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Sonic comparison of Forte VS RF 7 mod speaker


derrickdj1

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With certain music the RF 7's are much smoother than the Forte's.  The Forte's are better with other music.  When I get around to it I will swithch the system, Forte's with the sub and autocalibration and run the RF 7's as large on the tube amp for comparions.  The hard part is switching stuff fast enough to make the A/B comparison fair.  For now I will just enjoy having the best of both worlds.

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OP should try his Forte up 14 inches on what is available

if your system demands you sit in the near field a two way will be a better choice most of the time as it will integrate over a shorter distance. Past that a larger mid horn will have an advantage over a smaller one which is why I prefer the Forte ll over a Forte (have owned both). Best regards Moray James.

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Actually I was seriously curious....didn't one of the reference lines have powered amplifiers built in?

 

Yes, there were powered Reference models. The RP-3 and RP-5. I know IbizaFlame has an affinity for them.

 

http://www.klipsch.com/rp-3-floorstanding-speaker/details

 

http://www.klipsch.com/rp-5-floorstanding-speaker/details

 

 

To me, these are a hybrid.  The entire speaker isn't powered just the sub.  You are correct though there was an amp built in. 

 

We had a good discussion about the prototype speakers Klipsch showed in Vegas.  Each driver had it's own built in amp.  That's more along the lines of what I was thinking.

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This is going to sound funny to RF 7 owners, the 7's are more laid back in character. 

 

This was my finding as well, when comparing my RF-7s to Forte IIs.

 

 

When I have listened to the totl heritage stuff vs the totl new stuff (less palladium) this is my observation too, the newer products have a softer sound.

 

I always default to female voice and is it lifelike, for some reason this is hard to reproduce.

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I would like to try some Mc gear on the Forte I

 

I have recently joined the SS McIntosh world.  I am very, very happy with the heritage and Mac marriage.

 

 

I too am running the Mac MC 2205 and C-32, in my case with LaScalas, and haven't heard anything to move me off this setup. Every time I come into the room, I have the same thought, "that sounds good".

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Derrick,

 

Nice write up.

 

When you have a minute, you may want to post the specs for both amps side by side, more likely totem pole, the effects of the pre amp and amp sections can't be underestimated. Any time tubes are involved, I think of damping factor, greater noise, etc....not that there aren't great sounding tube amps.

 

Horns at ear level, yes.

 

I"m guessing, but the Fortes may need to be about 6 feet off of the wall.

 

PS Hear anything back from Noemie yet? lunch availability?

Edited by Bubo
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OP should try his Forte up 14 inches on what is available

 

I did this with my Fortes with 18 inch tables to test about a month ago and it made a substantial difference. I just bought stands that are similar to the Skylar stands Moray referred to earlier. Using a Quartet as a center, putting the Fortes on stands really improved the front soundstage for HT. For 2 Ch, I love the difference it made and once I connected my RSW-15 to the center channel of my Mc C28 and powered by a MC250, the bottom end really filled out without loosing anything in midrange and highs now that they are at ear level in MLP.

Highly suggest you try it out. My fortes are about 10 inches out from wall.

 

Oh, almost forgot I'm powering my HT through the same Acurus A200five amp.

Edited by ajoker2c
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Actually I was seriously curious....didn't one of the reference lines have powered amplifiers built in?

 

I think Derrick is referring to the DeanG resistor modification for the RF-7. I do not recall if the resistor is used for padding/attenuation, but I think so. I (think/guess) again that Dean collaborated with (Leo K?) and that's the mod came about. (going from/guessing from bad memory)

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I don't know if Dean originally just add a single resistor or reworked the entire XO network.  I only added a single  resistor.  The purpose of the mod was to attenuate the shrill, in the HF.  One day I will get around to some room treatments after I read up on the subject in detail.

Edited by derrickdj1
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I don't know if Dean originally just add a single resistor or reworked the entire XO network.  I only added a single  resistor.  The purpose of the mod was to attenuate the shrill, in the HF.  One day I will get around to some room treatments after I read up on the subject in detail.

 

The digital source is most likely the cause of the shrill sound.

 

The Pioneer Receiver should have a manual setting for X Curve, or something like that, this is adjustable to incrementally roll off the highs and notes that it is a common problem with digital music.

 

On my MAC gear, I frequently use the High filter that basically does the same thing.

 

I'm guessing that it is a side effect of butchering the music in the Mastering process to make it louder. I can switch CDs and shrill sound disappears instantly.

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The digital source is most likely the cause of the shrill sound.

 

I describe it has a shrill, others say, harsh, fatiging.  This problem has been mention by many people about the original RF 7.  It is not related to the digital sources.  I used the Xcurve on the Pioneer prior to the mod and the two sounds are different, not a night a day difference.  The harsh edge is gone.  I do not feel a need to use the X curve at this point. :)

Edited by derrickdj1
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Have both speakers been hooked up to the Pioneer without calibration and sub?  One hooked to Speaker A and one hooked to Speaker B maybe, running both wide range and flat?

 

If I missed this been done, excuse me but that is a comparison of the speakers.  I worry too much when there are comparisons with receivers and everyone has their calibration turned on.  That is like apples to donuts.   B)

 

If it isn't good to start, then why electronically modify it so it sounds good.  If it sounds good, then you electronically modify it, it will likely even sound better.

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