Buying speakers is all about personal preference. If you have a Futureshop located near you, drop by and ask one of the associates for a demo on both pairs.

Audio magazines generally prefer Energy over Polk. Audioholics reviewed Polk's bookshelf speakers, and described them as sounding like a "cop's bullhorn" !

 

The ugly truth is, Polk made budget speakers for the now bankrupt (competitor) chain of stores in the U.S.. Polk's RTi-line of speakers use many of the same components, but are dressed up in nicer boxes to give them more of an up-market appearance. Energy's RC line, however, was a real competitor to Bowers & Wilkins' 600-series line. Therefore, I think Energy has a lot more credibility behind their speakers.

I would be more interested in checking out the Polk Rti8's. Heavier speakers with bigger drivers and quality construction. Check out the reviews.....everyone can't be wrong about their impressions and ratings. A lot of people like Polk Speakers,and Polk Audio continue to sell enough speakers to stay in business.

I have the Energy CF-50s and...in my personal view...they don't have the punch I was expecting.

While you are at it you might as well try out Klipsch. Excellent speakers for Cinema and music.

Klipsch are excellent speakers for explosions and rock music. However some people find them to be too "bright" and "harsh" for other types of music, like classical and jazz.

I own the RTI8 and have a 7.1 Dennon reciever, they sound excellent..I started with Harmon Kardon,went to Yamaha, and ended up with Dennon AVR888.  Best sound reproduction no sound distortion..you can spend $299. or well over 50K for speakers.. roughly the same quality under a grand some will sound a little better that others though and depends which amp you pair ir with. I thought the Yamaha was louder than Denon but clarity was no where near Dennon.