Forte I

[frahengeo]

Hi All,

Several weeks ago, I had an opportunity to listen to a pair Forte 1s while auditioning an Amp. Seller was interested in selling the Amp, but I became more interested in the Forte. So I now have an opportunity to buy a pair through another listing, and had some questions for you experts, and seasoned owners.

I don't have any experience with Klipsch, but how durable are their drivers? Is this something that I need to consider when discussing price with the owner?

Thank You for your expertise.

 

[moray james]

drivers can last a lifetime if they have been treated well. Do keep your eyes open for a pair of Forte ll. they have imo significantly better mid horns and they have a larger 15 inch passive which is also a bonus over the original 12 inch passive of the Forte. See which version you like best. You should also check out a KLF20 but they must have the tweeter diaphragms replaced as the stock poly diaphragm in the K79 is a very poor quality one phenolic diaphragms are much better and Bob 's Titanium diaphragms are the best. KLF20/30 can also have cabinet issues with loose baffles (front and back), this can be repaired but better if they are solid as it is less work for you to do. Also if you have the chance listen to a pair of CF3 which are imo the very best of the lot but they do require some horse power more than the others. Do as much listening as you can to as many models as you can. As far as I am concerned they all will require upgrade and modification work to achieve the best possible performance. At this stage for me there is nor one vintage Klipsch which would be acceptable in its stock form but they pay good dividends when modified.
I have owned and modified a pair of late model Heresy, Heresy 3, two sets of KLF20, Forte, Forte ll and CF3. Best regards Moray James.

 

[frahengeo]

drivers can last a lifetime if they have been treated well. Do keep your eyes open for a pair of Forte ll. they have imo significantly better mid horns and they have a larger 15 inch passive which is also a bonus over the original 12 inch passive of the Forte. See which version you like best. You should also check out a KLF20 but they must have the tweeter diaphragms replaced as the stock poly diaphragm in the K79 is a very poor quality one phenolic diaphragms are much better and Bob 's Titanium diaphragms are the best. KLF20/30 can also have cabinet issues with loose baffles (front and back), this can be repaired but better if they are solid as it is less work for you to do. Also if you have the chance listen to a pair of CF3 which are imo the very best of the lot but they do require some horse power more than the others. Do as much listening as you can to as many models as you can. As far as I am concerned they all will require upgrade and modification work to achieve the best possible performance. At this stage for me there is nor one vintage Klipsch which would be acceptable in its stock form but they pay good dividends when modified.
I have owned and modified a pair of late model Heresy, Heresy 3, two sets of KLF20, Forte, Forte ll and CF3. Best regards Moray James.

MJ,

Thank you for the info regarding the drivers, and for the numerous other suggestions regarding other models.

I've read on AK that the x-overs on the Forte typically needs to be upgraded/replaced. Is there anything else you had in mind when you speak of modifications?

You have me thinking about the 15" radiators on the Forte II. Not sure whether to wait and risk missing the Forte though. I won't do ebay for things like this as I prefer to deal locally, and avoid potential shipping damage and hassles associated with it. This, of course, limits my selection.

 

[weber1]

drivers can last a lifetime if they have been treated well. Do keep your eyes open for a pair of Forte ll. they have imo significantly better mid horns and they have a larger 15 inch passive which is also a bonus over the original 12 inch passive of the Forte. See which version you like best. You should also check out a KLF20 but they must have the tweeter diaphragms replaced as the stock poly diaphragm in the K79 is a very poor quality one phenolic diaphragms are much better and Bob 's Titanium diaphragms are the best. KLF20/30 can also have cabinet issues with loose baffles (front and back), this can be repaired but better if they are solid as it is less work for you to do. Also if you have the chance listen to a pair of CF3 which are imo the very best of the lot but they do require some horse power more than the others. Do as much listening as you can to as many models as you can. As far as I am concerned they all will require upgrade and modification work to achieve the best possible performance. At this stage for me there is nor one vintage Klipsch which would be acceptable in its stock form but they pay good dividends when modified.
I have owned and modified a pair of late model Heresy, Heresy 3, two sets of KLF20, Forte, Forte ll and CF3. Best regards Moray James.

