Where's the Jubilee?

[condorflyer]

BobG,

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to get involved with this forum. I can appreciate a lot of your comments as I sold Klipsch speakers at Tweeter aka HiFiBuys for a short period in my life. Typically the fellow salespeople turned their noses up at Klipsch with comments that theyre too bright, but on the flipside, I sold more Klipsch speakers than the others. One thing to keep in mind here, I wasnt the typical salesperson solely focused on the getting the sale or fixated with margins, commisions, etc.. I was and still am a Klipschorn owner for many years and believe to this day that Klipsch speakers, in particular the Heritage series, are among the most satisfying speakers to listen to everyday. I have listened to a lot of systems and still dont feel motived whatsoever to rid myself of my beloved K-horns.

An important point here is that unless the person demonstrating the speaker is passionate about it, the customer can be swayed by the salesperson who has his own agenda. I believe in Klipsch and thats why I pushed it every time. The other part of the equation is the intelligence of the consumer. Some consumers, like myself, read the fine print and want as much information as possible to make an intelligent choice. Along those lines, the Klipsch website could do a better job of informing consumers about the higher end that Klipsch has to offer. In addition, someone in this post has already mentioned including information in your brochures about the better stuff. This is a very good idea as AWARENESS of the alternatives is the seed that may grow into desire and wants.

Your website needs to inform and OFFER those descrimating customers an opportunity to hear for themselves that experience. How do you do that? Provide at least one place in the United States where that customer can come and listen to your speakers under very good to ideal conditions. It stands to reason that the associated equipment be chosen to complement your gear. For example, so many here are passionate about how tube gear and horn speakers go together so well together. If Paul Klipsch voiced the Klipschorn using a 2a3 Brooks amp, then by all means, have a good 2a3 present. For those who want to hear solid state, have your Aragon equipment in the same room ready for demo by using banana plugs. Encourage the customer to bring some of their own music. A setup like this at your corporate headquarters shouldnt be out of the question and would not drain company resources to any detriment. The best of both worlds, stereo and home theater, could exist in one room. In my own setup, I have a Cornwall for the center channel and recently acquired two KLF 10s for the rear channels and Im continually amazed at how well it sounds that I prefer to wait until a movie comes out on DVD so that I can watch movies in my own environment. Unless youre dealing with something like a John Allen setup, watching movies at home for sound sake would always be more rewarding.

Audio by Van Alstine, a direct Internet seller, has a room where you can listen to his gear. In addition, Bose has retail stores, so again, having one place where an intelligent, monied consumer could go to actually hear the Jubilee and Heritage should not be out of the question. I for one would make the trip because after reading endlessly about all this stuff, I simply want to hear the difference for myself. If the difference were compelling, then yes, I would find a way to acquire it. Others would too. I once took a tour of Wilson Audios facility in Provo Utah while I was in Salt Lake City for a while. It was an interesting experience and at the end of the tour I was treated to a number of speaker demonstrations. The people were nice, the speakers sound nice. Its not such a hard thing to do right.

Also, for those do-it-yourselfers, offering to sell plans, drivers, and crossovers is another alternative. This would alleviate the tremendous shipping cost issues, returns, etc.

Imagine this scenario, a potential customer visits Klipsch HQ to listen to the Jubilee, likes it so much, now they want it. They have a choice, to build it if theyre crafty, or fork out the bucks to buy it at the reasonable price you intended all along. They have no regrets, no buyers remorse, they know they want it. Why? Because they were provided the opportunity to listen to it first. Imagine a link on the Klipsch website, WANT TO HEAR KLIPSCH HIGH END AT ITS BEST? If professional musicians like Tanya Tucker and actors like Billy Bob Thorton own Klipsch this says something. They have tons of money. They could have bought anything, but chose Klipsch. They chose a product that gives them MUSIC. Substance over expensive boutique gear. Advertise it on the website, let it be known. Build it and they will come.

You mentioned some other projects in the works that sound interesting, care to share anything about the performance league of Jubilee/Heritage and beyond?

To you and Klipschs future success. Thank you.

Austin

[dubai2000]

What a beautiful speaker - I wish it could be bought!!!

Anyway, I am no business person, but all the SVS hype made me actually order such a 'baby' and have it shipped all the way to Germany - so why not try to sell the Jubilee along those lines - any I wouldn't mind opening my living room to potential customers - as long as I can afford to replace my current Khorns with PWK's last speaker - come on Klipsch, DO something!!!

