Will Kilpschorn AK6 work well in my room? (thinking of upgrading from La Scala)

[ThomBoh]

There's a local pair of Klipschorn AK6 for sale, and I'm considering them.

 

I currently have La Scala AL5s, and while I love them, I think the AK6 could do my room a lot of logistical favors. My AL5s together with my pair of REL 212/SX subs take up a pretty large footprint in my room. The LS sound better pulled out of the corners, and the subs end up with a dip from 60-90 Hz unless I pull them out into the room and have them against the sidewalls. They're big and really act as obstacles to layout of my room.

 

My thought in getting KHorns is that the speakers themselves would effectively have a way smaller footprint than the La Scalas as they would be tucked right into the corners, and the fact that they have much deeper bass extension than the LS would mean that I could probably get away with one smaller sub (like a REL 1510) sitting between the KHorns on the front wall, eliminating the annoying footprint of my REL 212s. I also would hope that since all of the bass from 40 Hz up will be coming from the KHorns, I'll have a much smoother and more even bass response in my room overall. My hope is that this would not only make my room much nicer, but also sound better (or at least as good). Also, I might save money in the long run by going with the KHorns because I could sell the REL 212s, which themselves are very pricey.

 

My biggest concern is that in reading threads from people considering KHorns vs La Scalas, it has seemed like people for the most part prefer the La Scalas, and the KHorns could only be as good if I have the right corners for a KHorn to really work properly. Also, the very few professional reviews of the AK6 that I've been able to find don't actually read very favorably. I would hope that this is due to limitations of the reviewer's rooms. Any candid opinions of the AK6s as a speaker, and compared to the AL5s would be appreciated!

 

So I'd like to ask.. do I have the right kinds of corners? My room is 12' x 30', here's a photo of the corners where the KHorns would go (forgive the mess of speakers, I'm doing some testing right now). You can see where one of my REL 212s is on the right -- there's another one on the left side a little further back. It's super annoying even though it sounds great.

 

That front wall is 12' wide, and the distance from corner to window frame on either side is 4'. The distance from corner to window frame along the right side wall is 3.5'. Would these window frames have a significant impact on the ability for the folded bass horns to work as well as they should in these corners?

 

Thanks for any thoughts people might have on going from LSAL5 to KHAK6 in this space! I'm hoping I can pull it off and reclaim more of my room layout without giving up sound quality in the process!

Edited March 7 by ThomBoh

[Tom05]

Klipschorn  will sound great in your room. The window is no problem . Good luck 🤓

[ThomBoh]

Similarly, would putting a couch on the left sidewall next to where the left KHorn would be hurt anything? I guess a better question is: what on your sidewalls DOES hurt the bass performance of a Khorn?

Edited March 7 by ThomBoh

[Khornukopia]

I would put Klipschorns on the long wall of your 12'x30' room, even if you need to add a free-standing corner at one end. That places your listening position on axis with the tweeters. The dimensions may seem counter-intuitive at first, but it often works good. Try it with your La Scalas before buying the K-horns.

[ThomBoh]

3 minutes ago, Khornukopia said:

I would put Klipschorns on the long wall of your 12'x30' room, even if you need to add a free-standing corner at one end. That places your listening position on axis with the tweeters. The dimensions may seem counter-intuitive at first, but it often works good. Try it with your La Scalas before buying the K-horns.

 

Unfortunately, speakers on the long wall is just not an option for this room, especially not with speakers this large. The length of the room is awkwardly broken up by doorways, inset bookcase, etc and the only way to have a liveable furniture setup that makes sense in this room while being able to also use it as a listening room is to have the speakers in the corners on the short wall.

 

So, do you see issues with putting the KHorns in the corners shown?

 

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying about tweeter axis. In the corners shown I can toe in/out to get whatever relationship between tweeter axis and preferred listening position I would want? Can you be more specific about what you mean?

 

Thanks for the advice!!

[Shakeydeal]

Kind of a narrow room for khorns. You will be sitting way off axis with the speakers crossing well in front of the listening position.

 

 

 

Just my opinon.

 

 

[Shakeydeal]

Quote

In the corners shown I can toe in/out to get whatever relationship between tweeter axis and preferred listening position I would want?

 

Not with khorns. You will be locked into one position, for better or worse.

[ThomBoh]

3 minutes ago, Shakeydeal said:

Kind of a narrow room for khorns. You will be sitting way off axis with the speakers crossing well in front of the listening position.

 

 

 

Just my opinon.

 

 

I appreciate that. Can I not just fix that with toe-out? They're AK6 so they don't have to be snugly sealed to the corner because the backs are sealed. At least Klipsch makes it sound like you can.

Edited March 7 by ThomBoh

[Shakeydeal]

Oh, ok. AK6 might work. I was thinking earlier versions.

 

 

[Khornukopia]

7 minutes ago, ThomBoh said:

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying about tweeter axis. In the corners shown I can toe in/out to get whatever relationship between tweeter axis and preferred listening position I would want? Can you be more specific about what you mean?

