How were you "introduced" to the KLIPSCH Heritage Line?

[Chris A]

"Nevermind"

[thefluffy]

I was introduced to the Heritage line at birth. My dad has a pair of Cornwalls. I had the privilege listening to a lot of older rock throughout my childhood on them. It wasn't until I was a teenager that I really got interested in them. I remember doing a report on speakers in the 9th grade. At the same time, my dad was purchasing some newer reference series stuff to make a HT system with his Cornwalls. My dad asked the older salesman at Custom Audio in Little Rock for some more technical info on Klipsch speakers. Little did I know, I was given what I could later find out to be excerpts of Dope from Hope!

Daniel

[Mallette]

By a fine old gentleman who was quite the salesman.

Funny name...Paul Wilbur Klipsch.

Dave

[davis419b]

My hobby was drag racing for over 20 years until I gave it up in the fall of 2007. I sold everything I had and with a pocket full of money I wanted to get into audio and video so I would have something to do on Friday and Saturday nights. The only speakers I could remember were Bose 901,s so I bought 3 pair before I heard the first set. When I got them I knew I was going to enjoy 2-channel as my hobby. I kept looking for more speakers to listen to and found a set of 1980 Klipsshorns that were one owner and in mint condition. They were absolutely beautiful and I knew I wanted them but didnt know anything about them so I came here and joined the forum. I posted a thread looking for info on them. I got alot of great responces but 1 has always stuck in my mind, it was from " Master Thebes ". Be careful of the advice you take from this guy because it can lead to a serious adiction. Here is what he said.

< QUOTE >

Welcome aboard. Seriously, the very first thing I would do is box up those 901's, return them, get your money back and put that towards buying the Khorns. For your info Bose products are almost universally scorned among serious stereo folks for being overpriced and massaging the sound they produce. Khorns are absolutely wonderful speakers. Used would be a great way to go until you figure out if you are going to stick with the hobby. Since you considering 1980 models you should definitely spend a few bucks on new capacitors in the speaker crossovers. Typical capacitors have a useful service life of 20 years. A fellow called BEC on this forum can fix you up with those.

I have owned over 50 pairs of Klipsch speakers in the last 2 years trying everything in the heritgae line and still have 13 pairs including 2 pairs of Khorns. I cant imagine not ownig Klipsch speakers from now on ! I definately have my favorites !

Don

[normalnorman]

I knew the speakers were in my uncles living room for years in my childhood. I didnt know what they were...I didnt even know they were speakers to be honest! As the years past my family moved and I hadnt been to my uncles house in about 20 years. When I finally returned to his house after two decades had past the first thing I noticed was the monster oak cabinets in the corners of the livingroom. "What the hell are those things?" "Those are Klipschorns. Wanna hear them?" And the obsession was born. I was absolutely amazed by what I was hearing and seeing! I knew very little about stereo equipment at the time. I knew that my crappy HTIB was 100 watt per channel. So I asked him "How many watts is your amp? Like 500?" "Nope. 100" Again...amazed. The volume was so loud, almost overwhelming. Yet the music sounded calm, controlled, natural, alive. After I left his house I couldnt stop thinking about the sound. I didnt have any idea that sound like that was possible in your own home. So after spending hours upon hours researching and obsessing about Klipschorns I am including them in my 5 year plan! Get married, have kids, buy Klipschorns.

[Zeke_in_KC]

I was fumbling around neighborhood garage sales and came upon two big boxes with no grills. They were, clearly, three-way designs and the back (paper tab) said Klipsch.

$40.

I figured I couldn't go wrong.

When they guy delivered them, he had located the original cane grills.

I re-glued some veneer, used a staining pen in a few places, fixed the grills, re-did some internal wiring and tightened everything down.

1984 Cornwalls. FORTY BUCKS.

[chisoxpurdue]

My father had four Klipsch speakers as long as I can remember. And as I grew up with them, I assumed that is how everyone had speakers like that. It was later that I realized how lucky I was. My friends like to show off their stereo and I just have a hard time listening to it. People were blown away by what I took to college (four Sound Dynamics 1500 Concert Monitors) and I thought they sounded good but not close to what was at home. I have learned to deal but glad to be with the good stuff again. I will hopefully never be without Klipsch again. And Zeke, what a find: Cornwalls for $40!

