SeanCJ

Thanks guys for the input and compliment! Last night I fiddled with the speaker settings. I lowered power to the center channel and slightly increased power to the right and left. I also reconfigured the distance of each speaker. Unfortunately, not a big improvement, some yes, but not what I was hoping for. Dialogue still seems a bit too localized for my taste. I must just be too used to the dispersive nature of the magnepan CC3. Tonight, I'm going to move my seating back in one foot increments to see if that helps some. I'll also move the center channel back a few more inches from the screen. Oh, I built the screen using the shearweave 4500 material that reportedly has no combing filtering at all, so speakers can be really close to it. Thanks again for the tips!

I've recently changed from a magnepan front 3 (1.6 Qrs and CC3 center channel) that had a very large soundstage, to three Klipsch KL-650 THX Ultra 2 speakers. The magnepan CC3 did a wonderful job of dispersing the center channel sound so voices seemed to come from exactly where the character was regardless of their location on the screen. However, they definately lacked the detail and dynamics the Klipsch have. The Klipsch center channel is sounding a bit too 'localized', meaning I'm constantly drawn to the spot on the screen where the speaker is. Its becoming very distracting when the voice comes from the direct center of the screen when the character speaking is off center several feet. Speaker is mounted at 1/2 way point vertical and horizontal. I have plans on lowering it to the bottom 1/3 of the screen, bringing it down closer to ear height. I am sitting just barely right of center, about 13 feet from a 120" screen. Are there other things I can do to help widen the center channel's sound field? Should I move the speaker farther back behind the screen, currently about 3" behind the screen? Should I move my seating farther back from the screen? Should I experiment more with the front three speakers settings? Any advice would be appreciated. I've already committed to selling the maggies, so I'm hoping I can make these Klipsch sound like I want them too. Here's some bad pics of my screen set up. For scope movies, I lower the image to the bottom of the screen and mask the top portion to hide the bare screen. The fabric you see will soon be covered by black velvet so it will 'disappear' when the lights go off. I raise it when watching standard 16:9 TV or 1.85:1 films. Oh, my entire home theater is DIY made my yours truly. I built the cabinetry below to hold the components and there is DVD/CD storage behind all 6 doors.

Thanks for the suggestions guys! For naustalgic reasons, and since I know the source material very well from multiple viewings (watched it again last night to refresh my audio memory with the current magnepans ), I've chosen to watch LOTR Fellowship of the Ring as the first film with the Ultra 2s. Of course, once that's over and I have my comparison between the maggies and the Ultra 2s, I'll go through many 'reference' scenes from various movies listed above to really test them out. I'm watching the UPS website tracking like a nut! They are 'out for delivery'!!! I hope they are waiting for me when I get home. So wish I could take a 'sick day'

My 3 new KL-650 THX Ultra 2's are sitting just 5 minutes away, locked up in a UPS warehouse! Its killing me I've got to wait until tomorrow afternoon to play with them. I'm wondering which blu ray I should use to audition them, or should I say 'allow' them to really impress me with? Something that will really show off their dynamics, clarity, and soundstage. They will be powered by my Sunfire Cinema Grand 250 watts x 5 amp with Onkyo 805 running the show. Hmmm decisions, decisions....? -Underworld 1 or 2? -IronMan? -Hellyboy II? -Hulk? -Indiana Jones and the Krystal Skull? -POTC? -Cars? Ratatoille? or maybe an HD DVD -Serenity ? -King Kong? -Chronicles of Riddick? -Any Harry Potter film? -300? or maybe a truly naustalgic film but regular DVD like: -any Star Wars? -any original Indiana Jones? -LOTRs?

I sure hope so. I'm pretty excited about their arrival. UPS has them sitting at my local UPS warehouse right now, just 5 minutes from my house. I can't get to them and its killing me knowing they are that close. I'll get them sometime tomorrow. I'll post some pics of the home theater before and after pics once they are set up. Thanks again all for the replies.

Well, its a done deal! I placed the order and the speakers should be here Wednesday/Thursday if all goes well with shipping. I can't wait to experience these highly regarded speakers! Never thought I'd be able to get them, so this is indeed Christmas come early for me! Thanks again to those that responded and offered advice! Sean

I meant to ask earlier. Is this a good price for the three KL-650s?

