andyo5

I have a McIntosh MR78 that I like alot. Sound quality is great. I don't know if it is "the best", but it is certainly very good and available on the used market for reasonable prices. Too bad that Sony pulled the XDRF1HD tuner from the US market. It got great reviews and interest was high. Seems like Sony made a mistake and accidentally sold one of their better products in the USA, as opposed to the crap that they usually offer here.

Clay, Of the three choices you mentioned, the only reason to get the Heresy pair would be size considerations. Otherwise, get one of the others. The Chorus speakers have a passive radiator and would probably provide the fullest bass performance of the three. I read a Stereophile review of the LaScalas recently online (visit their site to read the review). It was very positive, but the reviewer mentioned that he would want a subwoofer to pair with them because there was not much below 50Hz. I have a pair of Heresy IIIs. I use a 15" powered subwoofer with them and they sound great as well as having a high wife approval factor due to their small size.

I believe that speaker cables have alot more of an effect than interconnects. I auditioned about 5 different speaker cable pairs a few years ago, courtesy of The Cable Company. I ended up purchasing a pair of Nordost Blue Heaven cables. I did hear significant differences between the various cables. Speaker cables are required to handle higher current levels than intercommects. Regarding interconnects, I originally started with all Kimber Heros. But after several months of use; and considering the level of hum that I was hearing in my system (the Heros are not shielded at all), I began to question my choice. I tried switching a couple of them to Radio Shack's best shielded interconnects with gold plated connectors. The result was WAY better sound quality, with NO hum at all. At a cost of $12 per 3M pair. Perhaps I could get better sound by purchasing a $1000 per pair set of Golden Dragon interconects. But I am not going to do so.

Well, I think that the originator of this thread (ChipByrd) has asked for opinions. And he has gotten some. I will respect your opinion if you would kindly respect mine, even though it seems to differ from yours. Thanks!

I have found best results with Radio Shack's best shielded interconnects, with gold plated connectors. You can pay $15 for a 1m pair or $1000 for a 1m pair of 'Golden Dragon' interconnects or others with fancy names that add absolutely nothing to the sound performance of your system. I have also found that you will get better results of you can use balanced interconnects instead of RCA connectors, and if you can keep the interconnect length to the minimum necessary. I'm sure others will disagree with the Radio Shack recommendation, but you be the judge.

The Forte II was reviewed by Stereophile when it was new and they concluded it was the most accurate loudspeaker they had ever measured. That being said, I own a pair of Heresy IIIs and love them. If you can't place them in corners, you will probably want a subwoofer. I found that over time, my woofers sounded more powerful and my tweeters sounded smoother and more refined. Good luck!

Walnut? They look just like my cherry H3s.

Yeah, Youthman. The Heresys without the sub are a bit thin in the bass department. But the addition of a good sub makes a world of difference. I admit that I have seriously thought of going up the Classic series chain a bit in the size department. Does size matter? I'd bet that the bigger cabinets produce alot more low end, but I have noticed by reading the posts that even owners of Cornwalls, La Scalas, and even K'Horns talk about adding a sub.

Heresy IIIs with Velodyne DD15, a 15" Digital Drive sub.

Maybe it was the Chorus I that was ported. The Chorus II had a 15" radiator. Come to think of it, the Forte I had a 12" passive radiator while the Forte II had a 15".

"I wonder if they ever played around with a ported heresy." I think they called it the "Forte".

I recently upgraded my sub from a Velodyne FSR12 to a new DD-15. The DD (digital drive) series is being discounted right now, due to impending release of the DD+ line (which are higher priced, of course). The DD-15 is a better match for the big living room in our current home. It really compliments the H-IIIs that I bought last year. The system really has "balls" , to use a technical term. I found that I had to play the H-IIIs at elevated volume to break the woofers in. I got carried away one afternoon while the wife was out shopping, and I put on some live rock albums at elevated volume for a real concert feel. Afterwards, the woofers performed better even at lower levels. I am no longer thinking about Cornwalls , Choruses, or Fortes. The H-IIIs are keepers for sure.

That's why I stopped at the Bryston level of expense whey I bought my BP25 preamp and B3ST amp twelve years ago. I figured that that was the price point at which I had maximized the price/cost factor. I have not had any reason to change my mind since then.

