Darren

"I usually run my RF-7s as small with a crossover at 80 Hz. This cleans up the mid range and cleans up the bass. My RSW-15 handles all of the bass." Same here - I set all the speakers to small and set the cross-over at 80hz. "Small" is really a bad term. I have the RF-7's for home theater and music. It's about 70% home theater and I love it. I think they're one of the few speakers that really can do both well.

If you're looking at receivers, I've heard nothing but good about the B&K. Sound to noice ratio is a key with Klipsch speakers - check out those specs then listen to the ones that make the "final" cut.

I'm not sure if the "waiting" is the hardest part. The "moving" may be - those are some heavy speakers! Enjoy - they are terrific!

I had the KSW-15 before getting the RSW-12. I was happy with it. Not sure about the price of the RW-12 - I've read good things about that line for the price. If it's close in price, I would guess it's probably a step above the KSW (just a guess though).

I see two different options on the web sites listed above. One has a set of 20 plugs for $29, the other a set of 20 for $57. The more expensive ones seem to have a second screw-down point (to take the stress off the one sinching down the wires I guess), and has expanding plugs - gets wider when you tighten them down. Anyone use the $57 set?

"Planning a HT w/ a Denon AVR-5803 reciever. The Denon has 170 watts per channel and the Klipsch RF7's are rated at 250 watts. Does this miss match mean that I need a seperate amp?" The watt rating on the speakers is important - if your amp has 200 watts and your speakers have 100 watts, you can blow out your speakers. I think the RF-7s have a rating of 250 watts constant with a peak of 400 watts. Not many amps will blow that. "will a good seperate amp produce better sound?" Generally speaking, yes. The more you throw into one box the smaller the components have to be and the fewer options the builders have. You're getting good speakers - go for separates if you can (you can get some pretty good stuff in the $3,000 - $3,500 range). "Also, what type of rear klipsch speaker would you recommend for the HT?" I have the RS-7's, which are made for surround. They give a disbursed feel, making the coverage seem greater. If you're going with a 5.1 set up, highly recommend the RS-7s. If you're going with a 6.1 or 7.1 set up, more localized sound may be ok - haven't heard that personally.

Just ordered a set myself - thanks for the tip! Are you using these on the speakers as well, or just from the Receiver?

Congrats. The RF-7's are definitely in a different league. I think you'll find the same amazing jump when you get the RC-7 as well. I actually got the RC-7 first in a different system - loved it so much I bought the rest of the line within the month.

I just connected the Rotel RMB-1095 a few weeks ago (upgraded from the Yamaha DSP-A1 integrated amp). It's hard to tell how much differnce the amp made alone as I bought the Rotel processor at the same time. I can tell you this, the DSP-A1 was Yamaha's flagship just a few years ago and the Rotel set up absolutely blows it away. I hear things I didn't hear before, and the balance is amazing. I get more bass at lower volume as well. I even notice better separation in the surround channels. Very happy with the Rotel (again, only had it a few weeks).

Never heard of doing that - how big is your room? I have one RC-7 and it's plenty (for a large room). If you wire both to one center channel on the receiver, make sure the receiver can handle to Ohms. I believe 2 8 ohm speakers from one terminal in the receiver equates to a 4 ohms load.

Work overseas - some premium pay, no mortgage. No kids in school yet. And the real key - a wife who enjoys this stuff as much as I do! (Everything I listed prior to that is BS - understanding wife is the bottom line!).

I have similar speakers to you and just picked up a Rotel amp and processor. I've only had them for about a month, but I'm REALLY HAPPY with them. The processor is for 7.1, but the Amp is only 5 channel. I listened to B&K as well - really nice, but couldn't get them were I live. I listened to the Classe 180 - not worth the extra money in my opinion (sounded really nice, just not better).

"You need to turn the crossover on the sub to it's highest position." and "You definitely want to set the sub's cross-over to the maximum position". That's interesting - when I set my cross-over in my processor to 80hz, I assumed setting the cross-over on the sub to 80hz also made sense. When I turned the sub crossover up to max, it either picked up more range, or more likely more volume (I didn't expect that). I left it as max, but thought I just had screwed-up ears! Sounds like I accidentally did it "right"! "Secondly, I like the idea of setting the crossover one octave above the bottom cutoff of the mains. Therefore since the RF-15s go to 46Hz, a 92Hz crossp-over is what I would shoot for" I think that would put the cross-over for my 7's at 60hz? I'll give that a shot - thanks!

