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Help pick my first Klipsch!

churchill127

churchill127

Member
Hello all,

I am somewhat new to the audio hobby, but have really appreciated the wealth of information that AK represents. I asked many questions during my restoration of a small single ended 6v6 tube power amp pulled from an old Stromberg Carlson console unit, and I think it made the difference during the times I might have given up in frustration.

Now that it has been returned to working order, I am turning my attention to my speakers, because I realized I have nothing efficient enough to allow this flea-watt amp to really sing. My understanding is I need something in the mid to high 90's db efficiency to take advantage of the tubes.

That said, it looks like Klipsch is the most available high efficiency speaker system of decent quality in my area (St. Louis), but I am having a hard time differentiating between the different lines of Klipsch speakers. I have seen numerous second hand Klipsch's, would someone be able to explain which of these might work best for me? They are all advertised at a similar price point, so by taking economical value out of the equation, I believe this post belongs here more than dollars and sense.

R-26F
RF-3 ii
RF-42
 
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given your power amp (love an SE 6v6) the Cornwall would be your very best option as the originals were all voiced on tube amps and the CW2,3&4 are all voiced on SS amplifiers. There are lots of Cornwall's to choose from but I would make my first choice a pair of verticals. Bob Crites can help you with xover networks and improved tweeter and mid drivers. Your speakers will last you a life time and be enjoyed by family that come after you.
If you are handy in the wood shop you could consider building new cabinets or if you have a buddy who is that would do a build for you. Bob Crites has a nice twin vertical vent design that I believe is preferred to the floor level vents built by Klipsch. You could slide the mid horn up to the top of the cabinet and place the tweeter in the top corner and raise up the woofer to just under the mid horn and install a horizontal brace between the woofer and the mid horn. This will further tidy up the mid bass of the woofer. See the photo of this cabinet with Crites baffle layout (as stated not my first choice of layout). slide the tweeter over to the top corner of the cabinet and move the midhorn and woofer up as far as they will go. this will provide improved stage and image.
 

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moray james said:
given your power amp (love an SE 6v6) the Cornwall would be your very best option as the originals were all voiced on tube amps and the CW2,3&4 are all voiced on SS amplifiers.
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That make alot of sense!

ldatlof said:
Fortes or Heresys with a sub also sound excellent...
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So I actually found a pair of I think heresy I's near me that are within my price range. Are there do's and don'ts for pairing them with a sub? I don't really know what to look for in terms of quality for subwoofers...
 
twiiii said:
Pre-owned Cornwalls are always the first Klipch on the want list. Buy Cornwalls and you are essentially done for the next 50 years or so.
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It does make sense, they look like basically everything you need for a stereo set up.

Is there no love for the newer klipsch towers on this forum? What if you live in an apartment where floor space is at a premium?
 
churchill127 said:
It does make sense, they look like basically everything you need for a stereo set up.

Is there no love for the newer klipsch towers on this forum? What if you live in an apartment where floor space is at a premium?
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you said you wanted to us a low power 6v6 SEP amplifier so you will need an efficient set of loudspeakers hence the Cornwall recommendation. Modern day loudspeakers (including Klipsch) exaggerate their efficiency levels by at least 3db an usually more like 6db. There is no way around it if you want to use flea power amps (which do sound excellent) you will need a large loudspeaker. If you want the visual appearance of a narrow loudspeaker and you are handy with wood you can modify a pair of Cornwall loudspeakers to give the appearance of a much more narrow cabinet. If that idea works for you send me a PM and I can tell you more about it.
 
Most of the efficency measurements are in unexplained terms to the consumer. I found in the old days if you placed a Cornwall against a wall it met sensitivity specs right on. Pull them away from a wall like most people do to get a flatter response and you get less bass which decreases the sensitivity and low end reach. Its called room gain by some. It can be a curse or a speakers best friend.
 
churchill127 said:
Is there no love for the newer klipsch towers on this forum? What if you live in an apartment where floor space is at a premium?
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I had KG2s, KG4s, Cornwalls, and Khorns. When we bought the new home, the Khorns just didn't fit the new listening room, and the Cornwalls weren't wifey's favorite, although she liked the sound.

One day we were out shopping and wandered into Magnolia to see what was available in a tower speaker. We listened to some decent B&W speakers, then looked at the price. We could afford them, but just didn't see the value. We wandered into the next room where they had the new Klipsch towers. We listened to the most expensive pair they had, looked at each other, thanked the salesman for his time, and left. Came home, moved the Cornwalls into the listening room, put the Khorns on CL, and lived happily ever after.

Cornwalls are definitely worth "making them fit the room".
 
Cornwalls are great, I had Fortes before the Cornwalls.
Cornwalls are a big step more of a speaker than the Fortes.
Lots of good advise the AK folks are giving you.
Good luck in the speaker hunt.
 
uteman1011 said:
Can’t go wrong with Heresy I’s. I just sold a set to make room for Cornwall’s but definitely miss them. They would love that tube amp.
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ok! I might be able to get them for a very reasonable price. What should I be looking out for in terms of subwoofers? As far as I know, any that have speaker level inputs should work fine correct?
 
moray james said:
you said you wanted to us a low power 6v6 SEP amplifier so you will need an efficient set of loudspeakers hence the Cornwall recommendation. Modern day loudspeakers (including Klipsch) exaggerate their efficiency levels by at least 3db an usually more like 6db. There is no way around it if you want to use flea power amps (which do sound excellent) you will need a large loudspeaker. If you want the visual appearance of a narrow loudspeaker and you are handy with wood you can modify a pair of Cornwall loudspeakers to give the appearance of a much more narrow cabinet. If that idea works for you send me a PM and I can tell you more about it.
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Ok, thanks for the explanation, I think I will stay away from the towers for this application.
 
churchill127 said:
Ok, thanks for the explanation, I think I will stay away from the towers for this application.
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Just my 2 cents, but remember, all of us have different taste and setups, but I agree, having input from actual users helps tremendously in deciding. If you can go to a local dealer and listen to the speakers, that would help alot also.

For me, I have been a Klipsch fan for over 25 years and still have my original 5.1 Klipsch speaker setup from 1995. Guess what, they still look great and perform perfectly and thus, as others have said, buying Klipsch speakers are a lifetime investment. So I realized when I upgraded my Klipsch speakers, I wanted to spend the money on high end units because I know I will never have to buy again. So I did upgrade from my 95 system to a 7.1.2 system. i got a great deal on RF-7 II's and the RC center at 50% so I got them and am soooooooooooo happy with them from music to movies, the quality is off the charts compared to my original 95 Klipsch speakers (I still have them, but we put them in our downstairs home theatre setup for the kids).

So my advice, figure out what you really want and spend the money, these are lifetime speakers and you can't go wrong. I saw you had RF-3 listed in your OP and my thought is, why not RF-7's? If you want to experiment and not spend a lot, that makes sense, but like I said, these are life time speakers and in my opinion, go for what you really want in a speaker that will last a lifetime, even if that means spending more, you will not regret it. (granted, I got lucky with the 50% off deal because the retail on those speakers are expensive).

Good luck mate and choose wisely.
 
Save up for a little while longer, be patient, use all the search tools at your disposal, and get a pair of La Scalas. You will likely end up there eventually anyway, so why not skip all of the interim, and go to the top section of the food chain? The wait is worth it.
 
thevinoman said:
Save up for a little while longer, be patient, use all the search tools at your disposal, and get a pair of La Scalas. You will likely end up there eventually anyway, so why not skip all of the interim, and go to the top section of the food chain? The wait is worth it.
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someday, for sure!
 
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