How Can I Identify Real Klipshorns (as opposed to kit versions)?

Parallax982 said:
Thanks. The guy started out asking $4,700. He dropped his price to $3,000 but has still gotten no offers. I offered to come by with my wife and, if she really liked them, I would pay $2,500 cash. Or if he preferred to just be done with them, I'd drive up and pay $2,000, and then if my wife didn't like them, they would be my problem to sell.

I heard them and the highs and mids sounded great. The lows, not so much, but they weren't located in corners. I figured, at that price, I couldn't get burned too badly. But he's holding firm at $3,000. If I can't be sure they're the real deal, I'll pass and wait for something else to come along. People tend to ask a lot more than $3,000 around here but I don't know if they actually get it. And, honestly, since I'll be running them from a Fisher 500 (or TA-500), which is a mono amp, I'd be happy to find just one, in which case I imagine the price would reflect that.
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$3,000 for those is a fair to low price I could have sold a pair for $2500 in 2007, 18 years ago. My CPI inflation calculator to 2024 says $3,700. So lower than this is a STEAL.
You don't have to do anything to the crossovers. If you want to make them really sing, get pair of SMAHLS as drop in replacements and enjoy them the rest of your life.
 
ClaudeJ1 said:
This is a totally useless $marta$$ comment. I encourage you to continue, since we all love to read worthless posts.
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Sorry. I was hoping that the Klipsch forum moderator was off this weekend. Was there anything that I said that isn't true?
 
hjames said:
AK rules request just one thread per topic. You started 2 threads on this same topic - one in the Klipsch forums, one in Speakers.
I have MERGE them and need to delete any DUPE posts in the results.
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So sorry. Especially to have created work for you. I promise not to do it again.
 
Hey, I want to thank everyone for their comments. I hear that you guys, the experts, are saying (the consensus is that) they're real Klipshorns. That helps me in determining whether it's worth taking a chance on them. I'm still concerned that, if they don't work for my home, I'll be taking on a huge challenge in that reselling them could be a bitch. As it is for the guy who's been trying to sell them. But I have one good corner and could at least make good use of one.

Here's a separate question. I have a second good corner but it's diagonally across the room. Kitty-corner, in other words. Would it make sense to consider placing them across from each other, each placed in a nice corner? Or does it make more sense to just use one or create a false corner (if possible) to keep them on the same wall?
 
jayvis said:
Sorry. I was hoping that the Klipsch forum moderator was off this weekend. Was there anything that I said that isn't true?
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If Truth were your motivator, then you left out the Price of new Klipshorns, which would have made your post even more ridiculous.
You only get a 1/2 of a PWK Yellos button if your were trying to make a sale.
The guy was trying to get those for less than $3,000 grand.
If you were really trying to help. If you were actually trying to be funny, then I doubt a newbie would get the joke.
 
Hey, no worries Claude. If Jayvis was a bit dismissive, the rest of you more than made up for it. I'm very grateful for the advice and feedback.
ClaudeJ1 said:
If Truth were your motivator, then you left out the Price of new Klipshorns, which would have made your post even more ridiculous.
You only get a 1/2 of a PWK Yellos button if your were trying to make a sale.
The guy was trying to get those for less than $3,000 grand.
If you were really trying to help. If you were actually trying to be funny, then I doubt a newbie would get the joke.
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No
 
Parallax982 said:
If I were a bachelor, for sure. My wife is supportive of my obsessions but I can only ask so much. If that room became a place she avoided, it wouldn't be worth it.
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let your wife know that I have LS clones and room treatments in the living room of our 1300 sf inner city condo. My wife approves because the sound is utterly glorious and the speakers look pretty good, too. Trust me, if you have a home theater involved, nothing beats having having a pair of big horns as your mains for incredible sound and an immersive movie experience and my wife utterly agrees.
 
Parallax982 said:
Hey, no worries Claude. If Jayvis was a bit dismissive, the rest of you more than made up for it. I'm very grateful for the advice and feedback.

No
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No problem. The main reason folks are asking for more than $3,000 is because new ones are $17,000. Paul Klipsch almost went out of business, and it was the HERESY sales that saved the company, according to what Klipsch's former President told me in 1976. Their greatest success was in the 90's after Paul sold the company to Fred Klipsch. It was then the "industry" went from Stereo to Multi Channel (5.1), making things a lot easier. Klipsch has never sold that many Klipschorns. I had 2 pairs and give full credit to a great "Klipsch Wife" who still has the Heresys I got for her in 1982. Resale should be no problem for you later, you just can't be in a hurry.
 
