001

im aware they use sonicaps, bob told me he orders many of his parts for x-overs from erse & also suggested their caps as the best budget caps hes tested. sorry if im off on what they use for other parts, just going by what he said a few years ago. & they use the ERSE electrolytics for pretty much all their x-overs i have seen.

the dust cap came unglued from the cone.. the best glue to use for poly cones & paper or poly dust caps is speaker cone glue from simply speakers, its black & designed for this purpose or redoing surrounds etc. could also try a super glue type glue that dries hard. if the cone was also paper/fiber a hobby glue called aleene's tacky glue works great & dries clear. ive used both on both types of speakers & they worked very well. https://www.simplyspeakers.com/speaker-repair-adhesive-mi-2000.html

might be a little late for a cap suggestion, but just in case here is another source for caps & many other items.. ERSE is what crites uses for all their other components on their x-overs & bob suggested the ERSE polypropylene "pulse x" caps as a very good budget cap that are as good or better than other budget caps like dayton & solen etc & they measure very low ESR. they carry many of the klipsch values including all the ones needed for your crossovers & they are priced better than most others & have fast low price shipping. i have used ERSE in a few klipsch speakers & other brands & they sound very good to my ears & really improved the sound of my chorus2 speakers but the caps in them were definitely bad, sounded like a towel was covering the front of the speakers. They sell the mylar type caps too that are what klipsch uses. https://www.erseaudio.com/Products/PulseX250v & just an FYI: according to bob crites capacitors do not have or require burn in...

yes, early version. & arent they stamped 4ohm vs 8ohm for later forte or forte2?

i realize this is a buy it now sale... i was speaking generally about ebay auctions & the "garage sale is free" comment. however, even on BIN listings i have done on ebay i have had people offer MORE than the BIN price, & all ebay sales usually have their fees worked into the price so in the end ebay is essentially free too. have also had buyers message me on ebay & we arrange the sale outside ebay & avoid their fees which saves me & the buyer money. & local pick up only doesnt mean much at all when many people have driven 5-10+ hours round trip to buy speakers. ebay gets nationwide exposure that a brand specifc forum will never do, lots of klipsch & vintage buyers & collectors out there that arent members on this forum. i too have been selling home audio & classic automotive parts online for 20+ years & its always best to list on multiple locations both locally & ebay, but cant deny the exposure ebay gets & the high possibility to get more than the starting price. some things i will list here only, at a discount & favor to members, ive sold K-horns & many other models of klipsch to members here at a much better price than ebay or even CL & FB could have got, just passing on the favors & help i have received by some generous members here over the years.

nice speakers love teh cherry finish & a reasonable (starting) price , the garage sale may be free , but from a sellers perspective ebay gets a LOT more exposure & the ability to let bidders raise the price a lot more than the starting bid which is usually well worth the ~10% ebay charges on the sale price.

good deal for 5.5's... but why do people always put plants or things that can leak water on klipsch speakers?? ive seen water rings & stains but these are far beyond that, the veneer is actually lifting & bubbling & looks like the seams have started to separate on the top edges. such a shame.

age is one issue, but as mentioned above so is the fact klipsch & many other brands of plate amp subs & speakers are known for failures. the RSW line is not as bad but still can & do have problems.... there are 2 or 3 other threads right below this one of RSW amp problems & many more on this forum & others over the years , they have issues too. as with anything like this, the failure rates are relatively low overall compared to how many were made & if yours have been good for this long thats great, but many others have failed. the environment plate amps live in is very rough on parts & most these amps are made in china so knocking on wood is a good idea as they get older. the OP needs to do some further diagnosis to determine what the issue is. as mentioned, unless the woofer was severely overdriven (which most sub amps have protection to prevent that) its most likely not the woofer & the amp that is the problem. it will be cheaper to repair the amp than buying a replacement woofer so hopefully the woofer is good. being these are so old (2003?) i doubt klipsch has replacement parts but you can always call & sit on hold for 15-20+ minutes or email & wait a month for a reply , --- heres a replacement woofer... not cheap. https://www.ebay.com/itm/124508633297?epid=21045972961&hash=item1cfd4af8d1:g:11AAAOSwSeFf7fSK

is the sub not working? if so, as mentioned the amp is probably whats bad, unfortunately it is common of many models of this era subs. do some testing of the sub if you can with a ohm or multi meter & report what it is. if the amp is bad a member here repairs them for a very fair price, message @ngen33r for more info.

depending on location, priority mail insured at $100 will be ~$10-$13 since its so light weight. & for someone that is in a tristate area of him probably closer to $8-$10. granted if you need one its best to just buy it, but for someone that only needs to use it 1 time, this would be a way to save some $ & hassle of trying to resell it for less than the price new & still have to eat shipping 1 way to ship it. very generous offer & if its still around in a few months i may take you up on that, plus im only 1 state away from you & can ship this back for about $5.

