Changing the Commercial Forum

[Professor Thump]

Okay Folks… We are planning on redoing the Commercial Audio category to be more Pro and MI oriented? This will include live gigs and home recording. Your thoughts?

Here is what I am currently thinking:

Commercial Audio: Commercial Audio (change to) à Pro Audio & Touring

Let’s add PI as a sub to Pro Audio

(Add) à Permanent Install (maybe architectural covers this – which means it should be in Commercial Audio instead of Home? This would be broader to cover House of Worship, Stadiums, Arena, Pro Theaters

à

MI Gear

I will add threads for: Guitars, Guitar Amps, Bass Guitar, Bass Rigs, Keyboards, Drums, Vocals and more in this category.

à

Vintage Vault – Collectable Vintage Pro Audio and MI Gear (I could fill this category with collectable that I am aware of)

à

Back Stage Pass – Backstage with the band, Live Performances – Introduce your band

à

Recording – Home VS Pro, Digital VS Analog, iGarage, Digital Performer,

Another category could be

“GIG”

- Live, Live Performance or Artist (Touring would move down to here)

So let’s consider this:

Pro Audio

Hang – Permanent Install Discussions

G

ig - Live Sound Discussions

-

Touring

-

Stage Gear

-

MI Gear

-

Guitar

o

Vintage Vault

-

Bass

-

Vocals

Track – Recording Discussions

o

Home

o

Digital Home Studio

o

Post your song

o

How to publish

[Guest " "]

this may come as a shock...I don't use the fourm structure....I just check unanswered and active discussions...the section on the right....it does not matter to me where the threads were intiated.

a survey as to what the user behaviors are may be helpful in planning changes.

[colterphoto1]

Has there really been much chat about some of these categories that it needs to be split up so finely?

For instance, even commercial installs- they just don't get talked about on the Forums at all, or are up in Technical section.

I can't speak to the MI crowd, but don't recall seeing many posts about that subject here.

Same with House of Worship, maybe a couple of threads by Doc.

This section had nearly no activity until a couple of years ago. Look to see who started many of the threads on the first two pages. yup.

[Professor Thump]

Point noted Michael...

I think the "commercial" term by itself is boring and certainly not compelling for the majority of forum users. That is why I want to change the top level to some term referring to "Professional" (Pro Audio & Touring) instead of "Commercial".

My main goal is to have buckets for new genres that we currently don't have. There are very few topics that musicians would talk about in our curren threads if they are only focused on Live Sound.

[sunburnwilly]

Something I have asked for before . Would it be so bad to show the baseline prices of the speaker systems ?

[DrWho]

I think just changing the name to Pro Audio covers all the bases....no real need to subdivide into other categories.....unless Klipsch plans on getting back into the pro world beyond cinema?

[colterphoto1]

I think just changing the name to Pro Audio covers all the bases....no real need to subdivide into other categories.....unless Klipsch plans on getting back into the pro world beyond cinema?

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[Joey B KP600]

Hi Guys;

As you know all I use is Klipsch speakers in my sound co. 24 box KP 600 system and so on!

But if you are going to call it pro audio you should be in the pro audio business !! Klipsch pro audio has come and gone many times in the past number of

years. We pro dealers do not know weather we are comming or going. To try to talk to someone of knowledge at Klipsch these days about speakers made

even 5 years ago is like pulling teeth !!! We have no support on serious speakers like the KP 600 or the KP 450s or 456s. These were not your run of the

mill MI box, these were very costly systems. I am only writing this because I LOVE the product. Nobody horn loads like KLIPSCH!!!!! PLEASE BRING PRO

BACK. JOEY B KP 600

[colterphoto1]

"We have no support on serious speakers like the KP 600 or the KP 450s or 456s."

well you used to, maybe again someday.[8-)]

Joey- did you get my message the other day? Need to talk to you about EP4, EP8 connectors.

Michael

[Professor Thump]

Well Joey,

I am an optimist. I also am a BIG fan of Big SPEAKER SYSTEMS. There is plenty of talent at Klipsch to do Pro Audio again if we see fit. We just have to find the opportunities. With the market shifts in this economy the time may come quick enough to do pro again, or at least MI gear.

