I hate my Heresy II's (is it my DENON head unit?)

[Born2RockU]

I bought a complete surround system w/ 7 Klipsch speakers. I am using 4 Klipsch Heresy II's for the front mains and sides. I have the Reference RS-7 for the rear channels and (i believe) the RC-7 for the center (I can't get to the back to see the model #). I am using the 2400 Watt dual-15 SUB.

I am pleased w/ everything BUT the Heresy II's. They don't have any color, to me. I am using a DENON AVR-3802. I use it in the Dolby II mode when not listening to the surround DVD's. THe speakers sound so flat w/ no bottom and ...all horns with not enough highs. So in other words it sound too MID Range w/ a HORN sound.

What have I done wrong ? These were highly recommended to me...so I trusted the person. MY mistake. Do I sell the Heresy II's , or sell everything and start over? Any suggestions ? If this is the normal characteristic of the Heresy II...then can you give me a different speaker suggestion that I can gives me more highs, less horn mids and more body on the lower-mids?

Anything would be greatly appreciated.

[doudou]

even if the person who advice you like the speakers he suggests, audio is a matter of taste.

one persone may love some speakers and other people will hate them.

the best is to listen ant test before buying.

any way, before you sell all your gear, listen to several thing, make some tests, change your speakers placement or your amp setings...something may be wrong.

[Cal Blacksmith]

First, welcome to the board!!

I would recomend as above but also, give yourself a chance to listen to them. Heresy speakers are indeed a little bass shy but they are also clear and reveveling. You might have been used to bass bloated speakers in the past and expect that to be "normal" when they really were not accurate. I hope you find the answer to your situation. Good luck.

[TBrennan]

Sounds to me like you simply dislike the basic "voice" of the speakers, that's understandable, this whole hobby is about taste and subjectivity.

You may get advice to try different this and try different that in order to improve the sound. Actually it's far more sensible to get some speakers you like right off the bat than to fiddle around with speakers you don't like in the hope of disliking them less.

[dbflash]

Make sure all your wiring is in phase.

Speaker placement.

They are not going to give you lows, but you are covered with the sub.

Worry about getting the sound right with the fronts first then start with surrounds.

How old are these speakers?

How big is your room?

I'm not going to get into speaker wire or IC's.

Denon's not a bad match with Klipsch.

Don't give up. I think its a simple fix.

Danny

[Sheik Yerbouti]

"I hate my Heresy II's (is it my DENON head unit?)"

Sniff, sniff......

[ironwoods]

Hi, to quote -"I use it in the Dolby II mode when not listening to the surround DVD's."- Why? If you're only listening to 2-channel music, I'd leave all "extra" processing off.

Were the Heresy's purchased new?

Possibly burned tweeter VC's?

Are the woofers woofin'?

What did any previous system consist of?

This sounds too bad to be true. While Heresys may not appeal to all, they are at least in the ballpark to good sounding, IMO.

The bottom line is not to purchase anything without an audition 1st, except.... maybe wire.

Nice going by the way, you made Frank cry

[donziman]

If you listen to them in 2 channel your reciver puts out 140 wpc in dolby its 110 X7 dolby is just for movies you will notice a diffence trust me I have one.

[Sheik Yerbouti]

"Nice going by the way, you made Frank cry"

Actually, "Frank" was giving the original post the "sniff test". It failed miserably. Like you said, the story is too bad to be true.

[edwinr]

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On 8/13/2004 6:03:16 AM Born2RockU wrote:

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My listening experience with the Heresy 2 indicate a very smooth, yet revealing loudspeaker. They may lack very low bass, but have amazing punch and dynamics for most rock music. There is obviously a problem with your setup somewhere. Whether it's amplifier or source, or maybe incorrect use of a DSP mode - I don't know. There may be an issue using non Heritage centre and surround speakers. There would be a tonal disparity - but not enough to cause the problems you are identifying. If the Heresy's are not new, get them checked out.

But first thing, switch all DSP off, plus subwoofer, and listen to them in 2 channel. Like other posts say, double check your polarity. Work up from there, adding your other surrounds and centre then subwoofer.

Good luck.

[D-MAN]

This is only my opinion, but I had a Denon 6 channel that I got rid of. It had an "overly-fat" sound, perhaps you get the same impression. If so then you know exactly what I mean.

I got a Yamaha which has a much more open sound; it is night and day. Much, much cleaner.

So from my experience, I would put the blame on the Denon.

DM

[Born2RockU]

Thank you............this is what I thought all along. My Denon must be the problem....with everyone praising their Heresy's. I am pissed and want results out of my speaker investment. Thank you for your advice. ....Now what surround sound (7.1) do you recommend by Yamaha ?

