Goldenear or Klipsch? - Page 2

And that's just fine. If people didn't prefer certain designs over another, there would only be one way to build speakers.

You did nothing wrong, you just prefer the sound of one speaker over another. I am just saying that there are others making claims that may not be true.

Well I will be honest, no I do not have the data on paper to back up my claims, but I have a buddy that has had a Golden Ear setup for a couple of months now and his will hit reference no problem. It was setup and calibrated by our local sound shop. Now granted we haven't pulled out a SPL meeter and tested the exact db's but I would assume that the guys at the local sound shop would have calibrated everything just fine.

Aww hey bro you did nothing but stir up a little good debate! Nothing wrong with that at all! I actually prefer to have threads like this where people debate back and forth and try to prove/justify our opinions! Much better then every one saying "Only way to tell is to listen for yourself" ect...Its good to hear what others like and dislike.

Nope there's just many,many different opinions and egos on forums.Get what sounds best to your ears.I have Klipsch RF-82II,RC-52II,RB-61II and Outlaw LFM-1 EX and it sounds fantastic but that is what my ears liked the most.

At very close seating distances you probably could pull it off. But further away horns have a distinct advantage in this regard.

Congrates welcome to the club hope you enjoy them as much as I have.

Ribbons can't play at reference level without distorting? Is this a general blanket statement? The drawback to ribbons is their dispersion characteristics, not their ability to play loud.

Will a similar priced horn tweeter play louder, sure, but to say they can't play at reference levels without distorting is a stretch.

Have you heard of BG Speakers? They make ribbon in wall speaker systems and their speakers can easily hit reference levels.

Fwiw, there are is no such thing as an RF-83II (only issued those once) and you may consider keeping an eye open for the original RF-7s for a good price in your local market.


I wouldn't think so.

I see your jumping ship. Congrats on deciding, it's real tuff at times making those expensive decisions. Enjoy your new speakers. The ears want what the ears want. Guess what, no center channel speaker stand for you. Peace out!

I said they can't do it easily. I did not say that they are incapable of reference volumes.

Went and compared Klipsch to Goldenear at HiFi Buys in Nashville today. They were in a small room on the end with a lot of equipment, very poor set-up. Found the Goldenears to be veiled at the high-end and very unsatisfying (listened to both the Aons and 50's). I preferred the sound of the Klipsch RC52 and RB61 speakers MUCH more. While they are more forward in the top end, I found them to be more open and satisfying for both music and movies. Interestingly, I found the RC62 center to be noticeably brighter and more colored (cupped hand sounding) than the RC52. I also listened to the RC64-sounded good, similar to the RC52.
I defintely preferred the Klipsch.

I know I'm late to this party but I just saw this thread for the first time and noticed the question about ribbons and horns in the same setup and thought I'd share. I once emailed Sandy Gross (founder of Goldenear) and asked him if he thought his Triton speakers would integrate well with the rest of my speakers which are Polks and he flat out said that he would not recommend it. He could have easily lied to sell me his speakers or even tried to push me into getting rid of everything I had and getting a full Goldenear system but he was honest and said it would never work well. I've since emailed him a couple more times because I've been interested in the Aon 3s for a while and he's always been up front about the pros and cons of his designs. Pretty nice guy.

Off topic but my other main concern was the bass extension of the Aon bookshelf speakers and he wasn't afraid to tell me that based on my taste in music, I probably wouldn't be happy with them but I'm going to audition them anyways just to be sure.

Wow another nashville area av guy. If you would like to hear some heritage series let me know. I'm down in murfreesboro.

Flyingfool- I must appologize and retract my statement in reference to the Golderears doing reference. I purchased a new spl meter and went to my buddies house yesterday play with it, and yes, you were correct. What we thought was reference, was indeed not reference. When we turned up the volume high enough to hit reference levels, the Goldenears were distorting, bad. You were right and I was wrong, I will now sit down and enjoy my breakfest of crow!.

I was looking to purchase the RF-7 II home theater system (as showin on their website) minus the sub as I currntly have a Rythmic F15 HP Sub (20x19 inch great room which is open to the kitchen- definitely not an ideal home theater room). This is going to absolutely max out my theater budget. My question is, can I power this with my Yamaha RX-A1000 receiver, or would it be best to upgrade my power source? If that's the case, I am going to have to take the next step down to the RF-82 II system. I was thinking about the Goldenear Triton II system, until I read this thread. I am going to stick with my original plan Thanks in advance.

I wouldn't step down the to the RF-82s regardless and I don't have direct experience with your Yammi (looked at online specs), but feel it could power the RF-7II/RC-64II in a small to moderate size room, especially if you run them as small and cross them over at 80 Hz. That said, if you decide that you want to play material louder, then be on the lookout for a two channel amp but you may not need one. Fwiw, in my experience the speakers tend to get bright when you start to overdrive them and that would be the clue not to turn it up higher.

{EDIT: Your best bet would be to find a place that has the RF-7ii/RC-64II and audition them with a similar AVR..It won't sound exactly the same as in your room but at least if would give you an idea}

Thanks for the advice! I found a place that has them pretty close to me. I will have to take a listen when I have time. So since I will be using these in a 5.1 set-up, dont I want a 5-channel amp? and is Emotiva the best bang for the buck? What I never understood is how klipsch speakers (unless you go with the p37f or higher) sound so good without a really true midrange driver. I suppose its all in how you cross them over. Im no expert by any means. I bought my 1500 sub simply by reading opinions... many opinions. I didnt go wrong! So I appreciate the help.

thanks for the thread - I have the same Klipsch setup RF-82II and RC-64II and ever since I read the Sound and Vision review of the Goldenear's - keep visiting and revisiting the idea of switching to the GE's. I also use my setup for home theater movies. I have a smaller room (12x25) and have just begun to acoustically treat my room - so I can't give much help / advice to you - especially since I'm not an audiophile, just someone who keeps getting upgrade-itis. Anyway, thanks for thread - I've subscribed to it- looking forward to more input.