Can Klipsch make a better center speaker than RC-64 II for the Referene II line?

[qtg90]

Hi all, i'm a fan of Klipsch HT. My 5.2 sys consists of RF-82II for mains, RB-61II for surs, 2 subs Velodyne EQ-max 10 and i ve just upgraded my center speaker from RC-62II to RC-64II for a few weeks (all driven by Emotiva XPA-5, Pre is Ya A2010).

The thing is that the RC-64II sounds not as good as i want it to be (i bought it online because there is no Klipsch dealer in my area for me to demo it)

Actually, i'm really satisfied with the new horn tweeter of RC-64II. Its sound is big, less fatigue and way more dynamic than RC-62II.

However, the bass of four 6.5" woofers of RC-64II sounds nearly the same as RC-62II IMHO except louder and less distortion when i crank it up. Yes, the mid may have a wider sweet spot but its bass and low male voice is just not what i am looking for.

I tried to disable my old RC-62II from manuel set up so that my sys became 4.2 and can hear the pair of RF-82II handling the job of a center speaker. The low male vocal of RF-82II (let's say it is 80hz-160hz due to my crossover being set at 80hz) is much smoother and clearer than the RC-64II. And the bass of RF-82 from the range 80hz-160hz is much heavier, fuller and punchier than the RC-64II.

My reason to upgrade to the RC-64II is to improve the low male vocal and the bass of the range 80hz-160hz. And i am really disappointed.

I think, just my subjective thinking, that this is due to the size of the RC-64II 6.5" woofers.

If Klipsch made a new Reference center speaker consisting of a 1.75 inch tweeter just like RC-64II and two 8" woofers just like RF-82II, that's would be great and perfect across the frequency above 80hz.

Any ideas will be appreciated.

Edited June 27, 2014 by qtg90

[Guest Steven1963]

Hello and welcome! Various replies and suggestions will be along momentarily.

[wvu80]

Edit: Did your Yamaha YPOA set up your old speakers, and did you re-calibrate for the new speakers?

+++

I would suggest doing some EQ on that center, and maybe some EQ on your mains which support the center, and see if that helps. Your AVR should be able to EQ each of your speakers.

Here is the graphic chart on where instruments/voices show up in frequency.

Edited June 27, 2014 by wvu80

[CECAA850]

If you set your speakers to small while using your receivers crossover, the bass will sound the same. Neither would go lower than the other as you're cutting out the low frequencies with you crossover. You'd only notice a difference if you ran them as large and sent a full signal.

[qtg90]

I would suggest doing some EQ on that center, and maybe some EQ on your mains which support the center, and see if that helps. Your AVR should be able to EQ each of your speakers.

Does anybody have that graphic chart on where instruments/voices show up in frequency?

Edit:

Thank for your advice, i tried this before in the Ya EQ, I cranked the 80hz-160hz region of RC-64II for about +2db (not exactly +2db from 80hz to 160hz because i made it like a steep curve). The mid and upper bass was louder but it lack the fullness and effortlessness of RF-82ii

If you set your speakers to small while using your receivers crossover, the bass will sound the same. Neither would go lower than the other as you're cutting out the low frequencies with you crossover. You'd only notice a difference if you ran them as large and sent a full signal.

I set all my speaker to small and crossover point is 80hz. According to my ear, the bass of RC-64II and RF-82II is quite different. And i like the 8" woofer of RF-82II much more. It doesnt mean that RC-64II sounds bad, it's way more better compared to RC-62II overall. But i think the 8" woofer of RF-82II gives better low male voice than RC-64II, IMHO.

Edited June 28, 2014 by qtg90

[qtg90]

The RC-64II sounds great. But i think Klipsch can make better than that with a new center speaker consisting of two 8" woofers and a 1.75 tweeter.

[Coleman]

Well ofc Klipsch could make a better center speaker for the reference line but can the consumer afford it to where Klipsch would be profitable? Sure an RC-84 would be great! Can you imagine lol. Would it fit in your entertainment center? Nope. Would it be less then 1500.00. Nope.

[qtg90]

Hello and welcome! Various replies and suggestions will be along momentarily.

Thanks, Steven. All ideas will be great for my concern

[Max2]

The RC-64II sounds great. But i think Klipsch can make better than that with a new center speaker consisting of two 8" woofers and a 1.75 tweeter.

Pretty close to what you want

[derrickdj1]

As mentioned, changing to the RC 64II over the RC 62II, should sound pretty much the same in a calibrated system It may help with a larger soundstage. A 6.5 in woofer, especially 4 of them should have no problem with reproducing male voice. To much bass from the center and all the women voices will sound like Sly Stallone, lol.

[qtg90]

Well ofc Klipsch could make a better center speaker for the reference line but can the consumer afford it to where Klipsch would be profitable? Sure an RC-84 would be great! Can you imagine lol. Would it fit in your entertainment center? Nope. Would it be less then 1500.00. Nope.