It starts with an interest from the consumers. So don't give up yet.

BTW...keep up the good work. I can appreciate a man with KP-600 for their FOH speakers.

[Joey B KP600]

Thanks for the reply. I am an potimist I started with La Scalas, then to 3 way MCMs and then on to 4 way MCMs and finally to KP 600s. I really do like the product. I also recone and with Klipsch not offering recone parts any more we have had to go to the aftermarket. Case in point original K 45s in the KP 450s, original cones are scarse. I know the new K45 ep II is availible but some people are pureists and they want original parts. Replacing a K 42E stamped frame driver in a pro Heresy or 201 with a later cast frame K 42 E or K42 KP it does not fit the original grille.

Its a shame I can get parts for a 1960 K Horn but not parts from a Klipsch made 5 years ago. I only say this because I do LOVE the pro products to a fault.

Don' t forget when you install a 100K theatre sound system, that system will be in use for 15 to 20 years. When you sell pro speakers to Rock and Roll or the live industry you get repair and part sales for many years. I am repairing KP 320s now for a DJ.

Anyway thanks for reply KP 600 the system ef systems!!!!!!

Thanks Joey B

[colterphoto1]

Thanks for the new categories Thump. Are we going to sort the old threads by category so they can be searched easily? All of my 'how to refurbish' posts should now probably appear under the Vintage or Touring columns as they are mainly about KP loudspeakers and not much to do with permanent installs whatsoever. Just a thought mang.

Worked a Midas console a bit last night- wow what a beauty!

M

[thackmate]

G'day Michael ......which Midas? I headed up Midas, DDA and KT after my days at Klipsch Pro and Community. They are nice boards and great to work eh?

Re the change of format for this forum ....why? Was it broken?

[thackmate]

gee Thump ............. heady words there .............."I think the "commercial" term by itself is boring and certainly not compelling"

...............when we started selling Klipsch speakers for commercial use we called them "INDUSTRIAL" versions (there are a few of us left) ..............I guess it's nice to see the name Klipsch Pro in use again

[Professor Thump]

I didn't state that to take away from the product, but if I was new to the forum I would much rather see the term "Pro" instead of something that associates with the thing I avoid when watching TV. Thanks for digital recorders!

I like you idea of "Industrial" That is a great concept in general and a good definition for a lot of our designs. We are still striving to give our customers the best value for their money....Thanks for being a part of that!

[Professor Thump]

Hi Guys;

As you know all I use is Klipsch speakers in my sound co. 24 box KP 600 system and so on!

But if you are going to call it pro audio you should be in the pro audio business !! Klipsch pro audio has come and gone many times in the past number of

years. We pro dealers do not know weather we are comming or going. To try to talk to someone of knowledge at Klipsch these days about speakers made

even 5 years ago is like pulling teeth !!! We have no support on serious speakers like the KP 600 or the KP 450s or 456s. These were not your run of the

mill MI box, these were very costly systems. I am only writing this because I LOVE the product. Nobody horn loads like KLIPSCH!!!!! PLEASE BRING PRO

BACK. JOEY B KP 600

These are terrible but pardigm shifting times for all and Klipsch is no different. I have never seen economy in such poor condition in my almost 50 years. We have lost a lot in this country and at Klipsch.

It reminds me of the anology to the Jack Pine Tree. I know by this time you may be saying that Professor Thump is really going off the deep end and not just "over the hill", but bare with me. ) The Jack Pine Tree needs certain conditions to regenerate, apocalyptic proportions to multiply. The cones will not open until the temperature reaches 50 degrees C. Thus a forest fire is the only way for the Jack Pine to repopulate. The point I am trying to make is that there is opportunity in most any difficult situation, opportunity for human growth and opportunity for companies to rebirth into new ways of doing business.

