ODS123

What don't I have a clue about? Please be specific. Tell me which of the following is incorrect and why: MDF is easier to veneer. (it's surface is more consistent. No knots, etc..); MDF is easier to make precise cuts, to shape, to route for recessed drivers; MDF is more consistent from sheet to sheet; MDF is slightly less expensive, but it's significantly heavier. MDF speakers are probably more expensive to ship due to heavier weight (which challenges the "Bean counters prefer it 'cause it's cheaper" argument); Klipsch Pro Series speakers have MDF baffles. As for my profession? ..Not that it matters but I've been in Sales/ Marketing for 30+ years. 25 in Automotive, 5+ in Pharma. And I too have spent plenty of time working with wood.

No, it is not much more expensive. It is more expensive, yes but not prohibitively so. If the likes of Vandersteen, Dynaudio, KEF, PSB, Paradigm, Legacy, and so on and so on could gain any sort of competitive advantage by using seven ply Birch, they certainly would. But they don’t. Today’s MDF has no voids, It’s easier to cut accurately, can be more easily routed to accommodate recessed drivers, and is easier to apply laminate’s, then PLY. Speakers that are going to be suspended and mounted in bus/ train stations, etc... like Klipsch pro series Can benefit from being ply because of the irregular stress is placed on the cabinet. Apart from that they’re only downside to a ply cabinet. That is, except it gives those who make speakers in their garage something they can seize upon and claim they do better than all of the brand names.

Couldn't agree more. ..A great great album.

If I had a catastrophic flood in my house my speakers would be the least of my worries as such a flood would likely destroy drywall, every appliance, my hardwood floors, my furniture, etc.. Ugh! And rather than having plywood speakers re-finished - which I'd have neither the time nor energy to do after a flood - I'd likely have them replaced along with everything else under my homeowners insurance policy. ..And my speakers have a 2" riser, so it would have to be an epic flood indeed. Less than an 1" or so I could probably get alway with just replacing the riser. Besides!! The Pro Series Speakers many here praise (partly) because of their plywood construction STILL HAVE MDF BAFFLES, so what then?? ..Seems to me they'd still be destroyed.

i’ve asked this before, and I will ask this again: why should speakers be any more water resistant than any other component in our HIFI systems? Last I checked, no amplifiers, R2R tape decks, cd players, turntables, tuners, flat-screen TVs, etc... were engineered with water resistance in mind. Why on earth do speakers need to be? i’ve had all of these for many many years and none of them have ever fallen victim to water damage. I find this obsession to be quite hilarious. It's like you're offering a solution that is in search of a problem. I've had probably 20+ pairs of hifi speakers over my lifetime and NONE has ever been water damaged. ..So for me to ever factor that into my selection criteria would seem patently redic. I’ve Notice that some of you have your system set up in your garages. Well, maybe that’s the problem. Set your Wi-Fi systems up in your house and maybe you won’t need to worry about water resisitance.

I'm predicting that whatever year the respondent happens to own will likely be his pick (sigh). Unless you've heard each side by side while blindfolded, you're likely just letting your confirmation bias lead you to a predictable conclusion. Now who would be in the position to listen to each side-by-side, volume-matched, and blinded?? Probably the people who design them, as in the team of engineers at Klipsch

It's a nice looking kit and it's always nice to see Klipsch gear being displayed and appreciated. That said, I wonder if the room might be a bit small for them? Anyway, thanks for the post. My set up is somewhat similar

Um, sorry but they sound no better than the crummy little speakers on the MacBook Pro I'm hearing them through. 😝 But as the owner of CW III's and a McIntosh amp, I can safely say that this setup probably sounds great in person.

really? ..Do you feel this way about cars too?? As for MDF, that's actually a step forward from PLY. Ply has voids, warps, etc.. MDF is more consistent from sheet to sheet in terms of weight, thickness and dampening qualities. And MDF is far easier to CNC/ route recesses, corners, etc.. This is why 99% of the best wood speakers in the world are made from MDF. Ply is still a good choice for speakers made for commercial applications where sound Q may matter a bit less than durability.

You love denigrating MBA types, yet w/out them there would be no Klipsch. Point to one successful Klipsch-sized company that does NOT rely on "MBA types" or accountants.

At more than 2” taller than the IIIs it will be a bit harder to fit these in with many decors. They were already gigantic. Still, I look forward to hearing them at my dealer.

Any word on whether they will use all birch ply in order to enhance water resistance?

To me this was a weird reply. ..From the outset it was odd. No "Thank you for the Review..." which seems to precede nearly every reply found in the Manufacturer's Response section? Why on earth didn't Roy speak (write) to the specifics of the review. The struck me a s strange reply and a sorely missed opportunity to provide some balance to what strikes most of us as a poor review.

So you tried pairs and each exhibited the same problem? . Are they close to each other in terms of production sequence? Perhaps a bad batch of crossovers were installed in the speakers and a regrettable laps in quality control failed to catch both pairs. As suggested I would ask the dealer to come out and take a look and to bring proper measuring equipment/instruments . My CWIIIs also extend down into the 30s with little change in output.

