Onkyo Bass Reflex Floor Speakers (2)

I have a love/hate relationship with these speakers because of the Q&A that I seemingly have fallen victim to. I can take responsibility for my own missteps (bought too many things at once from Amazon) that pushed me out of the return window (two-weeks), thus the four-star rating. These speakers are easily five stars and will likely be better than anything in the same price range. My problem is that one of my speakers are defective. The high frequency driver (which also serves as an upper midrange driver) does not seem to perform in the high frquency range that it is designed for. Because of where I live, I can not overpower these if I wanted to. And even if I wanted to push my Marantz receiver to its theoretical limits, I'm looking at 90W RMS...these are rated for 130 input power. I am so pissed, because I can hear the beauty that these speakers can deliver from the one that works beautifully. I contacted Onkyo yesterday, but they haven't gotten back to me yet. I am patient about it, I guess, but it's soooo annoying to finally have the time to listen to music, and to hear what's going on and not have any recourse (short of buying new speakers). I guess that's a lesson for you Amazon-Addicts out there: buy one thing at a time...deal with one room at a time... I tried to buy everything at once for my place and now that things are beginning to be dealt with, one of my products are defective. One thing to take away from this review is that these speakers are absolutely awesome. The Mirage Towers that these were slated to replace (Omni-550) couldn't hang with these if they tried, in my experience. I believe the Mirage's have more durability, for sure, but the overall translation of sound through these/this is wonderful. It's almost like being in the studio (which is what I like, personally). The Mirage's created an environment, these simply reproduce the music accurately. The more that I listen to these (even with the inferior driver/system, that I am starting to think has more to do with the internal boards of the speakers; I'm still listening to them as I write this...that's how absolutely great they sound -- even defective) the more I am drawn to order another pair of them and just take the $300 on the chin. Of course, the Wharfedale speakers that are in every other room of my house are asking for their big brother, so I may go that route and treat the $300 as a tip to Onkyo for awesome technical know-how unless they respond to my Customer Service request. Hey, stuff happens, I can be understanding of unfaithful lovers who are younger than me, so I can understand that sometimes you win the lottery of a defect. You see my name...I actually live this way. How about this: These speakers seem to have such great potential, that I've considered investing in their company. They recently (late last year) bought Pioneer's DJ equipment department and are now co-owners in a corporation that includes Tandy's Pioneer. I wish I would've invested in them last year, but I wasn't an owner of Onkyo equipment until this year. I own an Onkyo two-channel (8160) and Onkyo CD Player (7030) -- they're on two different systems with the aforementioned Wharfedale's. I haven't gotten them connected yet either (told you, I bought a bunch of things earlier this year), but I don't foresee any problems; great craftsmanship ... just a lovely company all around, I think; it's Japanese, for goodness sake. Japan is responsible for much of what modern Americans call "Hi-Fi" lol... Yeah, I totally fell in love with Onkyo because of what they did with these speakers (and this is all my belief in the potential these could have while dealing with one defective speaker lol). I simply didn't expect these to sound as good as they seem to. You have not heard speakers like this in this price range. Period. Now I need to decide if I want to jump out and get another pair of these or just go with the Wharfedales and give the UK a listen...hmmm Would be nice if Onkyo could contact me back from my service request, but I figure I'll decide something by May. In no uncertain terms, if you're thinking of these speakers, stop thinking, and buy them. Just be sure to hook them up and listen to them critically BEFORE the 30-Day window runs out. ~Update [16 November, 2017]~ Being wise is as good as being rich. Wisdom or money can get you almost anything; but it is important to know that only Wisdom can save your Life. If unfamiliar with the above quote, you're either like most people I've come across or you only recently read Ecclesiastes of the Holy Bible, wherein this quote has been changed...but I'm not getting into that... I found myself back here at Amazon and figured I should update this review. Let me say that the previous review, though accurate and more praising than not, was unfair. Period. Now, I'm more than aware of my star-stingy fellow-Amazonians whom punish companies mercilessly for being unlucky enough to receive the expected though unpredictable defective product or mail-carrier broken trinket. Although I was seemingly in receipt of a broken (or incomplete -- take your pick) item, when something is good, it is good...and you know that it's good -- even when it doesn't quite work as you expect it to (SEE Microsoft Windows 10, Civilization V, my first experience with Canibus)... Alas, I figured out the issue I had (mysteriously overlooked banana plug connections) and was able to complete my sound system/theater-system. Ultimately, I decided to use my aforementioned Mirage Towers as surround speakers (run full-range for a brief period of time to test a couple theories of mine and others) still running the Onkyos (of course) and a Sunfire SDS-12 -- powered by a Marantz SR5004. If you would like links to these items (everything but the Mirage Towers should be available in some capacity here in Amazon) jusat leave a comment stating as such. Search engines work, yes, but so do hyperlinks. Without saying, believe everything I said about these speakers...and more. Many times, I have to check my Marantz to ensure I am not using a Surround Mode by mistake...whether listening to music or playing a game; the centered vocals of many songs are so steady and focused that I truly believe my Polk center is on. Unfortunately, the Polk doesn't tonally match the Onkyos (and Onkyo doesn't sell the tonally matched Center Speaker of the line in the US...last I checked at least), but in the vocal range, it is close enough. Much of the "problem" is the tweeter, wherein there is nothing that sounds as crisp in my inventory. The Wharfedales are the closest, but I am apparently in love with Polk Center Speakers as I have two different models of Polks for the two surround systems I originally planned for but may not see come to fruition until I move--purely out of logistics. Regardless of the volume, time of day, source material, quality of source material, mood, zodiak--these things sound amazing. I wanted to keep them in my bedroom because when listening to them, one may not want to leave their presence. They're rather intoxicating as you hear the grind of the mix as opposed to the touch of the speaker. Descriptors such as "effortless" or "fun" or even "smooth" would all apply to the Onkyo SKF-4800 in my experience. I rest assured that the Sunfire SDS-12 that accompanies them in my theater room assist in many, irreplaceable ways, but when enjoying SOURCE DIRECT material (wherein the subwoofer is turned off to enjoy pure two-channel sound without any unneeded processing of the signal) I do not feel slighted in the bass region. When I first began listening to the 4800s, I had some time wherein I would find myself wondering whether or not my 8-inch subwoofer was on. Surely, my ex-girlfriend loved these speakers -- if that helps anyone reliant on the opinino of my former relationship participants for their next speaker purpose. If it is my opinion you seek, you should've bought these already...and be reading this as you anticipate their delivery. Hat's off to Onkyo (although your Customer Service feels like it is missing something...I don't know what that "thing" is) for producing a great set of speakers. Had they truly believed in the acceptance of these speakers in mid-range theater setups in the United States of America, the other speakers of this set would be available. Can I recommend re-doing the series? My understanding is that these were out for quite a while. Re-release them and feature surround speakers and center speakers that appear more like the SKF-4800s (ex: they all have the elevated stand to rest on...the center and surrounds is less pronounced in accordance to the effect you were going for with that decision for the Main speakers). The chosen drivers and innards are practically perfect for the price and performance reaped. Thanks, Onkyo... Thanks, Amazon.