New Synergy Line

[Rick]

I went to Best Buy in Winston - Salem NC yesterday to check out the new Synergy line. They had them in stock on the floor but they were NOT hooked up to give them a listen. I must say that I like their appearance though and would really like to give them a listen. However I have one major concern. I looked them over real good and on the sticker on the back it says that they are made in China ! What is the deal with that ? Do they assemble them over there with USA made parts or are the parts made in China too ? Any input on this would be greatly appreciated as I am considering purchasing some of them { I really would like to buy Ref. Series but need to try and save some $ as much as possible}. Also if anyone has heard them how do they sound ?

[KeesGuy]

While the "Made in China" label is not new to Klipsch products, it sparked quite a debate a while ago before the moderators shut the thread down. You can check the archives in the Home Theatre forum. The original thread was titled "Reference series Made in China???". If you have philosophical issues with buying products from China you may need to look elsewhere for speakers. Not all Klipsch are made in China so you might want to check specific models. One thing for sure, if you're shopping speakers at Best Buy in the Synergy price range, you'll not likely find any speakers made in the USA. In that price range, Paradigm makes some nice speakers most, if not all of which are made in Canada. However, if you're in love with that Klipsch sound, nothing else will suffice.

-Jim

[Deang]

As long as long as the Chinese aren't using slave labor to build the product -- I have no trouble with buying it. It sucks for American workers, but works out well for American consumers. It's a double edged sword.

[skonopa]

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On 10/16/2004 11:29:50 AM rick88 wrote:

Also if anyone has heard them how do they sound ?

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I go to hear them today at the Best Buy here in Fredericksburg, VA. They had all three of the tower models hooked up as well as one of the centers and one of the book-shelfs. I didn't think to look what model of surround they had hooked up, though. (I guess I can pop over there again tommorrow, since I live less than two miles from the store).

I did post in the General section my impressions in a similiar thread started about these new Synergies.

I'll repeat it here. Overall, I am impressed with how they sound. I honostly think they sound better than the older series. They do exhibit good clarity and dynamics. They also bring out some nice detail in the music. They also seemed to image good (from what I can tell from a less than optimal setup in the store). I was enjoying listening to these until some dude decided he wanted to crank-up the Bose display. Boy, could you tell those things were distorting. I just cranked the Klipsch up even louder, and they did not distort at all, all the way up to the limits the listening kiosk allowed. Those speaker probably could go even louder, with a good amp, without distorting.

I'd still would love to A/B these speakers against the Reference (The F-1s with RF-15s, the F-2s with the RF-25s and the F-3s with RF-35s). If I had a pair of RF-35s, I'd get a pair of the F-3s and do the listening test myself. The "smallest" Reference I have, though, is the RF-5s here at the house. May stil be tempted to A/B them with the RF-5s.

I think these would be an excellent speaker choice, especially if you cannot get Reference for some reason, i.e., lack of budget, lack of dealer in area, etc.

As for the looks, I think they look pretty darn sharp. Also, I did not really look to see where they were made. Would be nice if they could keep the production in the U.S., but if in the end, it is still a very good, quality product, than who really cares where it is made.