The problem is likely the volume control on the amp, not the speakers. Though it may be true that their high efficiency makes such channel imbalances more apparent. I sent back a Peachtree Nova, and a Bryson BP-25 (A preamp) for adjustment/ repair and neither came back totally balanced. Hence, I sold them. Sadly, i think it’s inherent in some volume control designs. This is one reason I suggest people NEVER get an integrated or pre-amplifier that lacks a balance control.

I don’t follow. I am referring to the Manufactures Response section in the back of the stereophile issue in which this review appeared. This section of the magazine is there to provide manufacturers a chance to respond to issues raised by a review. And there seems to be much here that Klipsch (i.e, Roy) could have responded to. Of course Klipsch would not want to come across as being defensive, but there’s nothing wrong with politely crying foul over bad measurement techniques

The manufacturers response to this review read like A few paragraphs copy/pasted from the website and brochure. Instead, why didn’t Roy take Atkinson and Dudley to task for these review irregularities everybody is talking about? Seems like a missed opportunity to me. The same thing happened with the forte review

How about this for $139? I have one that I use to drive our patio speakers. I have tried it with my Cornwall’s and it sounds great. Able to drive them to painfully loud levels without hint of strain or distortion. Plus, there are a lot of online reviews attesting to its reasonable reliability. The inexpensive monoprice amps and you mentioned would give me pause not because I don’t think they would sound fine but because I would worry about their reliability. https://www.crutchfield.com/p_021AMP100V/AudioSource-AMP100VS.html?skipvs=T Also, this has a balance control and on the back there are tone controls.

Personally, I think it's absurdly over-powered for those speakers. ...Here's my specific concern: I had a 2nd generation Peachtree Nova (just 85w/ch. I believe) driving my (then) Paradigm S8 v2's - speakers which aren't nearly as efficient as your H3's. While the amp sounded clean and clear at normal volumes, it had a peculiar problem when listening at quiet levels. Whenever I turned the amp down to a low (but clearly audible) level one channel would attenuate more than the other (I can't recall which). And since the amp lacked a balance control, there was NO remedy apart from sending back to Peachtree for repair. ..If memory serves, they simply replaced it. The second unit was slightly better but was still clearly off. If this issue is inherent in the type of volume control Peachtree uses, I wonder if you might experience this at regular listening levels since you'll likely be using so little of the volume controls rotation. As a result of my experience I resolved to never again own an integrated amp (or pre-amp) that didn't have a balance control. ..To my thinking, it's a bare necessity. And though many may not feel this way, I think most would agree a volume control that is linear is a must. As an aside, I do think Peachtree's gear is beautiful looking and has a nice solid feel.

Yes, that AND iIt doesn't advance the medium in any substantive way. ..It's cool to see a levitating platter. ..But does it reduce rumble or W&F in any noticeable way? ..No, not when grove noise is what it is.

Pretty cool but it seems to me this levitating drive approach Is a solution in search of a problem. We already have turntables with better wow and flutter performance and S/N ratios. The Technics SL-1210GR appears to outperform it in every respect that may be audible. And costs considerably less. I find it curious that in the video you do not actually see the needle land on the record. I suspect that initially the needle impact causes a little bit of wobble. Indeed, in the close-ups it looks like the whole platter is ever so slightly wobbling. I don’t mean to detract from what they’ve achieved. It’s very very cool. But it Has to move analog forward or it will simply be a fascinating gimmick.

I'm a subscriber and read the review. Although the subjective comments about the speaker were positive, the measurements were a bit disappointing. And I was a bit dismayed that in the Manufacturer's Comments section in the issue, Klipsch chose to simply copy/paste text from their brochure. ..Very strange. Typically, you'll find comments from an engineer speaking to measurement anomalies or functional issues, etc.. I would have expected some comments from Roy. Their review of the Heresy III was more positive, but lacked any measurements.

Patricia Barber music is very well recorded w/ great dynamics. ..Sounds like she's right in the room with you. The problem is, her music is sooo hard to like that you'll want to show her the door almost immediately.

Very very nice!,

Rather than adding the cost of subs to Heresy's maybe consider instead just buying Cornwall III's - they dig deeper, play louder, and probably take up less space than H3's and a Sub. I too love occasionally cranking music to ear-bleed levels and have been known to do so with a Bombay Saphire martini on-board. Still, I find the CWIII's to be extremely satisfying despite dropping off at the very lowest frequencies. The only time I miss a subwoofer is when I make my system pull double-duty as the L/R front and sub for movies. ..And even then ONLY when watching movies with lots of deep deep special effects which usually isn't my thing. ..I don't miss hearing explosions and the footsteps of T-Rex's enough to add another run of unsightly cables and another big box to our common room and deal with the challenges of finding the optimum crossover frequency, etc...