Newbie needs help....Klipsch or Definitive Tech (1 Viewer)

[Brad Newton]

speakers for mostly home theater. I want to purchase the Onkyo 898 receiver & want speakers that won't break the bank, but are worth the $. I want all of the speakers to be matched, fronts, center, surronds. My great room is fairly large, probably 25 x 15, and has "doorways" leading down the hall, into the kitchen & out to the deck. Any & all help greatly appreciated.

 

[Chu Gai]

well you get prodigious amounts of sound out of the klipsh's without taxing your receiver in the least. rather than recommend one, what about a recommendation that you arrange for an in-home audition to see how they sound to your ears in your existing environment?

 

[LowellG]

Try to listen to both. I tried to like Klipsch because I could get a good deal. However, I went with Def Tech because I like the sound better. I didn't like the Klipsch horns. Other people love them though, so listen to them.

 

[Mike Strassburg]

Brad,
Try to give the Klipsch Legends a listen. They were discontinued last year but show up on ebay pretty often. I've got 8 of them in my HT and LOVE them. Maybe your ears will too

 

[matthew_rm]

I would buy klipsch, but you should try both. Get what you like!

 

[ChrisJJ]

rather than recommend one, what about a recommendation that you arrange for an in-home audition to see how they sound to your ears in your existing environment?

I'm curious how people arrange for this. Perhaps it's where I'm located (NY/NJ), but I've found both hi-fi and low-fi stores alike are not very forthcoming with in-home auditions. Some stores would allow me to return them for something else they carried, but since no one store carried all the lines I was interested in, this wasn't helpful. Also, there was a required commitment to buy something first.

Comments?

 

[Dan Seliger]

I went with Klipsch Reference series, i love them. My budget was about $2500 and i auditioned quite a few different brands.

RP5's in the front, RC-3 center, RS-3's for surrounds and rears.

RP5s have the powered SUB in the bottom of them and since i was limited on space i wanted this feature and i couldn't be more pleased with it (i think the neighbors dont like it much though).

 

[Chu Gai]

Ummmmm...keep calling until you find a place. You may need to speak to the store manager and it may well be that when you do find a place, that they'll also have other brands, perhaps in your price range for you to also consider. The thing is with these stores, is that they have concerns over what condition the speakers will come back. Often one needs to go to the high end places, where the discounts may not be so good and where the brands you're interested in perhaps may not be carried.
What I think you may wind up having to do is find out what the store's return policy is (make sure you look at how they count days and if there's any restocking fee) and finding one that is acceptable to you, buy and try them. Helps having a pickup or a van that can accomodate them too.

The funny thing is, if Walmart or perhaps Sears carried them, this wouldn't even be an issue.

 

[Ches Campbell]

Ded Tech would be my choice. I too am not a fan of the Klipsch horns. I love the Def techs though.

 

[Phil Mays]

Brad,
I throw my vote for the Klipsch. As Chu mentioned they are very effecient and I find the horn tweeter is less fatiguing than other types. Movie complexes use horn loaded speakers in their set-up. I like music at loud volumes (hard rock) as well and the Klipsch are perfect for this. Hard Rock Cafe uses Klipsch....let me stop.
Bottom line get what you like. Heck some people like Bose over B & W

ChrisJJ...Find a high end store you would like to deal with and go by often to talk with them. When they get to know you they will be more willing to let you audition. I did this as we have one below my work and I went in every day and spoke with the manager for 15-30 minutes a day with questions. Now I can audition any equiptment and they will deliver it. It's all about relationships .
Phil

 

[Javier_Huerta]

Hard Rock Cafe uses Klipsch....let me stop.

Phil, I hope you aren't serious. The fact that HRC uses Klipsch speakers doesn't say a thing about their quality. I am sure those guys aren't worried about high fidelity at all...
I would just like to chip in about the debate... don't get the DefTech BP-6Bs. I don't know if they fixed this issue, but they are not well braced, and midrange suffers from weird resonances. The BP-8Bs (and higher-end models) don't have this problem, and they are better overall speakers.
I should know... I own both of them

 

[Brad Newton]

Originally posted by Dan:
I went with Klipsch Reference series, i love them. My budget was about $2500 and i auditioned quite a few different brands.

Dan how does your setup compare with those having a separate sub???? I'm sure the wife would like having one less "box" in the room............but I want to make sure that I am happy with my purchase. Does your system produce enough bass????

 

[Dan Seliger]

Well to be honest i was worried that i wouldnt get enough bass at first...but i figured absolute worst case i just add an external unit later anyway if i dont have enough.

BUT lets just say i was surprised at the amount of bass the RP5 produces. These things totally shake the entire house...my wife was upstairs on the other side of the house when i was calibrating and she said she felt them really well. I am very impressed.

I dont think you can go wrong with this setup, and hey i just saw some RP5s on UBID yesterday for pretty darn cheap!!

 

[Mike Strassburg]

"Heck some people like Bose over B & W"
Them there's fightin' words...

 

[mark mann]

i had the klipsch rf3 and the rc3 untill last week they were hurting my ears you need a warm reciever with klipsch, i have the integra 6.2 and although they are killer in home theater for music the horns put a hurtin on my ears i went with vienna acoustics and they are much easier to listen too in my opinion you need a big room for horns too project without you being too close..good luck

 

[Marty Lockstead]

Hello Brad,
I agree with Javier, I too use the BP-8's for my main speakers along with BP-2X rears and a pro center C2B as my rear-center. I find their sound quality unmatched in terms of movies and music alike IMO. Regardless, enjoy your decision!