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Forte II , ratings? compared to others.


Kyle G

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Man that is it, I do believe, "Forte" sounds really familiar. They have never been refinished, but they do not say on the back. That IS right, it is a passive radiator, I'm starting to remember these things now. How do these speakers rate?

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Kyle - Look inside the "cup" where the binding posts are. It will say Forte in there in white lettering. Should stand about 34-35" tall. I have a pair and they are great, as you know.

In case you are interested in the specs on the ForteII:

Freq Resp: 32Hz - 20kHz

Sensitivity: 99db

Power Handling: 100w continuous / 500w peak

Impedance: 8 ohms

Dimensions: 35.4 x 16.5 x 12.25

Weight: 67 lbs

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There was a review of Forte (I) by J. Hersh (sp?) which was unreserved in praise. I'm not aware of a commercial review of the Forte II, thought they are generally commented upon as an improvement.

I can send you the Hersh review if you e-mail me your snail mail address.

Gil

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How about the Forte's compared to the RF-3? Just curious, I own RF-3's but have never heard Forte's (I or II) or the Hersey for that matter. I guess I was just wondering how these older speakers compare to something I'am familar with (RF-3's) which I love by the way.

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Forte IIs, are in my mind, one of the best Klipsch that were ever built. They TRASH the Heresys and the Quartets, only the Chorus IIs (for some applications) and the LaScalas, Belles, Cornwalls (maybe) and Horns are better. They have the lowest respones rated at 100db of any Klipsch evern made (to my limited knowledge). I have had a pair for 7 years and they are as good as the day I bought them. An interesting story. When the 5.5s (dual active 10's and a tractrix tweet) first came to market they were being touted as comparable to the Forte II (which had been discontinued). A friend of mine was dead sure of it. He loaned a pair for the weekend and we hitched them up (running a NAD 2700 THX amp and Adcom CD 'spinner'). They were quite nice, good 'slam', especially at moderate to high volume listening. We were satisfied. After we unhitched them we left the volume at the same setting, and used the same electronics (and the same CD, a Depeche Mode maxi single of World In My Eyes) and put my Forte IIs back into postition. NIGHT AND F'n DAY my friend! No comparison. I felt like my ears had been cleaned...the vocals and midrange opened-up and the highs were more...refined, and the bass extension was just marvelous comparatively! If you have to chose between Forte IIs and Reference 3s don't even think about it! Forte IIs RULE!!! After all, Forte does mean 'bold, with force, with authority'. These speaker are aptly named for sure.

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Forte IIs, are in my mind, one of the best Klipsch that were ever built. They TRASH the Heresys and the Quartets, only the Chorus IIs (for some applications) and the LaScalas, Belles, Cornwalls (maybe) and Horns are better. They have the lowest respones rated at 100db of any Klipsch evern made (to my limited knowledge). I have had a pair for 7 years and they are as good as the day I bought them. An interesting story. When the 5.5s (dual active 10's and a tractrix tweet) first came to market they were being touted as comparable to the Forte II (which had been discontinued). A friend of mine was dead sure of it. He loaned a pair for the weekend and we hitched them up (running a NAD 2700 THX amp and Adcom CD 'spinner'). They were quite nice, good 'slam', especially at moderate to high volume listening. We were satisfied. After we unhitched them we left the volume at the same setting, and used the same electronics (and the same CD, a Depeche Mode maxi single of World In My Eyes) and put my Forte IIs back into postition. NIGHT AND F'n DAY my friend! No comparison. I felt like my ears had been cleaned...the vocals and midrange opened-up and the highs were more...refined, and the bass extension was just marvelous comparatively! If you have to chose between Forte IIs and Reference 3s don't even think about it! Forte IIs RULE!!! After all, Forte does mean 'bold, with force, with authority'. These speaker are aptly named for sure.

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Forte IIs, are in my mind, one of the best Klipsch that were ever built. They TRASH the Heresys and the Quartets, only the Chorus IIs (for some applications) and the LaScalas, Belles, Cornwalls (maybe) and Horns are better. They have the lowest respones rated at 100db of any Klipsch evern made (to my limited knowledge). I have had a pair for 7 years and they are as good as the day I bought them. An interesting story. When the 5.5s (dual active 10's and a tractrix tweet) first came to market they were being touted as comparable to the Forte II (which had been discontinued). A friend of mine was dead sure of it. He loaned a pair for the weekend and we hitched them up (running a NAD 2700 THX amp and Adcom CD 'spinner'). They were quite nice, good 'slam', especially at moderate to high volume listening. We were satisfied. After we unhitched them we left the volume at the same setting, and used the same electronics (and the same CD, a Depeche Mode maxi single of World In My Eyes) and put my Forte IIs back into postition. NIGHT AND F'n DAY my friend! No comparison. I felt like my ears had been cleaned...the vocals and midrange opened-up and the highs were more...refined, and the bass extension was just marvelous comparatively! If you have to chose between Forte IIs and Reference 3s don't even think about it! Forte IIs RULE!!! After all, Forte does mean 'bold, with force, with authority'. These speaker are aptly named for sure.

