NOSValves Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 Last week I sold my SF-2's for near what I Originally paid for thm 6 month's or so ago and bought a new set of RF-3 IIs for $590.00 shipped to my door here's some pictures As far as the sound well I've been using my LK-72 Scott amp up there for months (7591 output tubes) and let me tell you this room is only 12' X 10' and these speakers make a huge difference. Bass gobs of it, Mid Range Gobs of it, High's while not like my Heresy's they are real nice. Its hard to believe what you can get for under $600 brand new on the Internet these day's. I'm very happy with them so far !!! ------------------ HH Scott 299 Amp HH Scott LT-110B Tuner HH Scott P-87 Turn Table JVC JL-F50 Turn Table Sony CDP-CA7ES CD Drive 1985 Walnut Heresey I W/Layne Audio Woofers KSW-15 Subs>c> This message has been edited by NOS440 on 07-17-2002 at 03:20 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug C Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 NOS440 I have a Decware Zen (2 watts/channel) and have been thinking about the RF-3II's or Heresy's. Was courious how you would compare the two? How much power does your amp have? You indicate the RF-3's make a big difference, in what way and compared to what speakers? Which speaker seems to provide the greatest volume output for a given power input? I'm looking for a fair balance between speaker efficiency and sound quality given that my amp only has 2 watts. My current speakers are 94dB sensitivity and I would like to go with something offering a bit more efficency such as the RF-3 or Heresy. Any input you could provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Doug C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted July 17, 2002 Author Share Posted July 17, 2002 Well I'm using a 35W intergrated tube amp on the RF-3 II and there 98 DB and they will litterally nock you into ear bleed mode. The heresy's are almost the same at 96db. I have them powered by a 20W intergrated tube amp and they play well above a 100 db without losing steam. 2 watts should still play well into the mid 90 dbs without a problem. Which speakers should you buy depends on the Music you listen too. I truely haven't had the RF-3 II's long enough to say which I like better. For hard hitting Rock and roll I think the Rfs most likely are better than the heresy's only time will tell . Craig This message has been edited by NOS440 on 07-17-2002 at 03:27 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 Welcome to the Reference Craig. I'm glad you like them.f> ------------------ Deanf>s> Klipsch RF7s - AE-25 DJH - AE-3 DJH - Sony 9000ES f>s> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug C Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 Craig, Thanks for the response. In my main system I use Paradigm Studio 100's driven with SS gear and twin SVS Ultra subs. This setup will go to insane volumes and is great for Rock. My tube amp and gear is set up in a separate room (12'x16'). Currently using a Marantz CD17 directly into the tube amp and Infinity Overture 3 speakers (94dB sensitivity). I have a bunch of CD's that I would not classify as Rock (acustic, lots of vocals, less dynamic material compared to Rock) which are not all that interesting on my main system. The tube amp gives all these more delicate recordings real life. Sounds like your online experience was a good one. Would you mind sharing where you ordered these? Thanks, Doug C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edster00 Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 Ditto to what Dean said Craig, welcome to the RF club (the RF-3's aren't ever gonna replace my Heresy's though)! In fact I am picking up another pair of Heresy's tomorrow! PS: Craig...is that your younger brother in the family photo? LOL! This message has been edited by edster00 on 07-17-2002 at 04:36 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qlele Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 >>Last week I sold my SF-2's for near what I >>Originally paid for thm 6 month's or so ago and >>bought a new set of RF-3 IIs for $590.00 shipped to >>my door here's some pictures I replaced my SF2 for a pair of RF-3II a month back. I am still disappointed with the performance of RF-3II as compare to the SF2. Unless I have a defective RF-3II, or I damage my receiver, I am still not very happy. I am thinking of going back to the SF2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jalen01 Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 Congrats Nos440, I love My RF-3II's for home theater. But, I think I need to get into tubes myself for music. I'm considering the Decware Zen That (Doug C) Has. Looking forward to a review once your breakin is complete. Doug C: If Your reading this what do you think of your Decware amp and what speakers are you currentlly running with it? Jalen ------------------ Pioneer 906s A\V Rec. Pioneer Cld-d580 Laser Disc Player Parasound P\Hp - 850 Preamp Rotel RB 976 Amp 3x150 watts for front 3 speakers. Technics 110x Cd changer Awia XD-DV370 (MP3) dvd Klipsch RF-3II Fronts Klipsch RC-3II Center JBL N-26 Rears Paradigm Mini's low\lvl jam sessions and bar-BQ's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted July 17, 2002 Author Share Posted July 17, 2002 Edster, Your hurting me dude LOL !!!!! That is me but about 12 yrs ago. Oh there not going to take the place of my Heresy's but none the less I'm Impressed with them. Doug C If I was you I'd be combing Ebay for some Heresy's if your going to listen to more Delicate recordings with them I think thy would do a better job. I myself would consider the Eagles as Delicate and love there aucustic guitars music on my Heresy's. Now Aerosmoth is RF-3 II all the way LOL !!! Email me and I will reply with the guy's email address. He's a Ebayer and I'm not all together sure he should even be selling these at this price but none the less there here and sound great LOL ! qlele I'm not sure how you could posibly think the SF-2 are even close to the RF-3 II's there has to be something wrong with something. What exactly is it that you don't like about them. The Sf-2 are fine speakers but to my Ears the Rf's just blow them away !!!! I just can't Imagine what RF-7s sound like !! Just trying to figure out how I'll get them in the Livingroom and still have a wife and family LOL !!!! Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jalen01 Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 Sorry Doug C, Didn't really read your last post. Jalen ------------------ Pioneer 906s A\V Rec. Pioneer Cld-d580 Laser Disc Player Parasound P\Hp - 850 Preamp Rotel RB 976 Amp 3x150 watts for front 3 speakers. Technics 110x Cd changer Awia XD-DV370 (MP3) dvd Klipsch RF-3II Fronts Klipsch RC-3II Center JBL N-26 Rears Paradigm Mini's low\lvl jam sessions and bar-BQ's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
12ax7 Posted July 17, 2002 Share Posted July 17, 2002 I sell Klipsch in a retail store.I've sold them for about 17 years. I love the RF3II. Of all the new RF series I would have to say it is my overall fave. The RB5 is also high on my list. I'd really love to hear RF3's with a SET amp though. I imagine that it must be a pretty good combo. Doug- "RF-3's aren't ever gonna replace my Heresy's though)!" What exactly makes you say this. My experience is limited with the Heresy's. I've really only heard them with crappy Solid State stuff. Compared to the RF3's with equally crappy SS stuff the RF3's can compete with traditional designs < 3d sound stage,tonal balance is not obviously a horn ect} but it kills the other designs in traditional Klipsch virtues of both low level and loud dynamics.[P> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug C Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 Jalen I like the Decware amp. There is something very captivating about all the detail it is able to reproduce. The Infinity Overture 3 speakers get plenty loud with the 2 watts the Decware outputs but the sound to me is a bit one dimensional compared to other speakers I have heard. I'll be stopping by a local Klipsch dealer with my Decware amp today and give a listen to the Decware / RF3II combo. Doug C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 RF3II = great choice = best speaker bang for buck out there new. I have also played with them connected to my push/pull 50 wpc KT88's. They are a wonder to behold and they go way way way too loud!!!! My friends tested them at volumes that forced me into the garden. Once we got the volume down to reasonable levels I was amazed by their sound - really good. In fact I was beginning to think they might be better than my Heresy's until we switched back. Heresy's do voice better and mids much better but the RF3 has gobs of bass. To compete with that you need to add a sub to the heresys but when you do.....it is the next best thing to larger Heritage speakers. One thing I do believe about the RF3's however is that they are far more accomodating of poorer components up-channel than the Heresy's. Heresy's can sound bad in the wrong setup - something I have never heard RF3's do whatever is powering them. Just my $0.02 ------------------ My System: http://aca.gr/pop_maxg.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 Craig, Congrats on the new addition! Please let us know what you think of them after you've broken them in... Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jalen01 Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 Doug C: Please Let me\Us know all the juicy details of your visit to the dealer. When you get a chance. k??? ------------------ Pioneer 906s A\V Rec. Pioneer Cld-d580 Laser Disc Player Parasound P\Hp - 850 Preamp Rotel RB 976 Amp 3x150 watts for front 3 speakers. Technics 110x Cd changer Awia XD-DV370 (MP3) dvd Klipsch RF-3II Fronts Klipsch RC-3II Center JBL N-26 Rears Paradigm Mini's low\lvl jam sessions and bar-BQ's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug C Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 OK Jalen, Spent time today with my Marantz CD17 and Zen Select (2 watts/channel) listening to both the RF-3 & RF-5. Listening room setup was not necessarily idea but was reasonable. I usually have my speakers farther out from the wall with no big equipment racks between them as was the case today. I should also mention that the listening room was at least 3 times larger than my 12"x16' listening room at home. First thing I noticed was I had the volume control at about 75% to reach the same listening levels as at home in my room. With my Overture 3's at home I have been running the volume control at about 90% for high volume listening (averaging around 85-90dB). The sound level output capability of the RF-3 & RF-5 with the Zen was quite impressive given the dealers room was 3 times the size of mine. I don't think anyone would be lacking for volume with the single Zen and Klipsch combo in an average sized room. The deepest bass was very satisfying though a little shy of what I get in my smaller room with the Infinity Overture 3's (remember the Overture 3's have 300 watt powered woofers). I think this can be easily explained though given the much larger room that the Klipsch were in. I'm pretty sure that in my smaller room I would not feel the need at all for a sub on two-channel music. I don't know how a 2 watt amp can drive two 8 inch woofers to the levels I heard today? The bass had plenty of smack and slam. Comparing the RF-3 and RF-5 the biggest difference is in the midrange. Some