wireless

They used to recommend the klf-20 and c-7 I believe. That's what I bought along with an LF-10 to go with mine. I use the Forte's as surrounds. I would use them for fronts because they sound better than the Klf-20's but they wouldn't match the c-7 properly. I think the system sounds good. You don't really hear enough out of the surrounds to really notice any mismatch or when you do hear something like rain for example it is a lot of times separate from what's coming out of the fronts. The 20's aren't shielded though and for that reason I'm going to let 'em go. I plan to buy either a complete rf-35 system or if I wait long enough an rf-55 (not yet announced I believe). I'm setting up a separate 2-channel system with my Forte's in another room. I just won a Yamaha pre-amp last night on ebay to replace the exact same glitchy model I have in storage. -David

Was there not a Klipsch display? -David

After checking on ebay I see that there are a fair number of Yamaha c-xx preamps available. I'm going to pick one up and it'll go with my Yamaha c-60 amp. I guess the only decision is what kind of CD player to buy. I've noticed some of the new players play mp3's and CD-rw and last but maybe not least sacd. I've seem some good deals on techbargains for these players. Since the preamp won't have decoding ability it needs to do it in the player. I'm not planning on spending a whole lot on one - a couple hundred I guess. Any suggestions? To my ears vinyl is clearly better but I sold both of my turntables and 750 albums and I'm not going back that route. CDs are more convenient in every way. -David

I'm upgrading my HT to the rf-series. I debating whether or not to go ahead and buy the vinyl rf-35s or wait until the rf-55s with wood veneer come out in a year. I don't believe they'll be any difference in the sound between vinyl and wood veneer only that the vinyl might look cheap and I'm also concerned whether or not vinyl will hold resale as well. Any comments are appreciated. -David

I've decided that instead of selling my Forte's, that I'll create a separate two-channel system using my Yamaha two-channel amp. The amp is from the late 80's and has 160 watts per. I have a matching pre-amp but it's operation became flakey after being lightning struck. I was wondering if some of you would provide recommendations on a replacement pre-amp - preferably something I could buy on E-bay at a reasonable price? -David

---------------- On 3/26/2003 6:33:20 PM Bill H. wrote: Wireless, If you click on the Klipsch label above, and go to the newscenter you will be able to see approximate prices and how they lineup in the present setup......... ---------------- Thanks for the link. Have you noticed how similar the rf-35 is to the current rf-5? The height and woofer size are very similar. It seems that are really carving out narrow niches for each speaker. I wonder if the cabinet for the rf-35 will be available in wood veneer. If not I guess this is where they shave the $200 of the msrp of the rf-5's.

Is the RB series the only alleged new line coming out?

Where are the new speakers supposed to fit in the Klispch product line? If they are called RB-xx, will they be bookshelf speakers?

---------------- On 3/23/2003 7:37:55 PM Audio Flynn wrote: Four RB-5s(Spend real money on shot filled stands) painted black with an RC-7 is a hot setup. With a sealed 12 inch sub for fast bass. ---------------- Why would you buy RB-5's and then put them on stands? Why not just buy a floorstanding speaker and get better performance to boot?

---------------- On 3/24/2003 8:07:47 PM leok wrote: The RF-5s should serve you well, esp if you can put them in a corner. Give them an amp that delivers low distortion at low power and you'll get very natural sound with rock-solid image. leok ---------------- Leok, thanks for a thoughtful response. So you kept both your Forte's and RF-5's. Do you have them sitting beside each other? What is your criteria for using one or the other? Do you use a subwoofer when listening to two-channel? I've got mixed feelings about doing that. I've heard a subwoofer add a lot to the sound on some systems but my lf-10 - I dunno - somehow I just don't feel 2-channel music sounds right with it. They say if you can hear the subwoofer then it's too loud. Following that advice I turn it down until it just mixes and melts into the music then it sounds okay. I noticed the sounddistributors has a nice package with rf-5's and a rsw-12 sub which I'm thinking about buying.

I'm not dissatisfied with the 20's or the Forte's. The Forte's are the best sounding speaker I've heard in their price range and I love them. In fact I like the Forte's better than LaScala's. I was over in Germany in the Army in 80's where I bought the Forte's from the Rhein Mein audio center for about $750. My roomate had a nice Onkyo amp and a pair of LaScala's. I like the the sound of the Forte's better. The LaScala's had kind of an echo-y bottom end. The bass just wasn't there like it was with the Forte's. Believe me I had plenty of time to compare. The speakers were side by side for about a year or two. I attributed the difference partly to the smallish room we were in. Over the years I've always felt pleasantly suprised at how good the Forte's sound. For that matter, they sound better than the 20's. My theory is the Heritage series on up to the Forte's had a little more rolloff on the treble which makes them sound smoother than the newer reference models. Frankly, I think the Synergy series sound really good, maybe for the same reason. I bought my parents a pair of sf-2's and they sound great on their little Sony amp. The reason I'm going to let the 20's go and I guess sadly the Forte's is because they just don't fit or look that good in my den. I need shielded speakers in black and I'll be going to the smaller surrounds instead of the floorstanding Fortes.

I'm planning on selling my Forte's and KLF-20's and buying either some RF-3IIs or some RF-5s. How do the RF-5's sound for 2 channel music? I'm concerned about the sound quality and not so much about how loud they'll get. Also how do the RF-3's sound compared to the 5's? The specs are so similar but the price difference is fairly substantial. I found a post where BobG says the 3's are severely underpriced. I kind of suspect they are just targeting a different customer with a different price point but with essentially the same speaker. I rarely really crank it up anymore but still listen to a fair amount of two-channel music but need the 5.1 setup for HT. That's why I need shielded speakers etc. Also the Forte's take up a little room as surrounds than I really have to spare. I just can't seem to go to another manufacturer because of my love over several decades for Klipsch products. Clearly Klipsch sound and quality deteriorated during the 90's but I'm not ready to give up on them yet. I've heard a few better sound speakers (Aerials) but at 3x the price. Any comments or suggestions regarding my impending purchase of the 3's or 5's? Have this new line been successful? Is anything new on the horizon that will replace these?

