New Heritage serie ifa 2005

[3dzapper]

So the LaScala's a she?

Even with the new skirt she looks a little Teutonic to me. Maybe she'll look a littel better around closing time. Should we change her name to Hildegard?

Marty maybe it's time for an new set of twins? Hildegard and Nurse Kratchet? At least they'd stay home and not go out with their uncles.[]

Rick

[jt1stcav]

I immediately noticed them too in m00n's lightened pic from Bennyboy. These particular towers and bookshelf horn speakers are sweet in that they have little in the way of plastic (except around the horn flares down to the tops of the woofers), and alot more wood veneer on their fronts (or motorboards)...I like that! I really never cared much for the all-plastic faceplate on the current models.

Show more wood...real live wood![]

[heresy2guy]

So the LaScala's a she?

Even with the new skirt she looks a little Teutonic to me. Maybe she'll look a littel better around closing time. Should we change her name to Hildegard?

Marty maybe it's time for an new set of twins? Hildegard and Nurse Kratchet? At least they'd stay home and not go out with their uncles.[]

Rick

Okay...I'll bite - So who's the Bull Goose Loony of this here board?!

[]

(I'm assuming you meant Nurse "Ratched" (aka "Big Nurse" & "Mother Ratched") from Kesey's novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest?)

[wheelman]

I immediately noticed them too in m00n's lightened pic from Bennyboy. These particular towers and bookshelf horn speakers are sweet in that they have little in the way of plastic (except around the horn flares down to the tops of the woofers), and alot more wood veneer on their fronts (or motorboards)...I like that! I really never cared much for the all-plastic faceplate on the current models.

Show more wood...real live wood![]

I totally agree. I really didn't care for the last reference look. I think Klipsch should make all their speakers with wood veneer not just some. Except for the hi tec look.

[colterphoto1]

you guys are late to the party, this was post #5 on the thread.

[seti]

I also agree that the new LaScala, with the

K-horn-type riser and very nice veneer, looks very classy. The

Belle was selling at a pathetically low level as I understand it, and

the LaScala's improved looks helps make up for its loss IMO.

The K-horn appeared to be unchanged. I would like to see a

lighter, less red mahogany in the Heritage line.

Larry

Like I said how do you expect to sell something with zero marketing

behind it obviously with the revamp they are not going to abandon it

but without marketing what is the point. When was the last time you saw

an add for the Heritage line? No exposure No marketing No bloody sales

[]

On a positive note the forum seems to be working better this A.M.

[LarryC]

Like I said how do you expect to sell something with zero marketing behind it obviously with the revamp they are not going to abandon it but without marketing what is the point. When was the last time you saw an add for the Heritage line? No exposure No marketing No bloody sales []

Agreed! I and others have suggested at a minimum a nice brochure for either Heritage alone or with Heritage on one of the pages. I would like to see some publicity when the changes are announced (new LaScala, Speaker A). Mags love to review new stuff, so maybe that would be as good a time as any.

[damonrpayne]

I believe they did state during the pilgrimage this year that they were working on Heritage brochures.

[Bennyboy]

Waiting on a nice cherry LaScala......................

Even when it is in a Heritage brochure.

Bennyboy

[Tom Adams]

I believe they did state during the pilgrimage this year that they were working on Heritage brochures.

While I can appreciate the effort of a brochure, what will be done to pursuade current authorized Heritage dealers to actually have Heritage products in their showrooms so folk can audition them? Seems to me that if Klipsch is gonna strickly adhere to the dealer only, no internet sales thing, they would require all dealers to carry at least one item of each product - especially Heritage dealers.

At the risk of boring you guys, I offer up Arai Helmets as an illustration. Arai is one of, if not the top helmet maker in terms of quality, fit, and finish. And just as Klipsch, Arai has a no internet/mail order policy. Arai's philosophy is that their dealers should be a defacto extension of their company. On a recent trip, my wife lost a side plate which holds her face shield in place. We stopped at a bike shop that was a stocking Arai dealer and were given the choice of a "make-do" (because of the diffferences in helmet graphics) side plate or have Arai overnight a plate to a dealer in the town we would be in the next day.

My point is that I am praying that Klipsch will have a "come to Jesus" meeting with their Heritage dealers. While the current speculative MSRP of the LaScala is rather high, I'm nonetheless very interested in the speaker for my HT mains. BUT I WANNA HEAR THE DANG THINGS FIRST!!

Tom

[Chris Robinson]

I believe they did state during the pilgrimage this year that they were working on Heritage brochures.

My point is that I am praying that Klipsch will have a "come to Jesus" meeting with their Heritage dealers. While the current speculative MSRP of the LaScala is rather high, I'm nonetheless very interested in the speaker for my HT mains. BUT I WANNA HEAR THE DANG THINGS FIRST!!

Tom

Tom,

Well said. To use the motorcycle analogy, who would buy a high performance bike without having the ability to test drive one? Having total support for your dealer channel is great as long as they do what is needed to support the Klipsch Heritage line with some well-stocked listening rooms.

I would think a room with Klipschorn mains (with LaScalas position in front of them as a switchable option) and a LaScala center, and Heresy rears ... well that would go a long way with moving them through the channel.

For $12,000 or so worth of speakers, I would think they should be heard to get the value statement.

Chris

[formica]

Well said. To use the motorcycle analogy, who would buy a high performance bike without having the ability to test drive one? Having total support for your dealer channel is great as long as they do what is needed to support the Klipsch Heritage line with some well-stocked listening rooms.

Ironically Klipsch uses this same argument against "internet only" subwoofer manufactures like SVS and HSU (in the subwoofer forum). We should be able to audition the units in a properly setup showroom rather than buying a subwoofer based on other peoples opinion.