@ngen33r @ngen33r @ngen33r best price & service for repairing these dead klipsch subs, quick turn around & usually recaps & checks the whole amp.

lots of threads in this section & the tech section on these subs & other klipsch sub amps dying... there is a member here you can contact that repairs them for a great price @ngen33r or you can google the service manual & find the part you think is bad to replace it. i can say though that if the fuse or something is burning out like the transistor/thermistor you mentioned, something else is causing it to blow & that needs to be identified & repaired before just replacing the transistor. far too many of these models & other klipsch subs have amp issues, up to you if its worth the price to repair or just replace with another model or brand sub.

the finishes listed above still dont list a traditional black lacquer that i was asking about. im aware klipsch offered a satin clear lacquer finish for most veneers, ive owned lots of oak clear & black finishes & they are all a satin sheen & none of the codes are actually listed as or called black lacquer... my cf4s were actually called black satin printed right on the box. sorry if theres any confusion here, by black lacquer i meant what is shown in the pic i posted, a smooth surface with no wood grain & a 100% gloss black finish, or what you see when you do a google search for black lacquer furniture.

was just curious on the dot posts, i see quite a few of those lately, my guess is they were posted comments but edited shortly after to avoid being "reported" not sure why triple zero posted all those pics above... those are just the traditional satin black painted veneers. this pic shows what black lacquer is -- , or just google black lacquer furniture to see what it actually looks like. so i guess the answer to my questions is- no, klipsch did not make true black lacquer fortes. i like piano black too, i own other brand speakers that are piano black, hard to keep dust free but look very nice. i also like black lacquer, when done right it looks very good but for the most part that fad has passed. i had a nice coffee & end table set that were black lacquer & a waterbed too! the 80's & 90's were awesome! i saw the piano black heresys, & i just missed a set of chorus 2 this summer that were redone in piano black but timing didnt work out. there is a product at most home stores that is a 2 part (base/clear) paint that looks like real piano black, i cant recall the brand right now but ive used it before. you prep & paint the surface like normal but then you pour on the clear that is a resin or epoxy type material, brush it on real thick & it self levels & cures to a super thick & hard glossy clear thats practically invincible to water or other contaminates.

yeah must've been a typo... however this is the same seller that had them listed for $3500 previously, after over 2 months of not selling & zero interest he apparently came to his senses. looks like he ended the auction though for an outside offer.

maybe some have a different idea of black lacquer, to me & to many others its usually considered more of a piano black, where its smooth with a glossy black finish. the pics posted above show the traditional satin black paint on a wood veneer, & the rear tag pic simply says "BLK", it does not say "BLK LQR" or any reference to black lacquer. ive owned some black lacquer furniture that was popular in the 90's & it was a completely smooth glossy surface with no wood grain showing. ive also owned a few of the black finish klipsch speakers of this era & on my CF4s klipsch actually calls it "satin black" not black lacquer. - have a nice day. & whats up with the posts i see lately that are just dots . ? are they being edited by mods or by the members?

great article. were fortes ever made in black lacquer? he says he bought a pair & lists it as a available veneer, is he maybe confusing the black satin veneer with black lacquer? i have never seen black lacquer fortes or any other klipsch models from this era.

LOL! https://www.ebay.com/itm/265441738535?mkevt=1&mkpid=0&emsid=e11021.m43.l3160&mkcid=7&ch=osgood&euid=ac05ab989ccb48458f9585d228df864f&bu=43521485800&ut=RU&osub=-1~1&crd=20211208070205&segname=11021&sojTags=ch%3Dch%2Cbu%3Dbu%2Cut%3Dut%2Cosub%3Dosub%2Ccrd%3Dcrd%2Csegname%3Dsegname%2Cchnl%3Dmkcid

easy way to confirm if its the speakers or recording is to just hook up another set of speakers to see if you hear the same distortion.

the fortes are much more placement sensitive due to the rear passive compared to the non passive rp. try playing with placement of the fortes to see how the bass changes, its usually best to locate them in or near a corner with at least 12" from the back wall. ive never heard that specific rp models but have heard quite a few of the smaller gold woofer towers & IMO they dont compare to the 3 way heritage era speakers like forte or chorus.

if the new fuse is the same amp & volt rating the P shouldnt matter if all it means is ROHS compliant. when you replaced the fuse & turned it on, did it blow the new fuse? if it blew the fuse again it sounds like something has gone bad inside which is very common for this model# sub & many other klipsch subs of this era. maybe its a coincidence it happened when you plugged it in but plugging in a sub or amp or any other piece of electrical equipment when the switch is on shouldnt damage anything. do some further diagnosis if you can & check that new fuse, if the amp is bad there is a member here that repairs them for a very reasonable price if you want to keep the sub. message @ngen33r or look for his repair threads in the technical section here.

