Polk RTA-11T (late 1980s–early 1990s)
Little is documented about the Polk RTA-11T beyond the company's own period advertising, which ran in several audio publications around 1988-1990. Polk's copy pitched the RTA-11T as the finest conventional (non-SDA) speaker the company then made, and leaned on the tower form factor and high power handling. The same ads appeared in Audio (February 1989, p.21), High Fidelity (March 1989, p.39), and HiFI/Stereo (various issues, 1988-1990). That looks like a sustained marketing push for this model.
The RTA-11T was a tall, slender tower with a deep cabinet. Polk claimed the design gave it plenty of internal volume for efficiency and bass extension while taking up modest floor space. List price was $449.95 each, which put it at the upper end of Polk's conventional speaker lineup of the era. Polk's own specifications, as quoted in these ads, cited 250 watts power handling and 90 dB sensitivity. No independent test reports or detailed technical breakdowns from the period have surfaced in the available record.
What can be said with confidence is this. The RTA-11T was a flagship conventional tower in Polk's RTA series, sold alongside the SDA models, and aimed at listeners who wanted high output and efficiency in a floor-standing package. Beyond those advertising claims, the record is thin.
- Type: Floor-standing tower loudspeaker (conventional, non-SDA)
- Price (new): $449.95 each (advertised, circa 1989)
- Power handling: 250 watts (manufacturer claimed)
- Sensitivity: 90 dB (manufacturer claimed)
- Cabinet: Tall, slender, deep tower design
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