Wolfram

[j-malotky]

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On 11/11/2003 6:40:08 PM artto wrote:

As far as the Heritage series goes, I'd be willing to open up my listening room and spend some time with prospective Heritage buyers, provided I can share in some profit, on a commission basis.

Hell, thats actually the way Klipsch was really sold in the first place. The 'customer' heard the speakers at a friend's or relative's place, etc. And THEN, they went to the dealer to buy them.

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

Artto has the right idea. Since none of the so called "High End" dealers do not want to show Heritage, why does'nt Klipsch put together a database of Heritage owners to show off the line? I would love to sell Heritage as a home business. Put my name and system on the list.

Artto, we should team up and use your system to demo listening and my system to sell Heritage HT systems.

As for the worst buy selling the low end home and computer speakers. I will repeat what I have posted before, I have no problem with them doing this for two reasons, first, for the price the low end Klipsh are the best speakers for the money and second, if it finances the salaries of fine people like our good friend Bob, Trey, Steve and so on and lets them develop systems like the AK-4 network, the high end pro and Heritage speakers, thats fine with me.

JM

[Parrot]

Artto,

Thanks for the picture of the home-version Jubilee. It doesn't look anywhere near as big as I imagined it. The pro-theater version is a lot bigger, isn't it? I don't see why anyone with room for Klipschorns couldn't have room for Jubilees.

[avman]

this thread got me fired up. i posted another thread with my feelings on this topic as a new topic because this is an important issue that goes beyond the jubilee, but the jubilee is a good reference point to a larger picture.

avman.

[formica]

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On 11/11/2003 5:05:31 PM Tom Adams wrote:

Ok BobG...if you're still listening in here, I've got another suggestion and this time I'm being serious.

I'm no where near a marketing person, but what if Klipsch was to follow a marketing model like Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have done with their Acura, Lexus, and Infinity lines respectively? Seems that by creating a spin-off company it would free you from the mass production model that is boxing you in. Additionally, it may create the perception of exclusivity thereby drawing dealers that once ignored you.

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I'm late in adding my two cents, but from the start of this thread I couldn't help but think along the lines of Tom Adams...

1- Klipsch NEEDS to differentiate the heritage series from the regular series. "Klipsch Classic" ... "Heritage Klipsch" or even "PWK" with the original logos. Call them what you want, but the name has to be prominently displayed on each cabinet. After all, you want to make sure people know that "These are not your DORM room Klipsch"

2- There has been a growing interest in tube amps in certain areas... (is this the main reason for the overseas popularity?)... these would be prime targets as "heritage" dealerships. Truth is, Klipsch would do well in acquiring a small respectable tube amp company and push it as a system.

3- If the above items are implemented, releasing a higher priced flagship model just to stir interest in the new series and industry buzz would be more realistic. Offering 15@20k$ special order Custom / Handmade Jubilees...

But I'm sure management Klipsch have already proposed some of these solutions... but maybe Dilbert and his Pointy haired Boss actually work for klipsch??

Rob

[ZAKO]

TANNOY WESTMINSTER ROYALS ( horn speaker system ) Sell for $35000 pr. In JAPAN. TANNOY is still making them. And KLIPSCH LLC cant find customers for the JUBILLE? JBL is making the K-2 At $30000 pr & they are selling well in Japan. And KLIPSCH LLC cant find customers for the JUBILLE? I understand the smaller Klipsch speakers are the bread & Butter & keep the lights on at Klipsch LLC. BUT to say they cant find enough customers for the JUBILLE? YOU build them & sell them ONe at a time. JBL had one MAN building the PARAGON speaker. Just ONE MAN one at a time. When sales slowed down here in the STATES production kep,t going for many years in Japan. And KLIPSCH LLC cant find customers?

[skonopa]

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On 11/11/2003 6:55:19 PM condorflyer wrote:

If Paul Klipsch voiced the Klipschorn using a 2a3 Brooks amp, then by all means, have a good 2a3 present. For those who want to hear solid state, have your Aragon equipment in the same room ready for demo by using banana plugs. Encourage the customer to bring some of their own music. A setup like this at your corporate headquarters shouldn’t be out of the question and would not drain company resources to any detriment. The best of both worlds, stereo and home theater, could exist in one room.

