Rate the Klipsch RF-7 (1 Viewer)

[Chris Tabor]

I think a blind test would be great. Whats the matter Shion, afraid you may pick them over your own?

 

[BenK]

don't want to offend but it has seemed to me that many of the negative comments about Klipsch come from one (or too few) listening
experiances (ie; not enough diff. gear), and then the comments seem to run towards the same old rehashed ntions of their sound....I would
SERIOUSLY like to see people include some Klipsch in some blind tests, they might be surprised...doesn't Tom V own a set? "

The way I see it is even comparing apples to apples some will taste better to one person but not another as there are many different kinds of apples. I relate that to different speakers within the same line. One person might have listened to say a lower line Klipsch years ago and has kept that same initial bad impression for all their speakers. Basically dismissing the whole line from that initial experience. If that same person listened to one of the current Klipsch reference speakers for example they might find the sound more pleasing. All in all the one thing you cant deny is that everyone has different tastes. But I think what Matt was trying to say is that its good to keep an open mind and maybe not totally dismiss anything for that matter from one example. Some Klipsch speakers do sound better than others. By the way Tom V does own Klipsch speakers.

 

[Shion_ca]

Are you in Toronto Chris? I know a store that carries both with decent supporting equipment. I'll pick the tracks and volume. An SPL meter to ensure equal volume, speaker positioning for each will be set up by each of us in advance. I will have the option of switching back and forth during tracks as often as desired.

We'll see just how much a waste of time it is to compare two completely different sounding speakers in different price ranges with each other. Of course to be compensated for this ridiculous waste of time we'd have to pay Trutone $100 I figure and we'll put say $200 on the outcome of my successfully identifiying the "better" and by that I actually mean the one I know for sure is mine given they sound completely different, speaker and since neither can be demonstrably shown to be objectively better as sound is a matter of perception and accuracy isn't actually always prefered. Standing offer to anyone whom wants to take me up on it.*

*Unless I should go deaf, have my hearing significantly change, or become mentally unstable in which case the only thing I might be able to hear were the klipsch.

 

[Chris Tabor]

Hahaha do I see some anger arising or do you have some vendetta against klipsch. Ya I guess I could pick my much better speaker(rf7s) over yours too. But the real test would be a blind test of the speakers and an assortment of people to decide which one sounds best. I'm betting the outcome wouldn't make you happy and hell yeah i'd put $200 on it.

 

[Dalton]

I personally believe that the horn loaded tweeters in Klipsch speakers lend themselves perfectly to HT. That was my main reason for getting the reference series setup(RF3II's, RC3II). While i enjoy them for music for the most part, in HT they are excellent IMO.

 

[DanaA]

Love my Klipsch for both music and HT. As was pointed out, they are extremely sensitive to the equipment they're matched with. I, a Klipsch owner and lover, will admit that they can sound harsh with a bright receiver, but I sure wish that everyone would understand how great they can sound when mated with a front end that complimented them.

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

There can be no real blind test involving Klipsch speakers. (for newbies at least)

Reason is because the Klipsch speaker might dull the newbie's hearing to highs which will cause the other speaker to sound muffled.

An adept ear will notice the Klipsch Coloration like night and day so the question of distinction with blind testing is unquestionable.

Again, I don't hate Klipsch nor do I think Klipsch owner made a bad decision. The owners heard with their own ears what they like best and there's no wrong in that.

 

[Kevin McCurdy]

Chris,
What is Klipsch coloration? Are you saying that other speakers can not reproduce sound at the upper frequency range as Klipsch therefore they sound muffled when compared side by side or are you saying the highs are over emphasized in some way?

 

[John Tompkins]

I just demoed a pair. As soon as my ears stop ringing I will demo other brands as well

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

Since there's no perfect speaker out there and each speaker can sound so different, I'm simply describing the sound that Klipsch produces as their own coloration or signature. Klipsch has a "different" sound to them than other speakers which is why so many of you bought them. I believe this difference to be in coloration or perhaps the timbre (quality) change from a klipsch horn.

I'm not implying that coloration is bad nor that other speakers are not colored. If they didn't have it I don't think as many ppl would buy them. Some may think of coloration as anything that sounds different than what their ears think is right. If that's the case for Klipsch lovers, then Klipsch would be the reference point in which to compare other loudspeakers to. So to them, other speakers lack a live sound to them and can't produce the right highs.

But then there's Joe Sixpack who loves his JBL's and Klipsch sound simply has too much highs.

I guess the point is that we can all agree that Klipsch sounds different... Whether that's good or bad is up to the listener.

 

[Manuel Delaflor]

Chris Tsutsui
You talk so easily about this "klipsch coloration". You assume that they are adding something that is not in the recording.
What if what Klipsch (or any horn speaker for that matter) do is only allow us to hear with every detail what it is in the recording?
Most normal driven speakers will do sound muffled comparing them to anything more revealing, like horns, ribbons and electrostats. In fact, the only cone driven speakers I have listened that give that sensation of incredible detail are the Kharma and Margules which use some ceramic driver that is really revealing.
Most people are so accustomed to hear recordings like recordings that they can't remember how incredible detailed are real instruments.
There is a prove that confirms that Klipsch is not "adding" something like you say, their frequency response. If what you say is true then the graphs should show an increment in higher frequencies sound pressure level. Simply logic.

