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Klipsch kb-15 for $99

post #1 of 17
1/21/13 at 8:45pm
Thread Starter 
How do these compare to other $100-200 bookshelves? Best buy has them for 99 which seems decent as they are normally 300.
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post #2 of 17
1/21/13 at 8:51pm
I personally don't like them.

I honestly feel with Klipsch horn tweeter design I can hear the highs bouncing and resonating on the plastic, its as if the sound is being played through a piece of PVC or something, I guess thats the only way I can think to describie it.


It's different for everyone, I would really suggest listeing to everything you can at best buy, tell the sales guys to F*** off, turn up the music, bring a flash drive with music you know on it, plug into a reciever and give a listen. I personally would take the ~100 dollar polks Best buy sells over the klipsch.
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post #3 of 17
1/21/13 at 8:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mginster View Post

How do these compare to other $100-200 bookshelves? Best buy has them for 99 which seems decent as they are normally 300.

I like them in the BB store. None of them are perfect. No speaker is. I wouldn't be discouraged if they aren't the latest or greatest. In that range they sound fine to me.

Klipsch can sound bright, in my experience, if not balanced right. I don't know if that's the right term, but when you play their big floorstanders, I think they're great and the polks are brighter.

I do hate the BB display though. I hate most places. Their stuff never works. They have it turned off or whatever. I HATE it when things don't work and the music is crappy. The other poster is wise. If you can bring your own music, do it. I hate that they don't put those in the fancy theater room. My guess is that folks wouldn't buy the high dollar speakers as much (actually Fry's did have them in a nicer room. BB does not.)

edit: Don't know much about it but doesn't the 94db sensitivity mean it will take less power to drive them? That is good to me if they sound good. I have to turn my receiver way up to power my Polks.
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post #4 of 17
1/21/13 at 9:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by likemovies View Post

I like them in the BB store. None of them are perfect. No speaker is. I wouldn't be discouraged if they aren't the latest or greatest. In that range they sound fine to me.

Klipsch can sound bright, in my experience, if not balanced right. I don't know if that's the right term, but when you play their big floorstanders, I think they're great and the polks are brighter.

I do hate the BB display though. I hate most places. Their stuff never works. They have it turned off or whatever. I HATE it when things don't work and the music is crappy. The other poster is wise. If you can bring your own music, do it. I hate that they don't put those in the fancy theater room. My guess is that folks wouldn't buy the high dollar speakers as much (actually Fry's did have them in a nicer room. BB does not.)

edit: Don't know much about it but doesn't the 94db sensitivity mean it will take less power to drive them? That is good to me if they sound good. I have to turn my receiver way up to power my Polks.

Higher sensitivity = more volume with less power from my basic understanding.
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post #5 of 17
1/21/13 at 9:27pm
Thread Starter 
Minus the klipsch bright sound, which I may or may not like when I go listen to them, how are they for 99 a pair?
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post #6 of 17
1/21/13 at 9:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mginster View Post

Minus the klipsch bright sound, which I may or may not like when I go listen to them, how are they for 99 a pair?

Is that your budget $100?
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post #7 of 17
1/21/13 at 9:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shady195 View Post

Higher sensitivity = more volume with less power from my basic understanding.

But what does that matter? That's what I don't understand. I have to turn my receiver up but other than that I don't know why it matters. It just makes me feel better.
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post #8 of 17
1/21/13 at 9:38pm
Higher sensitivity = less power at a given volume = less stress on amp = higher volume without distortion.
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post #9 of 17
1/21/13 at 10:21pm
$99/pr is a great deal if you're a Klipsch fan.
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post #10 of 17
1/22/13 at 3:33am
I have a pair of the older B-2 speakers which are pretty much the same, just earlier model. I used mine as my front left and right for a long time and enjoyed them. I have since moved up to tower fronts and use the B-2s as rear surrounds on stands. I really enjoy mine a lot, and at $100, they are a steal. Don't go by the BB stand sound, that is terrible. If you were building a surround sound on a budget, two pairs of these would be a fantastic deal for front and rear speakers, and you would be getting an excellent speaker, especially for the money. No they aren't equal to some 600 a piece tower, but hell, what a deal. I do believe I am going to pick up another pair to use for another spare room stereo I might be putting together.
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post #11 of 17
1/22/13 at 6:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by likemovies View Post

But what does that matter? That's what I don't understand. I have to turn my receiver up but other than that I don't know why it matters. It just makes me feel better.

Quote:
Originally Posted by GaryWA View Post

Higher sensitivity = less power at a given volume = less stress on amp = higher volume without distortion.

^^

You're speakers will get louder with less power output from the amp going to them. Which means the speakers can get louder without stressing out the amplifier. Which also means the speakers can get louder without distorting.

You're amp will have to work twice as hard and put out more power (just throwing something out there for examples sake) to push an 89DB speaker, than it would to push a 97DB speaker.

