Jef

Hi, I have had the same problem. The problem can be found in the connector either the male or the female. I replaced the original male connector and the problem was gone. Best regards ... Jef

Hello Alan, sorry but the analogy is correct. Music is not sinusoidal signals only, the complex waveforms can be broken down into sinus signals and inversely if you add multiple sinuses you can get any shape you want, depending on amplitude and phase of the individual atributing signals - as proven by Fourier - but this definitely not mean that all signals are sinuses. Below is an example of a real signal, allthough not really complex. Asuming it is a low frequency, the woofer must accuratly follow the outline to reproduce the sound, as you can see the signal is not symmetrical and the woofer has to manipulated heavily. It takes alot of current if you want to track the outline precisely. You can also see the woofer does not just swing back and forth but has to go out twice at places. The following link leads to a series of excellent articles on sound, signals etc http://eamusic.dartmouth.edu/~book/MATCpages/chap.4/4.9.phys.mod.html Clipping is what happens when the signal flattens at the tops and bottoms because the source cannot provide enough amplitude, this happens most frequently with amplifiers but can also happen with speakers that are pushed beyond their design limits. If the signal contains a flattening, like with a square wave signal, than this is not called 'clipping'. Best regards ... jef

Hi Darren I had written the reply below a few months ago. It is an electro-mechanical explanation to avoid all jargon associated with electronics, in this case inductive-, capacitive loads and complex impedances. ------------------- Power output of amplifiers is given in Watts and when used on a resitive load this covers 'all' as it can be interpreted as heat generation. But a loudspeaker is not a resistor at all. Imagine your 50 Watt amplifier accelerating the woofer outwards then have to stop the moving mass and bring it in again. At the moment the woofer has to be stopped and has to move inwards again a large current is needed to generate a forcefull magnetic field that counteracts the inertia. If your 50 Watt amplifier is 'just' capable of generating the currents associated with the specified resistance - lets say 4 ohm - that would be something like 3.5 Amps (on a resistor). That will bring the woofer back ... eventualy ... Compare this with the 35 Amps capacity of a H/K (or other decent amp), you can immediatly see that the H/K has 10 times more current (read magnetic force) to stop and restart the woofer. So the more current an amplifier can genenerate the more 'control' it has on the moving mass of the woofer cones = a tighter and better controlled bass. The explanation does not take the interaction with the air in the enclosure into account, but the basic idea remains. Hope this helps ... Jef

Glad we could be of assistance. Jef

Hello, the link below will lead you to a dutch site with several older reviews and interviews with P. Klipsch, most in english some dutch and german. http://www.audioimport.nl/redactie.htm Enjoy ... Jef

Hi, I have a Norh tube amp (see below) which I consider a nice entree into the tube world. If I remember correctly the price was 400$ including shipment from Taiwan. site : http://www.norh.com/ You can also check : www.decware.com this site contains lots of tubeamp info. For the tube sound I would go 1 or 2 definitly not 3 Best regards ... Jef

Hello, the link below will lead you to a dutch site with several older reviews and interviews with P. Klipsch, most in english some dutch and german. http://www.audioimport.nl/redactie.htm Enjoy ... Jef

Hi, you should check the connectors on your tweeter. That are snap-on connectors, it is posssible that they make a bad contact. Possibly the cutting in and out is caused by the vibrations of the woofers on that connection. It is an easy check, you will have to unscrew the 8 screws that hold the tweeter. You can also check the crosover for bad contact by carefuly examining the solder points. If these steps don't help then see the reply before me. Best regards ... Jef

Hello, I have never understood the capacitance argument. The capacitance is greater because the 2 wires a physicaly larger. Capacitance is also heavily influeced by the distance between the 2 wires. As far as I can see you only have to separate the wire in 2 seperate pieces, keep them some distance (inches) from each other and the capacitance argument is gone - along with it's effects on high frequencies when using long cables. BTW mr Klipsch had some Dope from Hope articles on the subject. VOL17 no 1 to be more precise. In the test he measured #18 zip cord with a lenght of 40 feet with no audible differences to larger diameter wires. the only aspect I really noticed with cables over the years is the termination. Plain copper wire of sufficient diameter performs perfectly but copper oxydates over time. If you have a solid termination (screw type) the copper on the contact place remains ok untill you have to loosen the terminal. You can avoud this problem by terminating the cable with spades - which are often coated with a thin layer or gold, which doesn't oxidate. You can also opt for cables with 'oxygen free copper' Both solutions are inexpensive. Best regards ... Jef

