soundog

I beleive that, whenever possible, it is best to stay with the same series of speakers. They were designed to work together. However, there are some other considerations. For example, the KSW15 offfers a lot of punch for the buck and is good with the LFEs found in movies but is not as musical as the reference subs. The reference subs offer a better match to the reference speakers and are better at reproducing music. There are other subs that go lower, it all depends how important that is to you. I find that movie special effects are a great novelty that wears off with time whereas quality reproduction of music grows on you. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems This message has been edited by soundog on 04-08-2002 at 02:49 AM

The JBLs at $219. delivered are a real steal (the 2 woofers would fetch more then this as parts on ebay} ... big room filling sound ...I use them in conjunction with Klipsch subs to produce a subtle but welcome low augmentation for music and a room shaking augmantation for action flixs( a lot of speaker surface area requires less excursion to push a lot of air, thus less distortion). I'm sure Tom Brennan will agree that you can not beat a huge bass horn (like Dr. Edger's at the Midwest Audiofest) in bass quality. Small subs with high powered amps have their advantages and limitations, too. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

To some degree, these choices are a matter of personal taste, so there is, of course, different opinions. I rarely listen to FM except on my car radio. I have an Outlaw 1050 receiver and, as with many solid state receivers the tuner section is not its strong point. (Something to do with the difficulty of combining a tuner with a solid state amp on the same chasis, I beleive). I have tried it and it seemed fine to me, although I just use it for background music and then rarely. On a lark I picked up an old mono EICO tuner that I had as a kid as well as an old EICO HF-81 integrated, but have not had the time to play with them as yet. In most cases it is necesssary to upgrade capacitors, tubes, etc to make them work right but many claim this is well worth the effort. Many have found (especially horn enthusiasts) that tubes produce a more musical, less artificial sound than digital solid state. I use a tube preamp run through the solid state amplifier stage of my 1050 with excellent results. Some of us have found that tubes in the source stages of the chain produce a better sound but that solid state in the latter stages packs more of a whalop especially with bass, which addresses your sub question. Many commercial (vs public) radio station employ compression which many feel compromises sound quality so some beleive a mono tube tuner playing a public radio station or any radio station not employing compression processing produces the best sound. I'm sure others with more knowledge on this then me will chime in with additionl details and comments. Good question. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Charlie- I basically raise the crossover point and crank the volume on action type movies. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Good question but the 950 and 770s are just being delivered so you might not get a reply. I understand there is a long waiting list. I use the Outlaw 1050 receiver with both my Klipsch Heritage and my Klipsch LCR THX Home Theater systems and they are not too bright IMO. I am on the waiting list for the 950 and 770 but don't think I'll take them ... they are a great buy but I don't need that much power and I really am quite happy with the 1050s. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

The goal in a HT system is to have all the channels as tonally matched as possible. Since bass below about 80Hz is non-directional it can be diverted to a sub-woofer using the bass management features of most good A/V receivers. To achieve a tonal match it is best if the mid range and tweeter drivers are identical all around. I built a floor to ceiling cabinet using Heritage components. I put the woofers in a cabinet at the bass and a set of mid range (K77) drivers and tweeters (K55) above and below my 32" monitor. The components came off of ebay and employed the short horns on the mids found in Heresys but used the woofers K33 employed in the Khorns. They came from Frazier speakers that were developed by former Klipsch employees in the 60s. (Of course they were not labeled as "K" speakers but match the E/V, Eminence, Atlas drivers used by Klipsch. I felt the match was close but more constricted sounding than the mighty Khorns. This may have been partially due to the short horns but probably more due to my using AA crossovers with horns designed for a higher crossover between bass and midrange. I substituted Altec 511Bs (adapted to accommodate K77 drivers) whose wide dispersion works real well on both the dialogue in movie AND with the musical vocals contained in center channel SACDs. The fact that the 511s are designed for a 500 Hz crossover and I am crossing over at 400 Hz seems not to matter, but, in fact, seems to work real well. However, crossing over the short horn designed for a 700Hz crossover at 400Hz resulted in a very noticeable drop-off and, therefore, a tonal mismatch. I have compared the 511 with the K400 using the K77 drivers in both and the 511s have wider dispersion and , thus, a more open sound which I like, although otherwise the differences are not great. I have remained undecided as to whether to use them on the Khorns. In my other system employing a 61" projection TV, I use a pair of Klipsch LCR THX speakers towed inward on each side of the TV and this works very well. I use the hanging KT-DS dipoles that come with the THX system along with RS-3s plus 2 additional RS-3s for the rear channel. I think it might have been slightly better if I had employed LCR direct radiators in the rear but I needed something I could hang on the wall. All these speakers in parallel result in a lower 4 ohm impedence that doesn't seem to bother my Outlaw 1050 receivers in the least. I liked the surround effect from the THX system better until I employed stacked pairs of LaScalas at skewed angles (like giant Bose cubes) as surrounds. Now I like my Heritage system better for both music and movies (unless the movies are something that plays better in progressive scan on a giant screen. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

