Peter P.

Agreed. It's not worth the cost and labor to build two new cabinets around the drivers. Knowing the history of these two as you describe them, they're "playa's", not show pieces. I do think having two cleanly refurbished mismatched cabinets would look eyecatching. If you can't restore them reasonably to their individual good looks after removing the paint, re-paint them to match and enjoy the sound.

Update: From forum member Bubo's recommendation, I sought out an APC 15A G5 Rack Power Filter. I found used one on eBay for $98 shipped, tax included, which I thought was a fair price. It does exactly what I need; primarily it replaced my power strip which was tucked away in the cabinet and cumbersome to turn on/off. Now, one button turns on my amp, then my tuner. Secondarily, it protects my equipment. Lastly, it looks cool with the display and all the LED's! Thanks for the suggestion!

Buy a new timer. I just checked a cheapo, square-shaped timer I have and its single outlet is polarized, so they are available and about $6. They also sell a 2 outlet version for about $12. Check the big name hardware stores' web sites and you'll find them.

Agreed. As far as I know, Heresy crossovers do not have a high pass filter limiting the low end of the woofer. In fact, I don't know of any speaker manufacturer that does that. The low frequency cutoff of the Heresy is limited by the cabinet volume.

That's kosher, and extremely common to connect the speakers and subwoofer in parallel. The Russound presents a high impedance to the the amp, so the amp barely "sees" the subwoofer, or both subwoofers in your case. However, I think the proper thing to do would be to connect BOTH RCA cables to ONE subwoofer. Here's why: The left and right channel outputs to your speakers are stereo information, so it's possible each channel is carrying different information, including in the bass region. An LFE input on your subwoofer is expecting a SUMMED signal (left + right), but you're only feeding it one stereo channel. So I think BOTH RCA's should connect to ONE subwoofer otherwise I'm not confident the subwoofer is reproducing the bass signal correctly.

Out of Phase: When you connect one speaker to your amp, the "+" and "-" from the amp with connect to the "+" and "-" to one speaker. On the other speaker, the exact same connection should be made. That way, both woofers for instance, will move forward and backward in sync with each other. If you connect one speaker from the amp backwards, while one cone is moving out, the other is moving in, effectively reducing the bass output because the speakers are moving "out of phase" with respect to each other. Your Phase Switch on your subwoofer works slightly differently. It causes the subwoofer to move "out of phase" with respect to your main speakers. Since you're pretty confident the subwoofer itself is working correctly, I figured maybe you connected the speaker wires to the Russound out of phase with respect to the left channel vs. the right. The other option is the Russound is not built properly so perhaps you DID connect to the Russound correctly but the Russound is reversing one channel, causing some of that bass reduction I mention above. A simple test would be to reverse the wires of JUST ONE speaker connection to the Russound and see what happens.

Could you have connected the speaker outputs of the amp to the Russound out of phase? If not, maybe the Russound device itself was built incorrectly out of phase. One possible test would be to REVERSE just one of the speaker level inputs to the Russound device and see what happens. Did you forget to turn the sub on? Is the gain up? Are you sure the sub is working at all-have you tested it with another stereo?

Congratulations and thanks for the update! That certainly was unusual for a driver to fail.

The CDC recommends if you are sick to NOT GET TESTED. They recommend you stay home EXCEPT to get medical care. So going to Walgreens or ANYWHERE to get tested while you have symptoms is wrong, and merely an opportunity to possibly spread the infection. The only reason I could think of to go to Walgreens to get tested would be to exact revenge and infect the staff because of their lousy web site navigation. (That's a joke, people!) Here's the CDC website information.

I can appreciate the OP's concerns and can see how the Forte's are a little bit out-sized aesthetically for the room. I also agree with many of the posts that say anything else would be less than Forte-level sound, which might disappoint the OP. But such are the compromises we must make in fitting the equipment into our living spaces. I've been in the same predicament. To the OP I suggest moving those tiny monitors to the Forte locations, then buying a subwoofer on the used market. Tuck the sub in the corner where the monitors currently stand watch and see what happens. You could always resell the subwoofer with likely little monetary loss and you will save money by using your bookshelf speakers. If you want to stick with the Klipsch "sound" you could get a pair of the highly acclaimed RP-600M monitors, re-use your stands, and buy a Klipsch subwoofer for matchy-matchy. I also like the idea earlier suggested of buying one of the Klipsch floorstanders. They were meant for the express purpose of dealing with the aesthetic problem you face; a narrower front gives the illusion of a smaller speaker and while a similar footprint to say, a Forte, takes up less left to right space. Quite frankly, in my personal hindsight I might have gone the Klipsch floorstanding route instead of my journey which lead me from Heresies to Quartets to kg 4.2's then back to Heresies, and adding a subwoofer, all with the adding expense of buying and selling speakers. So by buying some other Klipsch speakers you may be able to retain the KLIPSCH sound via the horn tweeters, but you're not likely to retain the FORTE sound, which goes three-way with a horn midrange. Yes, you may have to give up some of that glorious Forte sound, but we all (er, most of us anyway!) must make compromises. Let the forum know what you eventually choose to do!

Muel: Exactly. In 2021 after my THIRD power switch died, I bought a spare amp to use while the broken switch on my vintage Yamaha was repaired. Expensive, but it kept me running. In the process, I got smart and actually found spare power switches for my vintage Yamaha amp on eBay for a silly fraction of the cost of a shop repair. I repaired it, but put it in a box while I use the new spare. But the new, in-service spare has no switched outlets for my tuner. So I bought a switched power strip. It's somewhat awkward to use since it's tucked into my cabinet, but the power strip applies power to the amp and the tuner. Should the power strip go bad, it's a pittance to replace vs. replacing the switch on the new amp. And since momma didn't raise no dummy, when I found the replacement switches for my vintage amp on eBay, I bought TWO, and tucked the spare into the amp! Bubo: That APC device is a lot more elegant than my power strip. You're right; it doesn't appear the 15A version is currently available and I don't need a 20A version nor the expense. However, I see there are quite a few 15A versions on eBay and you may just have enlightened me into buying one. I'm loading my Paypal account as we speak. Thanks! My only question is, how long is the power cord?

