Mike V

The three speakers are for TV - L/C/R. The TV is not yet purchased. When I listen to music, it will be 2 channels. Two of these these Forte IIIs fills up the room, no problem, but I am looking forward to a matched center speaker. I already have a media room with 7.1 and am happy with it, even though it is ten years old. I have no current intention of getting surrounds or a subwoofer for my "music room" with a TV. When I watch movies where surround sound might be enjoyable, I will use the media room. To be honest, I have tried, but failed to enjoy concert DVDs in my media room. Maybe I will like them better in my music room, who knows?

I guess in my excitement, I did not place this photo in the previous thread where I discussed my grand plan, and I did not explain very well that I had just opened these speakers and was just testing them for the first time (I have not tested the one on the far right in the photo yet). They sound so much better than my old Polk Monitor Series 11T's that I bought 30 years ago. My apologies for the confusion that I may have caused here. I have worked hard and I have a long list of Snob goals: 1) I am proud to be an experienced coffee snob that buys freshly roasted beans and grinds them for my espresso machine to make superb coffee. 2) I make my own beer, so I am getting to be a knowledgeable beer snob 3) I can fake wine expertise pretty well now 4) Audiophile Ever since I was a relatively poor kid, and could only afford a JC Penny stereo in high school, I have dreamed of being a true audiophile "snob" with high quality audio equipment. Now that I have put three kids through college, I am ready to spend. I was afraid these Forte IIIs might not be all the speaker I wanted, but after testing them in the poor setup you saw in the photo, on a Yamaha RX-V377 (that my son will be taking with him), I am certain I made a great speaker choice, and I will not need a subwoofer down the road. Frankly, I was shocked how well they sounded in the purely "make sure the new speakers work" setup. I think this room will have excellent acoustics when my setup and optimization is complete. Did I mention my architect daughter is helping me with the room design? I really do appreciate all the amp/AVR advice. I need got start making some more decisions, but I really wanted to get the most important part, speaker selection, completed first, and I am quite happy with these Forte IIIs in this testing mode set up.

I think I will be going with an AVR for starters. When I get bored and less impressed with that over time, and my bank account replenishes, I suspect I will be look at dual amping. Just do not say anything to my wife, who believes in budgets.

I am just testing the new speakers that just arrived. I have a grand plan, with a much better paint job, a large TV on the wall (left of this corner) and using these three Forte IIIs as L/C/R for TV watching (mostly my wife), and two channel 2.0 stereo for my listening pleasure, plus much nicer chairs to listen from. The furniture and everything else is going with my son as he moves out this weekend. I am converting a game room used mostly by my kids to a beautiful music listening room. I think my component stand will be to the right of the speakers and TV, where the TV in the photo is now. I was just testing two of these speakers. They sound so much better than what I am used to, I can only imaging how great they will sound when properly positioned and set up with a new AVR and components, plus a turntable that I have not had in 30 years, I thought I made this point earlier. I am a little disappointed people thought this was my final setup.

The three Forte IIIs have arrived. I replaced my 1989 Polk tower speakers on a Yamaha RX-V377 (I am giving to my son as he sets out on his own). I must say they sounded incredible! The cork flooring did not create as much bouncing echo as I expected, and I did not experiment with the location of the two speakers that I played via 2-channel stereo mode. I could not be happier. I am now 95% positive I will not be needing a subwoofer in the final setup.

Thanks for all this great advice - I gives me a lot to think about. I wish I was either going for just 2-channel or the typical media room 5.1 or higher - it would make this decision much easier. Turns out you can get Forte IIIs in a group of three - not sure if I will be getting three consecutive serial number speakers, or two with a third strangler thrown in. I will be satisfied with either. Now that I think about it, if I later decide I want more bass, and maybe want to add rear channels later, then the decision is easier to make, though I agree it seems wasteful to a receiver in which I will not use 90% of its options / capabilities.

I am converting a game room into a music listening room, and have decided on three Forte IIIs (L, C, R) and a large 75" TV on the wall. I will be using the room more for music and also doing learning / playing drums via DVD & Internet lessons. My wife will be mostly watching TV. I hope to use the Forte IIIs without purchasing a subwoofer - I do not need rear channels - we have a media room for that. Because I am using the speakers with a TV, I have been told I should probably get an AV receiver like the Marantz SR5012 or SR6012. I do not want to mess with a pre-amp/amp configuration for now. What type of integrated AV receiver do you all recommend? I really want some good sound for all types of music, and will be playing my old LPs after a near 30 years of silence, plus CD, DVDs, and iTunes. I would also like to experiment with streaming. What say ye, all you audiophiles with mega years of listening experience?