Save up some shekels and get a Bryston, either the 60 or 100 WPC model. I used to have a Denon integrated from the early 1990s, and used it to power my Apogee ribbon speakers. It was a 120 WPC model, I think the model # was PMA-380. I noticed that at higher volume, you could see the ribbons moving. This is a bad sign and indicates distortion. So I made sure to keep the volume lower than the distortion point. When I bought my Bryston preamp and amp in 1997, I found that no level of volume at which I could bear to listen would produce any distortion at all. Very clean power. And that 20 year warranty came in handy a few years ago, when a nearby lightning strike took out my amp. They fixed it for free. I'm not dissing Denon amps, but I think you would get better long term satisfaction with Bryston.

I have never been a fan of Peter Aczel, despite my agreeing with him on many of his points. His arrogance and his attitude of disrespect regarding other equipment reviewers just turn me off. But look again at his point #7: biwiring. His description of biwiring involves running two pair of cables to the same set of binding posts. This is not what biwiring does.

If going into the priesthood means selling all your hifi stuff, count me out.

...I did some reading recently about the methods of bi-wiring and the theory about why it appears to improve the performance of the various speaker elements. Based on what I had read, it appeared to me that if you were going to connect a single set of wires to a speaker that has bi-wiring capability; it would be better to connect to the mid/high frequency posts and let the bass posts get signal through the connecting straps (I have Heresy IIIs). I had mine connected opposite to this, with the speaker wire connected to the low frequency posts. So this morning I changed them to the other posts. The speakers really do seem to sound better. The bass response actually seems fuller and the high frequencies seem smoother and less strident. Of course, I am also wondering whether this is my just my imagination; since I was sort of expecting to hear an improvement. So what do you think? Has anybody else tried both methods and compared the results? Thanks

I can understand why eliminating the toe-in would improve bass response. It allows the rear passives to utilize the wall behind them better, instead of deflecting their output off at an angle. Enjoy your Forte IIs! I may find a pair for myself in the near future.

I was getting ready to make a trip to buy a pair of Forte IIs, when I noticed that the seller's photo showed a speaker with the smaller passive radiator (not the 15" one). So it must be a Forte, not a Forte II. How much different do these sound from the Forte IIs? I imagine there is less bass response, right? What do you think is a fair price for a pair in close to excellent condition, in clear oak, with no boxes or paperwork? Thanks!

A Shure moving coil cartridge? Are you sure (no pun intended)? I was unaware that Shure ever made any cartridges other than moving magnet. What model is your Shure cartridge?

Well, the most expensive 12" sub with on-board amp from Velodyne lists at $2600. So this places the klipsch version a bit higher. The Velodnyne is a very feature rich sub. I don't need a sub at the moment. I was just scoping out the field. I have a Velodyne FSR-12 and it is about 12 years old. Still working fine, but I did have to send its amp back to Velodyne once for repair.

So the subwoofer, without amp, costs $1499.00. I did see the amp on the accessories page. It sells for $1499.00. So it looks like the complete sub/amp combination costs right around $3,000.00. Thanks for your reply.

Does this sub come with the KA-1000-THX outboard amp, or do you have to purchase it separately?

In my living room, the HIIIs with a 12" sub are very satisfying when playing jazz. Jazz recordings are much higher quality that most rock recordings. A stand-up bass will sound like it is there in the room with you, and some recordings (such as Sonny Rollins "The Bridge") seem holographic. I keep looking for how a drummer managed to set up his kit behind my TV. Some rock sounds good....the ones with clearly recorded instruments and voices. The HIII/sub combination can 'get a grip' on the music and convey a driving sound. Others sound like mud...but that's what they were rcorded like. I marvel at how much better my Beatles LPs sound with the HIIIs and subwoofer. I can clearly hear Ringo's drums now. I can physically feel the bass to a small extent. Drum hits do sound real (I am a drummer). If you want more of a physical, warm, tactile bass that you can easily feel in your gut: then perhaps Forte or Chorus would be the way to go. By the way, I grew up in Havertown. Just a bit SW of Philadelphia.

I know what you are dealing with, since I am also retired and wish to avoid becoming an upgrade addict. I recently got the HIIIs. I wanted the Cornwalls, but they are just bigger than I want to deal with. I can tell you that you will want a subwoofer if you get the HIIIs, but they do have more bass output than previous versions. Mine are still breaking in and sound better every day. On the other hand, many of the members of this forum also get a subwoofer to go with their LaScallas, Fortes, Klipschorns, etc. Klipsch says that the HIII has the same frequency response as the LaScalla, but at a lower volume level. My HIIIs are very detailed and present a good sound stage. The cherry veneer is georgeous. I have a 12" Velodyne sub. There is a magazine review available on the HIII. I will email it to you if you send me your email address. Another advantage of the HIII is that they are available new, as opposed to hunting around for a pair of Fortes in nice condition. Good luck on your decision.