Hi Moon, with my amp (Denon) the +2 setting would be better than the +5 setting, because the Denon takes this into account when going to max volume - silly argument actualy because your ears would have exploded long before that not to mention the distortion - nevertheless. For the rest it doesn't matter at all. Best regards ... jef

Hi Moon, you put all the individual settings to 'zero'. Then choose the left or right mains and and adjust the Volumeknob untill desired value (lets say 85 dB SPL at your listening spot). Then adjust all the other speakers with the individual settings to the same SPL at your listening spot. execption : if you would have speakers in your setup up which are really much less sensitive (not your case anyway) you might have to start with those and then adjust the rest to them - this in case the individual setting could not be set high enough to reach equal SPL. Best regards ... jef

Hi, the only aspect I really noticed with cables over the years is the termination. Plain copper wire of sufficient diameter performs perfectly but copper oxydates over time. If you have a solid termination (screw type) the copper on the contact place remains ok untill you have to loosen the terminal. You can avoud this problem by terminating the cable with spades - which are often coated with a thin layer or gold, which doesn't oxidate. You can also opt for cables with 'oxygen free copper' Both solutions are inexpensive. Best regards ... Jef

Hello, my friends SF2's grills got ruined beyond repair whilst moving. Checking for new grills I learned that they apparantly cost 100$ pair here in Europe. I wonder what the price of a new pair of grills is in America as 100 $ seems very expensive. Thanks ... Jef

The 'Lost in Hifi' shop in Munster Germany had a pair of KSP-S6's last week for 400$ Best regards ... Jef

I have RF3 II's and after listening for months with the RC3II I chanded to the RC7. Very happy with the decision (and the deal I got from the dealer). IMO the RC3 is a good match for the RB3. The RC7 matches my RF3's perfectly and no doubt the RF5's as well. Best regards ... Jef

Justin_16_tx has an on-line 26 MB pdf file with the article, I believe you can find him with this in the 'general' section. I think it is well worth the donation. Jef

Hi, it depends on your speakers, but as they have horns you will benefit by angling them. This will create a broader sweetspot, more people on the coach will be able to 'hear' the phantom channel. There is a Dope from Hope with a nice diagram that explains in nicely. Best regards ... Jef

This paper is well worth the donation. Not only it contains the Dope from Hope articles but also several of Mr Klipsch publications in the Engineering Journals - something I was looking for a long time. And in good quality. thanks ... Jef

How long does mail actualy take between the US and Europe ? The Concorde would be faster it seems. Justin, maybe you can send the link to my forum mailbox. Jef

After expermenting for months with varous settings I decided to audition the RC7 with RF3-II speakers. As the dealer was so kind to offer a very nice price plus a full refund for my year old RC3-II and as I liked the sound improvement of the RC7 versus the RC3-II I upgraded to the RC7. I have not regretted the upgrade a single moment. Best regards ... Jef

Hello Justin, payed my donation yesterday, when can I expect the link ? Best regards ... Jef