Heh. Now I think I have been talked into three Forte IIIs, left, front and center. This is my final answer.

Thank you for all your excellent and up to date information! I decided to move up to the Cornwall IIIs, and I am rethinking my finishes. Thanks!

Maybe I will get the Cornwall III's to match better the Heresy III center speaker, sonically and aesthetically with the darker cherry stain. That will definitely prevent me from deciding to add a subwoofer later, and I doubt I will regret buying the Cornwalls down the road. 😊

I definitely want the Heresy III for the center. This changing of the Forte III Cherry stain is disappointing. The Klipsch people answering my questions do not seem to be aware of the new lighter cherry stain, nor do they seem to understand the different grills. 🙁

Thanks to all you who gave me advice! Here is the reply I got from Klipsch: Dear Michael, Hi Michael,The Walnut, Cherry, and Black Ash finishes are the same on all Heritage line speakers.Any of those finishes will match and they will have the same grill.Hope this is helpful, Is the new cherry not as dark as the old cherry stain ? That is what I was going to order. I do not want black or a light stain - the cork floor I am putting in next week is a whitewashed wood color - almost off-white. Mike

So what would you charge to custom finish 2 new Forte IIIs and 1 new Heresy III?

I have decided on Forte IIIs for my new music room (converted game room). I will have a large screen TV on the wall, and a Heresy III for the center speaker. We will probably spend half the time listening to 2-channel music (TV off), and the other half watching TV with center channel. This decision is made, so please do not try to talk into something different (we already have a media room for movies - 7.1). My question is this: For aesthetics, what are the possible matching finishes/grills to match the Forte IIIs with the Heresy III? I am open to any color / style. Will there be a matching problem? Can I order from the factory and customize the three speakers to meet my wishes? What are the options for me? Thanks! Really looking forward to listening, but I want them to look great, too!

For some reason, I have my heart set on IIIs, and the technical advantages they should have. I'm not looking for someone my age. I want a trophy speaker pair.

Thanks for your responses! I had no idea the "real stereo" stores have nearly died out. My old "listening room" is still alive in Saginaw, MI (I lived nearby in Midland): https://www.hifishoppesaginaw.com/quality-products. It amazes me that I cannot find a similar store in Houston! BTW, I walked into the one store I found in Houston, the salesperson asked what I was looking for, and I said at the top i=of my listening list is Klipsch, and he replied that I could find those at Target. So I asked what brand of speakers he had, and he replied that they only carried B&W. So I replied with a "they certainly are the trendiest speaker of the month these days, aren't they?" My daughter is waiting for me to pick the speakers so she can start her design - no one is changing my mind on that. But she wants to learn about speaker placement and his to design and arrange the room for optimum listening experiences. We will learn together. She is guessing that half of her potential customers will be like me and be very involved and experimental to get the right sound and will work closely with the architect, but the other half will not, so she wants to design music rooms that get the basics right, at least. She grew up listening to my 70s music, and she asked to use my old LPs to frame and decorate her bedroom when she lived here, so I think is the right person for the job. Speaking of old, I just got an SPL meter to help me balance my speakers (I do have a media room that needs a little work), and I am learning just how noisy / quiet my house is in different room, and out here on the patio. Our backyard lines up to rail tracks, and I learned last night our noise was 73 dB when the diesels went by, and 66 dB with just the railcars rattling by. 38 dB when the train was gone (cicadas in the distance). Also, when I use the lawn mower and edger and blower today, I will take measurements. I need to protect my hearing now so I can enjoy my speakers 10, 20 years from now.

I am turning our 2nd floor "game room" into a music listening room - it is 16'x20', and my architect daughter is helping me design the room - I am looking for an old school minimalist look, maybe with some 70s flair. The Heritage line speakers "look" perfect for the room, but f course I need to hear them. At first, I thought the Heresy IIIs would be great, but I want to listen to them and some of the bigger ones, like the Forte III and the the Cornwall III. I thought living near the 4th largest city in the US, Houston, I would be able to find a Klipsch dealer with these speakers to listen to them, but I have come up empty-handed. One store that is a Klipsch dealer near me does not want to spend all that money for floor models to listen too. Using Google, I have come up with nothing. Seems like every "home stereo" store is a Home Theater installer, and some promising stores are not open on weekends! Where are the good old high end music stores I remember from the 70s though the 90s? Can anybody here help me find a place? Thanks! I am attaching the measurement of my room. PS - my daughter is consulting with audio experts in Philly - she wants to learn about this because she thinks a bunch of old guys like me (56) are going to be doing the same thing when their children leave their homes. I think she is right. I want to choose the speaker first - everything else will be "standard" size, but the speakers can vary a lot. I do not want the modern "tower" speakers because they do not look 70s.