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Klipsch Epic CF 3 Version 1 In Da House


ka7niq

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  • 2 weeks later...

I realize this is an older thread but im hoping somoene can answer my question..The curiousity is killing me..None here has mentioned the CF-1, which I have recently purchased. I measured the ports ...there 6 inches..and my serial numbers start with the first 5digits 221494. Are these the version ones? that are mentioned to be better sounding and rare to find? BTW these are also consecutive serial numbers...PLS someone knowledgable REPLY!! TYYY

Monty

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Marems TY! I had a feeling I had something special here the day I purchased these Gems. I was blown away by the glossy black piano finish on the baffle design. When I brought them home i told my wife my god there huge and heavy for 6.5 inch drivers. I hooked up my Denon 3803 and whewwwwwwwwwwww do these things kick ***. Ive owned a dozen or more Klipsch....Reference series Rf 25 ,35, Kg 2.5, 3.5 ,4.2, 5.2, Hereseys, Extc...NONE compare to these...In my opinion these are the Ferarri's of Klipsch. Those who denounced these speakers as Klipsch failures and returened them or sold them,really passed up a true audiophile speaker......literally the best of the best IMHO and I only paid $150..

Its amazing what marketing does to the minds of ppl...there is abselutly no market for these speakers for the floor speaker enthusiast. written off by most as boom boxes poor design..

One final note. They are HUGEEEEEE and devistating. they need power...hard core power supply..Im running a Denon 3803 and I would say thats the bare minimum. I think its safe to say, if youve got a good power amp and happen to have the series ones...You got some of the best gear that kind of money can offer...Your in heaven man

Monty

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Ya gotta be careful with the 3 inch ports, they could either be version 2{good} or version 3{you are screwed}.

The cost cutting powers that were at Klipsch changed the woofers in version 3, went to a lighter cone, screwed up the sound in comparasion to a version 1 or 2.

Version ones and two use same woofers

6 inch ports will drop right in to replace the 3 inch ports, and will lower the tuning.

Slightly less efficiency results, and I find the horns level needs to be reduced to compensate.

Easy to do if you bi amp, and use at least one amp with level controls.

IMHO, this is THE preferred way to run the CF series.

This gives you precise control of the High Frequency level in your room.

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Not familiar with the CF 1, and I do not know IF port length applies in your case ?

I have only owned the CF 3's and CF 4's, and i KNOW they were redesigned several times, not always for the best!

The smaller CF 1 and CF 2 use a different compression driver I am told with a Phenolic as opposed to a titanium diparaghm.

I do not know if they use NEO Megnets.

I would EXPECT them to be quite decent, and a friend who has owned both liked the warmth of the smaller CF 1 and 2 speakers.

He thought the phenolic diapraghm compression driver of the CF 1 and CF 2 was a bit smoother in it's lower range then the titanium dome of the CF 3 and CF 4.

However, he said it was not nearly as extended at the high end as the titanium driver, nor as "fast" sounding.

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The CF-2, 3 & 4 use a 2" aluminum diaphragm, not Titanium. ( I would like to try a Titanium though if it was available) The CF-1's use a phenolic diaphragm. The woofers like you said Ka7niq, changed in the Epics. My friend has the CF-2's ( which were the 1st Klipsch speakers I ever heard) Made the Klipsch Bug bite me hard! :) They do have the later version woofers, ver.3. Made in Late 1995. The 1st version Epic though are truly ahead of their time!!! I am in the middle of upgrading to the McIntosh MC352.@ 350 watts ch. my CF-4's will preform their full capabilities! I have also found that running the CF-4's off the 4 OHM Tap off my MC150 does sound more balanced (horn wise) compared to the 8 OHM tap.

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Yes he CF-1's do have the MEO magnets and the poly carbon graphite cones. The only thing different is the aluminum diaphragm tweeter. I honestly considered going up to the 3's or 4's but I would have to upgrade my Denon 3803 to a high end receiver or seperates. Its just too expensive for me, I'll stick with these bad boys

After reading your posts here and measuring my port tube, Im very happy to know ive got the first version epics W/ Consecutive serial numbers [:D]

post-12368-1381935970822_thumb.jpg

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I can't remember which version, but I heard a pair at another forum member's house a couple years ago mated with a Scott 222 amp. They sounded very nice. What I remember most is how large they were. The specs say they are over 100 lbs each and I can believe it. They reminded me of a Chorus but slightly bigger.

Congrats on your score! Sounds like you just need the right size chair in the sweet spot and you're set!!

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I have a pair of CF-3's series 1 too. I got the in 2002 off eBay. Serial number is 2224.

The best they have ever sounded was when I had them hooked up to a pair of Marantz model 9's. It was the most heavnly sound ever.

Marantz Model 9

PC080491.jpg

PC080496.jpg

This is a reather old picture. The Marantz amps would do a fair job of heating up the room.

V

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wow voodo truley amazing setup u got there..I can imagine the beautiful sound just looking at that setup..Note on one thing...During my evalutaions on setting my CF-1's up, I noticed these speakers need room to breath between one another. Because they have a very dynamic image they truley need to be spread apart ATleast 10 ft. It makes a wonderful difference to have them at about 12 f apart with the back spikes off (slightly tilted up) and angled in a bit. With the horns being so low it makes a big difference when there slightly tilted back....

AWESOME system bro !!!

Monty

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Thanks Montigue. My setup at home when like it is in those pictures was definetly less than ideal. In my old house I had a wider soundstage. Like with your CF-1's they sounded better when there was more space between them.

As of now, I have disassembled everything because I hated blocking the front window. Everything is now in my parents basement until I move to a bigger house. I dearly miss them. *sigh* Maybe one day my sife will agree to move.

I'm trying to get my hands on some CF-2's for rear channels since I have the matching KV-4 for my center channel.

V

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