Klipsch owner thread - Page 376

Looks like I'm buying 3 KL-650s for my front stage, extremely excited!!!!!!!!!

didnt you have the emotivas? I'd be curious to hear how they compare. congrats.

Pics and review after you get them or it didn't happen.

Is this going in a dedicated HT room or just living room?

Florida, give us some more info on your room and the rest of your system. Congrats on the new speakers!

The three KL-650s will be replacing my Emotiva 8.3s and 6.3 center. I'm very anxious to see what high efficiency THX certified speakers can do in my room! I'm currently running a Viewsonic Pro8100 at 13.5 feet from a Carada 96" screen. My converted livingroom has multiple bass traps and absorption panels, and measures 13 x 15 with a 6 foot hallway behind. I have an Onkyo 805 as a pre-pro, an XPA-5 for power, a Sony BDP S1000ES Bluray, a Toshiba HD-DVD (don't ask!), twin Outlaw LFM-1EX subs for LF, Twin CSW P-1000 subs for mid-bass, an SMS -1 for sub balance, ERD-1 surrounds, and some bass shakers in my reclining loveseat! If the front stage improves as much as I hope I'm working on a pair of Econowaved CSW Model 6 speakers for surround duty, let the games begin!

^^^ sounds good.. my room is a little larger and has the same type of hallway..I have gone to using the KL650's as the front 3 and KL525 as wides and it rocks.

Florida, I think they'll give you all you can handle in that space!

Howdy,
I have a RF83, RC62, RS42 system, so that is my year long Klipsch reference point.
My Def Tech reference point is auditioning the BP7000, BP7002, BP7004, and BP7006 one year ago.
In my opinion each model in the 7000 series was better than the next lower model and the BP7000 was a significant step up compared to the BP7002.
I would say the same thing about the Klipsch Reference series, and in my opinion the RF83 was a significant step up from the RF63.
In the last month I have listened to the RF7 and while I was not able to do A/B comparison I really liked the way it sounds so its position at the top of the Reference Series vs the RF83 seems to be a good move.

I could not pull any info about the BP2000 from the Def Tech website, if the BP2000 is the equivalent in sound quality to the current BP7000 (and money is no object) I would probably choose that system over a RF7 system.
If the BP2000 is the equivalent of the BP7002 system I would choose the RF7 system in a heart beat and never look back.

Since you have the powered sub built into the speakers you will probably want to add two sub woofers to the Klipsch system so factor that in for pricing and floor space.

One thing that is certain, the Klipsch speakers will sound different than the Def Tech speakers.
While different does not necessarily mean better if comparing to the BP7000, I would say the Klipsch will have an edge in clarity.
The rest as always comes down to personal preferences.

Not sure if my comments will help, please let this thread know what you decide to do.

You're going from what looks to be a silk dome tweeter in the Emotivas (just judging from the pics) to a titanium dome horn for high frequencies in the KL's, and from a sensitivity of 89db to 97db. Yeah, you're going to know you have new speakers when the action starts up on screen.

Yes indeed, silk domes in the Emotivas. I've been really pleased with the performance of this setup, but I'm feeling that for real movie dynamics the horns are going to kick some serious a$$! I'm very psyched to try these, thanks again sb1.

I've pretty much been horns for the last 12+ years..so it's hard for me to compare...other then using maggies every once in awhile. Yes the horns are good for HT, but I'm enjoying music as well, eventhough I've gone away from my 2channel tube amp setup and Lascalas. Pretty much listen to music using audyseey DSX sound modes and it's pretty amazing...PLIIc w/wides is pretty cool with these Ultra2's.

i wonder would anyone have pictures of what the RF 82 looks like inside ?

i searched the web for any pictures that show inside the 82's and cant find anything -

i am not looking to take apart my 82s - but in case anyone has - and has pictures - maybe you can post them - i am just curious how they are built -

the only pictures i found is of the RB 61 - bookshelf - not too shabby either -
nice side driver and magnet - tweeter etc. -

thanks -

What would go well with the KL-650s for surround duty without costing a small fortune? I saw these advertised, what do you think? http://www.onecall.com/product/Klips...aker/_/R-30876

Based on using other reference models alongside the KL650's, I don't think you'd have issue with tonal match. Although, I wouldn't mix one in on the front stage! I would, however, be concerned that those 42's would hold back your KL's?

