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Belle Klipsch


joeward

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@Domenic -- sorry for the delay in responding.  @KT88 answered your question thoroughly.  for my 1975 heresys, the gasket that was mentioned was still in good shape and doesn't need to be replaced for now.  if you have any concerns about your gaskets, do get them -- they're super easy to replace.

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My set of Bells came with Crite's crossovers and the upgraded DE 120 tweeter. The woofer is original. They sounded very good with my McIntosh MA 6100 integrated but I couldn't help but try running my Conrad Johnson PV2 as a preamp running into the Mac amp. Took some of the hard edge off the drivers with the upgraded crossovers that can be pretty bright. I'm really happy with the sound for now. The great thing about the big Klipsch 3 ways is being able to try so many different amp combinations with them....they're so efficient.

 

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2 hours ago, joeward said:

The great thing about the big Klipsch 3 ways is being able to try so many different amp combinations with them....they're so efficient.

And that's what I'm going to do as soon as I get moved in to my new place. I have ordered some of the low watt, low dollar Chi-Fi amps seen on Amazon and around the web. How will they pair with my Cornwall IIIs? My new Belles? Heresys? Somebody out there on the forum must have experience with these or similar combinations. With what kind of results, I wonder. Some think 30 or 40 watts are a minimum. Aren't there others using less power?

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1 minute ago, joeward said:

Seems a lot of folks really like the amps from the Schitt company.......like the Aegis and Vidar. One of them runs in something similar to class A for the first 10 watts. American company with everything designed and built right here.

Yeah, they're in Newhall;  almost "just down the road" from me here in Southern California. Expanding to production in Texas, I think. Pretty cool website. They've got a sense of humor. In my main system I am currently using the Class A (first 10) Aegir with a Saga pre to power my Cornwall III highs and two Vidars to drive the lows with a Freya + pre. Currently CDs through a Bifrost DAC. I'm using the original LOKI. That's a lot of Schiit. No Schiit! I'm full of Schiit. (Okay, we got that out of the way). No complaints but I am currently tube curious so I will be experimenting with the above mentioned Chi-Fi low power, low dollar amplifiers when I finish moving into my new place and finish unpacking boxes. Do you have any experience in this area?

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1 hour ago, joeward said:

No experience at all with the Chinese tube amps. Only tube equipment I own is the Conrad Johnson PV2 preamp which mate very well with the McIntosh solid state amps I've tried with it.


I have tried a few Chinese tube amps. Thus far the only ones I have tried that I would recommend without hesitation are Yaqin models. I have owned a couple of their integrated amps and phono preamps (still own some) and was very happy with them on Klipschorns as well as some other less efficient speakers. Very quiet and nice sound. The one I still own is EL34 tubed and pushes 35-40 watts. Should work well with any big Klipsch including Cornwalls.

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On 11/5/2021 at 1:21 PM, jcn3 said:

@Domenic -- sorry for the delay in responding.  @KT88 answered your question thoroughly.  for my 1975 heresys, the gasket that was mentioned was still in good shape and doesn't need to be replaced for now.  if you have any concerns about your gaskets, do get them -- they're super easy to replace.

 

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Big thanks to everybody who contributed.  I learned a lot.  Much appreciated.  

 

My goal is to sweeten the sound of these stock Belles and generally improve the way the music presents itself.  I'm looking for clear, clean, well-defined, warmer sound on a big and detailed soundstage that isn't fatiguing to listen to for longer periods.  I want more liquid-y sound.  Let me know if this order of upgrade/improvement progression makes sense:  

 

     1.   Upgrade amplification from ss to tubes;

     2.  Puzzle through integrated amp vs. separates (that I can't really afford).  Looking at Quicksilver Integrated Amp, although Quicksilver also makes mono blocks specifically designed for horn-loaded speakers.  Prices for all the Quicksilver gear seem more than reasonable to me given the quality and I just like the feel of that company and its founder, they ring true somehow; 

     3.  Replace the caps on the AA crossover or replace the crossovers entirely with AIK Universals, encourage to know that changing out caps doesn't require and EE degree;

     3.  Upgrade drivers for mid and highs.  I may be dead wrong, but I can't help to think that if you are experiencing the infamous harshness of horn - which I do hear and do not like at all - at least part of the problem may be in the components that are responsible for producing mid-range and high-end sounds.  

 

    All advice and thoughts gratefully accepted.  

 

 

 

 

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My experience would suggest that going to a 2" horn on top will give you more "WOW" than updating/upgrading your passive.  You would want to go active with this horn, biamp and take speaker to a 2-way.

 

Losing a crossover point will make it more coherent/cohesive.

 

If you are ever near Knoxville area, you are welcome to hear the K510 horn on a LaScala next to a stock LaScala.  Not a Belle, but about as close as you can get to hear the impact.

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20 hours ago, Coytee said:

My experience would suggest that going to a 2" horn on top will give you more "WOW" than updating/upgrading your passive.  You would want to go active with this horn, biamp and take speaker to a 2-way.

 

Losing a crossover point will make it more coherent/cohesive.

 

If you are ever near Knoxville area, you are welcome to hear the K510 horn on a LaScala next to a stock LaScala.  Not a Belle, but about as close as you can get to hear the impact.

I've been looking at your rig earlier.  I was kind of fascinated by it.  Looks great, by the way.

 

That's interesting about the three-way to two-way change.  This is all deep end of the pool stuff for me, but I'm learning.  Slowly.  I'll do more reading on active/passive. 

 

When you say "biamp" does that mean separate amplification - mono blocks -  for each speaker or separate amps for the high and lows in each speaker?  

 

Thanks for the kind listening offer.  I'm in Maine and don't get down south very often.  But appreciate the offer.  There is a very nice community on this forum.

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1 hour ago, Domenic said:

 

When you say "biamp" does that mean separate amplification - mono blocks -  for each speaker or separate amps for the high and lows in each speaker?  

 

 

"biamp" means separate amp channels applied to the the highs and the lows (and mids where appropriate).  lots of different ways to execute this, but the typical around here is to use tubes for the highs and solid state for the lows.  the tricky part of the setup is making sure all channels have the same gain.

 

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