St Ides

Hello Ray, Great post! Now I get it! I sincerely apologize to all at Klipsch for the "not so truthful" dig. Hey theears. I actually have played the Stereophile test CD on loop to take measurements. The first time I did so, my wife walked into the room with that "what the heck is going on here" look on her face. Close to the same look when I come home with some new stereo gear! happy listening, Bill H.

Hey guys, I didn't exactly say that Klipsch lied but the RB-5s are either 96db/watt efficient or not. "Klipsch may have thier way to get the 95dB rating.I think it may be at 1KHz,or the highest output generated at frequency X." I don't have a large collection of 1KHz test-tone albums and can't stand bands that only play at frequency X : ) Is Klipsch doing us a favor by measuring with a custom standard? Why bother measuring at all? They could just as well write down any number on the test sheet they want. Personally I like 105db/watt! I'm sure that their testing method is correct and reflects practical listening. I'm just curious about claims on the net and in print that they're only 92db/watt efficient. I was hoping that a Klipsch person would clearify things. kind regards, Bill H.

Hi Ear, Thanks for the info. I figured the same sensitivity by listening to them and by looking at the design. From what I know about the raw drivers available and about other speakers, I couldn't see why the RB-5s would do better. I also measured a driver from a Klpsch center channel (don't know what model) and only got 87db out of it. The speaker is rated at 95db/watt. How they got that from two 87db/watt drivers must be magic! So why the MMMMM... not so truthful ratings? I have a low-power tube amp and really like the sound of many Klipsch speakers. 92db is very good but the great sound plus a real 96db would be heaven! regards, Bill H.

The factory spec. is 96db but it is said that they actually test at 92db. Also, what is the efficency rating for each driver? Thanks! kind regards, Bill H.