Forte 1, determining if caps need replacing.

[Cgoml]

I was lucky enough to purchase a beautiful set of Forte 1’s in zebra wood about 8 months ago, and have enjoyed them almost daily ever since. I was told they are original, and since they appear to be an early set (round cup on back indicating 96db efficiency apparently would suggest an earlier set in the run), that would put them at about 25 years old. I must admit, I like my music (much) louder than most, at times, and when the speakers are really pushed, I sometimes hear a “pop” from one of them. I don’t believe it’s the amp clipping, as it’s a MC 2205. Wondering if this might be an indication the caps might need to be replaced, or if there is a way to test if the caps are on their way out. First post, I apologize if this has been covered already elsewhere. 

[Bubo]

25 years is the life of a capacitor

 

So yes it's time

 

Crites has caps and replacement crossovers, some with bi-amp option

 

Others offer similar

[Alexander]

 

There are many options that you can take, but this can be one of those hotly debated topics.

 

The recently touted JEM 'Klipsch approved' caps that will keep your Klipsch speakers all Klipsch. Then there is the entry level class of Dayton, Solen & Audyn Q4s, Crites offerings and then there are the high end caps that can go into hundreds of $$$ too.

 

 

[geoff.]

Welcome to the forum,

 

You have taken the first step onto the Klipsch ladder.

 

Forte 1s are a great start. 

 

Each step will bring you incremental happiness along your journey.

 

If you like it loud the pro stuff may be your destination, steeper slope crossovers and a K-48 woofer will really rock you.

 

Keep your eyes open for a the pro stuff, it usually goes under the radar of most “audiophiles” and for less.

 

You can certainly replace the capacitors in your Fortes for starters, but your journey is far from over.

 

Unless you’re one of the lucky few who are content with what they have, lol

 

Cheers!

 

 

[Cgoml]

Thanks for the replies. Looking over some of the other comment strings as well this evening, the JEM replacements look well regarded and a good route to take. They will likely be getting a phone call from me tomorrow. Hopefully, not too complicated to replace. 
 

Content? Not so sure . . . but one indication is that Chorus iis and older pairs of Cornwalls sure catch my attention every time I see some on the Alerts section!

[DavidF]

So, some comment on the pop report. That does not sound like an issue related to the caps in your xover. It is more likely that you are bottoming one or the other woofer coils at the very high sound levels you mention. If this is the case, then there is no quick remedy for that other than backing off the drive power. Are you using equalization of any kind to boost the bass response? Check on the passives in the back to make sure they are in good shape and not leaking air. 

[jjptkd]

8 hours ago, Cgoml said:

but one indication is that Chorus iis and older pairs of Cornwalls sure catch my attention every time I see some on the Alerts section!

If you like "loud" Chorus II's deliver that in spades those k-48 15 inch woofers will take a serious beating for hours on end and never miss a beat. If you can find a pair I highly recommend you give them a try. The forte are nice speakers as well but the woofers are the weak point and finding factory replacements can be a very hard thing to do.

[jimjimbo]

https://critesspeakers.com/

[Cgoml]

I’m not using any equalization to boost the bass response, but appreciate the tip to check the rear passives. 
 

In regard to the Chorus ii, if a nice pair comes up for sale anywhere near Arkansas, I’m going to have some explaining to do, to my beautiful wife. 

[001]

10 hours ago, DavidF said:

So, some comment on the pop report. That does not sound like an issue related to the caps in your xover. It is more likely that you are bottoming one or the other woofer coils at the very high sound levels you mention. If this is the case, then there is no quick remedy for that other than backing off the drive power. Are you using equalization of any kind to boost the bass response? Check on the passives in the back to make sure they are in good shape and not leaking air. 

 

Exactly what i was going to post.....  forte woofers dont handle the power a chorus woofer does & many people have reported blowing them,  a pop indicates they are being driven too hard, back off on the volume unless you want to replace the woofers soon too! 

 

 

[Alexander]

12 minutes ago, EpicKlipschFan said:

 

Exactly what i was going to post.....  forte woofers dont handle the power a chorus woofer does & many people have reported blowing them,  a pop indicates they are being driven too hard, back off on the volume unless you want to replace the woofers soon too! 