A Klipsch RF3 review: Klipsch RF-3 - floorstanding loudspeakers Just like live! Klipsch is one of the golden names in HiFi history, a Company that has made "high sensitivity" its credo, its own flagship. Following a long established tradition all Klipsch loudspeakers make use of horns to "load" their drivers, so to reach high sound pressure levels with just few watts. The model under test makes no exception to this rule and it comes equipped with a titanium dome 1" tweeter loaded with a 90° x 60° Tractrix horn, matched to 2 (8") aluminium membrane bass-reflex loaded woofers. Thanks to the horn and the efficient woofers the RF-3 has a very high sensitivity at 98 db/w/m which means that, with just one mere watt from your amplifier, they produce 98 dB of sound pressure at 1 meter, exactly the same pressure your common loudspeakers (88 dB avg sensitivity) would produce with 10 watts, that is, a power ten times higher. The crossover network frequency is located at 1975 Hz, biwiring is allowed, thanks to an easy to use set of 4 binding posts. Also available are two pairs of feet: adjustable spikes and plastic damping feet, depending on the floor you have. The Klipsch RF 3 are 98 (H) x 23 (W) x 41 (D) cm and weigh in 25 kgs each, so they're not small nor lightweight. The cabinet (mostly empty on the inside) is made out of MDF and is available in "plain black" or "cherry" finish. The drivers are shielded so these spekaers can be used inside a Home Theater system, close to a TV set, without causing troubles on the screen. Still from Klipsch, a whole set consisting of a central channel and surround speakers is available. Also, still from the same series, two bigger models make use of independently powered woofers, so the customer can build a complete HT set with no need for a separate active subwwofer unit. Neat. The claimed technical data are: Frequency response: 37-20.000 Hz @ +/- 3 dB Nominal impedance: 8 ohm Average sensitivity: 98 dB/w/m Max power allowed: 225 watt RMS (continuous power) and 400 watt (peak) The Klipsch RF 3 have been evaluated under very different conditions both with solid state and tube amps (SETs) over a long period (2 months) inside my main reference system and room (30 sqm). Just like live! 800 US $. Probably a little bit more outside of the US, depending on the Country you live in. Not a lot of money considering how expensive HiFi stuff can be. For this little money the Klipsch RF-3 have a lot to offer: they can be used even inside a HT system, they let you choose between spikes and damping feet, allow you to bi-wire them and give you extremely high sound pressure levels with just few watts. But you'd like to know HOW they sound. Well, remember to fasten your seatbelts when you hook up these babies to your system because the listening experience you're about to live is one of those you (and your neighbours) won't easily forget :-) First of all, remember to turn that volume knob counter-clockwise, as the watts you normally use would probably result too many unless you want to have a party. These babies DO sound loud, even with a couple of watts, so you've been warned. Once you have decided the listening level - and you'll probably end up listening at a level way higher than normal - you can concentrate on the character of these beasts. If you're already familiar with the "Klipsch-sound" they won't be a surprise but!!! if you're used to 84 dB sensivity mini-monitors, the impact could be D_R_A_M_A_T_I_C. Let me start from the bass range: four 8 inches high-sensitivity bass-reflex loaded woofers move such a large amount of air that you will find yourself in trouble keeping the furniture firm in place, not to mention the windows panes. These woofers are killers. Period. No, don't imagine a bass range completely out of control, fat and gummy. No, imagine the impact of a kick drum that, if your neighbours are tolerant enough, can sound exactly like a LIVE kick drum. Imagine the slap of an electric bass guitar that makes your chair vibrate. Imagine your whole body pulsing with the rythm of the drums. Alas, you don't need to "imagine", the Klipsch RF-3 will bring you back to reality soon, they will slap your face, trash your furniture and literally SHAKE your floor. All without the need to turn up the volume as you used to. 50 watts are enough to get LIVE sound pressure levels inside a mid-sized listening room. Perhaps you'll end up using just 10 watts most of the times. So, the question I hear you whispering is: is it the "ultimate" bass performance? Nope! The Klipsch RF-3 are thunderous till, say, 40 Hz, then the energy level drops quickly. It seems the designers have given the bass frequency response a "steep" character: linear till 40 Hz, then quickly decreasing. You'll be able to notice this if you're used to speakers that go down till 25 Hz without