Maple RF-7's in the House

[wboffthelake]

When I was in High School, my first speaker purchase was a pair of Technics (3 way with 10" driver). Then I traded them in at Circuit City for a pair of DCM (3 way with 12" speaker). They had tons of slam and were very descent speakers. I couldn't imagine being in HS or College with a pair of RF-7's.

It sounds like you and I have had some of the same speakers. I still have my Technics 3-way 10" woofer speakers, with the plastic-y composite woofer and midrange, which I think cost maybe $50 each in 1995 at Circuit City. They are surprisingly good sounding speakers. I also bought, in 1997, from Circuit City, DCM KX 12 Series II speakers for $199 each. These are some POWERFUL speakers that sound pretty good and are 99db efficient without any sort of amplifier-killing impedance dip. I still remember the day I got them, where they replaced a pair of circa 1987 Pioneer 3-way 12" woofer tower speakers whose drivers were failing, and how amazed I was at how they literally shook the house.

About a year and a half ago, I bought a pair of Polk Monitor 70s on sale and was disappointed from the start. While they had somewhat better midrange accuracy, the bass and high treble could not even come close to the DCMs. I'm still surprised because M70s received great reviews. On the plus side, when used with the Polk CS2, they are pretty good HT speakers.

This past summer I bought my current RF-83s at half of MSRP since they were being discontinued. While they are head-and-shoulders above the Polks, my current amp can't handle the impedance dip and, when listening to music, it shuts off at around -12db, which is not very loud (See my other post on RF-83s and amps). I don't think my current amp is bringing out the full potential of these speakers.

So tell me, assuming you had the same DCMs I do, properly driven, how do the RF-83s compare to the DCMs, especially in terms of bass?

[Youthman]

That's too funny wboff. I'm not sure of the exact model number but these are what I remember them looking like 20 years ago (gosh that makes me sound old and I'm only 35 LOL)

They were 3 way and had a 10" woofer. Sounded pretty good, cones were plastic but produced a pretty good amount of bass. I was into rap at that time (early 90's) so all I cared about was how much bass it produced in my tiny bedroom.

Then I moved up to the DCM KX12 (not sure if they were the version II). Probably the original version but this is what they looked like.

They weighted a ton compared to the Technics. Probably due to the increased size of speaker magnet and denser wood. At the time, the bass on these were absolutely jaw dropping. Very tight, and with my little 100 watt x 5 Pioneer Dolby Prologic receiver, those babies pounded and the highs were clear too.

I don't think my current amp is bringing out the full potential of these speakers.

I originally was powering my RF-83's with an Onkyo TX-SR703 (100w x 5) but at that time, I did not have any rears. It handled the RF-83's and the RC-7 very well, no problem shutting off at high volume. Then I upgraded to the Yamaha RX-V1800 (140 x 7). Again, the Yamaha did very well, never once shut off on me, even with 5 speakers playing at high volume. When I added my Parasound Amp (220w x 5), I had better separation, and even more tight bottom end from the 83's.

A separate amp (apart from your receiver) is a great way to relieve the stress from the AVR and really open up your 83's to their full potential.

So tell me, assuming you had the same DCMs I do, properly driven, how do the RF-83s compare to the DCMs, especially in terms of bass?

That would be a total guess by me since it has been so long ago. I can't imagine what my Parasound would have done in terms of bass with the DCM's. There was no doubt they slammed but now that I'm older, I want a more balanced sound. One that not only goes loud, but is crystal clear, dynamic and reproduces music well. Another thing I like about the 83's is the height. It provides more of a "taller" wall of sound than I believe the DCM's could provide.

[wboffthelake]

Yep, those are the exact same speakers I have. I actually went back to my DCMs, from my M70s, for about a month prior to getting the RF-83s. Even though the DCMs were 13 years old, the M70s were absolutely nothing compared to them. After rehooking up the DCMs, I turned on the radio and the first thing I noticed was the deepness of the male DJs voice, that was simply non-existant with the M70s, along with a the return of the highest frequencies. They also "fill" the room with sound.

The reason I decided to upgrade from the DCMs in the first place wasn't that I was unhappy, I was just looking for even better, more precise sound. Ideally at least, I'm looking for powerful bass with ultra-detail and precision in the highs.

When I hooked up my RF-83s to my current AVR, while I immediately noticed that there was passable bass, less than the DCMs, I also immediately noticed background sounds that I had never heard before, coming from CDs that I had listened to hundreds of times. For example, detailed background vocals and details in the lead singer's voice that make you feel as though you are in the studio with them, keyboards that sound much more live piano-like, precision background percussion instruments, and the like. I too also like the higher tweeter of the 83s.

[Youthman]

Yes, that's probably one of the things we all love about Klipsch....detail. Just looking at the Klipsch Logo, it says POWER. DETAIL. EMOTION. That pretty much sums it up.

If you need more bass than what your RF-83's are doing, either add a solid amp to your setup or a bigger sub.

[wboffthelake]

Have you ever heard a pair of Cornwalls? I first heard of Klipsch back in the early 80s when my uncle had what I believe were a pair of Cornwalls. They were big, literally pieces of furniture themselves. He too was an audiophile and had the full setup in an entertainment center that spanned an entire wall, separate amp, big long analog dial tuner, a BSR EQ with something like 15 bands and a spectrum analyzer that was as wide as the component itself and I believe even a 20 Hz band, and even a reel-to-reel. His house is where I first listened to a CD.

I remember his system having room-filling sound, deep vocals and a clean bass "thump", along with seriously crisp highs from string plucks and cymbals. I wonder if what I'm looking for is some very low boost, like around 40 Hz or so. My Pontiac stock stereo has an EQ with a 40 Hz band, and seems to have the type of reinforcement I'm looking for. Do you know of any AVRs or pre/pros that have EQ band(s) below the typical 63 Hz?

Thanks for your input, and anyone else who has input. I'm really looking to get the right sound. I have always absolutely loved music and nothing would make me happier than that right sound, that simultanious combination of power and finesse.

[Youthman]

For music, I've always loved Harman Kardon with Klipsch. Pure sweetness. You might very well want to look into some heritage speakers for a 2ch setup. The heritage are 3 way design and many around here love them especially for 2ch.

[Youthman]

This is a great thread! Been on the fence about purchasing an SPL meter. Gotta get me one a them.

River, it's almost been a year now....did you ever buy an SPL meter? If not, you need to ask Santa to bring you one. []