audiodogster Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 I just picked up a pair of original series Forte in walnut. A couple of nicks and lick scratches so not perfect but boy do they look nice. I picked these up for $233 after tax to put in a budget system I am building for my dad to give him on Father's Day. It needs some work before going into service but they will be driven by a Harman Kardon 430 Twin Powered, which I picked up for $100 with the intention of eventually pairing with some sort of Klipsch Heritage speakers as I read on here that it was a favorite to pair with older Klipsch. Currently, I have it hooked up to an early 00s Sony 5.1 channel receiver connected to my brother's Axon 7 (you can look up the specs but supposedly the best DAC of any phone, only phone with Dolby Atmos) and they sound great. I prefer these to my La Scala Industrial. Better bass extension and no harshness in the highs, while still giving that big speaker sound in a much smaller, more attractive package. Definitely, the best full range speakers I own, I think my dad will be pleased. Btw, the record player is a Yamaha PF800, I didn't have anywhere to move it and it weighs a ton so I just put the HK430 under it. Any ownership tips for these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtr20 Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 Nice find. If the finish is faded at all, look into Watco' s rejuvenating oil. It does wonders on walnut finishes on klipsch cabinets. Just be sure to put some type protective finish after. I prefer to use Howard's wax. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjptkd Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 Very nice, you're such a good son! If the crossovers are stock they are 30 years old and need servicing, I'd recommend pulling the crossovers out and sending them to Bob Crites for a re-cap before giving them to dad. That was a great score by the way, congrats to both of you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted March 11, 2017 Moderators Share Posted March 11, 2017 1 hour ago, jjptkd said: Very nice, you're such a good son! Yes you are, very nice of you to do that for him. That should be a great setup, your going to make him happy. Is that a mural, looks real. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audiodogster Posted March 12, 2017 Author Share Posted March 12, 2017 2 hours ago, dtel said: Yes you are, very nice of you to do that for him. That should be a great setup, your going to make him happy. Is that a mural, looks real. It's an oil on canvas, I picked it up from estate company for like $25, as crazy as that may sound. I've pulled the chairs back and now have spaced out the speakers 7.5 feet from center to center. What sort of spacing do you guys do for these speakers? My seating is probably about 11 ft from the speakers, I can pull them further apart if I move stuff. What distance should I have them from the wall? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loneshark Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 I've done spacing between my forte IIs as far as 12 feet and never had trouble with proper imaging when I was sitting about 9 feet back. I've always felt there's a pretty large soundstage as long as you are near the sweet spot for how wide your speaker placement is. Fabulous find by the way. All my speakers have knicks or light scratches but I don't complain at all after turning them on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Nice find for a great price. Fortes are one of the best balanced speakers klipsch made... funny how you like them better than the bigger la scalas... The x-overs may be 30 years old but that doesnt mean they are "bad." I had forte 1's & they sounded great with no signs of bad caps, if they sound good to you then I wouldn't worry about the caps right away. Also if you have basic soldering skills you dont need to send them off to replace a couple caps or buy overpriced caps. The improvement in sound comes from new poly caps compared to the cheaper original caps, you will be very happy with caps that cost a few bucks a piece like dayton or other similar priced caps out there. For placement, most any speaker will sound bets in a corner of a room, as mentioned you can go as wide as you need up to a point but being in a corner will increase the bass. & watco oil is good but ive had better results with howards restore a finish in the dark walnut, it helps with scratches & small blemishes especially when used with 0000 steel wool & will bring back some color to the wood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audiodogster Posted March 12, 2017 Author Share Posted March 12, 2017 2 hours ago, klipschfancf4 said: Nice find for a great price. Fortes are one of the best balanced speakers klipsch made... funny how you like them better than the bigger la scalas... The x-overs may be 30 years old but that doesnt mean they are "bad." I had forte 1's & they sounded great with no signs of bad caps, if they sound good to you then I wouldn't worry about the caps right away. Also if you have basic soldering skills you dont need to send them off to replace a couple caps or buy overpriced caps. The improvement in sound comes from new poly caps compared to the cheaper original caps, you will be very happy with caps that cost a few bucks a piece like dayton or other similar priced caps out there. For placement, most any speaker will sound bets in a corner of a room, as mentioned you can go as wide as you need up to a point but being in a corner will increase the bass. & watco oil is good but ive had better results with howards restore a finish in the dark walnut, it helps with scratches & small blemishes especially when used with 0000 steel wool & will bring back some color to the wood. I can certainly do the recapping myself, I just replaced a bad amplifier card on one my Genelec 8050As ($12 part on an originally $2k per each studio monitor, sorta strange if you ask me) and didn't manage to screw anything up. I don't have a ton of experience with audio equipment but taught myself soldering years ago for a science fair project and have mostly done car electronics since then. I think I will have a look at what I need to do to recap the crossovers, maybe use ALK's design he posted here a few years back though that would certainly cost more. I have Howard's Restore a Finish but only the maple/pine variety so I should probably get some walnut. My main problem with the La Scala is they are too big! If I had the space, I would probably have already made the ported bass boxes to see if that helped as much as people suggest. The tweeters aren't that bad, certainly better than many other speakers I have heard but my reference speaker at the time was a Monitor Audio Studio 6, and boy do those things have a beautiful upper end (and for the original cost of the things, they better have!) but are pretty much useless below 100hz. Fortunately, I have a guy coming up in the next couple of weeks to trade, he has a set of the industrial Cornwalls in the same finish and wants matching La Scala, has a load of great stuff to trade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam2434 Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Very cool to put a system together for your Dad. Forte are very nice sounding speakers and looks you got a great deal! I started this thread a couple weeks ago regarding restoring some Forte I, if you are interested in doing that. https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/169202-forte-i-crossover-caps-and-other-refresh-items/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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