Gigantic said:
let your wife know that I have LS clones and room treatments in the living room of our 1300 sf inner city condo. My wife approves because the sound is utterly glorious and the speakers look pretty good, too. Trust me, if you have a home theater involved, nothing beats having having a pair of big horns as your mains for incredible sound and an immersive movie experience and my wife utterly agrees.
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I'm hoping that when my wife hears them, she'll feel the same way. Called the guy to see if I could bring her today but they're out of town. He said he'll call me when he returns. My wife likes silence most of all, and she's not big on shoehorning furniture into our rooms. But I think one in the corner will definitely be alright. A second in the corner diagonal would work too. It's placing one on the same wall that is likely to create all sorts of room-design chaos. That's why I asked if it's necessary to have them on the same wall.
 
ClaudeJ1 said:
No problem. The main reason folks are asking for more than $3,000 is because new ones are $17,000. Paul Klipsch almost went out of business, and it was the HERESY sales that saved the company, according to what Klipsch's former President told me in 1976. Their greatest success was in the 90's after Paul sold the company to Fred Klipsch. It was then the "industry" went from Stereo to Multi Channel (5.1), making things a lot easier. Klipsch has never sold that many Klipschorns. I had 2 pairs and give full credit to a great "Klipsch Wife" who still has the Heresys I got for her in 1982. Resale should be no problem for you later, you just can't be in a hurry.
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Why do the Heresies sell for so much, relative to the other used Heritage series speakers? I see people routinely asking for $1,000 for a pair of old Heresies, whereas they don't necessarily ask more for Fortes, and Cornwalls aren't as much more as one might expect. There's a guy selling a nice older set of Cornwalls with upgraded crossovers for $1,600. We listened to them and liked them but not enough to buy them. They were great but we weren't blown away. When I heard the Klipschorns, I was. At least with regard to the highs and mids and I'm pretty sure the lows will be there too once they're correctly placed.

Here's yet another question. Is it necessary to build a false wall or would it be enough to enclose one side of the back with strong furniture grade plywood?
 
ClaudeJ1 said:
$3,000 for those is a fair to low price I could have sold a pair for $2500 in 2007, 18 years ago. My CPI inflation calculator to 2024 says $3,700. So lower than this is a STEAL.
You don't have to do anything to the crossovers. If you want to make them really sing, get pair of SMAHLS as drop in replacements and enjoy them the rest of your life.
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Thanks. This is very helpful. What are SMAHLS?
 
Nyjblbob said:
An Interesting pair, as I've never seen oak K-Horns. My pair was Walnut
Although I know Klipsch had several different Veneers available
The one pair I always lusted over were the ROSEWOOD JUST WOW.
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Yes, I love the rosewood too. I'm not a big fan of oak. I figured I could stain them darker. One can always go darker, right?
 
Parallax982 said:
Why do the Heresies sell for so much, relative to the other used Heritage series speakers? I see people routinely asking for $1,000 for a pair of old Heresies, whereas they don't necessarily ask more for Fortes, and Cornwalls aren't as much more as one might expect. There's a guy selling a nice older set of Cornwalls with upgraded crossovers for $1,600. We listened to them and liked them but not enough to buy them. They were great but we weren't blown away. When I heard the Klipschorns, I was. At least with regard to the highs and mids and I'm pretty sure the lows will be there too once they're correctly placed.

Here's yet another question. Is it necessary to build a false wall or would it be enough to enclose one side of the back with strong furniture grade plywood?
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Heresy have WAF and they're widely recognized, more so than other models. Forte, imo, are much better speakers, especially the III and VI.

Parallax982 said:
Thanks. This is very helpful. What are SMAHLS?
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sMAHLS are phenomenal tweeters that drop in to many Klipsch heritage models, along with their siblings the L-MAHLs. They're made by http//:MachinedAudioHornLens.com and the company's run by an AK member, @Daveintn . they're magnificent pieces of audio jewelry.
 
Parallax982 said:
Why do the Heresies sell for so much, relative to the other used Heritage series speakers?
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Mainly because of physical size. Not everyone has room for large floor standing speakers, especially K-Horns which require specific locations and large spaces for best results. People could always buy a pair of Heresys and a good subwoofer for the price of the next step up in the Heritage line. Price has always mattered.
 
Gigantic said:
Heresy have WAF and they're widely recognized, more so than other models. Forte, imo, are much better speakers, especially the III and VI.


sMAHLS are phenomenal tweeters that drop in to many Klipsch heritage models, along with their siblings the L-MAHLs. They're made by http//:MachinedAudioHornLens.com and the company's run by an AK member, @Daveintn . they're magnificent pieces of audio jewelry.
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Thanks. The WAF factor definitely makes sense. How much are the sMAHLS and the L-MAHLs? Do they go together? If one buys one, do they need the other too?
 
jayvis said:
Mainly because of physical size. Not everyone has room for large floor standing speakers, especially K-Horns which require specific locations and large spaces for best results. People could always buy a pair of Heresys and a good subwoofer for the price of the next step up in the Heritage line. Price has always mattered.
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I've had modern speakers with subs. I'm not interested in going that way anymore. Still have an expensive HSU sub on an Auralex but now it just serves as a speaker stand in our bedroom.
 
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