trouble, otherwise you'll be simply dazed and astonished because of the bass performance of these American babies. Actually, I'd have preferred a slightly more articulated bass but one can't have it all for 800 $!!!!!! Their performance is already "over the top". Then you have the mid range. Please remember the crossover network frequency is 1975 Hz... this menas that the two 8" aluminium woofers must reproduce a good portion of the mids. Also, it seems (by ear, so take this "as is") the polar emission of the woofers doesn't match the one of the horn-loaded tweeter so the "blending" between the woofers and the tweeter isn't completely "smooth". These two factors contribute to give the mid range a sharp character. Voices, for example, appear to be reproduced clean and undistorted but sometimes on the cold side. Also, with certain instruments and female voices, one can perceive a kind of "boxy" sound. No, it is not the kind of harsh sound one may expect from inexpensive horns, it is just a bit metallic and edgy. A friend of mine, probably used to listen to wrongly designed horns, was highly surprised to find the sound of the RF-3 so little aggressive, though. As quite usual with horns, the sound of the tweeter is rather "direct" and "in yer face", in the sense that small variations of the listening "angle" produce quite large variations of the perceived sound. Nevertheless, the Klipsch designers have been able to preserve the harmonic richness of the tweeter. This sounds quite refined and detailed even at very high frequencies. It is _NOT_ the annoying zinn-zinn kind of sound you'd expect. A well-trained ear can still easily detect it is a horn loaded tweeter but, believe me, you can easily live with it. Considering the retail price, the result is outstanding. The Klipsch designers clearly know well how to properly design a horn. Summarizing: very open, crisp and detailed sound, lively but not sparkly, with a killer bass range: powerful, fast and punchy as you always wanted it. Let's state this clear: it is not the kind of sound you are used to if you own bookshelf loudspeakers with silk dome tweeters. No, The RF-3 are not SWEET, they will assault and trash you, when needed. Dynamics Oh well, do you really need to know how terrific these babies are in the dynamics department? I'm sure you can guess this easily by yourself...but let me try :-) Have you ever experienced that tedious dynamic compression during very loud dynamic attacks? I'm sure you have. And you hate your system when it happens. Well, now forget it. With the Klipsch RF-3 you can experience a dynamic performance that will be limited only by your ears. Can they sound loud? You bet! With 98 dB/w/m and 200 watts RMS of power handling you can easily have a party at home. Just add a pair of Martini's (and George Cloneey or Jennifer Lopez, depending on your tastes). Turn the volume up, play your most dynamic test records, sit down (if you can!) and enjoy the "just like live" experience. Nothing, I mean NOTHING, has been able to make these speakers suffer, no matter how hard I've tried. Insert the Reference Recondings Berlioz's Sinfonia Fantastica, Massive Attack's Mezzanine, Prodigy's The fat of the land, Orff's Carmina Burana....and watch your jaw dropping. NO COMPRESSION, that's it. As loud and dynamic as it can be, no problem, these speakers will shake the seat of your pants, strip your underwear :-), they will literally change your hair style. Yes, no kidding here. I've played Morcheeba's Howling (album "Who can you trust?", highly recommended) and when the bass got really deep I've felt a breeze in my hairs. Literally. Oh yes, I always play this kind of Music at very high listening levels...as it should always be (peaks at 110 dB, let me tell ya). The same happened with an album by Extreme: the impact of the kick drum was of the jaw-dropping kind, again. Now, at such high listening levels, sometimes, the horn tries to prevail a little but it is hard to tell if it is its fault or...the room that, above a certain amount of dB's, starts to "reflect" high frequencies a bit too much. Anyway, I'm talking of listening levels so high that it is a miracle I haven't been immediately arrested and locked in jail :-) So, now you start to understand why the Klipsch motto is Just like live. That's it, a live experience. And yes, they can sound at lower listening levels but they're not born to play background easy listening Music. 