Professor Thump

Hey fellow Klipsch Cornerloaders, I am interested in hearing your latest thoughts on multichannel audio. Do you have DVDA's. If so what DVD Audio Disc do you have and why do you like it? Is it a live or studio recording? Are the speaker requirements different for Multichannel Music VS Movies? WHY? Stick it in your ear! Klispsch Headphones that is...

Mike you are really on the ball! Have you thought about working for Klipsch when you graduate from that IL college? [*-)] Your recommendation for the in wall speakers is spot on. If you have the proper wall space, i.e. no restriction that would allow you to cut holes in the wall and route cable, then this is the speaker for surrounds. I am biased of course cause I coauthored the patent for the dual horn with Roy Boy Bassmaster Delgado. But you need to hear them folks if you haven't. You can see them here... http://www.klipsch.com/products/details/r-5650-s.aspx The RS5650 has the widest dispersion I have ever heard. You can put your head 80 degrees off axis and it sound the same as 10 degrees with this horn. For the fronts you can not go wrong with the RF 82 as long as you have the space. They are the flatest speaker in the family. As long as you don't play them blazingly loud (over 120 dB) they will handle very linear. If you need the ultimate live sound with transient attack from heaven then you need a 12 to 1 compression driver as in the RF 63/83. But it sounds like your room is too small for these models. I can also recommend the RB-81. As Mark Kaufman called it when we were voicing the entire Ref IV line, this is the smallest floor speaker that we make for Reference. Great Value! If you are a big movie lover and plan on using the center channel a lot then you shouldn't skimp on this speaker. All your dialog comes out of this speaker dude. (well most of it) For the center channel you are missing a corner in your room so the Klipschorn is out. [:'(] RC64, RC62 or RC-7 are all good choices. It is just a matter of matching them to the L/R speakers. My rule of thumb is that the center should have as much cone area or more than a single left or right. It gets used the most for movies so that is how I have determined this rule. I can't argue with matching LCR also if you want. Like a RC64 all around the front! Talk about headroom... but I used to think 8 18" speakers for pro sound live was minimum subs for any small bar or bar mitzvah... So there you have it Anyway you go, you won't be dissapointed with Klipsch. We are the king of headroom! Good shopping!

That is an interesting article on compression. The story is even sadder with the loudness difference between a TV program and commercials. I use to be very excited about the digital revolution. CD's were the best thing since sliced bread. Unfortunately, with the event of MP3 files everyone tends to compress audio to 96 k bit rate. It is too bad we can't standardize on 192 k. Thumper

Good to know you also. I couldn't believe how easy it was for Buddy to slip the IMAGE proto's in his ears. Instant smiles...[] I understand his interest in the 700 it sounded too big for it's britches in the demo. Thumper

Hey Brad, Nice picture. Were you a surfer in a previous life before you got a job? Thumpster

Thanks for the words! When Klispch's CTO Richard Paynting asked me to do headphones I said I would help any way I could but my business card says "speaker engineer" on it. I went from 250 Watts to 25mWatts! This experience has given me better appreciation for the value of a good headphone. I realize now that I can listen to music with extremely accurate fidelity much more than ever before. Of course I am biased, but when I am on a plane for 15 hours or at an airport with noisy "klipsch" intercoms all day long now I can choose to listen to my library of music. I have to admit I was a purist only wanting to listen to CD's the direct digital data, but MP3 players have created a new dimension to my listening pleasure. I have heard things lately with our new IE phones that I had not realized was in the mix previously. For instance, what do you hear at the beginning of "Back in the saddle" by Aerosmith. Listen closely and see if you have been missing something. The only other way to hear this detail is with a Klipsch speaker Cranked! or a really low noise listening room. There are things burried in mixes if you listen closely. You will be pleasantly surprised at the convenience of IMAGE when you are working. If you are in a cube farm like we are, you can dial out your neighbors speech or in our case the Klipsch horn cranking in the lab with these little beauties. You forget that they are even in your ears they are so comfortable! When I started studying ear impressions to look at the 3D geometry I noticed that virtually everyone is oval in the cross-section of their ear canal. I couldn't believe it. Nobody had thought about comfort and the shape of your ear holes! And you will find that they are simple yet elegant. Simple and quick to load into your ear canals and very unobtrusive to others when you are wearing them. People can't tell that you are wearing them unless they look closely. Musicians will love the Custom series of products. Customs were built with them in mind. They are stable due to the over ear wire mount. You can move around the stage with very little movement of the IEM. Jimmy Hendrix is going to love them! The wire also takes most of the weight off the ear canal so the pressure is minimized for optimum comfort. Oh did I forget to tell you that they ROCK! Of course you would expect this from Klipsch. Time will tell... I am sure you will let me know if I am right. Thump

