Do Klipsch horn tweeters sound more harsh then others?

[blake_mooney]

Now what I mean by that is that I've heard some people say that the horn tweeters Klipsch uses sound a little "too" bright. I am really into that "warm" sound and feel when I listen to a nice set of speakers, not sure if you guys understand what I mean. I've noticed when the tweeters sound too bright they cause some fatigue after long listening periods. I was wondering if Klipsch delivers that warmth of sound?

[WolfsBane]

It really is a matter of preference. The Klipsch have more of a presence in the
mid, mid highs, and high frequencies in my opinion. But to me, they bring the high frequencies
the way they were meant to be heard up front, clean and clear. I own a set of Infinity in my truck, and to me,
the silk tweeters can be pretty harsh if you are not careful with the treble
adjustments.

Ive also heard similar comments about the amps that we can
choose from. For example, Ive heard
that Yamaha receivers tend to be bright.
For me, its all a matter of what you, as a listener, expect from your
sound and how much coloration you use. I love the in your face
clean and clear sound that Klipsch brings and the way that it renders and disperses those highs.
Its like listening to a band live or being in the middle of the action in a movie.
It only becomes harsh if you go wild and crazy with the treble or high
frequencies in an EQ. But as with the
Infinity, this can also be true of all other speaker systems and designs.

[J.4knee]

If you are talking about the K77 tweeters, there are IMO better choices which are cleaner and offer better detail however I most certainly do not think Klipsch tweeters are bad by any stretch. To me horn tweeters sound more natural than the other options I've heard over the years. It all depends on what your ears hear!

[Jay481985]

I find klipsch more in your face and direct then others but harsh, no. What I mean by harsh is when it is ear and teeth chattering. I get that on my Bose system in my cars, don't flame me guys [] it was factory standard.............. And now I can say I have bose and it blose..............

Whenever you hit near max on the bose system you actually can notice all the amp does is raise the treble and bass to max, even when neutral. So it does nothing........ Because horns are more efficent, they can go higher spl without being harsh like scratching nails against a chalkboard. So I would say that horns have less distortion due to less power needed to get the same amount of spl, but I guess the tradeoff is when you have a high effiency it shows immediately instead of later like the bose.....

[jerohm]

They are certainly less forgiving on electronics and source material. Klipsch are probably not the best choice for rooms with a lot of hard surfaces, but in a reasonable listening environment, with good recordings, and decent equipment, they are pretty hard to beat.

[Daddy Dee]

Yeh, maybe so. "less forgiving" is probably a good way to describe them.

Klipsch speakers are so efficient, that they get quite loud with very little power. The result can sound harsh unless the first watt is clean.... really clean. Lots of amps sound good with less efficient speakes that give the amp the opportunity to build up a good head of steam, but Klipsch are very revealing of amps and sources.

[johnyholiday]

On-Axis

generally refers to an audio source that is directly in front of a listener or a transducer such as a microphone. This is at the 0 degree axis in a polar pattern. A microphone will generally produce the "truest" results if the desired source is on-axis (oriented directly in front of the sound source), although some creative engineers have been known to get desirable sounds by using a microphone's off-axis response. For loudspeakers the meaning is similar - when the listener is directly on axis with a speaker he/she will be exactly in front of it. How a speaker's characteristics change as the listener moves more off axis is an important part of the overall response.

[blake_mooney]

Awesome, thanks for the info guys. I think I'm gonna look for some speakers that don't use horn tweeters and have more of a "warm" sound to them that aren't so revealing of imperfections. Any suggestions guy/gals?

[KnightRT]

If you prefer the sound of Grado headphones over Sennheiser, you'll prefer the Klipsch sound.

Dave

[WolfsBane]

If you prefer the sound of Grado headphones over Sennheiser, you'll prefer the Klipsch sound.

Dave

That pretty much explains it.... down to the minute details of faithful sound reproduction. Thats what I l love about the Grados. They are not the most comfortable headphones in the market, but the sound that they put out is about as close as you can get to the original recording. Clear, detailed, open, and "in your face". The sound is not muddled and made "warm".... but brought to the forfront in all it's glory. If the lead guitarist slides his or her fingers along the strings on a solo while playing a song, you will hear it. The slightest inflection or crecendo from the singer, you will hear. The slightest details in a song just come alive... When you slide a pair of Grado cans over your ears, you are no longer listening from a detached standpoint to the music... you are in it. Right in the middle of the recording room or concert.