I'm using RS62's along with LaScala now, and they keep up until I get to rock concert levels. I'm also using Heresies for the rear, and they have no problem keeping up at any level. You may want to consider those. They aren't as nice a tonal match, but definetely have more horsepower than those RB's you listed...and for less money (on the used market).

A representative at Klipsch recommended to me that the RS62II is actually more capable than the Ultra2 surround models.

Sorry that my response is a little delayed. The problem with a 2-way MTM arrangement is that you can get lobing, where the 2 woofers tend to cancel each other in their upper frequency range (closer to the crossover) due to their close proximity to each other (and cabinet coupling).

With a 2.5-way crossover, only one woofer covers the entire range from the low end up to the crossover to the tweeter (w/horn in the Klipsch). The second woofer covers the lower end, and adds reinforcement where it is needed, but not in the more critical range where lobing starts to become a problem. Some center channel speakers avoid this problem by using a 3-way design with a tweeter/midrange speaker in the center (vertically aligned) with the low end covered by dual woofers surrounding them. The center channel speaker (P-27C) of the Klipsch Palladium series is another example of a 3-way design. For their THX Ultra2 series, Klipsch chose to go with identical R/C/L speakers (which is another way to tackle the center channel design approach).

The newer Reference II series avoid a little of the lobing effect by using a lower crossover frequency. They can also mitigate some of the lobing, if they also have modified the internal cabinet design (which also costs more money). However, lowering the crossover frequency creates an added stress on the tweeter/horn assembly, since they how have to handle the increased power for audio near the lower crossover frequency. I suspect the Klipsch chose to go with the 2-way center design since using an even lower second roll-off of one woofer would be an even more serious performance compromise (they did not redesign the tweeter/horn part of the Reference II designs).

I'm guessing that real reason that Klipsch chose to use a lower woofer crossovers, in the Reference II designs, was due choosing to use lower quality woofers (for cost reasons). The same thing has happened to the consumer level JBL speakers (which are not as good as their designs that were sold 20 - 30 years ago). This is also why there is an active market for the older JBL and Klipsch speakers in their higher end designs (like the Klipsch Heritage and Cinema designs -- and, the similar, JBL Pro line speakers).

Sorry for the dissertation on speaker design.

floridapoolboy -- The RB-51s would certainly work (although they have a rear port and can't be placed against a wall), even though they are not really a sonic (or quality) match for the KL-650s. They wouldn't be a good choice for a very large room, but for most typical sized rooms (around 14' x 18', or so) the better they would be. I chose to go with the RB-81s for my rear (back) surrounds, but they are hard to find.

I did a quick check, see http://www.jr.com/klipsch/pe/KLP_RB81_hy_BS/ (a super deal - highly recommended). I bought my RB-81s and RS-62s from them. That price is for one, so you would have to buy 2 for surround use.

The newer Reference II series avoid a little of the lobing effect by using a lower crossover frequency. They can also mitigate some of the lobing, if they also have modified the internal cabinet design (which also costs more money). However, lowering the crossover frequency creates an added stress on the tweeter/horn assembly, since they how have to handle the increased power for audio near the lower crossover frequency. I suspect the Klipsch chose to go with the 2-way center design since using an even lower second roll-off of one woofer would be an even more serious performance compromise (they did not redesign the tweeter/horn part of the Reference II designs).


i am not an expert - but i dont think Klipsch changed anything with the newer II line - other than change the Crossover Feq. - i believe that was done to give the top end a little bit more - since the bottom end of the RF line give off deep bass - in an effect to level them out better- this is just based on my experience with my RF 82s - i believe that people who love Klipsch - love them for there horns and highs - in your face sound - the original 82's did that - but a little more bottom heavy -- i think they used the crossover to fix that and make it more balanced - giving the top end a little more -- correct me if i am wrong - this is not based on tech. experience -- the specs are identical all around except for the crossover point - i guess the best way to really know the difference is to listen to both of them side by side -

That's a great price on the RB-81 at JR, but they only have one! Just as well, they are too large and heavy for me to wall mount. My room needs wall mounted surrounds, but the RS-62s would cost me $1200, way out of budget! I'm getting such a great deal on the KL-650s that it's difficult to come up with a reasonably priced surround option.

