Klipsch RF7 Posted December 26, 2003 Author Share Posted December 26, 2003 See this is what i like to see That is why ask you guys because i know you are a well rounded bunch with years of audio experience and vast knowledge, i know this is Klipsch board but there are people who have heard and had other speakers than Klipsch and there experiences are valuable and if you dont ask you never will learn or find what your looking for. The more and more ive been reading LEOK's posts about cap swapping and conditioning on the RF-7's and how they become really transparent and detailed and open up, the more i want the RF-7's. I am beginning to think that there is no speaker under the 5k range that can match the Klipsch RF-7. Damn I love Klipsch, there speakers are so darn affordable yet they give you a world of performance and features. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tubinhard Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 I really don't want to get into a RF-7/Heritage debate here, but some of you are expressing an opinion, and making a judgment about this without full knowledge. Put 30 to 60 clean tube watts on some RF-7s, and I'm sure you wouldn't be able to help but agree -- they sound excellent. It might not be your preference, but they are great speakers -- and they definitely do some things better than Heritage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H. Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 If Price were the Factor for selection, Then Klipsch beats the B & W's hands down. http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/bw_nautilus_804.htm From a 1999 Review the Price quoted for the B & W was The $3500-per-pair .......... Compared with the Average Retail price of the RF7 being around the 1,500 mark (average price). JMH Observation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3dzapper Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 The best "bargain" in audio is still the Klipschorn. At 7,500 list what can you get for less than 3 times the price that will compete in dynamic range and lack of distortion? When I bought mine for 1,600 in '77 there was still no competition at the price. Everything their equal or (just) slightly better was way out of my price league. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hwatkins Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 ---------------- On 12/26/2003 10:55:37 AM Hepta Bronte wrote: I really don't want to get into a RF-7/Heritage debate here, but some of you are expressing an opinion, and making a judgment about this without full knowledge. Put 30 to 60 clean tube watts on some RF-7s, and I'm sure you wouldn't be able to help but agree -- they sound excellent. It might not be your preference, but they are great speakers -- and they definitely do some things better than Heritage. ---------------- I agree that I am expressing an opinion. I think the RFs are outstanding, but my ear notices the differences with three ways and (even with cone three ways) I tend to be attracted to a good three way sound. Always be leery of my posts and remember it is my opinion only. Actually always be leery of my posts regardless - sometimes it is my evil, adopted twin speaking and I am not responsible for what comes out of his fingers.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheltie dave Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Georg, the RF 7s will be a dynamic set of speakers for you. They have the footprint, materials, and most important of all, sound for the $. Low distortion. Very dynamic transient response. They are an outstanding selection for listening to classical that contains a lot of piano and harpsichord. It sounds like you want to run a few different types of speakers through your place to determine which you like best in your room. The RF 7s will be the benchmark when you finish, I believe. Read up on some of the tips - positioning, sound reflections/deadening, and things to promote or avoid with these specific speakers. The heritage were designed to closely deliver what Paul would hear at the symphony. The RF 7s, being at the top end of the Reference line, still incorporate many of these features. If you get them set up well, I believe you won't feel a need to move on to a second set to demo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klipsch RF7 Posted December 26, 2003 Author Share Posted December 26, 2003 Thanks Dave, Where can i find such information regarding the tips and tricks of the RF-7's? Thanks for the Scott amp BTW, I cant wait till Craig does his magic on them and i get it back. Im going to use my Rotel as the Preamp and then through the preouts hook up the Scott 299-C and hook my speakers into the Scott. Will i still get a nice, warm tube sound that way? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tubinhard Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Gee, I don't know guys -- anyone around here know anything about setting up RF-7s? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leok Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Georg, The technology going into Klipsch 3-ways has been evolving into the 1990s with tractrix, passive radiator and tower designs. The focus appears to have been packages that would fit where the older styles wouldn't (KLF, Forte-II, Chorus-II) so three way technology isn't all old. I'm not saying that old is a problem, but that newer 3-way Klipsch designs are available. Any Klipsch speaker you get, unless is has been very well broken in, and even then I'm doubtful, will be harsher than I think it is designed to be until the caps are at least conditioned and posibly even swapped in a few critical locations (very old designs with oil caps seem to be a possible exception). That done, you're going to have a speaker that, driven with an amp that delivers low distortion at low power, will blow away anything for several times its price. I think the Chorus-II, Forte-II, and RF-7s are all terrific and share the need for some crossover work. The same may be true of the KLF series, but I've never heard one following crossover work. Your chances of getting equal quality, off the shelf, from another manufacturer, for several times the price is close to zero. If you think other speaker manufacturers properly condition the caps in their crossovers, think again. If you just buy anything, Klipsch included, you get what you get .. none of it is great with classical music. If you are willing to take your time, get to understand the equipment and do some customization, the Klipsch route will get you classical that works. Leo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klipsch RF7 Posted December 26, 2003 Author Share Posted December 26, 2003 Ahhh LeoK the one and only, thanks for your insight. I have been reading your dissertations regarding the capacitor conditioning on the RF-7 network. You have some sound therories and your hypothesis is very interesting. I would like to see more research from you in regards to the actual stock capacitors that come from the factory, im wondering by using your conditioning methods if we can get the full range from the speaker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3dzapper Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 AND Georg, You won't feel a need to use your Rotel as a pre-amp with your Scott either. The scott has a very fine pre-amp built right in, especially with the new caps and resistors Craig puts in the phono/line stages/phase splitters. Right now as I sit I am using my 299c as a pre-amp with a mod I did this week. It is driving my 300b SET amp and allows me to use the tone controls of the Scott. Sounds much finer than my other pre-amp, a Dynaco PAS-3, and the 300b. And I know it'd blow away the Yami's pre-amp. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klipsch RF7 Posted December 26, 2003 Author Share Posted December 26, 2003 Well, I need to have rotel for Dolby processing from the DVD and id rather use the DAC's in the Rotel than the ones in the Sony CD player But, I will be using the Phono section for a Miracord turn table Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stream Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 ---------------- On 12/26/2003 12:17:58 PM Georg Friedrich Handel wrote: Im going to use my Rotel as the Preamp and then through the preouts hook up the Scott 299-C and hook my speakers into the Scott. Will i still get a nice, warm tube sound that way? ---------------- We've told you countless times that using a mid to low-budget SS amp as a pre-amp for a great vintage integrated tube amp is a bad idea. The Rotel will feed the Scott a less-than-perfect signal, which gives the Scott less to work with. Even if the Scott has a great pre-amp, it's dealing with a tarnished source from the SS Rotel. You will be plenty happy with the Scott by itself, trust them. If you're worried about not having the right inputs on the Scott for your digital stuff, then run two systems, one for HT and one for music. But, in Georg's defense, I don't see what's wrong with asking for comparison between Klipsch and other speakers. Isn't that why we're so proud to be Klipsch owners? I would think comparing our pride and joys with other speakers would be something we do well....and politely. -Jesse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klipsch RF7 Posted December 26, 2003 Author Share Posted December 26, 2003 Thanks Jesse, I just want to get some opinions and see how the higher end Klipsch stacked up against the other high end speakers and what there advantages over them are and also disadvantages. The Rotel is not a mid budget reciever, it is actually a very high quality SS reciever that easily matches the $3k units from Denon and what not. Im thinking what i need to do is hook my CD player up to my Scott for playing back music and then hook the DVD into my Rotel for movies, ill just have to play with it and do side by side comparisons and see what will suit me the best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stream Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Well, I meant "mid-budget" in that the Rotel won't sound as good on a pair of RF-7's as that Scott will. I'm