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Klipschorns for Home Theatre


reactor444

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Here is the Newbie again regarding K-Horns and Home Theatre..I am negotaiting hard with a fellow and his K-Horns. I had earlier indicated that I would like to use them as front speakers in my home system. They are apparently 1990 K-Horns in mint condition. He want's about $3000 CDN ($2000US). Is this a decent deal?? Should I consider other speakers as front's, ie B&W's etc..Honestly, I have never heard K-Horns, only read great reviews by their owners. Is this enough to make a decision on?? Unfortunately I cannot find any dealer in Toronto who has them on display..

Eagerly waiting insight.....

Art

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If they are in mint condition, that is not a bad price, not great, but not bad. They have been going for that on ebay, and you don't have to pay shipping, which adds up fast.

As for how they work for mains in HT, they're great (thanks Tony The Tiger). I have K-horn mains, LaScala rears, and Heresy centers and no subwoofer and couldn't be happier. Well huge subs would make me happier, but that's another project.

Good luck, and let us know how you come out. You won't go wrong if you get them.

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The price is probaby about the average going rate.

In regards to the suitability of the KHorn in a HT environment, let me say that I have recently assembled my own Khorn-based HT using a Belle as center, Heresy's as surrounds, and a JBL Pro bass bin for LFE. It is unquestionably the best HT I have heard. Just yesterday I stopped by a dealer and saw their "reference" HT setup. It was based on Revel speakers. I don't know what the overall cost of the systems was, but the mains were priced at $12,000 per pair. They were playing Spiderman, which I have watched/heard on my own system. At least for HT (I didn't get to audition these with music), there was no comparision. Khorns win easily.

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ART: What wood ? finish ?

The price seems to GO UP the nicer the wood and finish, I paid $2200.00 for a pair of raw birch back in 1990. Although the price seems to get a little higher each year. You'd be hard pressed to buy anything "new" for $3000.00 that would outperform the k-horn.

DALE

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After talking further with the fellow about his K-Horns I learned the following.

Finish- Oiled Walnut

Year - 1989

He is an older fellow who apparently does not use them often. They are hooked to a very old non tube receiver. As far as the condition, this fellow indicates there is not a mark on them. He would " fall out of his chair" if he knew of any chips marks etc. They are mine for $2200US..A good deal or not?? I haven't seen a pair for sale in my neck of the woods in a couple of years..

I have to be honest and say that I have never seen or heard Klipschorns in person. After researching speakers for a couple of years I have come to the conclusion that I want K-Horns..My mind is set..Do you think I will be disappointed when I audition them on Saturday??

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----------------

On 1/29/2003 7:39:36 PM reactor444 wrote:

I have to be honest and say that I have never seen or heard Klipschorns in person. My mind is set..Do you think I will be disappointed when I audition them on Saturday??----------------

Just might be-not due to any shortcomings of the Klipschorns but more of the source.The K-horn is a very "amplifier dependant" speaker and will show all shotcomings. When I first heard mine they were on an older Sony Integrated SS receiver and they sounded absolutely horrible,it wasn't till I got them home did they begin to show their true colors.

I say go for it-if they don't meet your expectations you won't have any problem selling 'em for at least what you paid.

Hope this helps,

Jeff

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Art,

I *STRONGLY* advise you to do whatever is necessary to listen to these before you buy them. This is always recommended with any speakers, but with Klipschorns (or Belles or La Scalas) it is more important than with just about any other kind of speaker.

The fully horn loaded Heritage series sound more different from other speakers than just about any other speaker on the planet. Most of us in this forum, of course, think they sound *BETTER* than anything else - that's why we're here. *HOWEVER* everyone is different. You may agree with us, and think that Klipschorns sound more like real music than any other speaker. On the other hand, you might *HATE* them, particularly if your tastes run toward small, acoustic suspension stand mounted monitors or such.

