In this review, we will be comparing R700 and Navis ARF-51, two Floor-standing speakers from Polk Audio and ELAC. The main difference between these two speakers is that the ELAC Navis ARF-51 is a Powered speaker which means that it has a built-in amplifier inside the speaker body so you don't need an external power amp or an integrated amp whereas the Polk R700 is a Passive speaker so has to be matched with an amplifier to get any sound from it. Let's have a brief look at the main features
of Polk R700 and ELAC Navis ARF-51 first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
In the following sections, we will get into more detail in order to better understand how the Polk R700 and ELAC Navis ARF-51 compare and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one of these loudspeakers is the better choice for you.
Drivers
Both R700 and Navis ARF-51 are 3-way speakers.
| Driver |
Polk R700 |
ELAC Navis ARF-51 |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
3-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
1-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 6.5-inch |
1 x 4-inch |
|
Woofer
|
2 x 8-inch
|
1 x 5.25-inch
|
R700 features a 1" Pinnacle Ring Radiator Tweeter , a 6.5" Midrange and 2 x 8" Polypropylene Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 350Hz and 2700Hz. On the other hand, the Navis ARF-51 features a 1" Fabric Soft-Dome Tweeter , a 4" Midrange and 1 x 5.25" Aluminum Woofer .
Frequency Response
R700 has a frequency range of 38-38k Hz whereas Navis ARF-51 has a frequency range of . With a minimum frequency of Hz, the Navis ARF-51 can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the R700's min frequency of 38Hz.
Below graphs depict how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average values of the Min and Max Frequencies of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
R700 has a bottom firing port whereas Navis ARF-51 has a rear firing ports. Polk R700's bottom-firing port gives more flexibility in placement in regards to proximity to walls compared to ELAC Navis ARF-51 with its rear-firing port.
Size of a speaker can sometimes become an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare Polk R700's and ELAC Navis ARF-51's external dimensions. Polk R700 has external dimensions of 1143.8 x 320.7 x 428.3mm ( 45 x 12.6 x 16.9inch) whereas ELAC Navis ARF-51 has external dimensions of 1070.0 x 247.0 x 294.0mm ( 42.125 x 9.6875 x 11.5625inch) .
Polk R700 is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 73.7mm wider, 73.8mm taller and 134.3mm deeper than ELAC Navis ARF-51.
Base Surface Area Comparison
Base surface area of a loudspeaker may become a determining factor when the space in your room or desk is limited.
The base surface area of the Polk R700 is approximately 1373.6cm2 / 212.9inch2 and base area of the ELAC Navis ARF-51 is approximately 726.2cm2 / 112.6inch2. The R700 requires 89% more surface area than the Navis ARF-51 which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.
Woofer Size 
High Frequency Response 
Speaker Type 
Height 
Base Surface Area 
RCA Connection 
XLR Connection