sure you paid a pretty penny for the Rotel receiver. They make nice stuff. I also meant it isn't a $10,000 esoteric SS amp -Jesse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klipsch RF7 Posted December 26, 2003 Author Share Posted December 26, 2003 ---------------- On 12/26/2003 2:40:23 PM stream wrote: Well, I meant "mid-budget" in that the Rotel won't sound as good on a pair of RF-7's as that Scott will. I'm sure you paid a pretty penny for the Rotel receiver. They make nice stuff. I also meant it isn't a $10,000 esoteric SS amp -Jesse ---------------- Oh Yeah, Tube is really the best way to go on the RF-7 speakers from what ive been reading. Im going to be doing cable swaps and listening and finding whats the best route to go as far as connections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hwatkins Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 ---------------- On 12/26/2003 2:35:44 PM Georg Friedrich Handel wrote: Thanks Jesse, I just want to get some opinions and see how the higher end Klipsch stacked up against the other high end speakers and what there advantages over them are and also disadvantages. The Rotel is not a mid budget reciever, it is actually a very high quality SS reciever that easily matches the $3k units from Denon and what not. Im thinking what i need to do is hook my CD player up to my Scott for playing back music and then hook the DVD into my Rotel for movies, ill just have to play with it and do side by side comparisons and see what will suit me the best. ---------------- Well Georg - I am not familiar with the Rotel, but if you have digital connections to the CD and DVD, you can do as I do: Conect the analogue outs from your CD and DVD to the Scott and Connect digital to the Rotel. Then do one or the other: 1. Get a switch and switch speakers to the respective unit based on what you want to be listening to, or 2. Still feed the Scott from the Pre-outs on the Rotel and by selecting input on the Scott determine how the source is getting to (and through) the amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted December 26, 2003 Share Posted December 26, 2003 Probably just as well, George, I dont think the big ole horns are much of a match for Rotel and Sony front-end equipment anyway, besides you have to hear something before you buy it, unless you are absolutely certain you can get them humming with the right equipment. I heard many of the B&W series over the years with the right front-end equipment and it makes quite a difference. They have a wild and low impedance curve, thereby requiring massive concrete block amplifiers, like the Pass Pass Laboratories Supersymmetry Balanced Single-Ended Class-A*X250 (http://enjoythemusic.com/magazine/archives/) to sound their best. B&W have some of the tightest mid-bass performance around, very nice to listen to, but I dont have enough money to afford both great sound and good looks. Ill stick with my big ole horns until I can afford Avantgarde or Martin-Logan Statements. New components dont necessarily improve on what older ones can do. Often, they are simply made cheaper. Take for example, big ole Klipsch classic corner horns which now retail for $7500 and yet sell for as little as $2K. Wait until you hear the Scott before telling us how great your solid-state receiver is, you will be surprised at the musical qualities of vintage equipment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klipsch RF7 Posted December 27, 2003 Author Share Posted December 27, 2003 Well, i went out and bought some RF-7's tonight from Ultimate Electronics for $2k, im returning them in about 3 weeks But, here goes my opinion of them so far. First, they beat the heck out of me carrying them in and then lugging them around and setting them up, my wrists and arms hurt now I popped in some Dave Brubek Take 5 HDCD and boy does it sound amazing, the drums and piano and sax just come to life. The drums sound so real, you can hear the attack on the drums and detail. They are very bright and lively, lots of sound stage and i dont have to crank them as high to get a nice volume from them, im impressed as they sound really good on my Rotel reciever. The Rotel's are known for being very musical recievers with thier DAC's and excellent power transformer. George Solti's 1972 recording of Beethoven's symphony No.9 sounds outstanding, the kick from the drums and the orchestra is moving and clear. These speakers are a keeper for sure, im just going to use them for about 3 weeks and return them and order them online for $1590 shipped to my door Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksdad Posted December 27, 2003 Share Posted December 27, 2003 yup the guys are soooo right, are you buying audio or something to look at? i have auditioned both, and while the 804's are nice they arent as well rounded as the 7's, especially not the corns or las, look old as heck, i hear the bose cubes look really cool, as far as sound well that does not seem to be top priority on your list anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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