Peace,

Please reply to: born2rock@pdq.net

[kfalls]

I have a Denon AVR-3300 as well as a Yamaha RX-V2095 both units have 100+W/ch (I think the Denon is 105W)and I find both to have more than sufficient bass. I'm a big Klipsch fan, but I find the Heresey's too lean in the bass region as well. Even when I heard them at the Klipsch Pilgrimage, they were my least favorite in their demo room. I know they're a good speaker and get the all-too-critical midrange right and a huge seller, but just not suited to my taste. I'm into quality, not quantity when it comes to bass, so it's not that I'm used to having multiple 12" "boomers" in my car and associated hearing loss.

I have my Yamaha in a surround system driving Kg4s, KLF-C7, RS-3 surrounds (front and rear) and an SW8 sub and have plenty of bass. I find my Denon to have more detail and is more three dimensional than the Yamaha, but the Yamaha has more DSP programs, is very dynamic and very reliable. I think the Denon is more musical, but the Yamaha sounds better for movies. I wouldn't change receivers right away unless you just want the Hereseys. After assuring all is right with your connections, try demoing other speakers to see if the issue is with the receiver.

[Audio Flynn]

yep they are a bit bass shy.

But very revealing.

They will show to you the deficiencies in the rest of your system.

Use your Ht reciever in 2 channel mode only.

Try to get a better preamp.

The B&K amps are usually sweet.

I did not notice your cd source; but if it is a DVD player you could be getting allot of jitter.

Good Luck

You will get there!

Rick

[Guest Anonymous]

well traditionaly the hersey II's were a much less popular model than the original herseys that a lot of people have, so maybe you fall into that catagory of people who don't like the II's as much as the originals, if you look at the prices and waht not you'll find the herseys sell for a lot more than the II's in the same condition despite the II's maybe newer

[InventiveAudio.com]

Born2Rock,

I use Heresy's in my two listening rooms for rear channels and I recently replaced then as center speakers with Forte's. The Heresy is an awesome speaker IMHO. They never sound flat or lack dynamics. I really think your problem is the receiver. To get good sound you need good separates. I would suggest used equipment. I also would suggest selling your receiver and twp speakers. Unless your room is the size of a gym 5 speakers is all you really need. Also, your choices in amplifiers and preamplifiers increase dramatically. 7 channel amps are the newest, greatest thing and they carry a premium price. You can pickup a used AV6000 B&K, Sherbourn, Outlaw, ATI, or you can buy a good 3 channel amp and use tubes for your main speakers. That is the setup I have. Well really I have a 5 channel Sherbourn and bridge two channels for my passive sub. Anyway, there are also some good buys on preamps, B&K ref 30, Sherwood 9080, Rotel makes a descent pramp too.

[Audio Flynn]

I have the Sherwood 9080; not shrill on the RB-5s and 70 pounds of heft to last several decades!

[formica]

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On 8/17/2004 2:36:07 PM Born2RockU wrote:

My Denon must be the problem....

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Nope. I don't think so. Either your setup is incorrect or you don't like their voicing.

I think TBrennan brings up a valid point. The Heresy are very bass shy and have the Klipsch Heritage upper sound, which may or may not please everyone. Some may remember m00ns adventure with the Belles.

Without replacing any equipment..... set-up and listen your Heresys as best you can... and decide if these are for you. I would strongly recommend listening to them in 2.1 (two channel with the subwoofer activated). I recommend this because listening to them in two cannel without the sub will make the midrange stand out given they roll off very early.

If you don't like the voicing... the reference series (like the RF-7) would probably produce a sound similar to what your are after.

Rob

[J.4knee]

They should sound like a horn in the mid's and high's they are horn loaded! The tweeter is a little lese efficient using the K-76-K's than the K-77-? used in the original Heresy's. A lot felt the Heresy I was too bright in the mid/high and tweeked the crossover to suit their taste.

Try cornering them (your main L/R) that should reinforce the bass they produce, but you will still need a sub I am sure.

How are you evaluating the RS/RC-7's other than in a surround mode? You are hearing a significant timbre mismatch I am sure.

Have you treated your room how is it acoustically?

Maybe as others have suggested the Heritage sound is not to your liking. I love it but other feel the new Reference sound better suits their taste.

Recalibrate your system after you corner your Heresy II's and then give it a listen. The units you are using for you surrounds (H II's, RS-7's should not produce a lot of bass as they should be set to small). Set your sub to cross at maybe 80 Hz (?? Just a guess) and let it do the bulk of the bass duty.

[ken kaz]

yoiu say that you are using hte rs3s for the frount surround channels. I think you said you have a yamaha amp....are you using the rs3s for the side surrounds or the front surrounds (aka presence) speakers?

i was under the iimpression that yamaha recomments driect speakers for the presence speakers.