Not sure it matters as much on the satelite speakers. Until a few weeks ago, I was also using the Yamaha DSP-A1. Those channels only get about 40 watts, if I remember correctly (less than half the rear channels).

"I'm surprised that your Denon doesn't have some kind of on-box (or maybe in the on-screen menus) switch between progressive and interlaced output." I have the same Denon - it does have this selection in one of the menus (can't recall which one, but the default is progressive and you have to change it if you're using component connections in a non-progressive type TV). If you connect with composite or s-video, doesn't seem to matter if you select progressive or interlaced as you only get interlaced through those connections anyway.

Performance should be better - by not taxing your mains, they should perform better on the mids and highs. I've not familiar with the RW-12, but I would be shocked if it couldn't handled up to 80hz - may even want to try 100 hz (I understand 100 hz is very common in home theater unless you have very large mains when 80 - or even 60 - is more common). I'm still playing with mine as well. It hurt to call my RF-7's "small" in the set up, but at 80hz it's sounding pretty good to me (just made this change so not much testing yet).

"No, you cannot benefit from progressive scan, because your TV will not output that high a resolution" Any harm in selecting "progressive" on his Denon 2900? Would it just be the same as selecting "interlaced" (no difference), or would it actually be worse with a non-HDTV since interlaced is the "proper" selection?

Another option is the Rotel RLC-1050 (line conditioner/surge protector with triggered outlets). It retails for around $500 - but I just picked up a new one for $260 - clearance sale. I too fall in the minority that like Monster products, but I couldn't pass up the deal. You're spending a lot of money on your components - protection is worth every sent.

May want to check your receiver set up. Within the Base management, you may have 3 choices on the subwoofer: on, off and Max (or both). Under the last option, low signals are sent to both the sub AND your mains. If that's how you are set up, you are getting signals below the cross over to the mains, which may be causing the problem. If that is your set up, try selecting "yes". Also, if you have your speakers set as "large", the cross over may not be working at all. In most cases (that I've seen), the cross-over only diverts the low signal from the "small" speakers - "large" speakers continue to get the full signal.

No sure about all set-ups, but mine works this way: you turn on the Amp (manual button on the unit) and activate the 12v trigger input. You connect this trigger to the port you noted in the drawing. In this manner, the amp comes on when it get's the signal - which happens when you turn on your processor (or receiver). When you turn off the processor / receiver, the signal stops and the Amp goes into a stand-by mode. Still draws some current, but it's minimal.

"artciles I have read suggest that all speakers be set to small if you are running a Sub" I just read the same thing this week. I have a mental barrier to calling my RF-7's "small", but I'm going to play with that option this weekend. I guess if you set the cross-over correctly, this is the best option (any opinions on cross-over setting with the Reference 7 series - center main and back?) My processor allows for adjustments in 20 Hz increments - maybe start with 80 Hz?

"If component cables are hard to find, just get some A/V cables from Radio Shack. All 3 cables in their bundle are (or used to be, anyway) constructed the same - coax 75 ohm..." Thanks - will check that out next time I'm in the states. When I said components are hard to find, it's really a bigger problem that that. We (Oman) have no Radio Shack, Best Buy, Good Guys, Tweeters... No major US outlets here at all. That's why I try to get as much information from you guys as I can - when I do my annual trip to the US, I stock up. If I get the wrong thing, I'm screwed for another year!

Look forward to hearing about it. I've been looking at the Philips Pronto but will hold off until we hear your review.

"Also if you are looking for the best picture quility you should feed the video feed directly from the player to the tv" You know, I thought about that right after I started this post. The only reasons I can think of to go through the processor is to get the one-screen menu (which is what I've always done). I'm going to connect the current S-video directly from the DVD player to the TV, then pick up some component cables and do the same for comparison. Component cables are hard to find here so it may be a while, but I'll let you know how that direct comparison comes out. Thanks for all the good info everyone. As always, much appreciated.

"that RC7 is gonna seriously overpower the mains." I agree - I also tried to just upgrade the center channel to the RC-7. It overpowered (and outclassed) everything else I had. The next week I had all Reference 7's ... and credit card debt.