If I were strapped for cash I'd pick up used Heresies for about $300 to use as surrounds. Far better solution than those 42's. You can always sell them again and not loose a dollar. Oooops, forgot, wall mount. darn.

Is there a way to get creative about wall mounting something larger? My Heresies are built into cabinets at the rear of the room and not even seen. Maybe make faux columns or something?

No, not possible unfortunately. I'm presently using ERD-1s for surrounds, which are a good fit in terms of depth. To be clear, I linked to RB-51s on closeout, which seem fairly beefy for monopole surrounds. Even they are a bit too deep, but I could make them work. I'm not cash strapped, but I do think the RS-62s are overpriced compared to most other surround offerings. At $1300 a pair they would have to sound an order of magnitude better than the RB-52s to be worth it too me.

I used "cash strapped" as a figure of speach. Sorry, shouldn't have. For what it's worth, I got the RS62's 35% lower than that. But still, they are pricey. There's no soft way to put it, but if you wanna run with the "big boys" (which your KL650's can) then you gotta pay for the "big boys".

Yeah, I get that! Problem is, I'm not sure how much the surrounds will matter, as long as they are tonally matched. After all, my room is relatively small, and my present surrounds do a great job crossed at 80hz. While I want the surrounds to "keep up" dynamically, I doubt I'll be pushing them at true reference levels. Just as an example, a pair of these should more than keep up for a much more reasonable price. I just don't know how well they would match sonically, but they certainly have the "chops"!
http://www.studiogears.com/jbl_8340a...63504_prd1.htm

yup heresy will keep up.. I just sold a pair for 250. Hopefully will be selling my La Scalas today, but I still have another pair of Heresys I'll keep.

Mine are wall-mounted.

No way do I have room to wall mount a speaker that large! Also, I'm concerned about timbre matching. It looks to me like the only matching surrounds for the KL-650s are the KS-525s, the KL-525s, or another pair of KL-650s, all expensive options. If going with surrounds from the Reference line would be a tonal match then that would be OK. If not there are other horn speakers to choose from, like JBL pro, Hsu, etc., but again I don't know how they will match up sonically. As far as Heritage all of them are just too darn big for my room layout.

^^^ of those the KS-525 are your cheapest solution.. or go with RS-62 or something from reference line. KS-525 is all I have in the rear (side surrounds) right now and they are really good. For the rear eventually I will get KL-7800 in walls.

maybe other brands might work..but I have no experience..other then trying maggies and that would be a NO.

floridapoolboy -- It's too bad J&R only had one RB-81. BTW, there isn't much difference in size (or weight) between the RB-81 and the RS-62, other than the RS-62 is triangular and a little flatter. Klipsch increased the price by $100 in going to the RS-62 II model. I'm glad I bought my 2 RS-62s and 2 RB-81s back last August, when J&R had the older Reference models on close-out sale.

Food for Thought: If you want a lower cost (and lighter) set of surrounds, you might want to look into the RS42s at about half the price of the RS-62s. They won't provide as much of the low end, but they are not that bad either. The RS-52s are almost exactly half-way between the RS-62 and RS-42 is both size and price. The RS-52 is roughly the physical equivalent of the KS-525, but they aren't the same quality. Sonically, the RS-62s are closer to the KS-525s.

The other solution is to look into the used market. You might be able to find a pair of RS-62s, or even KS-525s, for a good price. Decent JBL surrounds will be a lot larger than the equivalent Klipsch models. The lower cost JBL bookshelf models (non-Pro/Studio models) are poorer quality than the RS-42s, IMHO.

Happy hunting, and good luck.

I found a pair pf RS-62s at Crutchfield, saved some by getting open box. There, now I have some surrounds that hopefully will keep up with the KL-650s!

i just used my old RF62s as surrounds

floridapoolboy -- Great, good find. Those should be pretty close to the KS-525s in performance. I think you will be pleased.

The RS62's will do the job! I'm using them along with LaScala and they keep up with them! Again, directly from a rep in Hope, the RS62 will exceed the performance of the KL525. Congrats on the find!