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

Actually, the do have such a setup at their Corporate HQ in Indianapolis, although no Jubilee (I really wanted to hear that!). Granted, they did not have both the HT and two-channel together in the same room, but they did have the complete Reference series in one room setup as an HT and the complete Hertiage series in another room setup in a two-channel configuration. I got to hear them last summer at the visitation there. I hear that the "klipsch tour" may be an annual event, and if you could, I would highly recommened attending, if they are doing it again this year (I plan on doing so myself).

However, I don't know if any "John Q. Public" can go in and listen, though. I guess if you are really interested in hearing the speakers, it would not hurt to ask. I would be willing to bet that Trey or Bob, or somebody else would be more than happy to let you come for a visit to listen to these.

[condorflyer]

skonopa,

Thanks for the info. I was in Dayton Ohio for three weeks this past August and called Klipsch HQ. It was clear that unless you were bringing a group of people, a one-on-one was out of the question. If another tour is proposed again, I would be interested.

Since they already have 2 rooms, all they have to do is simply advertise this on the website and take appointments. This way the customer could buy direct (and skip the dealer markup) since all those wonderful dealers out there aren't interested carrying Heritage or the ?? Jubilee ??

Austin

[WMcD]

Let me make some observations.

Some of us had the honor of visiting Hope earlier this century and hear Jubilee's (bass bin) in the theater there. (And met PWK, his wife, and many of the good crew; many thanks to all who make it possible.)

It can't be said with certainty that what we heard is what PWK poses with in the picture. Probably so, as far as the bass bin.

With respect to the size of the Jubilee or the K-Horn in pictures, one must remember that PWK was a very tall man. One report is that he is 6'5" in cowboy boots. He managed therefore, in pictures, to make his big horns look smaller than they actually are. If you see some printed material from the '60's they must have found some tall female models for them.

What we saw and heard in the theater are, most likely, the theater bass units with add on grills and a front facade. Trey, or one of the other hosts, took off one grill structure. A very nice piece of industrial design. Essentially the added pieces are L shaped to cover the front and top of the black plywood bass unit.

It seems to me that the home unit will have to follow the same design with the use of a facade. This is because the bass bin has two drivers. You can't mount or service them without a hatch on the top and bottom. The Jubilee cabinets we saw in the factory have a hatch at the top and bottom. The intricacies of the foldings do not allow for a side hatch, as there is on the K-Horn.

The units we heard did not have the wooden treble unit you see in the picture with PWK. Rather they were some fiberglass off the shelf pieces. From the sound, and what there was to be seen (not much), there was not a lot of care in crossover design. Probably the system was put together for the gathering.

We did not see or hear the treble unit in the picture. For all I know, the one in the picture may be the only one in existance. My guess is that there are a family of prototypes for testing which are hidden away.

The rumor mill has it that the treble unit is somewhat of a design and money challenge. It may have been PWK's wish that it stand alone without a cabinet and look fabulous. This is a tall order.

Again an apolagia. To get the home Jubilee to market there will be the confluence of engineers (looking at performance), artists (considering looks), cost accountants (looking at money), and retailers (looking at markup and floor plans $). It ain't easy.

Best,

Gil

[maxg]

BobG,

Lets talk about your international reputation for a moment. Klipsch, here in Greece at least, is regarded as high end.

From what I understand this holds true for the rest of Europe (with the possible exception of the UK) and I would be willing to bet Japan would lap these up.

Basically trying to build a business case for the Jubilee based on the US alone is a fallacy that sells the company short.

Remember that over here the KHorn sells for $14,000 (from memory - need to check that out but it is in the right ballpark) - that places you fairly in the high end to start with.

The question would therefore be - how much of a premium would you charge for a Jubilee, or, what would the market stand? My guess $25 - $30,000, with a slight further premium in Japan.

How many at this price? For Europe plan on:

total Population - 300 million. (includes the UK but not the 9 new members - Poland et al.)

%age audiophiles - 2% = 6,000,000

%age into horns - 15% = 900,000

%age able/willing to spend this kind of money - 2% = 18,000

Actual achievable penetration with marketing - 20% = 3,600

Hopefully someone from the Far East can give you an estimate for that marketplace.

I have been far from optimistic. Want to give me a marketing budget - I can knock up a business plan for you in short order.