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The Forte I was made from about '85-'89, and ran around $1100-1200, depending on the finish. The Forte II was made from about '89-96 and were about $1300 new. Good used speakers typically run about 50% of MSRP, give or take 10%. I bought two pairs of '88 Forte Is for $600 a pair.

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I think dougdrake is talking "per pair" on those prices. I got my Forte IIs in 1990 and paid $1300 for the pair. They have been through several moves and are still going strong. Using KG.5 or 1.5 as surround (can't remember which they are now) and KV-3 as center. We just moved into a new home where we can have primary home theater downstairs and secondary home theater upstairs. I'm sad to say, the wife wants smaller, more discrete speakers downstairs (but I want the high quality b/c this is where the big screen is). So it looks like my current set of Klipsch's will get moved to the "B" theater.

So I'm here to see what Klipsch is offering nowadays for a high quality, but small speaker setup for HT.

Or... maybe I'll sell the current Klipschs and use that money towards a cheaper speaker solution for upstairs and a better Klipsch setup downstairs. There seems to be a market for these awesome Forte IIs!

-nickel

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Nickel is right - the prices are per pair (sorry for any confusion).

As far as current offerings, Nickel, I'm sure you've already taken a look at the web site to see what is available. There is a new set of speakers due out in May/June timeframe that is supposed to be very good. More information here.

Ya know, the Fortes ARE awesome. Even if you sold all your current Klipsch's, you'd never be able to approach that quality of sound for anywhere near what you could sell them for. If you have to get something more aesthetically pleasing (?) for the main HT, I agree with your plan to move the current setup upstairs, and get a Reference series HT setup for downstairs (RB-5 for mains, perhaps?).

Doug

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Thanks for the suggestion, Doug. I'll take a look at the RB-5s.

(btw, I posted a new topic in the Updating Old Speakers area about refinishing these Forte IIs and the other speakers from black to oak. Then the wife might forgive the size because the colors match. Gotta look into how to refinish or find a pro)

-nickel

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Nickel - Another idea...rather than paying someone to refinish your speakers (or buying a new set after moving the Fortes et al upstairs), invest in a highly compressed carbon formation, cut specially to reflect/refract light, which will blind your wife to the size of the speakers. smile.gif

Doug

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Hello Kyle,

While I have only limited listening experience with the Forte's (what I remember is good), I do remember the Julian Hirsh article in Stereo Review back in the early to mid 80's that stated "the Forte's have the lowest bass distortion we have ever measured in a loud speaker." That little fact is still burned into my brain after almost 20 years.

Klipschguy

.

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  • 2 weeks later...

As an owner of a pair of '93 Forte IIs in oiled oak, I must agree that these speakers are some of the best ever made. In fact, as an extended family (parents and I) we own two pair of Forte II and a pair of the original I's. Times change, amps come and go, but my Forte IIs will be with me for a LOOONGGGG time.

I must gently disagree with orthj when he says they "trash the Quartets." I listened to both when I was in the buying mood, and the Quartets were quite spectacular, but I liked the slam factor of the Forte II better, as well as overall "feel." The Quartet is an excellent speaker, and while the Forte, IMHO, is a better speaker, it, by no means, "trashes" it.

Nickel-

I have a near-identical HT set-up as you...Forte II, 2 pr KG 1.5 (for THX-EX), and a KV-3 (in the process of auditioning/upgrading to a KV-4). I'll put my system up against most and be quite pleased (may not be able to match up with a K-horn-based system, but I'll give it a run.) There has to be some other compromise you and your wife can make to allow you to keep the "big guns" down with the big screen. It would be near-tragic to have to "delegate" them to the B theater (though that would be where I would end up spending my time" smile.gif

In summary, Forte I/II rules!

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I also love the Forte II's. Currently I am using them in my HT set up. Left, Right and Center are all Forte's !! RS-3 are the rear surronds.

They are the best sounding speaker that I have ever heard.

Also, I currently have a extra single Forte II, so if someone has an intrest for a center channel, let me know. I was able to use bucking magnets and some additional metal shields to shield my TV. It is a very large center channel but with the bottom taken off, it fits perfectly in my stereo cabniet.

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