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RP-280F vs. Forte 1 w/Crites upgrades


cgolf70

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This might be the wrong place for this post so mods, feel free to move if needed.  I just sold my RP-280 floors because I believe my Forte 1 w/Crites upgrades are a better sounding speaker both for music and movies.  I have a 450 center.

 

Am I crazy?  No, because I kept what sounded best to me.  :-)

 

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Seems to be clearer, crisper, cleaner and felt right there in the room with me.  It's hard for me to put in words sometimes what I'm hearing but the sound from the Fortes is more real than the 280s.  Sensitivity also.  I bought a Sansui AU-217 for fun and I barely turn the volume and I have beautiful powerful sound.  Same with the 280s but just not as real.

 

Some of my descriptions are subjective and maybe even meaningless to some.  That's why I said, I just liked the sound from the Fortes better.  

 

It's all in the ears & head!!

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Having a separate midrange will make the Fortes have more presence.  That is likely why you like them better.  That is the key difference in two way vs. three way designs.  It is very hard and requires very good drivers to make a two way speaker sound like a three way with that presence.

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57 minutes ago, pzannucci said:

It is very hard and requires very good drivers to make a two way speaker sound like a three way with that presence.

I am sure there are a select few others but the RF-63 is one that surely does sound like a 3-way.  Great balance and smooth transition.  I have owned them for almost 11 years and they have sat side by side against some stiff completion(Quartets, Fortes) and they have answered every challenge they faced.

 

Bill

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2 minutes ago, willland said:

I am sure there are a select few others but the RF-63 is one that surely does sound like a 3-way.  Great balance and smooth transition.  I have owned them for almost 11 years and they have sat side by side against some stiff completion(Quartets, Fortes) and they have answered every challenge they faced.

 

Bill

Well if you get down to 6" woofer, when crossing over you can put the xo point in an area where a 6" woofer can act as a midrange (it is the size of a typical midrange) so you are right to some degree (as long as you don't factor in bass response).  To have bass response with 6" woofers and clean midrange, IMHO, you need to run a 2.5 way configuration at minimum.  You want to move some of the bass out of the midrange to cut the distortion.  You can use the two way with a 6" woofer in a small room as long as you don't exercise the woofer too much and or you don't listen louder and like bass as that forces you to put a dip in the crossover region (typically Klipsch 2 way references have a slight smile to their output).  Also that little top end zing sells speakers.

 

So you are correct, an RF63 should sound similar (but still contend not have the presence of a midrange horn) with some compromise in the crossover region, particularly with distortion and time domain.  That's what a 2.5 way is for.

 

 

 

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This was never about the 280s sounding bad or anything negative about them.  They are great speakers.  This was about what speakers sounded best to us in our media room and the Forte's won so they stay.

 

Win win either way.  280s are sold and on their way to the new owner.  Happy listening!!

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You did the right thing, you kept the ones you thought sounded best, not much else really matters. :emotion-21:

 

Myself I like a three way better, unless it's a really well done two way with the right parts, which cost much more.

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52 minutes ago, dtel said:

You did the right thing, you kept the ones you thought sounded best, not much else really matters. :emotion-21:

 

Myself I like a three way better, unless it's a really well done two way with the right parts, which cost much more.

Precisely correct.  No one is saying either sounds bad, just different.  Folks all have different preferences and hot buttons.  Be true to that.

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1 hour ago, pzannucci said:

Precisely correct.  No one is saying either sounds bad, just different.  Folks all have different preferences and hot buttons.  Be true to that.

Your right neither is bad by far.

Really when I read his thoughts on both speakers, my first thought was the original Forte is really holding it's own over time. The RP-280 has gotten some great reviews by many people here and if the roughly 30 year old Forte can compete is saying something, and there were 2 revisions of the Forte's that came later. 

 

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Was it Stereo Review or Audio that considered Forte I one of the best sounding speakers at any price?

 

The RP series are great sounding speakers though for somewhat different audiences.  Kind of a transition between RF and the Heritage in their focus.  Each has their strong points.

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8 hours ago, dtel said:

Your right neither is bad by far.

Really when I read his thoughts on both speakers, my first thought was the original Forte is really holding it's own over time. The RP-280 has gotten some great reviews by many people here and if the roughly 30 year old Forte can compete is saying something, and there were 2 revisions of the Forte's that came later. 

 

These sounded great stock but after I upgraded them with Crites tweeter diaphragms and crossovers, they just blew out the 280s in our room.  3 ways are awesome, even 30 year old 3 ways!!

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I thought about updating the crossovers but I had 3 pair to do, original and the ll version. Giving our daughter the original pair and we have a pair of the lll's now. So it would be only 2 pairs of the ll version. But somehow I want to find another lll so it's a perfect match across the front for ht, this would be my first choice.

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