tromprof

I have an Canadian built amp from an outfit called "Ideal Innovations" (http://www.idealinnovations.biz/default.htm), their "Elite 80" model which is around $800 in basic form. I sold my Fortes last year (for $400 BTW) and used that amp to demo them. I had never tried tubes with the Fortes before and couldn't believe how good they sounded. The amp drives my La Scalas now and has been reliable and sweet sounding for about 3 to 4 years.

I too have owned Tannoy speakers, I used to have a pair of System 12 studio monitors before I got my k-horns. Tannoy are great speakers and in many way similar to Klipsch, but perhaps less so with the KG series and more with the "Heritage" line. The Heresy and Forte speakers are great speakers, but like the Tannoys, they will let you know if you are feeding them garbage. I am a professional classical musician and lived very happily for many years with a pair of Fortes (basically a bigger Heresy) and it sounded great for strings, maybe something was ill in your friends Heresy setup. The KG line IMO is more a rock and roll speaker and certainly can't compete with the 3 way Heritage stuff. Heresys pop up here for $300-400, Fortes $300-500, and La Scalas $600-$1000. Good luck with the search.

I have two Yaqin amps, a 300B based integrated, and a phono amp. Both amps have been reliable and IMO sound fantastic, though a bit of tube rolling was required to make them really sing. I did however get them from dealers in Canada (Grant Fidelity and the Ebay seller "Canadian Hi-Fi"), not directly from China. That way I got both a warranty that was worth something (I checked both sellers as carefully as I could) and an assurance that the amps were fully checked out before they were sent to me. I would be wary of getting something sent directly to me that said Yaqin, and looked like it as well, but was a knock off instead. Good luck!

Do you think they make on that would fit my La Scalas?

When I bought my black Fortes new back in the 80s I was told by the dealer that the black ones were "unacceptable" due to imperfections in the veneer, thus they were chosen to be painted and were accordingly somewhat less expensive If you look closely you should be able to tell if it is oak underneath, the grain pattern is somewhat visible, but it would be hard (at least for me) to tell birch from walnut under that paint. I would be tempted to take a peak, if you don't like it you could re-veneer.

In my experience there are a number of good tube amps in the under $1000 range that are in no way compromises. The amp I am currently running my La Scalas is a good example. It is made in Canada, not China (not that I have anything against Chinese stuff, my best amp is Chinese) and has been performing flawlessly for the past 3 years. http://www.idealinnovations.biz/default.htm

I have been very happy with my Yaqin 300B amp (rebranded "Grant Fidelity") and Yaqin phono preamp. The 300B amp sounds amazing with my K-horns, and has been completely without problems for the three or so years I have owned it. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase one of their amps, esp. from the Canadian ("Canadian Hi Fi") selling on Ebay. He sold me my phono preamp and it was a trouble free transaction.

I have a couple of the Berhinger DEQ-2496 units and think they are fabulous. The build quality is a little suspect, but they perform very well, and the older of the two has been trouble free for the 2 years I have been running it. While some of their products are garbage, it seems that a least some of their stuff is ok (kind of like some US cars I have owned [] ).

The Yaquin is sounding like it might be a relatively inexpensive way to check out if tube phono preamp mated to ss amp and preamp will benefit my desire for sonic enhancement. I did a little research and found that most people have nothing but positive remarks about this unit. This is certainly food for thought. The price is right, ( seeing that I am a bit of a cheapskate). It about killed me to spend $200.00 on a Denon cart. LOL Thanks for the suggestion. Tom If you get one, I would go the Canada route, not direct from China. Here is a link to his "store.": http://stores.ebay.com/Canadian-HiFi-Online?_trksid=p4340.l2563 No affiliation, just a satisfied customer.

I am using a Yaqin MS-22B (Chinese) phono preamp I picked up on Ebay from a more reputable Canadian seller and am thoroughly blown away. The price was under $200 shipped. I do have it paired with a tube amp, but it might be worth a try.