[pauln]

I guess my story is pretty typical... In college.

My first roommate decided to get speakers, so we went to the HiFi shop and brought back three sets of speakers to try out (hard to beleive that they let us loose with three pairs of speakers!). They were the new big Advents, some popular JBLs, and Heresys.

The Advents were really good but needed about 30W to start sounding right.

The JBLs sounded totally plastic synthetic unnatural, and the woofer danced around with about a 2 inch excursion even during the lead in groove.

30 seconds of Heresy and we knew we had speakers.

The next year (with a new roommate) I bought a pair of Heresy, and the year after that he bought a pair. I think a lot of Heresys got bought in the seventies from direct listening like that.

I had mine for 25 years and passed them to family members when I got La Scalas.

[dmgreger]

I was in Okinawa Mar '89-'90, Camp Foster 1st MAW. Went to the PX one day to listen to speakers. Went into the speaker room saw they had a pair of Klipsch Tangent 50s and a pair of Bose 601s hooked up to a Nakamichi (90watt I think) receiver. so I cranked it up to about halfway on the Bose, then without turning it down clicked right over to the Klipsch.............SOLD! Just under $750 and TWO Cab rides to the barracks! Ran them from a Carver C-2 Pre-amp, Carver m200t amp, DBX 120X-DS Xover, DBX cd Player, SAE A202 amp to a DBX SW-3830 sub. Traded the Tangents to a guy for a pair of Cerwin Vega D-9s when i got back in the states..............shold have Never gotten rid of them!

[Coytee]

bumped into them on the subway.

Is that where their woody sound comes from?

[:^)]

[wwh]

When I was a kid, our next-door neighbors had a pair of Khorns. My brother and I were roughly the same age as their kids, and we became good friends. I first heard the Khorns at various birthday parties, Halloween parties, etc., mostly playing kids music.

The Khorns were big, powerful, and had a quality that I couldn't describe, that was lacking in my 10 year old self's Sears all-in-one stereo.

Later, when I was in high school, I migrated to components. I had a much better cassette deck than turntable, so I used my neighbors' system to transfer many of my LPs to cassette, partly because they had a better turntable, and partly because it was an excuse to listen to my stuff on the Khorns. :-)

Then five years ago, they moved out of state. I offered to buy the Khorns, they agreed, and after some refinishing, I've been enjoying them since.

Interestingly, my Khorns are the only speakers from the Heritage line I've ever heard, but I've been sold on them since I was 8.

- Bill

[Rivernuggets]

I offered to buy the Khorns, they agreed, and after some refinishing, I've been enjoying them since.

Very cool you own the pair that sucked you in. [Y]

[Travis In Austin]

Walked into Myer-Emco in July 1980 with a sweaty wad of bills in my pocket. They were unpacking a pair of zebrawood cornwalls to use as floor models. I'd never heard of Klipsch but they were so beautiful, I counted out the $1400 plus tax (made the salesman's day) and had them loaded into my Dodge Tradesman. The rest is history as they say. 30 years, 3 college houses, 5 other residences, a wife and 2 kids and a tube amp later, they still reside in my family room. I'd give up my Khorns long before I would let my Cornwalls go. Too much sentimental value. Plus, they do sound amazing!

Gee Gary, how on earth would you have that much cash laying around in 1980?

[Mrtie]

I grew uplistening to my father's KG4's, enjoyed the sound, went through most of Klipsch's pc media speakers and enjoyed those. When I moved out of home I took the KG4's with me. The bug however was in my blood, scoured craigslist for a long time, ended up with my la scala's for $400, and I've been a pretty happy camper since, di the crites 4500 network and tweeter upgrade, and have been playing around with a couple small power tube amps. I ultimately want khorns, but being poor and young means I'll be waiting a long while with my eye on craigs list and garage/estate sales. As it stands I'm still very pleased with my La Scalas.

[tyler8]

At college years back in Fulton Missouri. A friend brought home Hersey's. I had never seen nor heard of them before.Thought I had never heard anything like them till they disappeared a week later and were replaced by Cornwalls. Still recall the first album he played, Supertramp, Crime of the Century. Have the album and the speakers today along with a set of Forte II's.

Haven't heard or owned anything bigger in the Klipsch family than those yet but I am working on it.