And this is also the reason why I love to listen to my Klipsch... Just close your eyes, and you could swear that you are right there with the band.

[tigerwoodKhorns]

Awesome, thanks for the info guys. I think I'm gonna look for some speakers that don't use horn tweeters and have more of a "warm" sound to them that aren't so revealing of imperfections. Any suggestions guy/gals?

Daddy Dee summed it up. You will get details from Klipsch that you simply do not hear with other speakers. But you need a good source. The good news is that you do not need an expensive source. I am currently using a Sony digitally amplified receiver with Belles. It was inexpensive and does not sound harsh at all, just clean detail without harsness. You can get away with a Panasonic digital receiver (SA XR55) for about $225 new that will sound clean and not harsh.

Many prople criticize Klipsch as sounding terrible and harsh because they never heard a pair set up properly.

Chris

[colterphoto1]

Yamaha receivers are not overly 'BRIGHT'! I do not know where this myth came from, but please stop repeating folklore people. If you have evidence or personal experience, fine.

I have two Yamaha HT receivers and one stereo receiver. None of them sounds 'bright' to myself or any of the guests to my home, including several Forum members. Not one person has ever called me out for owning Yamaha and suggesting that another brand would have a better sound.

Remember that room acoustics play a huge role in the overall sound experience. Please don't overlook that item.

Michael

[oldbuckster]

I don't think the high end is harsh, but I find the mid range alittle overpowering, for the lack of a better word. That may not really be the speakers fault, I owned 2ways most of the time. It's not so much the H2's, but my friends Fortes mids seem really overpowering, and he runs them flat. It could be that I'm so use to the sound of a 2way, that maybe my ear needs to adjust to 3way? Horns have their own sound, especially mid range.

[Klipsch_Geek]

I have to agree with colterphoto1, I have had Yamaha receivers/home theater integrated amplifiers with my La Scala's for the past 14 years, and have never had any complaints. I recently started carrying Denon electronics, and found the sound very similar with a little cleaner mid-bass, but for high's I wouldn't say either Yamaha or Denon was at all harsh or overly forward.

[Badboy]

I personally love them on my RF-7, RC-7 and my RB-75's. I dont find them to brightat all, but if you did you could adjust them down using the tremble adjustment on the reciever or an EQ.

[WolfsBane]

Personally, I don't buy the argument that Yamaha receivers are overly "bright". I'm on my third Yamaha receiver, and I just can't see where the argument holds. Again, if you crank the treble all the way over, any speaker/receiver is going to sound harsh, and this is going to be specially true with efficient speakers.

[audiocvk]

The best about Klipsch is that it's very revealing. It can reveal a bright or warm system. The Japanese tend to like theirs toward the bright side, the British slightly to the warm side, and Americans - HK, Marantz, McIntosh, etc. on the warm side.

[TheSoundBroker]

The answer is...it depends.

Klipsch varies within the different models and series as to how bright they are. The current generation IV Reference products have a new horn/compression driver design and are more extended in frequency response, but are smoother and less forward sounding than the earlier series. The previous top of the line (RF-5/RF-7) had a bigger compression driver and were smoother than the less expensive brethren (ala RF-35) in the older Reference series. Older series Heritage tends to be more forward...but current production Heritage is a bit smoother (at least in the Corn III and Heresy III) and THX Ultra 2 is sweet and smooth...but still can kick your butt.

Problem is...once you get used to the life like dynamics the Klipsch have...there are very few "smooth" speakers that you will be able to live with that aren't stoopid expensive. You would be better off trying a bit higher end version of the Klipsch speakers (new Ref IV or THX Ultra 2) cause otherwise...you'll be back!

[Blazemaster]

I do like the dynamics of the Klipsch and its ability to make things sound like a "live recording". But after hearing some of the other more expensive speakers out there, I do appreciate how they have much less or none coloration compared to the Klipsch. Does anybody know of a Horn-tweeter design speakers with little to none coloration?

[Fortissimo]

I do like the dynamics of the Klipsch and its ability to make things sound like a "live recording". But after hearing some of the other more expensive speakers out there, I do appreciate how they have much less or none coloration compared to the Klipsch. Does anybody know of a Horn-tweeter design speakers with little to none coloration?

Q: Name a loudspeaker with no coloration.

A: There are none.

Zingali omniray use a round, wooden horn. Still, I can hear the wooden qualities of it. Edgarhorns use a salad-bowl apature with tractrix. Still, there is a color if you listen for it.

Then again, refer to the question above.