Tiny room? I suggest you first figure out where you would put it. Measure the space and buy a sub that will fit. THAT will determine what size subwoofer (in your case cabinet size rather than driver size) that will work for you. You will parallel the amp's speaker outputs between your Heresies and your sub. Make sure the sub you choose has speaker level inputs as some do not.

Well that settles it; I don't know my wood grains and should stay away from the spray paint aisle! I'll leave well enough alone. Thanks!

I bought my Heresy II's used. They're walnut veneer. I've had them maybe 3 years. I've just now noticed the risers do not appear to have the same veneer as the cabinet. I'm assuming they were usually built with matching veneer. There is a slight color difference probably not apparent in the photos, but the grain appears different to me. It's entirely conceivable to me the previous owner bought the risers separately. See what do you think. Yeah; I'm thinking if I'm right, I want to paint the risers satin black. It won't hide the grain difference but it will eliminate the color difference.

Have you people actually LISTENED to the latest audiophile grade power poles? There are tremendous differences in soundstage, depth, and clarity versus standard poles. Dynamic range and imaging is at another level too. I actually have three poles outside my house, all of different materials. I switch poles based on the music I'm playing; certain woods sound better with LP's, CD's, or streaming. McIntosh, Mark Levinson, Cardas, Audioquest, and more; they're all developing poles for the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show. They will just need a convention hall tall enough to exhibit them.

OP says he gets "a very quiet sound and slight vibration". I interpret that as some signal is getting through.

I'd be worried about veneer separation, vinyl finish separation, or cabinet damage. Anything over typical environmental temps i.e., how hot it might get in the summer, would be suspect.

I realize this may be overkill, but can you try the speaker inputs? I also agree with captainbeefheart-I'd at least try to have the amp repaired one time. I'd contact Klipsch and ask for the nearest authorized repair center. Another thought; it could be something as simple as a bad volume control on the amp. Does what little sound you hear from the subwoofer change as you rotate the volume knob?

First, I'd be certain the music you're using has a lot of bass content. If you're sourcing a string quartet for instance, you won't hear much from your subwoofer. Also, I'd use a CD for a source; if you're using LP's you're not going to have the low frequency energy to really get the subwoofer going. What connection method are you using-Left+Right RCAs, speaker level inputs, or single subwoofer input? What are you using for a power amp-an integrated, 2 channel receiver, or A/V receiver? If it's an A/V amp does it have speaker management and is it possible you have the subwoofer output turned off?

Since you like Yamaha products (As I do and own), I'd suggest you get a Yamaha A/V receiver such as the RX-V485. It has the same power as your current receiver. Why an A/V receiver when you might only use it for audio? Because it has a subwoofer output, AND it has a configurable crossover for the main speakers, your Heresies. I sure wish they'd make integrated amps with main channel crossovers but right now it appears that's only available in super high end amps. I just bought a new Yamaha integrated amp with a subwoofer output, but it still feeds a full-range signal to my Heresies. Sure wish the amp had an adjustable high pass crossover... I'm big on alleviating Heresies (which I own as well) from frequencies below their cutoff point. No sense in stressing them with frequencies they can't reproduce but might damage themA; leave the low stuff to your subwoofer. As a bonus, this receiver is extremely affordable. As has been said above; price should not be your metric i.e., don't think spending more is better or at least don't think you need to spend near your limit to get quality.

Find a company the specializes in renting sound and video systems (look for "event production company") and make them an offer. Same with DJs, etc. I'm sure there are some in your local market.

30ft. runs-16 gauge is fine. If you were using the full 40W of the Kenwood (not likely), the wires would see a mere 2.2A assuming an 8 ohm speaker. I like the Parts Express wire because of the black/red color coding which makes it easy-peasy to identify polarity. Edit: I forgot that I bought unjacketed (no jacket enclosing both conductors), TWISTED speaker wire because I was having an interference issue that I thought was being induced in the speaker wiring. I can't recall where on-line I found it but it wasn't Parts Express. It was red/black, twisted, and I bought a 50ft. length, cheap. I agree with Alexander-don't bother with copper coated aluminum. The big box hardware stores that sell Southwire brand wire will have at least one conductor of copper clad aluminum, to save money. You could buy regular lamp cord/zip cord as some have suggested. It's cheap, one conductor is identified, and both conductors are all copper too. The only reason I don't like it for speaker wire is it's not as pliable as speaker wire.

That was going to be my suggestion. You modified the Minimus 77s so there's no telling whether they have accentuated high end response or not. For the same reason, as far as I'm concerned, the LaScalas were modified too and no longer being original, you don't know whether the tweeter response has been attenuated as a result. Honestly; I think if you're using the speakers as a home theater setup, get a matched set of whatever and be done with it. I see that as the only way to get a balanced response to the system. Does your home theater receiver have provisions to tone adjust the surrounds separately from the main speakers? If so, you could try balancing your speakers through that menu.

Hope you brought your speakers to the basement with you!

The OP has a $1k budget. If they were to check the local used market, I'd bet they'd score a deal. Local to me, someone is selling a complete Klipsch 5.1 system, including a pair of RF-82s, for a mere $400. The subwoofer doesn't work but for that money, I'd throw away all the other speakers, keep the RF-82s and still be way ahead.