zoocow Posted July 29, 2002 Share Posted July 29, 2002 Well, just completed my Reference3 HT system (Love it). My wife and I are now finishing our basement gameroom/bar. I hinted to her that we need a good music system for the room. She agreed, as long as the speakers weren't THAT BIG. Been looking on Ebay and other online locations for a pair of Heresy or Forte speakers. Never really actually heard either. How do the two compare for 2 channel audio? Is there any other models I should look out for? The room will be approx. 13'x25'. Also need some suggestions on an amp and preamp for the system. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougdrake Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 zc - I'm a big fan of the Quartet/Forte/Chorus series of speakers. The Forte, in its day, received great praise from non other than Julian Hirsch. I have a pair that I will never sell. I think you will like them a lot. Give us some idea of budget for the speakers and the electronics and I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions. Doug ------------------ My System Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 That is quite a big room - pity the wife wont let you have larger speakers in there. The main difference between Heresy's and forte's / chorus et al. is bass. The Heresy's bottom out at around 50Hz (depending on room, amplification etc.) whilst the others go considerably lower. If you do decide to go for the Heresy's I would recommend teaming them up with a sub-woofer. the best sonic match I found for mine was the Rel Strata 3. Let us know what you decide to do... ------------------ My System: http://aca.gr/pop_maxg.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edster00 Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 Welcome to the BB zoocow! Congrats on some nice speakers, I have the RF-3 setup in my HT room. It may be worth mentioning that MY wife wouldn't think the Forte' is small(er) enough than the RF-3 if she really means smaller speakers... While the Forte' is ~3" shorter it is ~7" wider than the RF-3. When you are sitting there staring at the Forte' it is a pretty imposing speaker. The RF-3 is 4" deeper than the Forte' though. Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 Julian Hirsch? Dougdrake, not Julian Hirsch! Heh... Julian "A cd player is a cd player is an amp is an amp" Hirsch. The one and only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDBRbuilder Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 Budget out what you are willing to spend on the system for your room with the bar in it. A pair of Heresys would work in that room, providing the amplifier used had a full 100 watts per channel rating. Otherwise, I would go with one of the other speaker models mentioned...since they have other means of bass production than just a 12" woofer. If Cornwalls aren't, in your wife's opinion, "too big", they would be ideal choices for that application! ------------------ I can now receive private messages Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Cornell Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 Doug Its something that your not into the more exotic line of Klipsch, Kg 4s are nice! Not looking for k-horns or belles la scalas heresy? I love my 4 chorus just as much, even if i get something else down the road these are staying! I just acquired a spaekers worst enemy am EQ, i have the first level up a bit for bass the second down below flat, and the rest are set flat, also the tone controls are flat! Just another expierement! Well off to work Regards Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougdrake Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 Jim - Fully horn loaded is the next upgrade for me, but I don't have a room to do them justice at this point. Heresy's are great, but not worth changing to from the Chorus I have, IMO. mobile - I appreciate your comments about JH's opinions on electronics. How about as they relate to speakers? Doug ------------------ My System Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 I used to subscribe to Stereo Review in the old days, years ago... But my listening over the last 27 years has pretty much gone against everything Julian Hirsch and that magazine stood for including their philosophy on all things audio. Others in here worship the man but he mainly lives and dies by specs alone, which is a sad way to go, especially when you factor in the idea that specs were/are used as design tools but are entirely coarse and inappropriate by themselves for figuring out how a component or system actually SOUNDS. Sadly, I think the majority of reviewers today are lost in a sea of HIFI disease with ears that dont factor in the essence of the musical experience, instead dividing it up into parts and segments, losing the whole picture and falling to the HIFI bias experience. There are really only a select few that I find have their heads and ears connected in all the right places (and are able to convey it in an intelligent manner in print). Julian Hirsch was never a man that relied on his listening skills. kh This message has been edited by mobile homeless on 07-30-2002 at 12:43 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 Mr. Hirsch never wrote a poor review for any speaker he ever tested. It was because of him I bought my Sansui AU-717 amp. He said they were "state of the art in integrated design". Yeah, right. What a fool I was. I was stuck with that stuff for years because of him. I never read another Stereo Review after that. This message has been edited by deang on 08-11-2002 at 10:57 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoocow Posted July 30, 2002 Author Share Posted July 30, 2002 Well, if you ask my wife, she will say about $500 is the budget for the speakers. I will probably use an old Sony receiver until I find something else to run them. I want to get the speakers first. I really don't mind waiting for the amp. You know what they say, the hunt is better then the kill. But MY budget for the speakers could go up to $800 or so (hope we win that bowling league). If the feeling is that I'll need a sub with the Heresys, maybe I'll stick to the Fortes. Sorry, almost forgot, one more question. Do you think I need to put these on stands of some sort. (Fortes or Heresys). Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike stehr Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 The Forte is a floorstander. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDBRbuilder Posted July 30, 2002 Share Posted July 30, 2002 The Heresy was designed to be a floor standing speaker... With your budget of over 500 (possibly up to 800 bucks) and if your wife could get a chance to judge a speaker by its performance and possibly overlook is size...I would recommend Cornwalls for that room...you can't go wrong with them...and once she hears them, she will love them...IF she really likes MUSIC!! ------------------ I can now receive private messages Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whell Posted July 31, 2002 Share Posted July 31, 2002 If you favor the sound of the RF-3's, you might give the RB-5's a listen. They of course are the bookshelf sized speaker in the current Reference Series. I love how they sound, and they would certainly fit within your wife's space requirements. ------------------ Mike - Livonia, MI Klipsch RF-3 L/R Klipsch RC-3 Center Klipsch RB-5 rears HSU Research VF-2 Sub Marantz SR-19EX receiver Marantz MM-9000 Amp NAD T550 DVD Adcom GCD 700 CD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bosskag Posted August 5, 2002 Share Posted August 5, 2002 zoocow....listen to HDBRbuilder. The Cornwalls are very large but the sound is worth it. If your wife could hear them I know she could overlook the size. I also have Heresys, Fortes and Quartets. To my ears, the Cornwalls are far superior to the others (not that the others are inferior in any way). I have owned many brands of speakers and Klipsch IS the only one! As far as amps and pre-amps, I use Mcintosh and/or Carver. I like the sound of both but I think I've recently been bitten by a tube bug....will it ever end?.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audible Nectar Posted August 5, 2002 Share Posted August 5, 2002 Time to turn up the heat on ya zoocow - and talk you into a set of Cornwalls. I've heard all of the Heritage models (albeit not all vintages), and I've heard Chorus I and II, Forte I and II, Quartet, and Cornwall I and II. The Cornwalls (either series is good, some prefer older vintages, especially the tube folks) are the best out of the non fully horn loaded options, especially for 2 channel. The $800 budget makes Cornwall II's doable - 70's vintage Cornwalls can be more expensive. It is the best $800 you'll ever spend. Now that I've assembled my HT, the last part of the system I would upgrade would be my Cornwalls. I might go Khorn in a 2 channel setup, but not in the living room where the HT is. Cornwalls become a part of the decor. A good condition, well finished Cornwall pair looks simply mahhhhveleous in the room. They are large, but not deep, so they don't suck up your room space like LaScalas do. I have my 5.1 HT (see sig) in a 16x14 ft space. Surely there's room for a pair in a 13x25..... Ok, ok, ok, no room for those?? Well, make room Ok, ok, ok, the Cornwalls will bring you divorce papers??? Here's my order of preference on the others. I'm excluding the Khorn, Belle, LaScala from the list. You'll notice a pattern here - bigger is better. Chorus II Chorus I Forte II Forte I Quartet (don't forget about these - before you buy Heresys, check 'em out) or Heresy. A good set of Heresy I are hard to beat if you gotta go small (but like maxg said, don't forget the sub). I prefer the presentation of the Chorus II's and Forte II's over their earlier counterparts (must be the tractrix). You can't lose with ANY of the above choices, though - but why buy something you'll end up upgrading anyway? Especially if the tube bug bites ya.... BTW, my wife loves the Cornwalls. If they were ugly, she would say so. There are voices in your head........ "Geeeet the Cornwalls.....Geeeeet the Cornwalls" ------------------ Klipsch Cornwall II's (mains) - Klipsch Academy (center channel) - Klipsch Chorus (surrounds) Krell Home Theater Standard processor - Outlaw 750 Amplifier (5x165) Bass Kit: 2 JBL 4638 LFE/Bass Reinforcement cabinets - Crown CE 1000 amplifier - Behringer Feedback Destroyer (Bass EQ) Sources: Rega Planet CD Player - Pioneer DV-333 - 2 Aiwa ADF-850 3 head cassette decks - General Instruments cable box - Panasonic VHS PV-4459 - Digital Audio Labs CardDeluxe (computer sound) f> c> s>This message has been edited by dndphishin on 08-05-2002 at 08:32 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoocow Posted August 11, 2002 Author Share Posted August 11, 2002 Thanks for you help everybody..especially dndphishin. Went to the Rush concert Tuesday night..Forgot how great live Rock n Roll sounds. Walked out of the concert telling my buddy...I need BIG speakers that give me that live music feeling. Kinda felt bad standing next to my brother, who thinks his bose (God help him) 701's sound good. Well any Cornwalls for sale in the Pennsylvania area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted August 11, 2002 Share Posted August 11, 2002 Believe it or not, out of all the speakers Bose makes -- the 701's actually sound tolerable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bosskag Posted August 11, 2002 Share Posted August 11, 2002 zoocow...you have been experienced!! (with the real sound) Now get the speakers that will give you that same "slam your gut, pierce your ears" pleasure!....Cornwalls of couse.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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