giacomo_pagani Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 Hello folks, this is my first time in here. Even if I'm surely an hi-fi addict, and I pretty appreciate Klipsch products, the question I'm bringin' here is not for me and my system, but for a friend of mine, who is approaching hi-fi and wants to build a little system. We're talking about a 24 years old man who enjoys a lot of different kinds of music, especially rock and electronic (such as House), so what he needs is some sort of a punchy and very live-like system. I've immediately thought about Klipsch products, especially the RB/RF series, being its low budget about 500€. The rest of the system is yet to be "designed" and bought, it'll be done in the future. By now, he'll listen with some of his current stuff (such as a nice old Kenwood amplifier, very similar to the Marantz Model 10xx amps in both aesthetics and sound, then not so bad as a starter). So, what we've got in our hands is a pair of RF-52 floorstanders and a pair of RB-81 bookshelf speakers, both costing him 500-520 €. I can't decide between suggesting him the deeper bass extension of the RF-52, or the bigger impact I suppose he'd get from the 20 cm woofer in the RB81. Maybe the RF-52 is simply better... Or maybe not. I'm sure someone here knows this better than me, and can clarify me how these speakers compare. My friend has no problem with floorstanding or bookshelf types. Thank you very much, Giacomo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leok Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 The area of the two smaller "woofers" in the RF-52 is close to that of the single "woofer" in the RB-81, so "impact" should be similar. Horns are the same or very similar. I'd go with the RF-52. Leo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 the cabinet volume of the 52 should yield more LF and efficiency than the 81 and double woofers means less cone travel for less distortion. I'd do the 52's over the 81. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehinton Posted September 5, 2008 Share Posted September 5, 2008 Well.....speaking from experience.....I first purchased the rb-51, and was very satisfied with them loud and pretty darn low for a single 5 1/4. I took them back be cause for 200 dollars extra I could get more. So I bought the rf-52. Much better decision IMHO. The rf-52, play sub levels low even at pretty damn high volumes with no bass attenuation. How ever if you take some of the LFE off of the drivers, you can crank them even louder. But by that time they can even be too loud for me, clear as hell but still loud. BTW I have mine bi-amp. 90 x 2 (high, and low) for the left and right mains. I got hooked and bought the rc-52 for center, and rb-10 for surrounds.....I just need a much better sub......its not bad, but can't match the quality of the rest of the system. ksw-10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Thump Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Hi Giacoma, Some may be surprised by my response because it is counter-intuative, but I recommend the RB-81 instead of the 52's. Why? 1. The RB-81 has larger ceramic compression driver. The RF-52 has a neodymium compression driver. Mass is king here. The RB-81 tweeter will take more power and you will hear the dynamic comparison. 2. The RB-81 is slightly more efficient. This speaker we lovingly call the "smallest floor standing speaker" because it has so much bass for a bookshelf. The overhand on the coil is longer so it is capable if higher excursion. Plus when you are ready to upgrade with a subwoofer these speakers will keep up with about anything. I know this answer maybe a surprise to some but DON"T underestimate a RB-81. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Thump Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 ehinton is correct in this case... a 51 is not as good as a 52. The 81 pales in comparison. There is a lot of motor in that speaker for its size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehinton Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Sorry for my "Blonde" moment. Can you explain this a little better " a 81 pales in comparison"...... what is you opinion on the sound quality of a rb -81 vs rf-52, interms of output, bass extension, and db levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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