Headphones are a prime example of opportunities that Klipsch is making to morph into new categories of business. Right now we have multiple models of headphones coming out that we think are going to take the world by storm. Mark my words. We are on the cusp of something big. Time will tell as to whether I a right, but we now have headphones at all pricepoints, from the ultra affordable to the exotic. But this isn't a thread about headphones this is a thread about opportunities.

Many of our competitor are struggling to stay alive in this economy. We wish everyone well, but this is survival of the fitest. The law of the jungle. Well I will ignore the banking systems and US carmakers since the gov't is taking them over, but other than this the world transforms due to natural selection. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

JBL for example is a standard of the industry, but they are struggling due to their automotive segment which was the big growth area. Pro audio for anyone is a flat growth business. There isn't much to grow on when the demand is somewhat static. This make the current status even worse. There is no growth in most business and Pro is even worse. So for Klipsch to go pro again tomorrow is doubtful. We must focus on instant turnover of cash to keep the banks happy. This doesn't mean that we aren't going to experiment though. Our website direct sales could be a growth area for us. This would allow us to put more models on the website for sale that are not offered by dealers. Promedia is a prime example. Last year we did a large volume of sales for Promedia but we didn't make any money because the dealers needed their cut. There was nothing left for Klipsch. We didn't want to devalue the product to make profit because this wasn't fair to the customer, so we are going to sell it direct only and keep the quality and performance at a level that our competition won't meet.

So if the Jack Pine can populate in the firestorm so can Klipsch.

It will be interesting to see where this all takes us 5 years from now. More to come...

[thackmate]

"Industrial" was not my idea ..................I believe that was P Wilbur who suggested it to Jerry Werner ............

[BLSamuel]

Headphones are a prime example of opportunities that Klipsch is making to morph into new categories of business. Right now we have multiple models of headphones coming out that we think are going to take the world by storm. Mark my words. We are on the cusp of something big. Time will tell as to whether I a right, but we now have headphones at all pricepoints, from the ultra affordable to the exotic. But this isn't a thread about headphones this is a thread about opportunities.

No this is not about headphones. But The new Image S4 and Image S2 should FLY off the shelves. Especially the Image S2. Think about it ... $50 compared to the standard $30 for iPod ear bud torture devices. And they sound so MUCH BETTER (no comparison reaally) and are MUCH more comfortable. The key is just getting the word out. Creative marketing. Get the teenagers to try them and voila, sound quality might start mattering again. Start 'em on Klipsch in ear monitors and guess who they'll think of for speakers. And the new HD HTIB speakers? The sound of Klipsch starting at $300 and $500. I'd bet the farm, if I was a betting man, that they'll stomp the competition at the same price points and many that cost much more. Just remember, Klipsch does not rhyme with hose.

So try to get back on topic. Yeah, Klipsch doesn't reaaly create products specificalay for portable sound reinforcement but I think many of the professional cinema models can work for permanent installs and maybe could do some cabs such as the KI/KP 362, some form of pro Heresie etc as direct sales.

And guess what. If people hear how great 20 and 30 year old Klipsch pro speakers sound they might be more inclined to check out Klipsch speakers. Look at it this way. While Klilpsch has changed dramatically over the years, they still have stuck to their principles and there's a good reason for that... it doesn't get much better.

Now back to the earphones.... while $50 is very affordable, esepecially for the sound quality, I've heard the S2 but only for a few minutes (IndyKlipschFan's home theater was beckening after all) and they don't sound like $50 'phones neither do the $80 S4 sound like $80 'phones though I'm not sure I didn't like the S2's better? I posted a few first quick impressions over in Headphones. The Legendary Sound of Kliplsch that fits in one's ears - how COOL is that? [8][8][8][H][8][8][8].

(and I noticed the patent for the gels included hearing protectors, stethoscopes.... ok ear gels for stethoscopes probably wouldn't cost a lot but think of the thousands of health care professionals sticking those obnoxious hard painfull looking things in their ears.... and I'm sure Klipsch engineers could engineer a better stethoscope..... )

And dang it, you got to like a company that has been producing the same basic speaker for over 60 years.... there's a reason for that. It doesn't get much better at anywhere near the cost.