001 Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 17 hours ago, Zack R said: Welcome to the club! My CF3's are the same color and from the same month as yours (August 1994). As for amplifier selection go with a higher wattage than you think you will need (100w+ per channel). These are not as sensitive as the specs would lead you to believe and require a decent amount of power. I'm currently running a Yamaha A-S801 and enjoy the ability to adjust the tone controls to bring out the best sound for my listening area. first ive heard that.. are you saying the specs published by klipsch for epics are incorrect? have you measured them to confirm they are wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zack R Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 1 hour ago, EpicKlipschFan said: first ive heard that.. are you saying the specs published by klipsch for epics are incorrect? have you measured them to confirm they are wrong? Earlier in this thread I posed a link to a review from 1995 where it was measured at 94.3dB, which is below the listed spec of 100dB. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 1 hour ago, Zack R said: Earlier in this thread I posed a link to a review from 1995 where it was measured at 94.3dB, which is below the listed spec of 100dB. must have missed that. was just curious where you saw that & if its really accurate, maybe their way of testing was different than what klipsch used to get the numbers... 6db is a pretty big difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 27 minutes ago, EpicKlipschFan said: must have missed that. was just curious where you saw that & if its really accurate, maybe their way of testing was different than what klipsch used to get the numbers... 6db is a pretty big difference. Agree, different! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 Qustion on the CF-1'S. 96db eff. 150 watt input - 750 watt peak. What power to go with for stereo listening for maximum output. Do alright with 50 wpc but, run out of gas. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiva Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 As a suggestion for amp directions to explore, perhaps something from Rotel, such as RB981 or RB1070 at a 130 watts a side or even the RB991or RB1080 at 200 a side, depending on how much you want to spend. Acurus is a nice direction as well. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zack R Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 On my CF3's I was able to max out my old 65w/channel amp when the volume was up (it would trip into protection mode). Thus far on my 100w/ch amp I haven't had the same issue. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 Thanks y'all !!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voice_Of_Reason Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 On 9/21/2020 at 2:13 PM, Alexander said: Have not checked recently but Bob Crites offered new mid/high driver diaphragms for the horn in the cf3/4s. As for amps, what kind of budget are planing to work with? https://critesspeakers.com/ Thanks for the Crites link! I will bookmark it for future reference! I suppose I'm looking for a decent amp, I suppose maybe between $1000-$1500? I'm also ok looking at the used-market amps. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voice_Of_Reason Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 On 9/21/2020 at 2:17 PM, billybob said: VOR, we have been waiting for you to come. Welcome! Another Epic speaker for center is one option and not necessarily a 3. Guess a 1 or 2 could be used as it is in HT setup if able to find a single speaker. Not familiar with the watts per channel of the Pioneer model to mains and center. Not sure which Klipsch center you have now but fairly certain the AVR has been enough. Thinking your unit has preouts for connecting to an external amplifier. My new to me CF-1'S want more power than able to put to it with 50 wpc so thinking of going at least 125 wpc myself. Thinking in your case 150 to alot. Have you tried just the 2 in stereo mode with the AVR? As for ear level, the design with HF in the middle, think no elevation needed. See someone more experienced with these chiming in...cool. @Voice_Of_Reason lol, thank you all for the warm welcome! I'm currently using a Pioneer Elite SC-71 which puts out 120w/channel @ 8ohms. Yes, it does have preouts for external amplifier. As for my center speaker, right now currently have the Klipsch RC-62ii (150w@8ohm). Yes! I listened to some TOOL on spotofy the other day via Stereo and the CF3s crushed it!! Totally awesome. Thanks for the advice @billybob! V_O_R 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 Your welcome! Nothing wrong with the power you have now unless you just want to upgrade. Cool 25 minutes ago, Voice_Of_Reason said: lol, thank you all for the warm welcome! I'm currently using a Pioneer Elite SC-71 which puts out 120w/channel @ 8ohms. Yes, it does have preouts for external amplifier. As for my center speaker, right now currently have the Klipsch RC-62ii (150w@8ohm). Yes! I listened to some TOOL on spotofy the other day via Stereo and the CF3s crushed it!! Totally awesome. Thanks for the advice @billybob! V_O_R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voice_Of_Reason Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 On 9/21/2020 at 3:13 PM, EpicKlipschFan said: depending on your seating distance, i dont think you need risers, cf3/4 are very tall speakers & if youre sitting ~10-12ft away your ear should be pretty close, plus the angle of the horn disperses the sound upwards. lifting speakers off the floor reduces the bass output, i would locate them in a corner if possible & play with the tow in & distance from back & side walls...since they are front ported you can get pretty close to the back wall. the KV4 is the closest match to the epics, i would avoid the smaller KV like kv3, its got a smaller tweeter horn & is lacking in sound compared to the bigger model... for now i bet the center you have will sound pretty good, i used a rc3ii with a set of cf4 & kg5.5 for awhile & it sounded pretty good. i originally had a KV3 with the KG5.5, when i got the newer rc3 it was a huge improvement over the KV. as for power, these are very efficient speakers so you dont need huge power, but they do shine on bigger solid state power if you like to listen loud... like rock concert loud. otherwise since you are also using them for home theater, i think any decent brand AVR with ~100wpc will be plenty... i had my cf4 running mainly on a 100wpc onkyo AVR & they would play as loud as i wanted in a medium size room on music & more than enough for movies. use what you have for now & decide if you really need to spend money on separate amps or maybe just upgrade to a better AVR with more power & features. my current onkyo AVR has 130wpc & will drive efficient speakers like these louder than most people will ever listen to for a music/movie mixed system. Yeah that's what I'm figuring out, I'm gonna need to space these beasts more a part than my RF-82iis...now I'm gonna need more speaker wire! I agree The front ports are a blessing since they can be closer to wall, more versatile! I can do some research on the KV center speaker line and see how they compare to my current RC-62ii. Regarding the amp question, my current AVR Pioneer Elite SC-71 does 120w/channel@8ohms. I know the CF3s can handle up too 250w, so I was thinking I would need an external amplifier to fully use them. However, if my room is medium size not large, would I just be 'wasting' $$ if I bought a Parasound/Outlaw/Emotive amp since I wouldn't really need to crank them up all the way due to the room dimensions? Sorry for the questions, on top of other questions. I'm still new to all this external amplifier configurations! 