STSOE Posted November 29, 2019 Share Posted November 29, 2019 Hey guys. I have been following the forum on and off for a couple of years but this is my first actual post. I am quite curious if anyone have upgraded the internals of the RF7 lll? I remember someone on here make crossovers for the original at least. I am thinking about upgrading the wiring, terminals etc. Any recommendations? Everything else in my system is pretty decent. I just want to see if i can get anything more out of these amazing speakers. Right now i am pretty confident that the internals of the speakers is the bottle neck so to speak. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted November 29, 2019 Share Posted November 29, 2019 The III's don't have the shortcomings that the 1's did. You might listen to them as is for a while and discover that you like them as is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted November 29, 2019 Moderators Share Posted November 29, 2019 Welcome I know nothing about any of the RF line but will say, many times a change does not mean an upgrade. It may sound different but what was really changed and what else was affected ? 5 hours ago, STSOE said: Right now i am pretty confident that the internals of the speakers is the bottle neck so to speak. And what makes you think this ? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted November 30, 2019 Author Share Posted November 30, 2019 (edited) Well, the rest of my gear is pretty much three times as good as the rf7. I just really like the rf and therefore, getting a few % extra out of them would be welcome. Edited December 1, 2019 by STSOE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted November 30, 2019 Author Share Posted November 30, 2019 10 hours ago, CECAA850 said: The III's don't have the shortcomings that the 1's did. You might listen to them as is for a while and discover that you like them as is. Shortcomings or not. I ain't gonna replace the whole thing. Just the "lesser" parts. Terminals, wiring etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale A B Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 If the speakers are already “amazing” I don’t see any reason to muck it up at this point in time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted November 30, 2019 Author Share Posted November 30, 2019 (edited) There is always a reason for better sound. The main reason being because i can. Edited November 30, 2019 by STSOE 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glens Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 I'm betting you'll spend time and money on the project, and will hear a definite improvement. And that if you subsequently A/B them against stock versions will only be able to hear a difference if you know which pair is playing. And that any third party will not hear a difference, blind or sighted. If you change capacitors and/or coils the chances are greater for an actual difference, maybe. As to whether it'll be an improvement or not, well... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted November 30, 2019 Author Share Posted November 30, 2019 (edited) On 11/30/2019 at 4:51 AM, glens said: I'm betting you'll spend time and money on the project, and will hear a definite improvement. And that if you subsequently A/B them against stock versions will only be able to hear a difference if you know which pair is playing. And that any third party will not hear a difference, blind or sighted. If you change capacitors and/or coils the chances are greater for an actual difference, maybe. As to whether it'll be an improvement or not, well... That's the plan. And no i am not 100% sure that it would be an improvement if i just change some stuff to more expensive versions with the same values. I got a mate who upgraded the internals of a pair of rb,'s though and they really sound amazing. Better components is always a good idea no matter what speaker we are talking about. You are not right about that. I could easily a/b blindfolded if you changed my speaker cables. The same goes for the internal wiring just by a greater extend i suspect. I didn't believe in wires until a mate tried a new pair in my system and holy shit, i upgraded everything shortly after. Edited December 1, 2019 by STSOE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pzannucci Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 2 hours ago, STSOE said: That's the plan. And no i am not 100% sure that it would be an improvement if i just change some stuff to more expensive versions with the same values. I got a mate who upgraded the internals of a pair of rb,'s though and they really sound amazing. He is about to do the same with a pair of P39. That lucky bastard.😋 Better components is always a good idea no matter what speaker we are talking about. You are not right about that. I could easily a/b blindfolded if you changed my speaker cables. The same goes for the internal wiring just by a greater extend i suspect. I didn't believe in wires until about a year ago until a mate tried a new pair in my system and holy shit, i upgraded everything shortly after. Caps are the typical starting point. The sky is the limit on pricing. It will be a fair amount of experimentation and cost to find out if you like the "better" version or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted December 1, 2019 Author Share Posted December 1, 2019 22 hours ago, pzannucci said: Caps are the typical starting point. The sky is the limit on pricing. It will be a fair amount of experimentation and cost to find out if you like the "better" version or not. You are absolutely right. Hence i was hoping for some good advice from you guys. 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skelt Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 It's been my experience that an active crossover beats all of the passives I've tried. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted December 1, 2019 Author Share Posted December 1, 2019 1 hour ago, Skelt said: It's been my experience that an active crossover beats all of the passives I've tried. I never tried that and anyway, thanks but that is a no go for me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechEngVic Posted December 2, 2019 Share Posted December 2, 2019 On 11/29/2019 at 5:03 AM, STSOE said: Hey guys. I have been following the forum on and off for a couple of years but this is my first actual post. I am quite curious if anyone have upgraded the internals of the RF7 lll? I remember someone on here make crossovers for the original at least. I am thinking about upgrading the wiring, terminals etc. Any recommendations? Everything else in my system is pretty decent. I just want to see if i can get anything more out of these amazing speakers. Right now i am pretty confident that the internals of the speakers is the bottle neck so to speak. This is your chance to be a Klipsch Pioneer!! I don't think anyone has torn into their RF-7 III's yet. I guarantee you that the crossovers and wiring can be upgraded at the very least. And if you crack them open and document the design and values of the crossovers you'll get a lot of help from the experts on this forum. I for one am itching to see RF-7 III guts! