Klipsch KG 5.5 vis-a-vis Zu Dirty Weekend
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Considering the date of your post makes me wonder if the timing of the post had anything to do with the timing of the DW sales window.
I haven't heard the 5.5 but its admittedly lesser cousin, the KG 4.5, did not impress me greatly. Not familiar with tubes, but the 4.5s on solid state amps needed one with a decent amount of damping factor to come close to my other speakers.
I haven't heard the 5.5 but its admittedly lesser cousin, the KG 4.5, did not impress me greatly. Not familiar with tubes, but the 4.5s on solid state amps needed one with a decent amount of damping factor to come close to my other speakers.
B Side
Member
Sorry for the late update. You are very perceptive @Guido57! I WAS looking at the DW sale window. But then I ended up going for the KG 5.5. I gave the Klipsch a try first since they go for less $$. I figured I can always go for the DW in the future if the KG didn't work out.
My impression with the KG 5.5 are that they are very musical. They cover the high, mid and low frequencies quite well. I was actually surprised that they can go quite low and pack a lot of bass. With the SS amp, they sounded a bit flat, not a lot of sizzle in the highs and mids. They definitely pair better with the tube amp. Though I also think that they do not have the same sparkle in the mids that is in a Heresy I once auditioned.
But for now, I'm enjoying with how they are performing with the Scott amp. Even with not a lot of watts, these speakers sing.
Perceptive is not one of my skills, but curiosity is and as I also had been looking at the DW purchase window it was a natural question. To the best of my knowledge Klipsch has never made a speaker that demands a lot of power, though I am not a Klipsch expert. Not surprised they go low and provide good bass, the 4.5s did also though they did need an amp with good damping to not sound muddy, at least on my SS amps. For the record I did order a pair of DWs and I'll let you know my impressions when I get a chance to listen.
For the record I've always liked the Heresy but the opportunity to get a used pair never showed up when I was looking and had the money. My personal preference would be the Forte as it goes lower than the Heresy but they seem to be a lot harder to find on the used market around here. Though the Heresy is often knocked for its lack of base extension, roughly 50hZ bottom end, what bass it does have is clean and tight.
avguytx
Lunatic Member
Not sure what your budget is but consider a pair of JBL Studio 590's when they're on the 50%+ off deal. At $1000 a pair, or less, they will be hard to beat for the money. That may be the next pair of speakers I buy as I'm getting to where I don't have the time to mess with stuff needing repaired or updated or tinkered with to squeeze the last little bit out of them. It's tiring. I'd rather just listen to music.
I considered the 590's, but they're just too butt ugly. Though they do have a good reputation I'd say they have zero WAF (YWMV). For the right person I'm sure they are an excellent choice and would probably do fine with the OP's Scott. Actually saw a pair on Craig's list for $750 recently and was somewhat tempted. I guess I could order 590's, do my own direct comparison and send back the looser but wife would be very pissed if I wanted to keep both. Personally, besides appearance there were some other reasons I went for the ZU's stemming from curiosity of a full range driver mated with a super-tweeter, something I've run across before.
tomlinmgt
Lunatic Member
I had KG5.5's. Fun speakers. Like a more audiophile Cerwin Vega. Haven't heard the DW's, but from what I've read about them I'd wager they probably have a little more meat on the bone in the mid range because the 5.5 is lean there. DW are almost certainly better built, too. 5.5 cabinets are a little chincy. 590's, which I currently own, make the 5.5's sound like frat house speakers.
Since the OP already has the 5.5's in hand he may want to try the Crites diaphragms, maybe upgrade the caps and replace the polyswitch with either new ones or a plain resistor.
Ouch.
Isn't that the definition often given to CV's?
tomlinmgt
Lunatic Member
I did the Crites Ti diaphragm swap and it helped smooth out that slightly ragged top end nicely. I also had one poly switch fail and had both replaced. While the tech was in there, he swapped out some caps, too. This was early in my audio journey and I wasn't yet doing my own network mods/upgrades, so I'm not sure exactly what was done. It all resulted in a better version of the speaker than stock, though. A friend and I had just started dabbling in hifi around that time and he didn't much care for them in stock trim, but found them much more digestible after the mods. But it didn't take me long to progress to better speakers...Vandersteen, Magnepan, big, vintage Infinity, Altec...and that's why and when I realized the 5.5's were basically a fairly refined party speaker. And that's not a bad thing to me...just a category. Party speakers have their place and function and as long as you don't have unreasonable expectations and choose your music carefully, can provide some damn fun listening.
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B Side
Member
Hi @avguytx, the 590 seems like a solid choice specs (and price) wise, but just like Guido, I am not digging the looks. I know that SQ is more important than aesthetics, but still... I prefer the JBL L100. Have not heard one in person, but they do look great EVEN with those orange grills.
Guido, when do you get the Zu's? I like how they look and very interested on how those drivers and tweeters perform? Did you go for the upgraded caps and tweets? Kindly post first impressions when you get the chance. Thanks.