time back I read a review of the RF-3 stating that there was not a completely seamless transition between the low and high frequency drivers in the midrange and I was able to hear this on material with a lot of male vocals. It is not a glaring problem and you have to listen carefully to the right kind of material to recognize it. The RF-5 had a slightly more open soundstage and did not exibit the minor midrange problem noted with the RF-3 (may be because of the RF-5's higher crossover frequency). On some gear & speaker combos when you play loud they can be very sharp on vocals and or higher electric guitar notes. I actually found the highs on the RF-3 & RF-5 smoother than on my Overture 3's. The RF-5 was a tad bit smoother than the RF-3. Both the RF-3 & RF-5 seem to disapear (very seldom do you get the sense that music is coming directly from the speaker) although the RF-5 may have a slight advantage in this regard. My Overture 3's sound pretty good but they do call attention to themselves frequently which detracts from the realism of the music. Both the RF-3 & RF-5 lack slightly in the detail department compared to the Overture 3's. The Overture 3's provide a little more high end detail which is nice at moderate volume but this can also be a bit fatiguing at high volumes. So as always it's all about personal taste and comprimises. If you want to use very low powered amps like the Zen, get good clarity & detail, have the ability to play it loud and a great price then I don't know how you could beat the RF-3 performance/price ratio. The RF-5 does offer an improvement in overall performance. For the very picky listener still looking for a good performance/price ratio the added cost of the RF-5 is probably worth it. If your budget dictates the RF-3 don't worry you won't be completely missing the boat by any means by not purchasing the RF-5. Now if I had a tube amp with 10-20 watts I would be looking at lots of other lower efficiency speakers in addition to the Klipsch. But these speakers do crank it out with very low power and they do it with authority. If you listen primiarly to accoustic, strings, woods and vocals at only moderate volumes there are probably other better choices (better in total overall clarity & detail). But if you also want to be able to really rock from time to time these speakers seem to be a very good comprimise. Doug C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddy Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 hey guys, how do these compare to an old heritage speaker like the cornwall or heresy? which one would you go with given a choice & similar price? ------------------ eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tpg Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 Cornwalls would blow them away, I think. Heresy I don't know. I would go with Cornwalls over the RF-3II, if I had the money, or found them for cheap. (I am still looking) Of course, I mean dirt cheap. Student budget... ------------------ Have a ProMedia sound problem? Visit SoundWise for help. Still have PM sound probs? Email Amy or call at 1-888-554-5665. s> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted July 18, 2002 Author Share Posted July 18, 2002 My Impression's so far pretty much Mimic Doug C . If you want a high detail speaker the RF-3s aren't really up to that task but for there cost should they be ? Now if you want to Rock the house down with 10 Watts there up to the task and do it with style and authority. Do I like them better than my Heresy's overall no. But when I want to Rock I will most likely be doing it with the RF-3's ! Unbelievable Value is how I would describe them. Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted July 18, 2002 Share Posted July 18, 2002 I've been sitting back and really enjoying this thread. Doug C -- a really great job with that post comparing the three speakers. It's not an easy thing to do. Your desciption regarding the differences between the RF-3 II and RF-5 is especially interesting considering they use identical drivers, with the exception that the RF5 has a larger horn. They are voiced differently however, and you picked up on that with relative ease. Craig -- Consider that these aren't even broken in yet. You will be surprised at the amount of transformation over the next month. I remember when I had my RC-7's with the horns twirled, sitting on my couch one night listening to some Rush, -- and them suckers opened up on me right in the middle of a song. I had never experienced anything like that before -- and quite frankly, it startled me a little. It was like someone jacked the treble up on me a couple of notches, and moved the speakers a foot closer to me. Trouble is, I have no tone controls, and the speakers certainly didn't hop across the floor towards me. You will most certainly not get the low level detail that the Heresy midrange horn provides, But OTOH -- you'll be able to drive them to higher SPL's without any discomfort. Reference maintains its sonic signature at all levels of play, staying well balanced from top to bottom. In spite of what many here feel -- I think they are a mavel of technology. So, how much does one have to spend with another speaker company to get to this level of performance? Over time, I believe you will become a huge fan of these speakers. Trespasser -- It would be more fair to compare the Cornwall to the RF-7. In the area of shere musicality, I believe the RF-7 could hold its own with that speaker with no problem. No, it won't do everything the Cornwall can do, but neither can a Cornwall do everything the RF-7 can do. This message has been edited by deang on 07-19-2002 at 10:53 AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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