Exactly what gary wrote just more words added in wink.gif
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post #12 of 17
1/22/13 at 11:47am
I bought a pair of them and I like them so far. (Granted I'm used to a small 5.1 sat set). They did sound a lot brighter than anything else they had at my local best buy that's for sure. I picked up a pair and the kc-25 center to go with them, and even though I've only had them for a day and a half and haven't really broke them in they sound pretty good with music and movies. The brightness I heard in the store kinda calmed down once I got them home and hooked up, and to MY ears the highs and mids blend nice, not harsh at all. I'd say go for it, get'em set up and run them for a few days and if you don't like the sound, take them back, no harm done. My 2ct's
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post #13 of 17
1/22/13 at 2:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shady195 View Post


^^

You're speakers will get louder with less power output from the amp going to them. Which means the speakers can get louder without stressing out the amplifier. Which also means the speakers can get louder without distorting.

You're amp will have to work twice as hard and put out more power (just throwing something out there for examples sake) to push an 89DB speaker, than it would to push a 97DB speaker.

Exactly what gary wrote just more words added in wink.gif

How much more for 91 vs. 89? Is it inconsequential?
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post #14 of 17
1/22/13 at 4:38pm
I was just checking this thread after seeing the same deal at my BB. Our little altec lansing dock is dead and looking to replace it. I found an article at Cnet by Steve Guttenberg "Audiophiliac pairs the Dayton B652 speakers with the tiny Lepai LP-2020A+ stereo amp, and finds very respectable sound for around $70". The Lepai looks like one of the little T-amps and I don't know about the speakers at all but thought I would check out BB to see if they had something else in the $50 range. Well, I saw these speakers but not sure how they would compare to the Dayton B652's. It's just for a busy area of the house to play a little background music, but if they should be much better than the daytons, and they're efficent, then it might be worth checking out.
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post #15 of 17
1/22/13 at 6:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozark_VR View Post

I was just checking this thread after seeing the same deal at my BB. Our little altec lansing dock is dead and looking to replace it. I found an article at Cnet by Steve Guttenberg "Audiophiliac pairs the Dayton B652 speakers with the tiny Lepai LP-2020A+ stereo amp, and finds very respectable sound for around $70". The Lepai looks like one of the little T-amps and I don't know about the speakers at all but thought I would check out BB to see if they had something else in the $50 range. Well, I saw these speakers but not sure how they would compare to the Dayton B652's. It's just for a busy area of the house to play a little background music, but if they should be much better than the daytons, and they're efficent, then it might be worth checking out.

That is a most interesting article. Thank you for posting it.
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post #16 of 17
1/25/13 at 7:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ajstrider View Post

I have a pair of the older B-2 speakers which are pretty much the same, just earlier model. I used mine as my front left and right for a long time and enjoyed them. I have since moved up to tower fronts and use the B-2s as rear surrounds on stands. I really enjoy mine a lot, and at $100, they are a steal. Don't go by the BB stand sound, that is terrible. If you were building a surround sound on a budget, two pairs of these would be a fantastic deal for front and rear speakers, and you would be getting an excellent speaker, especially for the money. No they aren't equal to some 600 a piece tower, but hell, what a deal. I do believe I am going to pick up another pair to use for another spare room stereo I might be putting together.

Almost exactly my approach to purchasing these speakers. Only difference is I was in need for a better set of (side) surrounds than what I was using. IMHO, these fit the bill nicely. One cravat, they are slightly on the large side. Especially in depth. And... can't be wall mounted, unless you're willing to do some drilling on the cabinets. Other than that, I'm very satisfied using them as surrounds. Even though many say the sound a bright, I find this equating to being quit clear in my setup. I've even experimented with adding a piece of thin foam over the tweeter and listened to a few movie scenes that work the surrounds hard. Eventually removed the foam and liked them much better. Least until my 30-day money-back guaranty gets closer.
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post #17 of 17
1/25/13 at 1:03pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by flyingdog View Post

Almost exactly my approach to purchasing these speakers. Only difference is I was in need for a better set of (side) surrounds than what I was using. IMHO, these fit the bill nicely. One cravat, they are slightly on the large side. Especially in depth. And... can't be wall mounted, unless you're willing to do some drilling on the cabinets. Other than that, I'm very satisfied using them as surrounds. Even though many say the sound a bright, I find this equating to being quit clear in my setup. I've even experimented with adding a piece of thin foam over the tweeter and listened to a few movie scenes that work the surrounds hard. Eventually removed the foam and liked them much better. Least until my 30-day money-back guaranty gets closer.

Grnated not super cheap but no need to drill with these mounts: http://www.amazon.com/Pinpoint-AM-40B-Clamping-Bookshelf-Speaker/dp/B002UV03MW/ref=sr_1_1?
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