aniceplace Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 Hello All, First I would like to show my appreciation for this wonderful resource. I'm sure it will save me thousands in hard earned cash and sleepless nights. I just acquired a nicely preserved pair of KLF-30's and couldn't be happier. They've exceeded my every expectation when used with my modest equipment. Since I've stumbled across this forum and others, I feel the need to drive these speakers to their full potential and I would greatly appreciate any input from members who have experience with this style of speaker. I'm currently powering them with a Yamaha AVR RX-V673. Admittedly I bought this unit on an impulse and now regret not doing more homework prior to buying it. It's a nice unit, but only has 90 watts/channel and no pre-outs. I want to hear the KLF's shine and am considering spending another $1500-$2000 to compliment them. I'm not sure I fully understand the relationship between efficient speakers and the power demands made by them. The KLF's are rated at 102db sensitivity yet I keep reading that they need to have 200 watts of power? They are large speakers and I suspect they will need a substantial amount of power to keep separation at volume. I believe that a receiver upgrade is a must; either a low wattage unit with separates or a higher wattage unit say 140 watt/channel? Will I notice much of difference between my 90 watt Yamaha vs. a Denon AVR-4311 140 watt? Or should I get a modest value receiver with pre-outs and get a 2-3 channel amp for the KLF's? Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 Without me getting too long-winded, push them as close the wall/corner as you can get them for maximum bass. But pull them out from the wall/corner for wider sound stage. Pending on your preference. Also, there is a man named Bob Crites that sells aftermarket (but superior) driver diaphragms for the tweeter in titanium. Definitely worth a looksee. Www.critesspeakers.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 Oh....and welcome to the madness around here... [] Just a small piece of advise, more than likely the speakers you had before were not as efficient/sensitive as your monsterous 30's so set all you equal settings to "0" at first and increase them as you put in some listening hours so your ears can adjust. When I first got my 20's I had the system's. equal set for a pair of speakers that were on 87db efficient. Blew the tweeters out in a month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moray james Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 welcome aboard. I am going to suggest that you remove your woofers and horns and take a rubber mallet and check both your front and rear baffles to make sure the hot melt adhesive is ok. Klippsch had a serious problem with the hot melt used to install the baffles and they had to sue the manufacturer. With a rubber mallet whack around the seam of the baffle to the spaker case. If the baffle is loose you will hear it slap when you give it a whack if not I think you will be able to tell. If all is fine good if you have loose baffles get back and you can learn how to repair them. Second the KLF came witha stock poly tweeter diaphragm and they are the worst tweeter diaphragms Klipsch ever sold. These need to be replaced with the titanium tweeter diaphragms which you can buy cheap from Bob Crites they cost abound $60.00 a pair and they will transform your speakers. Klipsch uses titanium tweeter diaphragms in all their new speakers. After that there are all kinds of tweaks yu can learn about if your are interested but the baffles and the tweeters are a must if you are in any way serious about getting the best out of your KLF30. Best regards Moray James. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aniceplace Posted September 2, 2013 Author Share Posted September 2, 2013 Thank you for your suggestions. I have fixed the baffles and replaced the tweeters with the Crites titanium diaphragms. I'm considering replacing the cross-overs with a complete Crites replacement. Room placement has work out great while keeping the wife happy. My next venture will involve an up-grade to my current receiver and/or separates. Has anyone experienced a substantial improvement in separation with the addition of more power to these speakers. It will cost me plenty to reach the 200 watt/channel mark and I want to be sure there will be an appreciable difference. If anyone feels that the move from 90 watts to 140 watts would be sufficient to realize better separation please let me know. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 Can you confirm that you are using these for home theater versus any 2 channel stup situation? Are you planning on both music and Audio/Video? If HT, what kind and the number of you other speakers, as they will need a bit of power, depending? The answers to these questions would help us help you... Thanks and welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aniceplace Posted September 2, 2013 Author Share Posted September 2, 2013 I use them for H/T and 2-channel music listening. For H/T I want to run a 5.1 system. I already have a powered sub-woofer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moray james Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 vertically biamping with say 100 watts per channel will buy you more than a 250 watt per channel amp will provide. The great part is ho inexpensive 100 wattt stereo blocks are used. Best regards Moray James. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted September 2, 2013 Share Posted September 2, 2013 This is good time of year to get a new avr. Next years models will be coming out soon and checking places like BB and some online stores may results in a good pickup. I brought my avr for less than 1/2 price this time of year. A 120-140 watt Pioneer Elite avr will do the job. Under heavy stress they can deliver 300+ watts on a transient peak. Welcome to the forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aj72 Posted September 5, 2013 Share Posted September 5, 2013 Thank you for your suggestions. I have fixed the baffles and replaced the tweeters with the Crites titanium diaphragms. I'm considering replacing the cross-overs with a complete Crites replacement. Room placement has work out great while keeping the wife happy. My next venture will involve an up-grade to my current receiver and/or separates. Has anyone experienced a substantial improvement in separation with the addition of more power to these speakers. It will cost me plenty to reach the 200 watt/channel mark and I want to be sure there will be an appreciable difference. If anyone feels that the move from 90 watts to 140 watts would be sufficient to realize better separation please let me know. Thanks. I was recently at the same fork in the road your at now. Separates or new receiver? You will get many debates on this topic. I will just tell you my experience and it is right for me but someone else will have an opposing and probably not incorrect view. I went for separates after having an 80 watt per channel (5 channels) receiver for many years which gave me great pleasure and owed me nothing. I ran Klipsch KG5.5 as mains in a HT setup. I bought a seven channel power amp (185 watts/channel) cost $1500 used. At the same time I purchased a preamp ( $1200 demo three year warranty) and the difference in sound was amazing. Not saying I couldn't achieve the same result with a new receiver as I didnt audition any. My old receiver used as a preamp with the poweramp does also sound a lot better as I tested for interest. I then happened upon a set of KLF30 speakers which Ive replaced a couple of split woofers and fitted Crites titanium tweeters to. My original KG5.5's are now rears. Very very impressive speakers the KLF 30's. No need to change anything for a long time if ever in the speaker dept. In answer to your question it will possibly cost a bit more to go the separates path but the difference for me is substantial. My speakers no longer yell at me when loud with increased detail, imaging, and clarity. Not sure if the difference between 90 and 140 watts will give any sort of discernible difference but the brand you choose probably will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minkybut Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 I have a question, Will a Yamaha M-65 amp power my set of KLF-30's very well? It is 160 wpc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 Congrats on the 30's, I've owned lots of Klipsch, love the klf. Forget the Yamaha....just my opinion. Search the net for musical avr/preprocessor and you'll learn a lot. Power is secondary for quality sound, first is preamp. 50 great amplified watts is better than 200 watts of amplified crap.For mass production avrs Harman is a great unit, just not the newest models. Denon etc.....try em, I would suggest not deciding on anything until you audition several different manufacturers. This is where some get lazy and just want to buy something and live with it, believing they all sound similar, not correct. They sound very different actually to me. What's right for some is not for others, take the time to audition, you will be surprised and satisfied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minkybut Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 Thank you, what I really wanted to know though was what would be the minimum wpc to power these to their full potential? I also have a Nikko Alpha VI that is 300 wpc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 To full potential would require much auditioning, otherwise just unreliable opinions. But....for fantastic sound anything from 50 watts up is really good. But...I would like 200 watts of solid power just to have no reservations. I have had 500 watts per channel that didn't sound all that great on a Denon. I have had 75 watts per channel on a Rotel avr that was breathtaking. I would not put most of my money in amps but in preprocessor if quality matters, any good amp will do, just my opinion after owning dozens of highly praised amps and preprocessor. A 125 watt per channel Outlaw or Emotiva (for ex) amp will make 30s and your ears beg for mercy. After all that, if you have a poor room nothing will fix that except a good room, which is the most important of all. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avguytx Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 Minky, why don't you just start your own KLF-30 thread instead of dredging up the old ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minkybut Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 (edited) Thank you Fish for helping me. Edited June 14, 2016 by minkybut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 Not everybody looks at dates on threads, I know I don't. I think trying to answer a question is more important than the date a thread was started. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montego Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I have a question, Will a Yamaha M-65 amp power my set of KLF-30's very well? It is 160 wpc I use a Yamaha M-80/C-80 with my 30's and found it to be a good match. For critical listening you can run it in class A then crank it up for some loud and clear rock'n'roll. The KLF-30's are good for both and so is the Yamaha. Legendaryamps.com rates the M-65 at 170 watts plus... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckAb3 Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I use them for H/T and 2-channel music listening. For H/T I want to run a 5.1 system. I already have a powered sub-woofer. I've owned the 30's since they first came out. Got 'em for 2 ch listening but have evolved into a 5.1 HT system consisting of the 30's as main speakers, a KLF C-7 center and a pair of KLF-10's as rears. You can't beat that for a sonic match. I picked up the C-7 and 10's on the used market for a great price. You can do that too if you are patient. I use Marantz AV separates (processor and power amp) to run the system and find them superior to the Denon AVR I started with. Marantz pairs exceptionally well with Klipsch.Strong recommendation. Best of luck. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWL Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 "Marantz pairs exceptionally well with Klipsch". Couldn't agree more. [emoji106] Sent from my SM-G920R4 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.