3D Soundstage As previously remarked, the performance of the tweeter highly depends on the "toe-in" angle. With zero "toe-in" the horns spit their sound right in your face, not good for creating a realistic soundstage. Things change, and for better!, at 30-40 degrees of "toe-in, as the soundstage becomes wide and fairly deep. The loudspeakers, despite their size, tend to disappear, and the virtual image appear to be precise, crystal clear and very well focused (with spikes, a bit more blurred with the rubber feet). Not exactly very deep nor high, it is still quite realistic, especially if you have in mind the retail price of these loudspeakers. Similarly priced minimonitors or bookshelf loudspeakers not necessarily "image" better. To improve the height of the image you may try to "tilt" upwards the speakers by means of the adjustable spikes. For depth, please keep the RF-3 FAR from the rear wall! There's a huge air blow flowing from the large rear-firing reflex ports...leave it free and away from early reflections! Complaints Manufacturing: if I forget their retail price, I could complain about the el-cheapo vinyl finish, a bit better the cherry than the black one. The MDF cabinet tends to resonate a little, because of the reduced thickness of the walls. Also, these speakers are big and heavy and because there are no safe places to use as "handles" they are hard to move. Finding to right position into the listening room by small adjustments can be pretty painful (not to mention the reviewer's point of view, unpack 'em, place, move to another room, pack 'em again etc. :-)). Finally, a strictly personal opinion on looks: the black finish is pretty ugly and hard to match with elegant wood furniture. The cherry one is a bit more living-room friendly but the color of the horn (black plastic) and the gold of the woofers membranes doesn't help. Low WAF, that is. Sonically, if one considers the retail price (800$/pair, MSRP in the US) it is very hard to complain about something. These speakers offer so many things (quantity and quality) that they could easily cost twice and still remain a bargain. But since we are dirty, mean and almighty unclean (cf. AC/DC's "TNT" song) let me say that the woofers and the tweeter "intersection" isn't as smooth as one would like. Also, the mid-high range is sometimes boxy and metallic. Ok, ok, I know, 800$... 'noff said. Some advice Room placement: at least 80 cm far from the rear wall because of the enormous quantity of air the rear-firing reflex ports produce. A good amount of toe-in is necessary to tame the horn a bit. The spikes are included, so use them! Better if after you've found the right position...these speakers are heavy and hard to move, the spikes could very easily scratch your floor. Don't be afraid to place them near a TV set, the drivers are shielded. Amplifiers: total freedom of choice. From low powered sweet SETs that will finally be able to produce some sound pressure to speak of ;-) to big solid state amps, better if not of the harsh kind. For example, I would avoid the cheapest KAV-series Krell power amps. As for SETs or tube amps in general: I've tried a 1,5 watts SET amp and the sound pressure was still inadequate to my ears and into my listening room (30 sqm). With a 2A3-equipped 4,5 watts power amp things were a bit better and the sound pressure was adequate for most applications. But if you want that breeze in the air you need some extra meat (read: watts). Those who listen with 5 watts and 85 dB loudspeakers may need to discover what is a realistic musical reproduction. Give the Klipsch a try, you won't regret it. One of our readers with an Audio Note Oto amp has already bought 'em and loved since day one. They can play loud with few watts as Lowther-equipped horns...and give these a run for their money in the bass & dynamics dep't. Conclusions I didn't expect so much sound quality from such a honestly priced loudspeaker, especially considering it has been designed having in mind even HT applications. No, the Klipsch RF-3's don't have real wood and leather finish, gold plates and stuff like that, they just give you a lot of Music for your money. Let me put this straight: this is one of the loudspeakers with the highest quality/price ratio I've ever heard. Oh yes, they're very far from being perfect (nothing is perfect at 800$) but they'll easily give the competitors a run for their money. These babies could be not everyone's cup of tea, as they are not sweet and velvet-smooth but if you're in the market for a REALISTIC musical experience, with plenty of live dynamics and bass to die for, do not miss these. You'll love them. Thanks to Mr. Giorgio Biffi and the whole Outline staff (Italian distributor for Klipsch) for having sent these speakers to test. © Copyright 2001 Lucio Cadeddu - http://www.tnt-audio.com

Purely on the numbers you will have 2 dB more headroom - inaudible at those levels (125 dB SPL at 1 meter or 123 dB SPL with your RF7's). These are ear damaging soundlevels. Better to check the current delivery capabilities, the more the better - gives a nice neat controlled bass. Best regards ... Jef

Hi Tahir, That info is correct, I have K-124-K tweeters in my RF-3II's htey are dated: september 2002. Jef