What he said ^

If the Fortes are a deal and in good shape, you shouldn't be let down. They will go the lowest Hz, don't take a large footprint, are some real rock-n-rollers and I like them better than my Forte IIs, so far (I am still trying different amps). It's all in what YOU like, what flavor the wood is and their condition, what you're going to be listening to and what you are going to drive them with.

 

[Polarbear]

I always preferred the forte I's as well. Tighter bass and sharper midrange. The mids in the II's just sounded hollow to me for some reason.

 

[moray james]

just my thoughts on the difference

I always preferred the forte I's as well. Tighter bass and sharper midrange. The mids in the II's just sounded hollow to me for some reason.

the Forte uses the K702 resin horn which is a very old horn and which is exponential. "The longer that you squeeze out the waveform (as in an exponential) the more distorted it will become. The hybrid horn in the Forte ll is a much newer and better design and it distorts the waveform much less and so is a lower distortion horn. I fully expect that the "sharper" midrange that you are hearing is very simply a little more distortion due to the K701. If you listen to any of the newer and larger mid horn as in the KLF29/30 or the CF3/4 you will here a smoother more open sound due to lower distortion. I have a pair of heavily modified H3 which I like but would never consider them my number one choice when I can listen to the CF3. Listen to them all and make your own choice. There are probably more folks who like the K701 so as they say there is no accounting for choice. Best regards Moray James.

 

[weber1]

My liking of the Forte I might be due to what I was pushing them with: A Realistic STA2300. It's a 120W/Ch, bass heavy, old school SS receiver. I've not listened to the Forte II in the same conditions. Some day I hope to A/B them using the same amp. Regardless, Is or IIs, you can't go wrong. :yes:

 

[Polarbear]

the Forte uses the K702 resin horn which is a very old horn and which is exponential. "The longer that you squeeze out the waveform (as in an exponential) the more distorted it will become. The hybrid horn in the Forte ll is a much newer and better design and it distorts the waveform much less and so is a lower distortion horn. I fully expect that the "sharper" midrange that you are hearing is very simply a little more distortion due to the K701. If you listen to any of the newer and larger mid horn as in the KLF29/30 or the CF3/4 you will here a smoother more open sound due to lower distortion. I have a pair of heavily modified H3 which I like but would never consider them my number one choice when I can listen to the CF3. Listen to them all and make your own choice. There are probably more folks who like the K701 so as they say there is no accounting for choice. Best regards Moray James.

That's great but they still sound hollow to me, so do the Quartets with the same tractrix horn.

 

[btol]

I have Forte I's with ALK crossovers and I installed speaker spikes. I loved the speakers before but I found these two mods really made a positive difference. The crossovers smoothed out the Fortes but increased the detail and clarity. I feel like they made the Fortes a more neutral sounding speaker, allowing me to drive them with both tube and solid state and still be able to listen for long periods. The speaker spikes made the soundstage taller and wider. They also tightened up the low end and made the Fortes sound generally more focused.

Hope this helps.

 

[moray james]

That's great but they still sound hollow to me, so do the Quartets with the same tractrix horn.

as always ymmv as the say. I also do other mods to my drivers I internally damp the compression drivers which is much easier to do than it may sound, the improvement is profound. I use a single layer of dynamat on the top of the pole piece and then on top of that I use I use multiple layers of S.A.E. rated F-11 acoustical felt. This mod eats up much reflected energy resulting is way less smear clearer more detailed and articulate sound. That might just make the difference for you. For me stock drivers are no longer an option. There are other thing that I do but they become a bit more complicated than your average joe want to mess with. The damping is straight ahead and very effective. I hope that this is of interest. Best regards Moray James.