Ruben1

I had my CF3 crossovers redone by Bob. The sound went from great to outstanding and all for a very reasonable price. It is well worth a call to Bob for a discussion on the options for updating these crossovers with better components. As for the cosmetics I used Formbees furtniture restoreation (there is a kit) to "fix" some lihght damage to the exterior and the results were superb. Any such product will work. Think of these speakers as furniture. Also, regarding the air leak I did go into my speakers (removed the woofers) to take a look inside and although I could be wrong I am certain that the top, bottom, and sides are solid oak and the front and back are particle board.This means that you should be able to apply wood glue and fix the issue this way.

You are most welcomed. Let me know how it turns out for you and if you do buy them do consider updating the crossovers at a later point. I think the update was worthwhile. Call Bob Crites to get a quote and get some information on what he does with these crossovers just to get an idea of what you will get for your money. Also forgot to mention that my speakers also did not come with grills so this is how I listen to them. Good luck, Ruben

I have a pair of CF 3 (Series 1) in a dedicated 2 channel system and LOVE them!. I listen mainly to rock (Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, etc) and at time to Diana krall. I find the sound to be smooth and just right without a harsh upper end. I do run these speakers with all tube electronics and vinyl as my primary source. My associated electronics are: Systemdek 4e TT, Wright Sounds WPP 100 phono stage, BAT VK5i pre, VTL Compact 80 amps. The sound is devine from these speakers and I have no interest in upgrading them any time soon as I believe I would have to spend much much more to get something noticeably better. I did make one significant investment with the speakers. I sent the crossovers to Bob Crites to update them with all new capacitors. I think there were about 10 caps per crossover he replaced with much better quality ones. He did not change the topology of the crossovers but only improved them by replacing lower quality parts with much better ones. All this was done for a very reasonable price. Hope this helps.

Call Bob Crites....He can tell you everything you want to know. http://www.critesspeakers.com/ I have a pair of series 1 CF3's and absolutely love them. I sent Bob my crossovers a year ago and he replaced all the caps and brought the sound to a whole new level. He did not modify the circuit in any way, just replaced old worn out parts for new and better ones. Hope this helps, Ruben

While playing music today I noticed that the low frequency (woofers) were not sounding right in one speaker so I played the Stereophile CD 3 test CD to test the low frequencies and found that both woofers on one speaker is sounding bad. Bad meaning some cutting in and out and some strange sounds (can't describe it) which also cuts in and out. So, I switched speakers and the other one sounded fine so I traced the issue to the speaker not the electronics. I checked all the connections to make sure everything was well connected and it seemed to be. I then took the crossover out for an inspection and noticed that on the low frequency board, the thin white pencil looking item marked 10W 5 ohm J had what looked like a burn mark under it (the side on the board). I assume this is not normal. Could this pencil thin item malfunctioning cause the woofers to cut in and out and produce strange noises?

Although not part of the heritage line I strongly recommend you look at the Epic CF 3, series 1. I have a pair and drive the woofers with a pair of B&K sonnata mono blocks (200W), and the horns with a Golden Tube Audio SE 40 tube SET amp (40 WPC). All I can tell you is that I am in heaven every time I listen to music with this system. A good clean pair of CF 3 series 1’s can be had in the used market for an average of $500-800, give or take. I listen to loud rock, mainly Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Led Zeppelin, etc and absolutely love it. These are also good for soft music as well. I sometimes lose track of the time and before I realize it hours have passed by listening to music. I strongly recommend you consider these wonderful speakers.

I have a series 1 Epic CF3 set and currently drive them with SS amps. I am getting into tubes anf have a question regarding the use of tube amps with these speakers. What is preferable (I know it is subjective but its OK with me) and what do you believe will sound better with two 40 WPC stereo tube amps; having each amp used in stereo mode where one amp drives the HF for both speakers (sending 40 watts to each horn) and the other amp driving the LF for both speakers (sending 40 watts to each woofer), or bridging the amps and having each produce 80 watts and using each one as a mono block driving the entire speaker? What if anything should be the audiable differences with such a high efficiency pair of speakers? Thanks

Thank you for the reply. I was looking to bi wire to see if there is some improvement in the sound by driving the horns with a tube amp and the woofers with a SS amp. Besides improving the sound I was also looking to play with this as part of the hobby and see how if any the sound changes by using different type of amps with these speakers. So it is part curiosity as part of the hobby and part sound improvement effort. So, having said all this should I hear any improvement if the horns are driven by tubes and the woofers by a SS amp in a bi wire arrangement? Thanks

Is 35 watts of power from a tube amplifier enough power to drive the horns on a CF 3 very loud withoud distortion in a 12X12X8 foot room? I have monoblock SS amps for the woofers. Looking to bi amp these speakers. Thanks

If someone can help me figure out how to post pics i will do so gladdly. I just can't seem to do it here on the forum for some reason? Thanks.

Just purchased my first Klipsch speakers; a pair of series 1 Epic CF3's. Love the looks and sound. Will be keeping them for years to come. My only constructive criticism is that it sounds a bit lean on the top end. Can this be improved by the addition of a super tweeter? Has anyone incorporated one? As far as the base goes these go low. I used my Stereophile test CD # 3 and the test tone for 31.5 Hz was still audible al be it very low. In any case I am very, very happy with this purchase. Will post pictures soon as I can't seem to figure out how to do so in this forum? Ruben