Thank you guys for the replies. Well, I'm going to make the payment in a few hours. Hopefully I'll be enjoying these speakers middle of next week! If anyone else wants to give me the thumbs up, I'll take all the encouragement I can get.

Hello all. I really could use the collective Klipsch knowledge and experience on these forums to help me out. Please help me decide on this 'change/upgrade'. I've got a chance to buy 3, one year old demo, Klipsch Ultra 2 KL-650s for $1400 that will come with full Klipsch warranty. These are from an authorized Klipsch dealer. I've been considering for some months now replacing my magnepan 1.6qrs and CC3 center channel with the KL-650s, but I keep holding back. I'm just not sure if the 650's will be an improvement over the maggies. The only place in town I can hear the Ultra 2's is a home theater store but the room is poorly set up, very small, and the speakers sounded very 'localized' but still very detailed and dynamic. I really want to keep the large soundstage I get from the maggies, but I do want to improve upon clarity of dialogue, overall dynamics, and maybe a bit more overall punch. I have a 120" x 67" DIY AT screen. LCR are behind the screen. I sit 13 feet from the screen. Room is 24' wide by 26' long with 12' ceilings. I have an Epik Knight sub that gives me all the bass I need. Speakers are powered by a Sunfire Cinema Grand 5 x 250 wpc amp (450 wpc into 4 ohms) and Onkyo 805 running the show. Can anyone give me some advice? Is it a good move? Will the KL-650s bring me to a new level of home theater? I'm mostly into Sci Fi/Action Adventure films and play quite a bit of XBOX 360 and PS3 gaming. Thanks for any advice.

Hello Again all. Well, I lost out on the great deal on this Ultra II system. I waited one day too long and someone else grabbed them. I'm back to looking again as I can't afford their retail price and street price is still over $7500. I'm going to check out the RF-83 system and give it a good audition. I wish I could hear some Klipschhorns that some have mentioned. Thanks again for all the advice and suggestions.

Hello all, I'm very close to pulling the trigger on a set of Klipsch Ultra II's for my HT upgrade, but as usual, I'm getting a bit trigger shy the closer I get to full committment. My home theater has upgraded a few times over the past 6 years and now I'm going pretty much all out and hoping this will be the last upgrade for many years to come. My wife is also hoping, well, pretty adamant, that this be the last upgrade for a long long while. I guess I'm trying to justify the cost of these Klipsch speakers over the number of years I would plan on keeping them. I've always limited myself to under $3000 for speakers, so this is quite a bit more. My room is very large, 24x26 with 12 foot ceilings, and I desperately want to 'fill' this room with sound during movies and games. My last two speaker systems, started with Bose AM15's (yes, I know ) now using Magnepan (but I can't justify a $1500 amp just to power them, plus their size and placement is a real distractor and I'm always moving them out for movies and back against the wall when not in use). They seem to lack the dynamics needed for full immersive movie sound, so I think they need to go to someone that will use them for their true purpose of 2 channel music. From what I've been able to read, and through my own auditioning of them, the Klipsch Ultra II's appear to be able to handle my room requirements and the front 3, and the subs, are designed to be hidden (which also helps with the WAF). So, give me all the encouragement you can on this purchase. Tell me 50% off retail is a steal and I'd be crazy to pass that up! Help me find other ways to justify this expensive purchase! If you've had this system, please let me know if you think its the one to hold onto. Oh, I'll be pairing these speakers with my Onkyo 805, a 110" to 120" AT screen, and the Sony Black Pearl VW 60. Please tell me I won't have 'upgraditis' for at least a decade!

Anyone else?

Hello All, I am upgrading my home theater and am looking for the best home theater speaker package I can afford. I've got it narrowed down to the Atlantic Technology 8200e system and the Klipsch Ultra II's. Both systems are THX Ultra II certified. My room is 24' wide by 26 feet deep and it has 12' high ceilings. Volume of almost 7500 cubic feet. Basically a large open square with lots of furniture (large sectional, pool table, large saltwater aquarium, pub table). Will the Klipsch Ultra II's be able to handle a room this size and fill it with sound? How close to the wall can the front 3 be mounted? I'm considering the AT screen by SMX and putting the front 3 behind it but they would have to be very close to the wall for me to make this work out. I sure would love to hear some more testimonials from Ultra II owners and if possible, a good place to get a good deal on the 7.1 package. Thanks very much. Sean