After all my auditioning.....Klipsch it is (1 Viewer)

[Arron H]

On the other hand, if someone says: "hey, Im happy with my Klipsch's" the avalanche of "you are wrong" statements (and its correspondent "bravo") is unstoppable...

Manuel, for whatever reason, Klipsch seems to fall into this love/hate dichotomy. This is really too bad, IMO, because speaker likes/dislikes are so subjective. I am very happy that Chris has found the right speaker for him after doing a ton of auditioning. That's what really matters.

 

[Geoff L]

Bingo....!

 

[Mike Strassburg]

Mike, it's a good thing you got the Klipsches. The 281s wimp out at only 110db

Definitely as my normal listening level is around 106-108 dB and that's with the wife & kids in the house. Once they leave it's time to make the ears bleed!!!

 

[Larry B]

AaronWilson:

The thing about Klipsch is that have a better price to performance ratio than any other speaker for sale, anywhere in the world!

Only if you like their sound. Otherwise, they're not at all a good deal.

Larry

 

[John Royster]

Definitely as my normal listening level is around 106-108 dB

be careful

 

[Scott Oliver]

Chris,
I should state again that I only joined this thread after you said there seemed to be no Klipsch owners with negative comments. However these are my comments and if you have found a speaker that does it all for you at this price level than congrats. They were initially the same for me but after I did more and more listening to speaker systems over the years I soon realized I was missing out on a lot with my Klipsch IMO.
Now to your question:
I am torn over B&W and Thiel which is why I didn't mention them in my whole tea listing thingie. I definately am not of fan of lower lines of B&W products and while the Nautilus line seem extremely well made and worth investigation, their frequency response graphs have some glaring problems in the highs that seem unreasonable at their asking price. Thiel on the other hand also seems to have a love em hate em type reaction to everything I have read on them. To tell you the truth I have been unable to hear both brands however because no one locally carries them.
Bryan,
I do think that comparing my Synergy series to the Reference series is a fair comparison however, for the biggest difference between the two lines is primarily cosmetic issues except for the couple of higher models with the inclusion of a built in side-firing woofer. They clean up the synergy series make some slight modifications and give a better WAF and call them Reference at a higher price level. Not impressed:frowning:
It's like Polk and their whole new LSi series that Polk has labeled their "Audiophile" speaker series. So what is the rest of their line, white van level? Marketing hi-jinks if you ask me.
IF you want an "audiophile" horn speaker definately look at the brands Tom Brennan mentions at the top of this page, there are several other brands but that is a good starting list. Personally I believe the Klipsch Heritage series should be included in this list, but certainly not the Reference or Synergy lines.

 

[Phil Mays]

Scott,
Again how do you find the Reference and Synergy series similar?
Perhaps there is a Synergy series I am not aware of.
Personally I think the Ledgend series blows the Synergy series away, and the Reference series is far better than the Ledgends, to me.

 

[Scott Oliver]

My older synergy series KSF-10.5 is very similar to the RF-5.
It had an 6" tractix horn with 1" tweeter vs. 5" now used in the synergy series. It also had 2 8" woofers with bass reflex loading principle vs. the 6.5" now used. Synergy series also to use to have choice between black or rosewood vinyl now they are all black. When Klipsch created the Reference series they dumbed down the Synergy series in order to make the Reference that much more appealling. Of course just look at the website and one can tell which they really want to sell. Reading the description of the Reference series products nearly makes me want to purchase a pair because damn it I want to be that guy in highschool with good looks and all . Then go check out the Synergy series write up now, it is all of 4 sentences long vs. the 30 or so sentences filled of descriptive metaphors for the reference series.

 

[Bryan Acevedo]

Scott,

You can have your own opinion, but the reference series and synergy series are totally different. Have you even listened to reference series?

The RF5 uses an 8" tractix horn, with a totally different tweeter than even the other reference speakers. Only the RX-7 series use this tweeter. So is this just marketing? The bigger horn is supposed to sound smoother and more dynamic.

Also, they user copper cones that are made out of a totally different material than the synergy series. This is to reduce distortion in the form of the speaker changing it's physical properties. Again, is this just marketing?

If you think that there is no difference between Polk lsi and their other stuff, then I don't even know where to begin. Polk themselves claim these are audiophile speakers, not to be confused with their other lines of speakers. And from reviees I have read here, they are in a higher class than their brethren.

I didn't want to get into an argument, but you saying that the synergy and reference line are the same is just flat out wrong. And by the way, they don't make the powered towers anymore with the side firing woofers.