😰 Thanks again @EpicKlipschFan for helping me out! V_O_R 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voice_Of_Reason Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 On 9/21/2020 at 4:15 PM, Zack R said: Welcome to the club! My CF3's are the same color and from the same month as yours (August 1994). As for amplifier selection go with a higher wattage than you think you will need (100w+ per channel). These are not as sensitive as the specs would lead you to believe and require a decent amount of power. I'm currently running a Yamaha A-S801 and enjoy the ability to adjust the tone controls to bring out the best sound for my listening area. Awesome, our CF3s probably have crossed paths in the past! haha Yeah, I'm just started looking for some external amplifiers to possibly use on CF3s. Since they can handle up too 250w, should I be looking for amp that can output that amount of watts/8ohms? Or should I look for amp that provide more watts? Maybe less? Sorry, still new to all this. Thank in advance! V_O_R 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voice_Of_Reason Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 On 9/21/2020 at 4:28 PM, Shiva said: A KV-4 is up for sale on Ebay. Less than a day left and still at a great price. Anything under $350 is fairly good. Congrats on the Epic score, they look great in your room. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rare-Klipsch-KV-4-Center-Channel-Speaker/383721528937?hash=item595795de69:g:SH0AAOSwMrxfYQrt Thanks for the link @Shiva, I totally missed it! Sold for $295. I currently have a RC-62ii (150w@8ohms) and comparing it to the KV-4, looks like the KV-4 has more punch than the rc-62ii. Gotta be on the look out if I see one come up locally. Thanks again! V_O_R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voice_Of_Reason Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 5 hours ago, Shiva said: As a suggestion for amp directions to explore, perhaps something from Rotel, such as RB981 or RB1070 at a 130 watts a side or even the RB991or RB1080 at 200 a side, depending on how much you want to spend. Acurus is a nice direction as well. I'm currently in talks with someone, possibly buying his Rotel RB1090. Looks like it was on a rack its entire life and seems to be in great shape. What would be a decent price to ask for it? V_O_R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
314carpenter Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 8 hours ago, EpicKlipschFan said: must have missed that. was just curious where you saw that & if its really accurate, maybe their way of testing was different than what klipsch used to get the numbers... 6db is a pretty big difference. I have yet to find a single example of an outside third party review where a Klipsch speaker was actually measured and the efficiency rating listed was even close to the rating measured. -6db or more is pretty standard from all the reviews I have read. They are all still very efficient speakers, just do not expect the on paper numbers to show up under real world circumstances. No one seems to know the magic formula that Klipsch uses to get their efficiency ratings though. It is certainly a non-standard method they use. Either way, it will not take very many watts to get clean undistorted sound out of these. I know with my setup I can hit 120db in my home. I evacuated the house and stayed outside during that testing. ☢️ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 3 minutes ago, 314carpenter said: I have yet to find a single example of an outside third party review where a Klipsch speaker was actually measured and the efficiency rating listed was even close to the rating measured. -6db or more is pretty standard from all the reviews I have read. They are all still very efficient speakers, just do not expect the on paper numbers to show up under real world circumstances. No one seems to know the magic formula that Klipsch uses to get their efficiency ratings though. It is certainly a non-standard method they use. Either way, it will not take very many watts to get clean undistorted sound out of these. I know with my setup I can hit 120db in my home. I evacuated the house and stayed outside during that testing. Unless the testing is using an actual anechoic chamber that Klipsch uses, guess there would be some difference in the results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
314carpenter Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 1 minute ago, billybob said: Unless the testing is using an actual anechoic chamber that Klipsch uses, guess there would be some difference in the results. There is that, and more... again, from the reviews. It's not like Klipsch has the only anechoic chamber on earth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiva Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 19 hours ago, Voice_Of_Reason said: I'm currently in talks with someone, possibly buying his Rotel RB1090. Looks like it was on a rack its entire life and seems to be in great shape. What would be a decent price to ask for it? V_O_R Just did a quick look around for used prices on that amp. Didn't find any for sale and nothing in completed sales on Ebay either. Pretty rare piece it seems these days. 380 watts a side and about 100 pounds too. I kind of remember when I did see them on the used market going anywhere from $800 to about $1100 or so. Does the guy have a price he wants for it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexander Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 You will find that there is much more than “just watts” in an amp. Each manufacture & model will tend to have there own “sound” to them. . Some may say model “X” will sound thin compared to a different brand or model “Y”. Or one is warmer sounding or more punchy, it all has to do with your preferences. JMHO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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