auto_xer Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 I am looking to slowly start upgrading speakers again. Right now I have 4 X KG.5s and a KV-1 center. I was going to stick with the KG line just because I already have them and like the sound from all of the KG's I have heard. What my main question is how do they stack up against the newer reference line? I was going to start with the center. I can get a smaller reference center for a little more than a KV-3. I have never personally heard any of the reference stuff. Would it blend well enough with the .5's or will the sound be a lot different. I am guessing it will be night and day since the .5's are the baby KG line and don't even have true horn tweeters. Thanks for any input, Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jagangjee Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 Great question, I too have thought about upgrading my KG/KV line as well. I love the sound, but not sure if I am "missing out" on anything better. Biggest fear here is the unknown. What if I don't like the sound of the newer speakers.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tpg Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 I have 4x KG-2.5's and KV-3 center and had enjoyed them thoroughly until I heard Reference. They still are great, but nothing like Ref. My biggest complaint about the KG's/KV were their tendency to distort in movies when loud explosions occurred. This really bugged me. I first got RB-3's and was blown away by their clarity even at high volumes. I am now running the RB's as surrounds with RF-3's up front. I am still running the KV-3 center for now. In passages with loud explosions now, the mains and surrounds definitely do NOT distort, but the center still does. It is kind of annoying, but not quite as bad when all three speakers across the front were doing it. That is not to say that the KG's are bad... I do like them. They sound good and look good, too (mine are oak). When I get a new center and receiver, I'll no doubt set up a secondary HT with the older KG's in it. Reference is pretty much the way to go... they are cleaner sounding and more dynamic. I've not heard the newer Reference, though, but have heard the new Synergy. The new Synergy F-3 is supposed to be better sounding than the older RF-3 (which I have). The Synergy sounded quite good... so if the new Reference is supposed to be better... I just don't like the look of the new Ref, though. Anyway... my 2 cents worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 I would not blame distortion on the KG/KV speakers that is coming from your receiver! Especially if it is an entry level model since the power supply and storage capacitors cannot provide the necessary headroom required to playback those effects without distortion. I have a pair of KG1's and they sound stellar! No break up or distortion at any level! Plus they are built from wood, not plastic and have real veneer not fake vinyl! They are my little girl's speakers now powered with an older Onkyo TX-906 85W per channel DPL Receiver and they certainly don't distort and she even has a Pioneer EX-9000 Dynamic Expander that places additional demands on the receiver. Obviously the RF's are more forgiving if they are not distorting with the same receiver hooked to them. The KG .5's were the smallest KG's Klipsch made, so if you upgrade to some larger RF bookshelves (RF25 or larger) I would expect that you would certainly see some improvement! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcoker Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 I went through the exact scenario as you discribe. I had the KV-1 center KG4.5 as my mains and KG 0.5 as my surrounds. It started when I upgraded my receiver to a 6.1. I bought the RC-3II and moved my KV to the rear. To me it blended nicely, was it a vast improvement no. I love the KV and KG's. Next I found a great deal on some RF-7's. Vast improvement over the KG 4.5...yes. I then moved the KG4.5 to my surrounds and got rid of the 0.5. This greatly improve my surround sound. The 0.5 are so small that the 4.5 are a leap improvement. Now yesterday I got the RC-7 and moved the RC-3II to the rear. Great improvement. So to make a long story short...with the KG 0.5 It's a definite yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardP Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 Buying used (Ebay, Audiogon, want ads, pawn shops) is nearly always a less expensive option, and if you like the KG line, stick with it. I used to have a Forte+KG2.2 system. The 2.2V is a good center speaker. 2.2s (or 3.2s, 4.2s, 2.5s, etc.) all around would fill most rooms, and with a subwoofer, would sound great. I only sold mine when I went to Fortes all around. 2.2s go for $100-$150/pr, and the others proportionally more. You could also use a KV-2 or KV-3 as center. I agree that the KG .5 is not an adequate for a full HT system; that little 5" woofer just cannot handle deep or loud bass. I bought a used pair for use as remote speakers on top of my kitchen cabinets, and alas they were too big by 1/8"! I then set them up in my computer room as a small 2-channel system, but it was easy to cause low freq distortion. When I put an inexpensive Velodyne subwoofer with them (which diverted 80 Hz signals and below), they sounded quite good for that application. If you don't have a need for another small system, you can still keep the KG .5s for eventual use as front or rear effects speakers, in a 7.1 channel set up, if your receiver (and room layout, signif other, etc.) offers/allows that. If that is not an option, they will probably sell well on Ebay for $60-$90 or so per pair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auto_xer Posted December 8, 2004 Author Share Posted December 8, 2004 Thanks for all the input. I have had the .5's since I bought a pair new in high school so I am a little attached to them. I picked up two more on ebay for cheap this year. I don't think I have heard them distort yet in my current setup and I push it pretty hard on occasion. I run a lower level Denon reciever - 80 X 5 all channels driven. I never had problems out of them from my old Sony either - even though the center seemed too bright with it. I do like the ide of using them as either surrounds or effects speakers. Most of the Reference line is out of my budget - that is really the only bad part of this deal. If I upgrade the center I know I will want to do the fronts and eventually the surrounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcoker Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 ---------------- On 12/8/2004 4:12:33 PM auto_xer wrote: I do like the ide of using them as either surrounds or effects speakers. Most of the Reference line is out of my budget - that is really the only bad part of this deal. If I upgrade the center I know I will want to do the fronts and eventually the surrounds. ---------------- If and when you upgrade the center you WILL want to upgrade the rest of your system at some point. The KG .5 are best suited for effect speakers but it's your choice, but the upgrade disease will eventually get you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auto_xer Posted December 8, 2004 Author Share Posted December 8, 2004 That's part of my dilemma. I want to start by upgrading the center and moving my KV1 back to be a rear center. I just hate to think a new Reference center will make everything else sound terrible. I won't be able to upgrade the fronts for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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