, I don't think I ever went back to that store (it didn't make it a year) and I never bought either product either. It was fun though...
"David! You can KILL a man with a chopstick!" -Keith Charles, Six Feet Under
Nice review. I was looking for information on the 5b when I came across another vintage model for sale, the Renaissance 80's with the EMIT, EMIM and 8" cone drivers.I thought I should butt in and post a notice. You don't often see these. Owners don't get rid of them. I have a pair and will part with them at gunpoint or fire. They are my primary and only speakers.
The advertised pair is selling for $900, which is a stone cold steal if in as good a shape as shown. Scroll down on the attached web page.
The EMIT tweeters don't have to be harsh.
The age of the crossoer components may have caused the tweeter to come in lower then is desirable, easily fixed by a cap swap.I have owned these speakers, and also found them warm and musical.
I changed the tweeter cap out to a new Mylar, and look out!I ONLY sold them because the Oak Veneer did not fit in looks wise in my home.
Make no mistake, these are excellent speakers, and sound like music.
Thank you JonBee for a great review!
also, I think adding felt or foam to the baffle around the tweeter may well smooth it out, too.
Of all the caps I tried, a Mylar sounded best!
The Bennic and Solen Poly caps made it brighter and harsher, but I did not let them break in.
The Mylar sounded great as soon as I clipped it in, so I soldered it up, and left it.I also placed rope caulk on the midrange domes backside/magnet.
Adding some silicone to the drivers openings in the baffle seemed to help the mids out too.The speaker is a real sleeper JonBee, for the money.
I too was shocked it sounded so good.When it was made, Vandersteens and DCM Time Windows were the things to have, and it got overlooked.
detailing. The RS-3, RS4b, RS6 and 6b, and rs7 were all very similar, but bwith different woofer configurations, and could all be great buys.
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