Don't see why this would be expected of shoppers when it comes to such critical items like mains?

Rob

[D-MAN]

I hate to be a party-pooper, but which one of these looks better (and costs less)? I am pretty disappointed by the Klipsch LS makeover, needless to say...

DM

[postjob62]

Interestingly, I have just experiencd this firsthand. I live in the greater Atlanta area, which is pretty cosmopolitan these days by any standard. Given prices some of the nicer Heresy's are going for on ebay, I recently decided on trying to shop new. Do you know that of all the Klipsh dealers in Atlanta, there was not one Heritage dealer???!!!

Nearest one was 100 miles away in a smaller town, so I called them. Well, they had no Heritage products in stock, and couldn't even quote me a simple Heresy price without calling the factory and calling me back later! I would have had to special order the heresy's and wait. Although they were very nice, their price made it clear that they had no interest whatsoever in actually selling a pair.

Does Klipsch actually think this kind of a strategy will sell any Heritage products? I think the answer is clear- this is not their primary profit base and they clearly aren't going to devote much energy to the line. And when you do buy one new, you'll pay dearly for the priviledge.

I hate to see Klipsch follow in the footsteps of AR, which really exists today as a mass marketer of cheap products, trading on the name of the once-proud products which gave them the reputation to start with.

Ed

[Deang]

Don't blame Klipsch, blame the dealers who simply don't want to give up the floor space to stock or demo them. When Carlin Audio here in Kettering used to set a pair out -- it took them a year to move them -- and this was back when Carlin was an upscale audio store. Carlin almost went under (along with the two other high end shops in the Dayton area) when HT took hold. Heritage is a niche market, and dealers just don't want to deal with it. Reality sucks, but there it is.

Now, I believe retail on the Heresy II is $1500 a pair. If they quoted you the retail price and weren't willing to give you a price break, then it's up to you to decide whether to buy or not. Sounds like they were willing to sell, but you weren't willing enough to buy.

[Lurch]

It seems there is a lot of frustration about not getting access to the Heritage line. But that shouldn't be terribly surprising. Look at the product! It's in a niche that doesn't even welcome it!

Of course the problem at hand is vastly different from the many examples given. Looking at the examples of Hsu and SVS, you'll note that they are value-oriented products. Motorcycle helmets are not 150-lb speakers either. No, the problem is that the heritage products are "throwbacks". They are huge and expensive compared to many other similar products. Not only that, but the "audiophile" press has been poo-pooing Klipsch for decades. So, the only positive Heritage voices are right here and very few of us are buying any new Heritage speakers.

I spent $2500 on Vandersteen 3s back in 1992. I had to borrow a friend's pickup truck to travel 3 hours to audition and pick them up. I never even considered Klipsch La Scalas that were $550 cheaper and available in town! I would have gladly lived with any size or shape as long as the sound was there. But, I never even asked for an audition, because I already "knew" it wasn't worth my time or effort!

So, who's going to buy Heritage now (other than the folks around this forum)? Has anyone spilled any positive ink on any Heritage speakers in the past 13 years??? Add to this the direction the industry is going (home theater) and Heritage is even harder to sell. How big of a room do you need for 2 La Scalas and 5 heresies? Don't forget that you just spent $8100. Oh and the La Scala isn't even the pick of the litter around here.

Now, pretend you own a brick & mortar store and you have to pick out what you want to have in your showroom. If you choose La Scala, you won't have an easy time setting up surrounds (how many demo rooms do you walk into nowadays that aren't setup for surround?). Not only that but you could setup 2 pair of speakers instead of the La Scalas in the given space. Remember, most B&Ms have to stock more than one brand to keep things moving.

Can you see why you're going to have a hard time finding any Heritage speakers on display?

On the flip side, Klipsch doesn't want to go factory direct either. They want a dealer to help deliver them to your room, help set them up properly, etc. The dealer is there to make sure that the speakers are satisifying in your home, not just on the sales floor. For $4100, I'd expect no less. Now, if the store is 100 miles from me and I expect that level of service, we run into other problems don't we?

Well, I don't think Klipsch is selling a whole pile of Heritage speakers. Zero Heritage dealers in Atlanta tells that story. And, of course, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, since you have to special-order them to listen to them, sales will continue to drop since no one gets to hear them unless someone they know has them and they aren't going to read about them in Stereophile. It really is a shame.......

[johnyholiday]

i 've heard the 2ce signature on sound anchors stands, with quicksilver

mono blocks an they were awesome, an have met Richard Vandersteen , they

were a personal pair he had tweak on himself before letting them go to

a friend,the factory is just up the road, an there is a band of

vandersteen banditos, in the area,the bass was amazing ,seemly as if it

was coming right our of the cement floor,he also has an awesome twin

engine Rockwell plane

[Lurch]

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the Vandersteen 3s, but they are very different beasts from anything with the name Klipsch on it.

My bigger point is that because of the audiophile press, I never even considered Klipsch at the time.

I met Mr. Vandersteen at an audio show in San Francisco. His room had the 5s mated with Jadis electronics and a VPI table. Absolutely breathtaking sound. Of course the system cost more than I could make in a year back then.....

I got a pair of Quicksilver 8417 monos to drive the Vandy 3s, but they ended up spending more time on Heresy IIs. Just ended up being my preference. Probably has something to do with the extra 10 db of sensitivity...

[TBrennan]

Well Lurch I learned to disregard the "audiophile" press over 30 years ago.

[jt1stcav]

True. But it would still be nice to see some advertisments in the audio rags and authorized dealerships for the Heritage line. I'd sure hate to see the entire Heritage Series fade away completely in the foreseeable future.