i sent the seller a message & asked about the weight, its hard to tell in the pics but looks like the weight is there, its the small black disc in the center. he said he reused the weight from the original passive & has done a few of them with the SS recone kit & they are excellent quality.

yes i plan to repair it, its a small rip. i just wanted to mention my experience calling or emailing klipsch & that 99% of parts for these speakers are not available from them including correct looking passives. i emailed them a few months ago when it was claimed... parts like woofers & grilles etc were available for these era of speaker & even the original reference series... klipsch does not have parts for these! & the newer passives (at least the kd16) you have to jump through hoops to get & they are not cosmetically correct. if simply speakers have the correct accordion cones, why doesnt klipsch? as for repairing, i have repaired a few klipsch woofers/passives & other brands over the years, for a paper cone like in forte/chorus most people say to use a thin paper like coffee filters or cig rolling papers. i use the rolling papers since they are very thin & easy to work with, i use elmers glue or wood or hobby glue like aleens white tacky craft glue, works great for many craft projects & dries clear, apply a thin layer of glue to the back side cone area & lay the pre cut piece of paper over the rip/hole, let dry for ~10 minutes & then brush another thin layer over the paper or can even use a 2nd layer of paper/glue if the rip or hole is bigger. for rips that still have the paper cone material intact & can push it back down, i just use a layer of glue & push the remaining piece back down, usually comes out almost invisible if you wipe any glue residue that oozed out to the front side before it dries. for rubber & even foam surrounds i have used an automotive RTV type gasket maker, specifically permatex brand ultra black... its goes on smooth & dries fast & leaves a nice black film that is flexible & has lasted for many years on a few woofer surrounds i have repaired that get abused pretty bad. they make an ultra grey too for those grey colored foam & rubber surrounds. thanks for mentioning the michaels paint, thats a good idea for recoloring sun faded cones, i have used a special fabric/vinyl/rubber paint that is common in the automotive restoration world, works great & goes on very thin with little to no residue or build up that a thicker brush on paint can have.

just an FYI on the chorus2 KD 16 passive & the suggestion to "pick up the phone & call klipsch"... i called them tues of this week to ask about buying a KD16 passive for my chorus 2, heres how that went- i sat on hold for 28 minutes before someone finally answered, i said i was looking to buy a KD16 & possibly a k48 woofer. i was put on hold for another 11 minutes while the guy checked on the parts. when he came back i was told they needed my email address & serial numbers from the speakers to "release" info on the passive. i asked what release meant wondering if maybe they just werent released or available yet, he explained they dont provide info on these without an email & serial number & pushed again for that info, i stated i wasnt at home for the serial # & would have to call back (which i have no intention of doing to wait on hold for a half hour again) i asked if he could just provide a price so i can decide if i want to buy one or repair mine that has a small rip. again i was met with complete unwillingness to even provide a price. he said they only have 1 available with no ETA for more to come & without a serial# & email they wouldnt sell it or provide any details on it. i was rather surprised with the response & lack of service i got, maybe its because i didnt tell them "@RandyH sends you , With all His Sincere Compliments . ?? " & the current kd16 passive is not the correct accordian fiber surround based on previous comments on here, its the newer rubber surround so finding used ones or doing the simply speaker recone is the best option if you need a chorus2 passive. i then asked about the woofer & was told they are NA, i asked if possibly another current model # or pro series was available & he said no, no parts are available for these older speakers including horns, grills etc etc. which is what i was told when i tried to email them a few months ago... took almost 2 months to get a email reply. so despite what has been stated here regarding klipsch customer service, it still seems to be how its been for well over a year now, 20-30 min wait time on the phone & a month or more for email replies. maybe for models still under warranty its different or if youre a certain special member that claims parts for these older models are available, but for the rest of us their service leaves a lot to be desired.

klipsch does not have passives for forte1's or cosmetically correct ones for forte2/chorus2. they have stated numerous times they dont carry most parts for these old speakers. save yourself the 15-20+ minute hold times & 1-2 months email reply times. & the speaker repair places dont have recone kits for the forte passive with the inverted rubber surround. @jhoweaa your best bet is to keep searching for a used KD13, they do pop up occasionally on ebay etc. or, depending on how bad the damage is, you can attempt to repair yours, not hard to do if the rip/tear isnt too big or missing material, wont look pretty but will be functional until you can find a replacement. & try posting a wanted ad in the garage sale section. best of luck locating one.