Yep. K-horns sound kind of dumb out in a room. When I bought mine they were standing in the middle of the garage of the little old lady who was selling them. When I hooked them up to the amp I brought they sounded like an AM radio, but once home and in in the corners the magic began.

tromprof, thanks for the suggestios. I've tried about 4 different SS preamps and the NAD 1700 is best/warmest preamp on my system. Did you try the recordings I mentioned having this issue or just your general impression? "Clocks" from Coldplay and "Human Nuture" by Michael Jackson. I'm curious whether you can hear what I'm hearing with same recordings. Thanks. I don't own those recordings, I will listen from you-tube and listen for any extra SSssssing.[] The S syllable can really cut through, I once heard a choral conductor tell the chorus to "get off there ss-es!"

I have not noticed this on either my k-horns or La Scalas. Some SS amps can make them accentuate highs, but this is not a problem with my 1970s vintage Yamaha stuff. I also tried a SS preamp with my tube amp and was not happy with the results, but it has been a while and I can't remember exactly what it was I didn't like. If I were you I would try a different preamp, and maybe the amp as well, and see if that changes anything before I modded the speakers.

Thanks for the honest appraisal, I had always thought about doing the same to my speakers But, it does look fantastic.

Fortes were my first Klipsch speaker and I owned them for over 20 years. As much as I loved them, I too thought they were a bit bright and piercing up high. They eventually become basement speakers as I moved on up the line. Before I sold them I hooked them up to the tubes running my La Scalas, and dam* if that harshness wasn't gone. They sounded so good when I demoed them to the guy who bought them it was hard to let them go. Sure, after 20 years the caps could probably stand replacing, but give them a try with a nice tube amp, you might be surprised at the sound improvement.

My K-horns sounded like they were taking a dental drill to my ears when I hooked up an older Sony receiver to them. Bad equipment will sound even worse with speakers like these, as very good equipment will sound even better. My K-horns sound sublime with SET tubes.

Ditto. I built a tuba sub for my La Scalas, the "Tuba Table," and am very pleased with the result. At this point I honestly can't say which I prefer, my K-horns or the La Scalas with the tuba sub. It built my sub like a tank out of 3/4 inch Baltic birch and it still only cost me $400 in materials.

f A friend of my dad returned home one night to find one of his k-horns in the driveway, which was the point at which the potential thieves gave up.

I wouldn't gamble my money on a the deal you describing. For that price, $800, you can get a nice pair of working La Scalas. It took many years for me to locate locally (locally being within sane driving distance) my K-horns and La Scalas. I would pass on this "deal" and be patient. Good luck!

Parts Express is only 20 miles or so from my house and I am sorely tempted to try one of these amps to hear for myself. It would be fun to compare it to the 20 watt tube amp driving my La Scalas. Maybe next time I go up to Dayton...[]

Last year I sold a pair of Fortes for $400, which seems to be more or less the going rate. Go slowly on this. If your budget is $500, then you should be able to find a nice pair of Fortes or Chorus, but it takes time to find them. I waited for years to find my K-horns and La Scalas at a price I could afford, and within sane driving distance. I have seen several pairs of Cornwalls go for around $600. So long as you don't overspend, if one of these speakers doesn't end up being what you were looking for, you can easily get your money back out of them. As far a which speaker to get, with Klipsch bigger is usually better. []

5,6... listen to Styx?

1010101110001100 []

When I built my "tuba table" subwoofer, I was instructed to break in the driver for at least 20 hours before installing it, which I did. I ran a series of 25hz, 32hz, and 40hz test tones through it. Even after that break in period I noticed both an improvement in output, and a quicker response after a few weeks. So, at least for larger drivers, I would say yes, you need a break in period.

I would call the Yaqin inexpensive, not nesc. "cheap." There are of course better amps but I have had good experiences with Yaqin stuff. My main amp (re-branded as Grant Fideity) and phono preamp are both Yaqin built, and sound better than great (sublime?) with my K-horns. I would put my money in a nice pair of Fortes, Chorus, Cornwall, etc. The Yaqin amps are also easy to upgrade via tubes or upgrading some of the internals if you or a friend are handy with a solder.