Also keep in mind that the Klipschorms *MUST* be placed in a corner, flush against the walls on both sides, to work correctly, or you have to attach "false walls" to them. If you don't have a room that permits installing them flush into the corners on the left and right side of the room, you'll be disappointed.

And finally, while it would seem that even if you decide to sell them and move on you should be able to get more than you're going to pay for them, keep in mind that these things are the size of a Volkswagen and are a bit difficult to transport.

Ray Garrison

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Art,

Can a better deal be found? Yes, but that is a very fair price and seems to be around the going rate for a nice set. About 7 months ago I bought a mint pair of 89' black ones off ebay for 2750 which I thought was very fair considering they had only been palyed about 80 hours. Also keep in mind that they will be the last set of main speakers you will enver need to buy. I would go for them.

EJ1.gif

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What AV receiver do you run with you Klipsch systems? I have an old HK unit - before that I had a Yamaha, and the Yamaha sounded harsh and flat to the HK unit. I know Klipsch are efficient - do I need a lot of power or just a good AV unit? I am looking at HK, Marantz, Rotel, and Arcam. Comments? Thanks.

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Skip,

Since Klipsch are so efficient they do not require nearly as much power as other peakers do to hit the same db's(loundness). Khorns for instance will put out 104db with one watt one meter away from the speaker. So no, you do not need alot of power, but a little extra never hurts IMO. I like my Yamaha RX-V1 but I am the minority on this BB which is fine. To me Dennon sounds bland and muddy. I like the sound of the HK's they have always been great receivers. I hae not heard the Rotel or the Outlaw, but have heard alot of good about the outlaw's.

EJ 1.gif

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Ditto, what Ray said, listen to them, with music that you like, if you like the sound, you will love these loudspeakers forever, even if they are only average in price, but also plan on getting tube amplifiers someday and realize that with that kind of ultra-high efficiency, you are in a different league as far as front-end equipment is concerned: most of the typical advice you get will not apply, which is why we hang out here, I love the big old horns and think that with flea-powered tube amplifiers of yesteryear and active subwoofers, that they can compare to some of the most esoteric offerings available today, including the Avantgarde Accoustics that Ray steered me to in New York City 2.gif

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Whoa...Thanks to everyone for their keen insights into my purchasing K-Horns..I am meeting with the seller on Saturday and will report back shortly after. If they are as mint as he says I will be buying them for sure. I don't expect a great performance out of the speakers as apparently they are being driven by an old Realistic type receiver..Hopefully my Denon 5800 will be an improvement. At the end of the day if I don't like them I am sure I can turn around and sell them for what I payed.

Will report back soon....

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Bought the K-Horns....

Now I know what all the fuss is about..My jaw did drop at the sight of the k-horns today, and the sound, it was jubiltation..I was prepared to love or hate the k-horns, something about not every liking horns blah blah....These babies weren't corner positioned and it was a new music revelation..I took my friend who could care less about music audiophylillia and he was is disbelief about the sound of these beautifull walnut k-horns....They were in this rich guys indor swimming pool room positioned about 4 ft from any wall etc..My friend raved all the way home about the K-horns..It was a confirmation of a life long dream..My Bose 901's were always the admiration of my friends who figured I was the lucky guy who owned Bose flagship....I am having a get together two Friday's from now to introduce my new K-Horns to them..They will be stunned!!!!!!!! This is a new level of listening that happened today.....We can burn the 901's for fuel...

They are 1987 oiled walnut.....There is not a mark on them. They have been for sale since Aug 19th...Why he didn't sell them is a mystery to me....Some guy was dickering on these for about 2000us but the seller wanted 2200...., big deal....These babies are mint.....

Unbelievable

AH

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I am sounding very illiterate in that last posting....Even in this one....I had to correct the whole first sentence....Too many drinks again and the excitement of my new K-Horns....

It's like a whole new sound, really, I cannot believe that after all these years I thought that my Bose 901's were IT....I figured the K-Horns were be the main fronts, the 901's the rears.....Change of plans....The K-Horns will shred the fabric on the Bose.....

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