The RC-84ii would be great but i think that a RC-82ii (2 8"woofers) is just enough for me and i would prefer it to RC-64II. A design of 2 8" woofers and a 1.75 tweeter is maybe less expensive than RC-64II in a long box. It may be thicker and higher for about 2 inches maybe, but i ll willingly sacrifice that space for the sound i need.

Edited June 28, 2014 by qtg90

[CECAA850]

CECAA850, on 27 Jun 2014 - 1:57 PM, said: If you set your speakers to small while using your receivers crossover, the bass will sound the same. Neither would go lower than the other as you're cutting out the low frequencies with you crossover. You'd only notice a difference if you ran them as large and sent a full signal. I set all my speaker to small and crossover point is 80hz. According to my ear, the bass of RC-64II and RF-82II is quite different. And i like the 8" woofer of RF-82II much more. It doesnt mean that RC-64II sounds bad, it's way more better compared to RC-62II overall. But i think the 8" woofer of RF-82II gives better low male voice than RC-64II, IMHO.

The RC 62 and RC 64 use a tapered array and have 2 crossover points so they would sound similar. The RF 82 has a single crossover point and would most likely sound different than a speaker like a tapered array with 2 crossover points.

[qtg90]

The RC-64II sounds great. But i think Klipsch can make better than that with a new center speaker consisting of two 8" woofers and a 1.75 tweeter.

Pretty close to what you want

Its tweeter is horn - loaded, is it a klipsch?

As mentioned, changing to the RC 64II over the RC 62II, should sound pretty much the same in a calibrated system It may help with a larger soundstage. A 6.5 in woofer, especially 4 of them should have no problem with reproducing male voice. To much bass from the center and all the women voices will sound like Sly Stallone, lol.

I dont think so, the women voices of my RF-82ii is excellent. In fact, the male voice of RC-64II is great and better than the vast number of center speaker in the same price range. But i think that the RF-82II is even better. It's not the quantity of bass that concerns me, its the quality.

[Coleman]

I had the RC62II before stepping up to the 64 and thought kinda the same thing. It wasn't 500.00 better IMO. They sound very similar until you get around -10 then the 64 sounds much bigger and walks away from the 62 and by all means should. Although dialogue is much cleaner with the 64 with the bigger driver. I still really like the 64 with my RF62II's but other people have told me they are not timber matched which 99% of the people would not even notice.

[CECAA850]

Its tweeter is horn - loaded, is it a klipsch?

That looks like a Klipsch Academy. Built from 92-94. A great center that's highly sought after. It has two 8" drivers and a horn loaded tweeter. It's more matched to the Heritage sound than the Reference.

[Max2]

The RC-64II sounds great. But i think Klipsch can make better than that with a new center speaker consisting of two 8" woofers and a 1.75 tweeter.

Pretty close to what you want

Its tweeter is horn - loaded, is it a klipsch?

As mentioned, changing to the RC 64II over the RC 62II, should sound pretty much the same in a calibrated system It may help with a larger soundstage. A 6.5 in woofer, especially 4 of them should have no problem with reproducing male voice. To much bass from the center and all the women voices will sound like Sly Stallone, lol.

I dont think so, the women voices of my RF-82ii is excellent. In fact, the male voice of RC-64II is great and better than the vast number of center speaker in the same price range. But i think that the RF-82II is even better. It's not the quantity of bass that concerns me, its the quality.

Yes its a KLF-C7. You can find them on ebay in the $300ish range 99db sensitivity with dual 8's and it has a larger horn. They should have expanded on this one instead of nixing it

[wstrickland1]

If Klipsch made a new Reference center speaker consisting of a 1.75 inch tweeter just like RC-64II and two 8" woofers just like RF-82II, that's would be great and perfect across the frequency above 80hz.

Any ideas will be appreciated.

Did you not just describe the RC 7?

[qtg90]

The design of KLF-C7 above is exactly what i am looking for, except that its horn tweeter is more like 1 inch tweeter to me.

[qtg90]

@ wstrickland1 Did you not just describe the RC 7?

Yeah, that's exactly what i want. i ve just searched for it in klipsch site, it is discontinued for a long time. And i wonder why klipsch doesnt continue to make a center speaker like that for the new reference line.

Edited June 27, 2014 by qtg90

[willland]

A 6.5 in woofer, especially 4 of them should have no problem with reproducing male voice. To much bass from the center and all the women voices will sound like Sly Stallone, lol.

That's funny. Before I went all Acurus(very neutral) amps and after B&K(warmer) amps and "finally" ran Audyssey MultEQ XT, I thought my RC-64 was somewhat muffled and had too much bass for vocals compared to my RF-63's. All that has been virtually eliminated and I am getting the crisper and clearer vocals that I was seeking. Now I think the RC-64(not RC-64II) is very well balanced in my system and my room.

Bill