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B Side
Member
These KG 5.5s are my first taste of Klipsch. So far loads of fun and still enjoying my current set-up. As it happens with this hobby, I expect that I would eventually get the itch to try other options. When that happens, I prefer to get a new pair than go the route of the Crites upgrades. Should have saved up for a Heresy or a Forte by then. Or maybe try out the ZU's. You think it would be a big difference or step-up with Klipsch Heritage or DW's? Also interested on some of the speakers you have gone through, especially those Maggies, not sure if they are a good fit with my tube amps which barely put out 13wpc. BUT that would be a topic for another thread as I intend to not scratch that 'itch' for at least a while.
tomlinmgt
Lunatic Member
As I said, I haven't heard the DW's, so I can't comment on those. I've had Forte, Chorus II and Epic CF-4 and have heard Heresy a lot but never owned a pair. The Forte is a great speaker in medium sized rooms if you like the Klipsch Heritage voicing. If you like the 5.5's, you'll likely enjoy the Heritage voicing as well. Any Heritage model will give you more mid range energy than the 5.5 which is basically a 2-way design that transitions between the woofer(s) and tweeter right in the mids and neither of the two drivers does mids very well. Chorus II is a compelling speaker with the right upstream electronics and if set up properly but really benefits from a big room as I found the drivers don't homogenize into a singular source until you get about 15' away from them. Any closer than that and you can tell exactly where the speakers are and image/sound stage resolution is discombobulated a bit. However, your room could also influence this...so if the acoustics are messy it may not even matter. CF-4 is an outstanding design that behaves like a cross between Altec 19 and Acoustat Spectra 22 (both of which I own or owned)...very impressive performance in most every category and they command respect, but are very hard to find and need a big space.
Maggies need some space, as well. As you may or may not know, they need to be a minimum of three feet out from the front wall otherwise you won't experience the dipole magic. It's simple physics...no real way to cheat around that one. They love tubes...but benefit most from an amp that has some grunt if you want to play them at volumes above low level listening. Maybe around 45wpc tube power they'll start to come alive, and the more you can feed, the better they'll sound. I enjoyed Maggies with high current SS amplification and tube preamp. Mosfet power (big Hafler) was also very nice. The bigger the Maggie model, the more it will benefit from a large room. I heard MMG's and LRS in a small-ish space and they were great. I also heard MMG's in a larger room (the pair I owned) and they sounded better...larger, holographic presentation. That said, I heard MG-IIIa's in a room that was probably 18x12 with the speakers set up on the long wall so the distance from speakers to listening spot was around 8 feet and it was still quite enjoyable. But I've heard my own -IIIa's in my 20x16 with listening spot around 12' from speakers and it was better in most every way. I tried the MMG's early in my audio journey...right after Vandersteen's which came shortly after the 5.5's. The move from 5.5 to Vandersteens was eye opening...and the move to MMG's was a game changer. Adding a few (properly integrated )subs to the MMG's with a low buck Dared tube pre-amp and Soundcraftsmen MA5002 or Hafler 500 resulted in some very impressive hi-fi for not a lot of money.
If I were in your shoes, I'd give those DW's a try if you can't locate a good set of Klipsch Heritage for reasonable money (prices are going up, I've noticed)...but the Heresy will be way shy on bass after having lived with KG5.5's...which can really put out some low end.
The 5.5s can be upgraded for about a C-note with the Crites diaphragms, Jantzen Cross Caps and a generic electrolytic for the woofer circuit. Add a Jackson if you get the Sonicaps from Crites. When I sold my 4.5s I got back every cent I put into them, though admittedly I got a good price when I bought the 4.5s.
In regards to the DWs, I did not order any sonic upgrades. They will be judged against my current standard standard speakers that have Solen Fastcaps which are mid level caps. If they cannot beat my standard speakers with the standard DW Erse caps they loose. If they tie against my standard speakers I'll keep them and play around with caps.
In regards to the DWs, I did not order any sonic upgrades. They will be judged against my current standard standard speakers that have Solen Fastcaps which are mid level caps. If they cannot beat my standard speakers with the standard DW Erse caps they loose. If they tie against my standard speakers I'll keep them and play around with caps.
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IME, Maggie's would want a more powerful tube amp, than 13 watts can deliver. I use a Cronus Magnum KT120 tube integrated, at 100 wpc, with 1.7i Maggies. For 75db max listening in a 400sf room, with headroom left. I have 6 and 7,5 watt SET tube amps I wouldn't even try.
B Side
Member
So what speakers do you use with your SET's?
A Reisong A10, EL34 which is 6wpc above. In an 11'x12' bedroom. Driving ADS L880, 10" three ways @89db spl sensitivity. Has no trouble with jazz for me. Might not do rock well. Then, you might want some high efficiency speakers.
Currently I also use a Reisong Boyuurange A50, 300b @ 7.5 wpc with Ohm C2, 10" three ways @ 87 db spl in a bright 400sf room. Also for jazz at easily 75 dbs at 10' from speakers.
My speaker choices range from 86 to 92.5 db spl. I have not tried any high efficiency speakers. Don't like bright speakers.
The sensitivity ratings of some new speakers may be exaggerated for better marketing. Don't know anything about Zu DWs efficiency.
If I listened to rock I think my SET setups would have to change for deep bass and high volume.
There are a lot of variables to account for. High on list is genre of music you play.
My 2 cents, or less.
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