Go out and listen to some RF-7s - then tell us what you think about THEM. That is after all what this post was originally talking about.

Bryan

 

[Scott Oliver]

This is a discussion forum right. Well I am stating my opinion, and I never stated they were the same, just similar.
The original topic of this post was just Chris stating that he decided to buy Klipsch after all. This post was a follow up to his post regarding best towers in the $1400 range.
So I guess then since the post originated as a statement of purchase then I need to respond with:
Welcome to the World of Klipsch
No, I think I'll stick to my opinions, makes life more interesting.

 

[Chris Tabor]

No, I like all the opinions, negative feedback, and positive feedback. By the way Scott that wasn't me that brought up the thing about any klipsch owners with complaints. I just responded to, oh wait his name is Chris too, someone stating that. Maybe thats the confusion. But keep the opinions coming it gives me something great to read everyday and its even more interesting how many people really care about there speakers. I wanna hear the negatives, that'll give me something to look for when I listen. Although i've yet to find any of the problems anyone has stated.

 

[Phil Mays]

Scott Oliver,

Again I fail to see the similarity between the two. Unless I mis-read your post, I think you are confused as to what the Reference line has to offer.

 

[Bryan Acevedo]

Scott,

You are entitled to your opinions. But when you start stating them as facts, then I just wanted to chime in and tell you that they are not the same speakers. Maybe similiar, but not the same. Going by your criteria, all speakers with woofers are similiar.

Just because your speakers were Klipsch, and they had a horn, doesn't make them the same as other Klipsch horn speakers.

I think other people would say the same thing, if I came in and said I listened to the entry level B&W speakers, and proclaimed all B&W speakers (or pick your brand) similiar to this speaker, and I didn't like the sound, so then B&W are harsh sounding.

That is really what my point is, don't judge an entire brand on entry level speakers. You can have your opinion, but saying Klipsch are some characteristic based on the entry level speakers is misleading, when most comparisons are done on the reference series.

Bryan

Disclaimer: I haven't listened to the synergy series, and you could very well be right about them. I am not saying you aren't - just that most people here are talking about the reference series.

 

[Pablo Abularach]

I think when you purchase or upgrade your HT, you dont want to hear anything negative about your choice.

I also think that Klipsch is a great speaker, but it has its market, there are people who like them and people who dont, as all speakers. Every brand has strenghts and weakness.

Sales and tecnology doesnt mean nothing to me, for me is easier, two things rules my decision my ears and my budget. I heard the JBL studio series, and I like them, and I dont regret my decition.

Cris, I'm happy for you, that you found what you like, there is nothing more satisfying than being happy with what you have, it doesnt matter what everybody thinks or tells you, if you are happy, enjoy it.

 

[scott>c]

 

[Kenneth Harden]

I sell audio gear and except for Bose, everything we have is good.

For people come out and say 'horns suck' or whatever makes you sound like a fool, and proves you are a gearhead and don't care about sound (as in, you are more concerned with feeling confident in what BRAND or TYPE of speaker you have, no matter the sound. NOT saying Klipsch is it, but to dismiss them as being carp).

As a matter of fact, I would be willing to bet most people who bash a well-established speaker technology have never heard it setup properly - OR NEVER HEARD IT AT ALL!!!

Grow up people. I know people who like 'refined, smooth, laid back sound' - the opposite of Klipsch and that is OK. Just preference.

I like Klipsch and horns, so what?

 

[Kenneth Harden]

Oh, the only thing I will say and defend, is there are a lot of people who do NOT like powerful sound (Klipsch or any other brand that is very 'alive') because it is 'loud' or not 'easy' to listen to.

I think there are a lot of speaker companies that dampen the highs (sometimes too UNREALISTICALLY) to make them 'easy' Like a Lexus with an automatic vs. a Porsche Turbo with a stick. Both good, but different. I'll take the Porsche. Raw, scary, real, alive.

It does get down to personal preference.

 

[Lee-c]

Chris Tabor: Too bad you didn't get to listen to any VMPS speakers. We have VMPS RM2 floor standing
main speakers and the sound quality is simply world class. The level of detail is beyond
anything I've heard before. The sound is smooth as silk. And they can play super loud
without sounding strained.

 

[Mark Russ]

Dudes, look at the dates on this thread, it was dug back up from 3 years ago.

 

[AlanZ]

Mark:
I was waiting for someone to point that out lol. I thought it was kind of weird that a three year old debate was rekindled with a lol