 

[BruceD]

You talk so easily about this "klipsch coloration". You assume that they are adding something that is not in the recording.

Last time I checked, most speaker manufacturers "voice" their speakers to obtain a specific sound. They do this with xover components, drivers, cabinet construction, and recommended speaker positioning.

You can call it whatever you want, except "accurate" as that term is pretty hard to prove.

 

[Chris Tabor]

Exactly what makes some of you think that klipsch is causing your speakers to sound muffled? Maybe your speakers are causing our klipsch to sound bright to you. Fact is, all speakers sound different. There's no reason to go klipsch bashing when every company does it. It just gets me when people do this. I'm not saying all of you against klipsch are doing it but a select few in this topic have made themselves sound as they are. I guess when you're on top(within their price range) there's always people that want to bring you down.

 

[BrianKR]

I had the entire RF-7 package for over 2 months and I didn't care for them. IMHO they were just to bright and hard on my ears. You can eliminate most of the "harsh" sound by matching them with a warm receiver. A friend of mine has the Series II setup and his don't sound as bad as mine did but they are still a tad bright for my "taste". I ended up selling mine at a big loss, I disliked them that much.

I ended up going with Paradigm (which are also a little forward but not as much as Klipsch) and BW Nautilus (which I LOVE)instead.

 

[Michael R Price]

Fixing harsh sound with a "warm" receiver... well, there's a little problem with using Klipsch speakers with a receiver. It's possible that the relatively cheap amps inside receivers would have lesser performance (harshness, or any number of other problems) at the lower power levels you'd be dealing with using Klipsch speakers.

I agree the Klipsches have a different sound from most other speakers. However, a friend of mine has the RB-5s and they have a similar tone (in the treble) to my own speakers (with soft dome tweeters few people find harsh) which have been measured to have a pretty neutral treble. This is why I am somewhat skeptical of the "Klipsch are harsh" comments (given my limited experience). It's probably a combination of the general "softer" tone of other speakers, their sensitivity to amplifier quality at low power, and also probably that they aren't perfect anyway.

IMO, Klipsch is smart enough not to sell a grossly inaccurate speaker (one that is harsh and earsplitting) for $2200 like the RF-7.

 

[Manuel Delaflor]

BruceD,

You can call it whatever you want, except "accurate" as that term is pretty hard to prove.

I think my point is clear. I never mentioned anything about "accuracy", I was specifically talking about frequency response and its relation to perceived detail. I said that you will not find that Klipsch speakers have an "equalized" response in the higher frequencies to add any "brightness".

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

Here's what I am worried about with horn speakers. I am worried that the physical nature of the horn creates a change in the quality of the sound. Much how a non-electric bullhorn changes the the sound of a voice, this quality change is what I think I am noticing.
Since the tweeter is the only thing that is horn amplified, people describe the speaker as "bright" because the horn altered frequencies are in the highs only.
Thus, a speaker with lineal response can still sound harsh in the highs (or bright) IMO.
The tweeter is also the most important driver for details. The ability for a tweeter to reproduce details in a recording is one thing, accurately reproducing that sound is another. I competely agree that Klipschorns can reproduce fine details such as clothes rustling or lip smacks. It is when these details have a Klipsch Signature sound to them like I am being spoon fed every detail by father Klipsch.
I am able to make out the details fine, it's just that it's hard to acheive an emotional impact from the overall sound when I'm busy squinting my eyes or reaching for the volume control.

 

[Tom Brennan]

Chris---The reason a megaphone (or cupped hands) color the human voice is because the horn is too small to amplify the ENTIRE range of the human voice. Some frequencies are lifted but the lower ones aren't, thus the coloration.
Horns are not always bright, though Klipsches usually are. 2-way Altec and JBL horn systems are noted for a rather soft high end. The balance of Klipsch speakers is a deliberate voicing choice and has nothing to do with an inherant nature of horns. The bright nature of the RFs is most likely caused by passive filtering in the crossover network, there is probably a contour network depressing the midrange somewhat to make the highs stand out. Indeed, such a network would be needed to get any highs at all given the constant-directivity claimed by Klipsch for the horn used. Otherwise the highs would roll-off above 5khz at a rate of 6db per octave as with any other compression driver on a constant-directivity horn.
www.chicagohornspeakerclub.org

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

Tom, Your post reminds me of when I went to an Avantgarde sonic culture event and talked with Jim Smith in person. There were a lot of horn audiophiles in that room, a person could really learn a lot.
I was simply using the bull horn as an example of how horns can change the timbre of sound. I didn't mean that all horns affect sound in the same way as a bullhorn. I don't know that much about Klipsch design, it could very well be the crossover that doesn't work for me. I just made the assumption that their simplistic tractrix horn is the source of the sound they produce.
Sorry if you interpreted that all Horns are Harsh because I completely agree with you. Not only do I own some JBL horns at home but the Avantgarde loudspeakers are among my favorite high end loudspeakers. (I sort of expected a reply from a horn lover)

 

[Michael R Price]

Tom - That could explain the bump in treble around 5-6KHz I remember seeing in some response graph, and also could be part of the "harshness". Thanks, I didn't know that the CD horn response was so limited.