 

 

 

Might a “bad” NPE exasperate this?

 

[jimjimbo]

10 hours ago, DavidF said:

So, some comment on the pop report. That does not sound like an issue related to the caps in your xover. It is more likely that you are bottoming one or the other woofer coils at the very high sound levels you mention.

Certainly agree with this.

[OO1]

13 hours ago, Cgoml said:

Thanks for the replies. Looking over some of the other comment strings as well this evening, the JEM replacements look well regarded and a good route to take. They will likely be getting a phone call from me tomorrow.

Just in case you don't have it , this outfit is the Authorized Klipsch  Sole seller  for Klipsch original capacitors , so the exact replacement parts for your Forte 1 speakers -Good luck ,  now Zebra wood Forte 1 speakers must be very beautiful indeed -

 

Welcome to the Forum -

 

https://jemperformanceaudio.com/      ,  

[Cgoml]

Thanks. 

[001]

49 minutes ago, Alexander said:

 

Might a “bad” NPE exasperate this?

 

 

Good question.  I'm far from an expert to give a confirmed educated answer, will leave that to the experts on here to answer.  but generally speaking I dont think a electrolytic cap would cause a pop in the speaker at high volumes, a pop is a tell tale sign of being over driven or ever on its way to being blown. 

[MicroMara]

On 1/6/2021 at 5:22 PM, Cgoml said:

I like my music (much) louder than most, at times, and when the speakers are really pushed, I sometimes hear a “pop” from one of them. I don’t believe it’s the amp clipping,

 

When bass drivers are driven at higher levels, the excursion of the diaphragm logically increases. A distinction is made between linear and maximum possible excursion. The linear excursion describes the condition with acceptable distortions. If the diaphragm is deflected further, we are in the non-linear range, i.e. the voice coil then leaves the linear range of the magnetic field.

 

On the one hand the distortion increases, on the other hand the dynamic impedance of the driver collapses due to the missing "core effect" of the middle pole piece and the current in the coil increases significantly.The consequence of this is that the diaphragm is further and above all uncontrolled deflected and then at some point comes into the range "stop". Nowadays, however, good drivers are designed in such a way that the voice coil former can no longer strike the rear pole plate. Rather, the centering spider and the surround go to the stop, i.e. full extension. Thereby a "pop" noise becomes audible . A driver does not mind this if it is centered a few times. Only over a longer period of time such levels are really not recommended.

 

[moray james]

6 minutes ago, MicroMara said:

 A distinction is made between linear and maximum possible excursion. The linear excursion describes the condition with acceptable distortions. If the diaphragm is deflected further, we are in the non-linear range, i.e. the voice coil then leaves the linear range of the magnetic field.

 

 

 

a simple rule of thumb to establish the approximate linear travel of a driver is to consider it to be 1/3 of the thickness of the top plate. This is a reasonable number to go by.

[OO1]

55 minutes ago, Cgoml said:

Thanks. 

by the way ,  the popping sound simply means that you are over driving the speakers ,   try to look for a 2nd pair of speakers , that will avoid damaging the Forte 1 -we all like loud sound , but for that , we need even more speakers -

[tigerwoodKhorns]

On 1/6/2021 at 8:22 AM, Cgoml said:

I was lucky enough to purchase a beautiful set of Forte 1’s in zebra wood about 8 months ago, 

 

I don’t believe it’s the amp clipping, as it’s a MC 2205.

 

You are not allowed to post here if you do not post pics of the Zebrawood Fortes and Mac equipment. 

[Madman1]

16 hours ago, Cgoml said:

Thanks for the replies. Looking over some of the other comment strings as well this evening, the JEM replacements look well regarded and a good route to take. They will likely be getting a phone call from me tomorrow. Hopefully, not too complicated to replace. 
 

Content? Not so sure . . . but one indication is that Chorus iis and older pairs of Cornwalls sure catch my attention every time I see some on the Alerts section!

Forte I recap was a big pain in the sac for me. All point to point wiring on the back of the cup unlike pcb on forte ii. I’m sure there are guys that can just replace caps on the cup but I had to rebuild everything on a piece of wood and place them in the cabinet. Don’t think that’s the issue you’re having though. Make sure all the screws are tight and none are stripped, but don’t over tighten the horn screws.