JackStraw421

I appreciate everyone's input. I live in Southern Oregon, and unfortunately, haven't been able to track down a dealer with these setup; my purchase will have to be made sight unseen (unheard?). The vote so far seems split between the Heresy III and Forte III. I am very much a "night owl" and dig a speaker that remains coherent at low volumes. Guttenberg raves about how well the Forte III sounds at low volumes. Since the efficiency rating is very close between the two speakers, could I safely assume the Heresy III is also good at low volumes? Thanks again to everyone that has replied. I am taking all of this input to heart.

Good points avguytx and jimjimbo... the room is a dedicated listening space and is void of anything unrelated to the hobby. The actual listening space size allows for a 6' x 6' x 6' triangle; the speakers can be up to 6 feet apart and 1 foot away from the wall with my upholstered listening chair approx 6 feet back. Not very big, I know. Flooring is hard wood, on a slab (bottom floor), with a 5' x 8' rug in the middle. There are two fairly large windows (with curtains) to the left of my listening chair. avguytx - I've had NAD electronics in the past and really enjoyed their sound and price-to-quality/enjoyment ratio. And I'm sorry to hear about Steve's passing at such a young age... appreciate you sharing that.

Thanks for the replies CECAA850 and avguytx. I should've mentioned that I'm not interested in adding a sub to this config. And I knew I left something else out... the seasons! SS with Belgian blondes, lambics, and IPA in the spring/summer and Belgian quads, stouts, and porters in the fall/winter. 🙂 Seriously though thanks for the welcoming words.

Greetings fellow Klipsch owners, fans, First time posting, although I am grateful for the education I've received by reading through this site over the past few weeks. I have a total budget of +/- $5k, and appreciate any thoughts/opinions on whether I should be zeroing in on the Forte III with an "average" solid state integrated OR the Heresy III with a "good" tube integrated? Specifically, my research has led me to consider the following options for a 12' x 12' dedicated listening room: Forte III w/ - PS Audio Sprout NAD C 316BEE Rega Brio OR Heresy III w/ - Quad VA-ONE Quicksilver Audio Integrated Icon Audio Stereo 25 mkII My source material will be digital .AIFF files for the time being (I understand a dedicated DAC will be required if the integrated doesn't have one already built-in). My music interests are fairly vast and include Miles Davis, The Milk Carton Kids, Drive-By Truckers, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Art Pepper, The Band, Wilco, Brad Mehldau, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Traffic/Steve Winwood, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Dawes, Gillian Welch, etc. Despite the relatively small room size I am leaning towards the Forte III, particularly since an amplifier upgrade may be a more convenient and cost effective upgrade path in the future vs. an upgrade from the Heresy to the Forte. At 37 years old, I'd love to settle in on something that will last for many years. Thoughts? Any glaring fallacies with this line of thinking? Could I be missing something here? Thanks in advance y'all and cheers!