hanfrac

Pics added

Selling a pair of Fortes in very good condition. Walnut enclosures, no risers. I had the Crites tweeter diaphragms and crossover update done. Sound great and work as they should. Happy to allow an audition. Selling because I got a good deal on some other speakers I've been curious about. Cabinets in good shape, but could use some oiling/refreshing. I have Howards products, but didn't apply them because I didn't want to risk altering the color. I put some magnets on the passive radiators to increase the load weight based on suggestions I've read in this forum about how this improves the bass response. They are easily removed $650, local purchase only (I'm in Menlo Park).

I did most of what I had planned to do this weekend. - recap using Crites caps - TI tweeter diaphragm - wood glue to seal seams/caulk on grill grommets/rope caulk around drivers and terminal cup - all meant to improve cabinet air tightness and improve bass - add weight to passive radiators (I added 2 oz) - since my horns are plastic, I skipped dampening them - thanks for the heads-up My initial impressions after less than 90 minutes of listening time (and little time to mess with placement) - the speakers sound more refined and more expensive. Probably easier to listen to for long periods - feels like it smoothed out the high end (however, I was hoping to get more sparkle out the highs, which I don't think happened) - I can't really tell whether the bass is deeper or tighter as a result of the weight - the cabinet work made no difference as measured by pushing in the passive and watching the woofer - it behaves exactly as it did before and nowhere near the 3 second return time I've read is the desired target - not sure if the smoothing and refinement has lessened the exciting, live sound of the speaker. I haven't had the opportunity to push the volume up The net of it is that for the $110 I spent, I'm relatively happy, more from a "peace of mind" standpoint than an actual sound improvement standpoint. I unfortunately have not had the experience of "this turns these into world-killers that it would cost $5000+ to compete with in today's market." I think they are slightly nicer than before, but I have to listen for the differences. The good news is that the Fortes, more than my Snells, has me listening to and enjoying whole songs and enjoying the music vs. being overly focused on analytically listening for details and trying to determine whether I liked my speakers. The Snells went up on Craigslist this weekend.

I just bought some Fortes and they came with a KSF-C5 center. The Fortes will be used in my 2 channel setup, so I don't need a center there. I want to replace my existing fronts and center with Klipsch's using this center. I need some medium-sized bookshelf speakers that would be a reasonable match for this center channel. The site says these are Synergy series from 1997-99. Does that mean that any Synergy speakers would match up with this, as it appears that a Synergy line is still being produced. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Thanks, John. Duly noted on the titanium midranges. I'm still not going to do it until I get through the list of stuff above and see where I'm at. I don't know what a band pass roll off is, so it's not something I'm excited to do - yet. If I want to tighten the bass, I want to be further from the rear wall, right? Closer gets me more bass?

My Fortes sound pretty good. There's no real problem with them. I do want to make them better. The highs are a little muted for my tastes and don't sound like the Forte signature, so I'm sure the caps and diaphragm will help open them up. I just received my box from Mr. Crites today, so by the weekend, I'll get this stuff installed. I don't see doing the titanium midranges if it requires crossover work. Plus, I want to see how far I can get get for $100 (about what I've spent on caps and the TI tweeter diaphragm) before doing more costly things. Does anyone have specific recommendations on what to do with the grill holes? I've read that they can be a source of air leaks. Do I go behind the baffle when I have the drivers out and either caulk or apply a ring of glue around the perimeter of the grommet?

On an impulse, I bought some Forte I's from their original owner off a CL ad. I brought them home and put them up against my Snell Type A's. My initial reaction was that the Snells were more musical and smoother and the Fortes were fun with deep bass and a forward, involving sound. But the bass was a little flabby. I did more listening and am reaching the conclusion that I care more about the energy/fun factor the Fortes give me vs. the sophistication of my big Snells. So I want to make the Fortes better. I want to tighten up the bass and get more clarity in the highs - I expected the highs to be bright, but they aren't. Here's what I plan on doing (I'd love some input): - I've already ordered Crites crossover caps and tweeter diaphragms - Dynamat on the horns - wood glue along interior seams to better seal against air leakage (when I push the passive radiator in, the woofer comes out and returns to its starting spot in about 1 second) - remove all drivers and add rope caulk when reinstalling them and round terminal cup to get a better seal - add weight to passive radiator using pairs of small disc magnets (not sure if this is going to help with the flabbiness - I care more about tightening the bass up rather than increasing extension) I've read that I should also seal the grill hole openings, but don't know exactly how to do that. Are these the right things to be doing? Thanks in advance.