I bought a denon 4800 to start with or I should say ordered. I kept it for a couple of months and really wanted to like it. In the end I decided it was poorly designed and went to the trouble of sending it back and getting a Marantz 8000. Immediately I could tell a difference in every way - sound, design, quality. It was quite apparent and frankly I'm always a little suprised to see so many denon afficianados. Denon has great web site and marketing department I guess.

For some reason that reference to a thread doesn't work. What is the subject and I'll look it up with search. Another question: why did Klipsch go to a two-way speaker with the RF seres? I know the crossovers are easier to design and hence it's easier to get a smoother sound. However, I have the sneaking suspicion it was done to reduce costs with worse sound as a by-product.

I've had a KLF-20 based HT setup (with a c-7, lf-10, and a pair of Fortes) for a while now. I'm thinking about changing the 20's and the c7 to some shielded speakers that I can put closer to my tv. Also something a little smaller that looks better and is a more compact in the den. Couple of questions: 1) Where can you get good prices these days on Klipsch speakers? I just looked on Uncle's weg site and it doesn't appear they sell them new anymore. Forget paying list, they just aren't worth it but they were worth what you used to get them for from Uncle's and other places. Where's everyone buying these days or has Klipsch cut off the gray channels completely? 2) How do the RF-3II's compare with the 20's and how do the rf-5's compare to both? I'm looking strictly at sound quality - efficiency is not a factor. I just don't have much opportunity to crank it up anymore with the wife and baby (although the 19 month old baby likes music but you know tender little ears and all). What is considered a good price for the rf-3ii's and the rf-5's? It funny how the synergy speakers have wider frequency range than the reference series. I bought my parents a pair of synergy's and frankly they sound less harsh than my 20's (but not my forte's)

I trialed a SR-8000 and a Denon 4800 extensively. The Marantz won hand's down. I bought the Marantz and still love it.

I bought some sf-2's for my parents and they sound quite good. Very smooth with more of a Heritage sound. In fact they give my KLF-20's a run for the money and they look better in a HT setup. -David

quote: Originally posted by aab3rd: Can anyone give any comparison on Chorus vs Fortes? Can't answer your question directly but I have Forte's and KLF 20's. I've listened to many different speakers. Aerials are the best sounding speakers I've heard, of course, you pay for them. The Forte's are the best sounding speakers I've heard under three grand. Klf-20s aren't quite as good as the Forte's although they're not bad either.

Buying online is okay as long as you have time to let the vendors obtain and ship the product. If you haven't got the time, go to hi-fi buys and pay retail. I wouldn't pay retail for Klispch products therefore I put up with the online hassles. I've bought 5 Klipsch speakers online from 2 different vendors. My parents just received a pair of sf-2's yesterday from an online vendor. It was about a month wait but they eventually delivered.

I used Denon, Yamaha, Onyko, and Marantz. I prefer Marantz. Bought a Denon and returned it. The Marantz is much better.

quote: Originally posted by jfcarbel: So with that in mind has anyone tried the new RC-7 as a center with the Legends? Did they timbre match well (i.e. pan from left to right transparently)? Better than the KLF-C7? B] I had the same concern. Went ahead and got the c-7 and some 20s. Works and sounds fine. You just don't need that much low bass from the center. Let the 20s and a sub give you that. BTW there's great prices on ubid for the klf's right now.

quote: Originally posted by jfcarbel: BTW- Where is a good place local to Illinois or close by that matches online prices for the KLF-20. A local dealer quoted me $1200 which I think is quite high since the average online is around $800 for a pair. B] Dude, get on ubid right now. You'll find reasonable prices on the KLFs.

You can see the report online for a few weeks. The actual ratings are here: http://www.consumerreports.org/main/detail.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=90495&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=21135&bmUID=995054671147#21bot The impedance for the Klipsch are measured at 4 ohms whereas Klipsch claims it is 8.

Consumer reports just released an issue (August 2001) that tests bookshelf speakers. The SB-3 monitor ranked 21st of 23 speakers tested. The accuracy of the speaker was rated 76 in a three way tie for last of all the speakers tested. They were also the 5th most expensive speaker tested. The comments were that the speaker was the among the best for playing bass-heavy music very loud. CR said the emphasis is on midbass and the speaker has weak treble. Now I know none of us uses CR as the final say on speakers but they attempt to do an objective test so how about sparing the 'CR are idiots' comments that inevitably follow any kind of CR test. Comments? I would like to hear BobG's or Phil's explanation. What is it that CR doesn't get or are they accurate in their assessment? My opinion of Klipsch over the last 25 years during which time I've owned several sets and currently own Forte's and KLF-20's and a c-7 has gone from the best speaker made, to probably the best made given the times, to best for the money, to pretty good for the money but quality-wise going downhill.

In my recent experience: 1) 5 channel sounds better than 2. To have a better sound you need full-range speakers on the surrounds. If you don't have full range then of course some of the ooomfh is not there. 5-channel definitely puts more sound there; it fills up the room better. 2) The Denon has a "thinner" sound than a Marantz. I would say there was little to no "coloration" from the Denon. The Denon has a clear, transparent sound. The Marantz has a fuller, warmer sound but I wouldn't call it colored. I had an avr-4800 for a month or two and returned it for an SR-8000. I like the Marantz a lot better. -David