Based loosely on the above. Factoring in a lowly 500 or so for the whole of the US (at a reduced price - say $15,000) and assuming Japan and the rest of the Far East can equal Europe (at the higher price) we come up with a total marketplace of something in the order of say, 8,000 units.

PM me if interested - I am serious about this!!!

[audio_kid]

Hello all,

As a long time Klipsch admirer, I have to chime in on this topic. I worked for Klipsch dealers in Rochester NY for 20+ years, and introduced many people to the speakers from the early 1970's into the 1990's. Those were the days when Paul Klipsch and BOB MOERS (a name that was conspicuously left out of the PWK biography) ran the company. With regard to Klipsch not being considered 'high end audio', I remember when tubes were laughed at and high power solid state was king (aaahh... when I built up my collection of tube McIntosh and Marantz equipment). Now, in the 21st century, people are paying high prices for SET amps and high effeciency speakers.

I agree that Klipsch should consider selling Heritage on-line or through specialty dealers. As an engineer at a Pro Audio company, there are manufacturing techniques (LEAN) that can accomodate small run sizes effeciently. Don't let the Jubilee die!

-Dave

[IB Slammin]

...It ain't easy....

Gil,

If it were easy...Bose would be doing it.

tc

[Tony Reed]

Just the fact that there are so many replies to this thread says something. Keep it coming guys. We have the beginnings of a grass roots campaign!

Tony

[dubai2000]

Tony, I wish that was true, but it seems some people at hq only consider $$$s and though other companies offer expensive speakers, I always wonder how many are actually sold. Still: Klipsch - produce this speaker!!!

Wolfram

[ZAKO]

Hey you guys have you wonder,d why KLIPSCH LLC has,nt fazed out the Heritage line? Be cause they cant. Why? It surely aint high demand. Why? I believe some one else has Klipsch by the SKRONK. Can you guess who? And the JUBILLE was not included in the agreement. Think hard guys.

[Deang]

So many good posts in this thread, and in all of them is something I agree with -- which saved me a lot key strokes.

I don't think Klipsch needs a spin off company, but something like "The Klipsch Custom Shop" would be a good idea. Since Heritage are basically special order items anyway -- just announce them as such.

The Klipsch Home Page should always have a picture of a Klipschorn, Belle, or LaScala on it. The page should be redesigned with more pictures highlighting the different lines. People love pictures. Currently, Heritage is all but invisible, and you know what they say -- "Out of sight, out of mind". I think it's the kiss of death from a marketing perspective. The more exposure the better.

Klipsch needs to increase sales volume to support future projects. If they can't do it with Reference or Heritage, they should do it with Synergy. Klipsch should start by offering Synergy in a variety of vinyl finishes. Some people like black, but not eveyone -- I sure don't. There is nothing worse than trying to make your black box stand out when it's sitting with all the other black boxes. A speaker that looks good, sounds better. I'm telling you, the average consumer walks into Best Buy, sees all that crap, and just says -- "Where's the Bose?"

A little bit of advertising wouldn't hurt either. I would actually stay away from the audio and video magazines, and I think Klipsch should seriously consider advertising in Newsweek, Time, and some of the other weekly magazines. One good paragraph, with carefully chosen verbiage, devoid of hype, and some premium photography -- would pay huge dividends. I think you can be aggressive without being obnoxious.

Maybe Paul Klipsch didn't want as much of the market as JBL, or present day Bose, and certainly cared more about putting out a quality product. OTOH, I don't think PK wanted Klipsch going back to working out of that shack he started in either.

At any rate, we, the "Elite" Klipschters sure are noble aren't we? We be the diehards. We bleed Klipsch. With that in mind, let me ask you something:

When was the last time you bought a new set of Heritage from Klipsch instead of eBay?

[3dzapper]

Dean,

1978. Since there is nothing better, there has been no urge to upgrade.

Rick

[Professor.Ham.Slap]

Dean,

I am but a college student, but the Cornwalls my father owns were straight from the factory. And once I am out with a job, it is going to be a brand new pair of K-horns straight from the factory.

[ZAKO]

When youve bought the top of the Heritage line. Where else can you go? Paul Klipsch & Delgado designed a new FLAG SHIP for the company KLIPSCH LLC. But the refuse to set sail. That leaves us but one choice. Build our own SHIP. & unfurl our own sails.