... But none of this could be possible without our Klipsch fans. Please don't hesitate to give us your ideas. If you think there is a product or an improvement that Klipsch should be pursuing, please contact us... oooh I mean Amy....I am already burried in woofers! All the best, Professor THUMP

Amy thanks for posting this... Hi fellow pilgrims and corner horn loaders! First of all I want to thank the pilgrims who visited Indy this summer. As you now know, we are in the headphone business. It is amazing that nobody leaked the news about our new headphone programs that you auditioned at the pilgrimage. You really helped us surprise everyone. Nobody can believe that we have developed 4 new products in 18 months from scratch without any prior experience in IE audio. This wouldn't have happend without Brad Geswein, our new boy wonder and genius of stuffing small stuff in little tiny packages. Wait 'til you see the pictures of our little crossover for Custom 3 next to the Paladium crossover. The extremes of design are increadible. Buckets of copper were used to make the inductors on Paladium's Xover and we have to look at our ity bity components under a microscope. Pictures to follow when we go live. Headphones at Klipsch wouldn't have happened without Tom Gospel keeping us on track and paving the way for approvals at the top brass. I have never seen anyone build a team within many departments as well as he has. Through his planning and communication, I think that every department has been involved from the beginning of the projects. I also want to mention our super tech, John Andrews. John came to us from the video electronics industry, and he has jumped right in there with us when we needed a hand building prototypes and making measurements on our little B & K green man. This is an exciting time at Klipsch! I think I speak for the company when I say we are turning the corner. Everyone here is real busy developing cutting edge products that you may love and use everyday in the near future. We are constantly reinventing ourselves to keep up with you audio enthusiest. The way music is distributed digitally has allowed us to morph into brand new categories. This isn't to say that we don't all own alot of Vinyl and tube amplifiers. But times are changing and we are changing with them. People tell me all the time that they can't believe that we get to work with speakers and audio gear everyday. Sometimes it is just work for us, but usually it is more of a passion, a labor of love. I have a son who just started college this year. If he remembers anything that I have said I hope it is the philosiphy I have for pursuing a career... Find something you love to do, that someone is willing to pay you to do, become an expert at it, and you will love your job for the rest of your life. I have been lucking in this category. Of course we can't talk about new product that we are developing until they are officially announced, but it is safe to say that you will be delighted when they come out. We have collected a great team of experts with passion for music and video, most of whom are musicians or at least groupies. [H] Each of these talented people contribute in there special way to the success of this company. But none of this could be possible without our Klipsch fans. So I thank you from the bottom of my heart. We will be giving you much more information on the Klipsch website for exciting products and especially all the nitty gritty details about headphones so stay tuned as I know you will (from reading your number of blogs). I can't wait for you to all be proud owners of our new products. So stick it in your EAR! All the best, Mark Blanchard, Sr. Acoustic Development Engineer (Professor THUMP)

I am really glad everyone had a good time at the Pilgrimage. You are a loyal group of people that have passion for what we are doing. I don't post but about once every year or two but I was so impressed with this years group! So I wanted to thank everyone for coming and sharing their side of the passion. Music is the food for your soul! I am usually busy behind the scenes cooking up new ideas for products so I don't spend much time with you guys but I wanted to let you know that it makes us feel good to see your excitment for the things we design. I hope that you will follow our new little skunkworks programs and if you are lucky maybe you can be a Beta tester! }) Mark Blanchard Sr. Acoustic Design Engineer Klipsch