BobG2

Now if there had been a 'grid' midway between the second and third floor...

I must have been using my spd rdng technique when answering above. The SW-12 has no auto turn on/off. I WAS thinking KSW instead of SW. I apoligize. I leave both my SW-12's plugged in all the time and just turn them off when not in use. One is connected to an Adcom ACE-515 so it flips on with the rest of the gear. The infinitely adjustable phase control is very subtle indeed. That is why you won't find such a control on current models. No benefit to 99.9% of users. Even the +/- phase switch is difficult for many to adjust. Lose no sleep over this bass fans. Perhaps we should take a poll. How many systems have + vs. -? The cheater plug is needed to avoid ground loop hum. Use if your sub hums do not if it doesn't. That ground is good for safety reasons.

Lance, you must be bumming. Sorry for the trouble. You are hereby authorized to use a 1 amp fuse - Nothing Larger. If that blows, contact Trey at 800-klipsch. If you need to call, please be able to tell us if the fuse blows instantly on power up or if you can play for some period of time before it goes. Bob

Klipsch does not pack the System 6 components together, but merely suggests the combo. The fronts, center and rears were designed as a system and should not be substituted. Choosing a sub is based on how big the room, how much bass you like and how deep & loud you want it to go. Klipsch specs Maximu Output Level on their subs so you can make an intelligent choice rather than deciding based on driver diameter and power rating - specs which tell you little about how deep and how loud the sub will play.

The foot/wall bracket which is supplied with Quintet is not really intended for ceiling mounting. High on the wall pointing down is no sweat. Ceiling will cause you to take special precautions, such as cordoning off the area directly under the speakers to avoid nasty law suits.

If you EQ your system for "flat" response, you will have little bass and screeching highs. This is due to the direct/reflected near field/far field, power response deal. Flat as measured by the single position microphone measurement approach is not FLAT at all. Don't do it. On the other hand, there is something to be gained by correcting for room induced error. This is not the same as tailoring the sound to your taste - which is also fine since this is all for enjoyment. The tonal balance of the original recording is altered by your lisenting room. Usually, the room is the worst component in your system. Correcting for room induced amplitude error is not simple and if simple (graphic eq) tools are all that is available, it is best to go very gentle on the controls. Less is More (Ommmmm). With digital signal proceessing based eq, and sophisticated measurement, you can do a lot more and avoid the penalty which comes with analog eq. Digital eq is still expensive, but coming down in cost. 11th Commandment of EQ - Avoid the "smiley face" pattern.

Merely an indication of what it costs Klipsch to build that wood veneer box. Wish it were less. Woofers have different coil impedance. Can't use the same when one speaker uses a single and the other has two. Normal electrical stuff.

If your desire is to make your own, just choose an angle which points the speaker directly at your ear at listening position. Of course remember to grain orient the wood (OK that's a joke but I'm on my own time today)

If you turn KLF-C7's sideways, the dispersion pattern of the horn will be 60 degrees wide by 90 high, just backwards from that intended by Klipsch and specified by THX. Instead, wait for the new RC-7 which will allow you to rotate the horn back to 'normal' orientation when you run the speakers in a vertical position. Three of those across the front will be pretty cool as they will have other substantial performance enhancements over KLF-C7. Better drivers (especially the big compression driver in the "7" series and tapered array network. Coming soon to a (home) theater near you.

Some of the Epic series used a baffle with a vacuformed vinyl applied over the MDF material. Others were painted. If yours are the vinyl, you may try a vinyl patch material available at the nearest auto parts store. If yours are painted, you may try paint or, an easier fix can be black crayon rubbed into the nick then polished with a cloth to match the sheed of the baffle. Bob

Some of the Epic series used a baffle with a vacuformed vinyl applied over the MDF material. Others were painted. If yours are the vinyl, you may try a vinyl patch material available at the nearest auto parts store. If yours are painted, you may try paint or, an easier fix can be black crayon rubbed into the nick then polished with a cloth to match the sheed of the baffle. Bob

I use a 1/2" socket and HAND tighten using it for enhanced leverage. You can then get the binding post sufficiently tight on the spade lug and avoid spinning the binding post loose. Cheap trick.

Beware dealing with disreputable sources. You may not even have real s/n's on your purchase. That makes warranty unobtainable. Word to the wise.

Rather than spend much time discussing specs, I suggest you go to a dealer who displays the new RF-5 and RF-7 when they reach market. You can then judge the sound quality for yourself and decide if RF-5 or RF-7 are what you desire. Both will benefit from sonic upgrades over the wildly successful RF-3. I think you'll like them, but it's your ear.

All electronics make some unwanted noise of their own. This includes your amp, CD player etc. You can get some notion of the level by studying the signal to noise ratio spec for each electronic component. The noise of each device is additive, leading to an overall system s/n ratio or cumulative background noise level. Low efficiency speakers mute this somewhat while high efficiency designs reveal it. No harm is done to your speakers and you should try to forget it rather than focus on it. Play some music and try to hear it then. Can't, right? It's just the entropy of Mother Nature.

KSP-S6's were part of the KSP-400 system and were never meant to be a 'perfect' match for the Legend line. They were the closest available surround. When the KSP line went out of production, the KSP-S6 went along with them. The web site info is the most accurate. Best match available Today is the RS-3. There is a new, big surround coming soon and when it is available, it will be listed as best matching surround for the Legend line. It will also be superior to the KSP-S6.

