Red headed step child?

[sunnysal]

I had a pair of 4311s too...now my dad has them...I never remember them sounding strident, though I do remember playing a bit with the front panel knobs (I cannot remember how I ended up setting them)...when I won the Klipsch story teller contest I sent the heresies to my dad as a loan (since getting them down to el salvador would have cost more than the speakers!) and he tried them in his system (tandberg SS stuff from the 70´s) and ended up parking the heresies in the closet, not scientific but he thought the heresies a little strident and lacking bass...anyway, I hope to use the heresies as surrounds with my k-horns in a home theatre some day...I loved those 4311s...tony

[chuckears]

Fortes are a steal at $450... you cannot find another new speaker on the current market that will come close to the quality and sonics you are about to experience.

And bass-shy? No way... if you are driving them with enough power to allow those 12" cones to move enough air, they are some of the most bass-proficient models Klipsch has ever manufactured... they get down a lot deeper than the LaScala (although the LaS is much more efficient, and really sings with that glorious big horn midrange), and the Forte has a nice, flat response. Just make sure you get them up close to the wall. I have mine toed in like Klipsch recommends, with the inside corners only one inch from the back wall. You sacrifice a little on the imaging, but what you gain in bass response is (to me) well worth it.

Now if you want to use these for home theater, then you will want a good deep sub to pick up that bottom octave of bass (I use my sub for music, as well, but the Forte only needs from 40 Hz down to supplement it on music, in my listening environment).

I oil mine up 3 or 4 times a year to keep them happy. I bought them new in '87 or '88, and have absolutely no intention of letting go of them.

The great thing about horny Klipsch Heritage speakers is that, as good as they sound with decent components, they REALLY shine with higher-end equipment, and will be one of the last items you would have to upgrade if and when the audiophile bug bites...

When you get these hooked up, play your favorite stuff, by all means... some that I enjoy on mine are Sarah McLachlan's last two albums, Tom Petty's "Wildflowers" (great live sound), American Beauty Soundtrack (killer bass), and anything by the Beatles. For classical, there is a recording of Mozart's Piano Concertos 22 and 23 by Daniel Barenboim and the ECO that melts me every time I hear it on my Fortes.

Go ye and listen, and enjoy!