Polk Signature Elite ES60 Tower Speaker
In this article, we will review the Polk Audio Signature Elite ES60. It is a large floor-standing speaker that is the highest in the Signature Elite series, making it one of the best quality speakers that Polk sells. This is targeted toward audiophile audiences, but the price, with its RRP on the company website, is just $549 (prices may vary in other locations). This aggressive price strategy and technology-forward approach from a well-regarded brand in the industry has got our attention, and over the past few weeks, we have been testing the ES60 to see how they perform.
The Concept
The Elite Signature line of home speakers by Polk Audio is the company’s consumer premium offering. It sits just below the well-regarded audiophile focussed Reserve line of loudspeakers. The highest-end speakers in the Polk range are the Legend, which commands a price multiple times what we are talking about here.
Legend and Reserve models have a strict focus on audio reproduction for music listeners. The Signature line is directed at people wanting to combine their home theater and music listening. As a result, testing for this review of the ES60 was split between listening to our usual test playlists and incorporating them into our home theater system.
What’s interesting is that Polk has trickled technology down from their premium speakers to their cheaper models like the ES60 instead of building them from the ground up. In our experience, this approach almost always has positive benefits for the consumer.
In the SE speaker line, you will see another model called the ES55; it has similar cabinetry but has one less woofer. Having had both, I would advise anyone choosing between the two to opt for the 60s as the price increase is small, but performance gains are big.
Specification Polk ES60
Sensitivity: (1 watt @ 1 meter)90 dB
Response: 36 Hz → 40,000 Hz
Dimensions: W 8.5" (21.59 cm) H 44.5" (113.03 cm) D15.7" (39.88 cm)
Weight: 52 lbs (23.59 kg)
Drivers: 1" Terylene High-Res Dome Tweeter / (3) 6.5" Dynamic Mica Reinforced Polypropylene Drivers
Impedance: 4 and 8-ohm outputs recommended
Power Per Channel: 20 watts → 300 watts
Build & Aesthetic
We test so many floor-standing speakers it’s rare that something stands out. Only so much can be done to turn these giant monolithic blocks into something eye-catching, and while it definitely still looks like a speaker, there are lots of nice touches on the ES60 that caught my eye from both a form and function standpoint.
The large MDF cabinet has very nice lines, with the tops being rounded to stop an overly angular appearance. This is matched in the curves on the driver array mound, which also shows some curved elements and ties everything together nicely.
The driver arrays itself in dominating and imposing with three large 6.5-inch woofers symmetrically stacked with equal spacing. The top is set with a small 1-inch terralyine tweeter that is inlayed via a gentle convex slope into the faceplate.
The branking is tastefully done, and the only front-facing logo is the word Polk below the last driver. Too many companies feel insistent on using large logos, but Polk kept it clean on the ES60.
The most stand-out feature was the base. The base not only looks cool but is essential as to how Polk has handled the ventilation of the cabinet. What at first glance looks like a floating stand for the speaker is actually the bass reflex port which has been cleverly integrated into the design.
The bottom of the speaker features a bass port; by suspending it on the stand, there is ample room to breathe. I have seen this attempted in the past, but it causes reflection to bounce up off the floor and cause distortion; Polk’s solution is to add a conical element that distributes this air in a 360-degree direction.
By using such a simple but effective solution to both the stand and the venting, the Polk has removed the need for a rear-facing bass port we are used to seeing from other manufacturers at this price point. Bass ports are usually one of the main factors for determining how close you can place your speaker to the wall. With the ES60 firing the bass port down and not back, you can place them directly against the wall with little ill effect.
Build quality is up there on a par with other Klipsch speakers we have seen at this price. The cabinet feels very well put together, and our review unit was completely free of defects. In general, Polk has a good reputation for quality control, and from what I am aware, users rarely have issues and end up keeping their products for many years.
Sound
The sound is distinctly Polk. What do I mean by that? Well, the Polk ES60 displays a lot of elements of the sound we have seen on other Polk speakers I have tested in the past. Essentially they have a house sound. What is that house sound, you ask? Well, probably best we get into it.
When it comes to loudspeakers, it’s often important to consider what you want from them. Do you want a speaker to play music? Is it just for movies? Or, as I suspect, you want to do a little bit of both.
What makes a good music speaker does not necessarily make a good speaker for watching movies and vice versa. Polk does, in my experience, a good job of balancing both needs. They take an audiophile sound and beef it up by adding some warmth and a few DB gains to the low end. This means that they sound great for music but have that powerful feeling when you watch a movie.
Detail retrieval was observed to be excellent; the spacing in the sound and the quality of the drives show that there is a lot of detail to be pulled out of well-mastered tracks. They are not as refined as speakers, which utilize electrostatic drivers or even ribbon tweeters, but the detail level is what I would consider being above average for the price.
The midrange is, for me, the highlight. Six drivers throw some big sound yet remain well aligned and concise with that edge of warmth, adding gravity to vocals spoken and sung. I find a presence in the mid-range that is engaging but well blended with the other frequencies not to become overbearing.
The bass is a little loose, but there are plenty of impacts from the relatively small drivers. The Klipsch RP-280F delivers a more realistic sub-bass with its big 8-inch drivers. For the ES60, the issue isn’t in the quality of bass, but in quantity, it can deliver. I would regard it as ample for music, but if the primary listening intent is for movies, it’s worth pairing them with a separate subwoofer for maximum effect.
The highs ring true and clear, with nice extension and sparkle without being hot or overbearing. It’s a well-done safe tuning that does well for a multi-use speaker in this category.
Overall the sound felt really powerful and free of distortion even when listening at high volumes. It’s a very easy speaker to live with and one well suited to people that want to listen to different types of music.
Final Verdict
For the price, I think this is a killer deal. The Sound quality can be beaten if you are talking about purely listening to music, but the speakers that beat it would suffer in audio reproduction of movies. The sound is big and bold but very easy to live with. The best thing is how good they look when sounding great. The design has some really clever elements, and the color options are great. The Polk Audio ES60 is an easy speaker to recommend; it’s a safe choice from a well-trusted brand.
Official Website Polk Audio ES60: www.polkaudio.com