SB-1's and other Klipsch models with T nut mounting hardware use 1/4 - 20 machine screws. That is 1/4" diameter with 20 threads per inch. This is the most common size in the world of consumer speaker brackets, but you can also just go down to your local hardware store and purchase molly bolts which use the same thread and diameter. A molly bolt will cost less than fifty cents each and will offer secure (though non adjustable angle) mounting. We should put this info somewhere on the bb'd. Thanks for calling this lapse to our attention. Bob

I have had lots of opportunity to listen to KLF-20 and KLF-30 side by side. There is a bass difference, especially in dynamic peaks. Checking the frequency response plots also reveals a difference on steady state test tones. All in all though, I would advise that you check out the forthcoming Reference subs to add to your system. Because a sub is designed specifically to reproduce the lowest octaves, IMO you'll get a better return on your added investment by using a high quality subwoofer rather than by upgrading to KLF-30's. People on this board will have suggestions as to which sub. If you have the patience, make sure to check out the new RSW subs - it won't be too much longer.

A di-pole speaker has drivers front and rear which are out of phase with each other, producing a very strong null (lack of output) directed to the side. That means, when the front facing drivers are going forward, the rear facing drivers are going backward. A bi-pole speaker has drivers facing front and rear but they are in phase with each other, meaning that when the front drivers are going forward, the rear drivers are alos going forward. This also produces a null to the side, but not as strong a null as a di-pole. To my knowledge, there is no such thing as a tri-pole or quadra-pole or any other such thing. This is all based upon the motion of the drivers relative to each other, not the shape of the cabinet. The idea of di-pole and bi-pole design for surrounds is to minimize sound directed at the listening position and increase sound directed front and rear. The sound reflects off walls and such, reaching the listener after several reflections. This produces a shound which is highly ambient and enveloping. It was a great approach for THX enhanced Dolby Pro Logic as that format had a mono rear signal of restricted bandwidth (100 Hz - 7,000 Hz). Now that we have Dolby Digital and DTS offering discrete rear channels with full bandwidth and resolution, di-poles and bi-poles fall short. The demands placed on surround speakers are greater with these new formats as surrounds must produce not only ambient/enveloping sound, but also must create image localization in the rear sound field. You cannot create localization when all the sound that reaches you is reflected multiple times on the way. Imagine taking your front speakers and turning them to face the wall instead of pointing at the listener. Imaging would be almost completely gone. To address this challenge, Klipsch created WDST design. In these surrounds, all the drivers (the company has created WDST speakers with 2, 3 and 4 drivers)are in phase with each other. They are not di-poles or bi-poles though most everyone thinks they are. Klipsch makes use of the unique ability of horn design to create surround speakers which seamlessly cover a 180 degree arc. That is, the sound anywhere in front of the speaker is very consistent, whether you are directly to the side or more to the front or rear. The result is a unique ratio of direct and reflected sound such that you get the big envelopment but also the localization of sounds lacking in all other types of surrounds. Klipsch WDST surrounds are the #1 selling line of surround speakers in the US specialty market and there are currently three models: the SS-.5, the SS-1 and the RS-3. There will soon be a larger model called the RS-7. When matching surrounds to your system, it is not only important to get the proper dispersion / directivity characteristics, it is also important to match the dynamic range of your front 3 speakers. Dynamic range is little understood by most users. It is the ability of the speaker to reproduce the enormous peak to peak volume range of music and movies with minimal compression. If you use poorly matched speakers with very different dynamic capabilities, the system will not work properly as the volume rises and falls. Perhaps you would be able to set the levels properly on the steady state test tones, but when the music gets loud, the more dynamic speakers will be louder than the others. When the music gets soft, the more dynamic speakers will be quieter than the others. Check the "speaker matching chart" on this site to see what WDST models will best match your KG5.5's and KV-3. You'll be able to build a fine system.

Though I don't have final dimensions on the new models, I believe that the RF-5 will fit. Also, you should keep your RC-3 as it will be a great match for RF-5. RC-7 is a killer designed to match RF-7 and RS-7. BTW, those RS-7's will be of interest to those who thought they couldn't live without KSP-S6. The crossover for the RF-5 will be a 2.5 way network with one woofer dropping out pretty low with the other running up to the tweeter. Don't yet have the optimal point chosen, but it probably will not be as low as 1K. this is done by ear after using all the technical guidelines. We find the ear to be the ultimate test.

Mike, Welcome to the Klipsch bulletin board where all life's questions are answered. Try posting your question to the ProMedia area further down the list. There, computer experts will see and reply. Me? Don't even have sound working on my home machine at the moment and I can't get it back. So, you definitely want to go to the ProMedia area for Qualified assistance.

First, file suit against the cat. You know, they have more money than you'd expect. Next, contact Klipsch at 800-klipsch and purchase a replacement woofer for the speaker. Easy to install and not too expensive. Third, get a restraining order on the cat. No closer than 20 feet from the center speaker. Maybe one of those ankle bracelets with the electronic locators so you know where kitty has been when you're out of the house. Cats are sneaky.

Since the Quintets have high pass crossover built into them, they can be run "large" without overdriving them with LF information. Setting is purely a trial and error proposition. There really is no way to advise what is the 'right' setting. In the process of listening and adjusting till you get it right, you will educate your ear and become a more skilled user as well. It's all part of the fun. You can't hurt anything.

Using two center speakers will be Worse than using a single. At best, using a second center would raise the volume of that channel a few dB. you can do that with your volume control. when you use multiple speakers, their output interferes with each other, making very bad phase and frequency errors. Just like dropping two or more rocks in a pond at once causes the waves to crash into each other damaging the wave shapes. Bottom line: beyond any impedance considerations, there is nothing to be gained from using that extra Heresy.

Cabinet dimensions are not available, but RF-5 will be similar to RF-3 in width and depth but taller by about 4", RF-7 will be similar in size to KLF-20 but a bit narrower. RF-3 does not use tapered array network. Both woofers handle the full range of bass information and both woofers share the ported cabinet. BobG is back in the USA