If the DAC in your CD player is better than the one in your receiver then the analog might sound better than the optical, everything else being equal. However, if your receiver's DAC is better than your CD player's than the optical should sound better. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Very interesting - I've got to try that. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Get the one with the remote that lets you adjust crossover and volume .... great when switching between HT and music ... only a couple $ more. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Mark- I found both upgrades important due to the revealing nature of my Khorns - the power supply added crystal clear clarity and increased definition. The Wright mod produced highs that no longer had any metalic edge or harshness (except on a few poor recordings). In short made CDs sound more like SACDs and vinyl. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Dr. Edger was the run away hit of the Midwest Audiofest. Tom Brennan is right - there is nothing as clean and pure and real as a completely horn loaded system. Edger's Titan system, which includes the aforementioned giant horn-loaded sub is the best system I have ever heard. Edger does not have a web site but can be contacted at: bedger@social.rr.com. I'm sure he'll send you literature. He is very nice and down-to-earth and one hell of a good teacher (as is Tom). There are pictures over on the audio asylum high efficency board. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

WOW! The used Outlaw 1050 sold for $419 on eby. Costs $499 New $449. "b" goods (returned open box fully tested and guaranteed). ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

I heard a souped up modified version of the 775 at the LIMA Audiofest - takes away the slight bass blur and slightly metalic highs. The mods cost almost twice as much as the unit but you end up with a first-rate SACD component for about $600 total! http://home1.gte.net/res0f2t3/web7.htm ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Best for label removal : Goof-Off , available at Home Depot. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Sounds like it ...that should be it. Does the other tweeter have a similar red dot? That should be the + the other side, of course is -. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

I don't know Ray ... it doesn't have a knob for soundstage width and depth ... I'm going to hold out for that feature... and how about a switch or two to upgrade my interconnects? ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Are they Klipsch K77Vs or K77Ms? - Look for a red dot - that's the positive side. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

A couch against a back wall is not a good listening position. The best listening position is always dependent on the speakers used, where they are placed and the nature of the room. Experimentation is necessary. Start with the listening position at about the same distance from the speakers as the speakers are apart (ie - the apex of an equalateral triangle). Move the position back and see what happens. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

The LF-10 has a switch that will add a 3db boast for the LFEs in movies. It packs a punch but not an overly extreme one and does well on music. Try one and, if necessary, get another (assuming they are available). Or even better, ask the dealer if you could take home two and return one if one is enough. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

Posted on Audio Asylum - info on new Heritage series. http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/HUG/messages/25340.html ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

DVDs can not be played through the P1A. You would run a coax from the DVD for CDs, use the supplied I2S between the P1A & P3A and since the P3A is a DAC, analog RCA cables (L&R) to the direct inputs of your receiver. If you also had an optical toslink output from your DVD player you could run that to the DVD input of your receiver and be able to switch between the two using your receiver. Or get a CD transport with coax out. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

The LH-10 is a very nice, musical sub if you get one without problems. Although if you do have problems, Klipsch will stand behind them, if you're buying them from an authorized dealer. At $500. or less they are a very good buy. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

If its a front projection screen designed to have speakers behind it it will not be any problem. Pro versions of LaScalas were/are used behind screens in movie theaters. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

I have found the 1050 drives multiple speakers in parallel (4 ohms impedence) effortlessly. The receiver has a lot of "guts". ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems

P1A & Wright modified P3A not cheapo. Do you have the Monolithic power supply also? (Makes a difference). These devices are truly amazing. They make regular CDs sound like LPs and SACDs. I use inexpensive Sony megachangers programmed through a computer interface as transports (run toslink output through a MSB digital Director for additional jitter reduction/ data regeneration and conversion to coax}. Really noticeable, actually spectacular, difference with Klipschorns. Added detail and clarity is amazing. However, SACDs on my SONY CE775 SACD changer (now $199 at Cruchfield - cheapo) sound almost as good! Sometimes better when they are DSD multichannel live concert performances. However I have 1200 plus CDs that I don't want to replace and I can burn copies of borrowed CDs at 17 cents each. Figure I have paid my dues and will continue to the record industry by buying the same works on different media such as LPs, cassettes, CDs, video tapes, DVDs and now SACDs! So now I can have cheapo copies of CDs that sound like SACDs and I'm thus able to afford used DVDs and selected SACDs (at least till I'm sure the format is here to stay and I can buy inexpensively through record clubs}. I imagine that if I had a really good SACD with great DACs that the SACDs would sound better than the Perp Tech processed CDs. But probably not by a great deal. The Perpetual Tech devices are not cheap but they are worth the money and better than competitive devices selling for 2-3 times their price. If you spread the cost over a lot of CDs they make a lot of sense. Someday they will also get around to providing the promised speaker and room correction programming kits (presently only available for a limited number of speakers). They are also upgradeable, I understand. ------------------ Soundog's HT Systems