 

Thanks for the advice!!

 

I also was thinking about the earlier K-horns, like mine. Yes, the AK-6 with the enclosed backs can be turned towards your desired position. But then they start to have a bigger footprint than the La Scala.

[Khornukopia]

@ThomBoh , Take your Decware amp to audition the local AK-6. 

[ThomBoh]

19 minutes ago, Khornukopia said:

 

I also was thinking about the earlier K-horns, like mine. Yes, the AK-6 with the enclosed backs can be turned towards your desired position. But then they start to have a bigger footprint than the La Scala.

 

Pulled out to where they sound best, my La Scala have an effective foot print of 3.5' x 3.25' measured from the corner. Even in an extreme case where I have the Klipschorns facing with the tweeter horizontally along the room, their footprint would be 2.3' x 2.6' ish feet. So I think no matter what I'm winning with the KHorns. But also, part of why I want to do this is to eliminate the need for my pair of REL 212/SX subs to add bass to the La Scalas. The 212s need to be out in the room to sound good and have a huge foot print themselves. I'm hoping that the bass extension of KHorn in my room would allow me to replace them with one smaller single-driver sub (like a REL HT 1510).

 

So maybe a better way of rephrasing this question is: will AK6s placed in these corners be able to use the corner loading effectively enough to give me good bass response? Higher freq stuff is important too obviously, but again I assume I can fix that with toe.

 

In reading people's analysis of Stereophile's poor review of the AK6, I saw a lot of people saying that he just doesn't have a good room for KHorns. He also had his on a 12' wall if I recall, although the length of his room was much shorter than mine (17'?).

 

13 minutes ago, Khornukopia said:

@ThomBoh , Take your Decware amp to audition the local AK-6. 

 

That's definitely the plan if I decide I'm serious about them

Edited March 7 by ThomBoh

[Khornukopia]

13 minutes ago, ThomBoh said:

That's definitely the plan if ...

 

This is a perfect opportunity to answer all the nagging questions about your amp. (or the electricity source it is plugged into)

[ThomBoh]

18 minutes ago, Khornukopia said:

 

This is a perfect opportunity to answer all the nagging questions about your amp. (or the electricity source it is plugged into)

 

Sure is, but I can't disingenuously show up to someone's home to try their speakers unless I want to buy them. Hence I hope to get answers to the questions I'm asking about how well the bass extension will work in my corners, and how well they'll compare to my AL5s in my room  

Edited March 7 by ThomBoh

[Khornukopia]

Test listening to the bass response of some speakers for sale that you MIGHT buy, with the amp you plan to use at home seems genuine to me.

 

As far as your room is concerned, no one else can really say how any pair of speakers will work out. I say that my Klipschorns sound better in my room than the La Scalas did in the same room. Other people on the forum might say something similar or express an opposite opinion. The fact is that every room has so many variables that any combination will have different results.

[the real Duke Spinner]

Only caveat ..you do not want the Horn aimed right at your Ear. 🚫

[Flevoman]

I don't know if my experience is the right one to use, but I still want to share it.

 

I own the AL5 myself and, like you, was hesitant about acquiring someone else's AK6. I went to listen to his speakers twice, and both times I had the same experience. I found the AK6 to have a much tamer, maybe even somewhat dull, sound. The AL5, as it sounds in my home, has much more dynamics and punch. Also, I found the placement at my home better than at his. I'm not sure if this is due to the speakers, the setup, or the acoustics, but this is what I noticed. The bass went a little deeper, but I didn't find the difference, with the tracks I listened to, noticeably large. If I had to describe it briefly, I would say the AL5 (as I know it) is dynamic and lively, while the AK6 (as it sounded there) is more laid-back and grander.

 

Note: he had his Khorns placed against the long wall, not in the corners. And this person likes a laid-back sound. It is likely that he has tailored his setup to this preference. I personally prefer a dynamic and lively sound. By the way, this person is in a position to listen to different Khorns daily, which are placed well in the corners, and according to him, the audible difference between the set tightly placed in the corners and his set is minimal.

[Shakeydeal]

13 hours ago, the real Duke Spinner said:

Only caveat ..you do not want the Horn aimed right at your Ear. 🚫

 

 

 

                 This.......

[Peter P.]

Sometimes you have to ignore the acoustic ramifications and meet your other needs.

 

You're right; LaScalas and two huge subs take up way to much space along that short wall, and in the room in general. Placing a pair of Klipschorns in the corners

is the right solution.

 

Few people have the ideal setup for a pair of Klipschorns yet they enjoy them just the same.

 

I say go for it with one caveat; since you've got the TV screen I assume you watch movies. You'll want to use one sub for movie effects as you have mentioned so you'll

have to find space for it. Sounds like you have a plan for that.

[Frzninvt]

Too narrow not wide enough for them to image correctly.  You should have at least 4ft of wall on either side once they are in a corner.  You are better off with the La Scala's.