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skelt Posted December 2, 2019 Share Posted December 2, 2019 Why don't you ask what crossovers I've used? I find I like the steeper slopes over the simpler designs like type A or AA even when built using premium parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted December 2, 2019 Author Share Posted December 2, 2019 (edited) 13 hours ago, MechEngVic said: This is your chance to be a Klipsch Pioneer!! I don't think anyone has torn into their RF-7 III's yet. I guarantee you that the crossovers and wiring can be upgraded at the very least. And if you crack them open and document the design and values of the crossovers you'll get a lot of help from the experts on this forum. I for one am itching to see RF-7 III guts! Really? No one has done this yet? They have been around for a while now. And yes i am pretty sure that the wiring and crossover could use an upgrade. I am just not that sure what would be the best way around this. I could always use the same values but with better components and some good wiring. Just wanted to see what you guys have done with yours. Edited December 2, 2019 by STSOE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted December 2, 2019 Moderators Share Posted December 2, 2019 1 hour ago, Skelt said: I find I like the steeper slopes over the simpler designs like type A or AA even when built using premium parts. Steeper slopes can make a big difference. Went to a class about a month ago put on by Klipsch's chief engineer, one part of the class was doing listening test with a few different crossover slopes so you could hear the differences. If I remember correctly it was 4 different slopes on the same crossover, the majority of the people there chose one of the two of the steepest slopes after going back and forth a few different times and from different positions in the room. All of this is why I am mostly not fond of changing things with proven speaker designs, the crossover slope is only a small part of what goes into a design. All of these different changes which are many just with crossovers alone are setup to work as a group, and is proven with testing to get a final design. Seeing some of the many different driver combinations, crossovers and other things that go into a design and tested through each step and at any time is subject to change for different reasons makes it pretty impossible to have good reliable results from general switching out parts, and calling it an "upgrade". You may change out a part that cost more or looks to be made better but what have you done to the overall picture and performance, there are many different things that are taken into consideration and proven by test, if you could see everything considered and tested to see what each change actually does to the overall performance electrically and sonically you would have second thoughts about just randomly swapping out parts. Don't take this the wrong way, I love DIY and think once you buy a speaker of course it's yours do do what you want, I just wish everyone could see how little changes can change other other things not even considered. A simple recorded plot testing one aspect only says so much and that result is only sonically, what really changed to get those changes ? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechEngVic Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 12 hours ago, dtel said: ...the crossover slope is only a small part of what goes into a design. All of these different changes which are many just with crossovers alone are setup to work as a group, and is proven with testing to get a final design. This. That's why repositories of know-how and experience, like this here forum, are such a valuable resource. Speaker builders make as good a sounding speaker as they can within the confines of the budgets they are given. There is always a compromise. Then we, with the help of these forums and our experiences, can extract the few missing bits of performance out of those designs. But care must be taken to avoid thoughtless "Swap-tronics". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 On 12/2/2019 at 6:16 PM, dtel said: Steeper slopes can make a big difference. Went to a class about a month ago put on by Klipsch's chief engineer, one part of the class was doing listening test with a few different crossover slopes so you could hear the differences. If I remember correctly it was 4 different slopes on the same crossover, the majority of the people there chose one of the two of the steepest slopes after going back and forth a few different times and from different positions in the room. All of this is why I am mostly not fond of changing things with proven speaker designs, the crossover slope is only a small part of what goes into a design. All of these different changes which are many just with crossovers alone are setup to work as a group, and is proven with testing to get a final design. Seeing some of the many different driver combinations, crossovers and other things that go into a design and tested through each step and at any time is subject to change for different reasons makes it pretty impossible to have good reliable results from general switching out parts, and calling it an "upgrade". You may change out a part that cost more or looks to be made better but what have you done to the overall picture and performance, there are many different things that are taken into consideration and proven by test, if you could see everything considered and tested to see what each change actually does to the overall performance electrically and sonically you would have second thoughts about just randomly swapping out parts. Don't take this the wrong way, I love DIY and think once you buy a speaker of course it's yours do do what you want, I just wish everyone could see how little changes can change other other things not even considered. A simple recorded plot testing one aspect only says so much and that result is only sonically, what really changed to get those changes ? No worry. I get where you are coming from. This is one of those 5% scenarios. But hey. I love these speakers. And i would gladly pay to get those 5%. I am driving them with a Hegel H590. So i already overkilled them. 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STSOE Posted December 5, 2019 Author Share Posted December 5, 2019 On 12/2/2019 at 3:41 AM, MechEngVic said: This is your chance to be a Klipsch Pioneer!! I don't think anyone has torn into their RF-7 III's yet. I guarantee you that the crossovers and wiring can be upgraded at the very least. And if you crack them open and document the design and values of the crossovers you'll get a lot of help from the experts on this forum. I for one am itching to see RF-7 III guts! I will be putting up pictures on Saturday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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