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Disappointed w/ Klipsch Heresy III. Now what?

I'd be very grateful for some help with a quandary.

I recently replaced my Ohm Walsh 1000 speakers with Heresy III speakers, running two-channel from a Rega Brio. I was pretty excited about the Heresy IIIs based on reviews — they were efficient, so my 35-watt amp would get the job done; they were supposed to have real punch in the low mid-range, so I could hear the upright bass clearly; they reportedly had excellent imaging; and best of all, they were supposed to sound great at low volumes. They are also indisputably beautiful, which was an important factor for my wife. (The Ohms are elegant, but you have to be an audio lover to see their beauty.)

I set them up, and . . . not so bad, pretty good. Especially loud. In fact the louder the better. Crank them up and they sing. But loud is not really an option with a new baby. So how do they sound quiet? They sound like the band is trapped in shoe box. Really in two shoe boxes because the L and R don't merge that well. The sound stage is tiny. All the detail is gone, the joy is gone. They are no fun at all. Music just seems like a bunch of noise.

But I want to believe! I want to make these speakers work. So I am faced with a quandary. I could:

1. Buy stands, a subwoofer and a tube amp, all of which people in various forums have recommended to improve the various failings I hear now.

2. Replace the Rega with something much more powerful and pull the Ohms out of the closet. (Suboptimal because it will make my wife sad because of the aforementioned perceived ugliness.)

3. Just start all over again. Different amp, different speakers.

I'd kind of prefer number 1. But I don't want to end up with a bunch of stuff designed to solve a problem and then not have that problem solved! (And I'd also just as soon avoid getting a subwoofer.)

Final note. Positioning is an intractable nightmare. It is the one thing that I can't really change, because of how our living room is layed out. It is obviously a big problem though. The living room is a big rectangle, 18 x 40 feet, and the speakers are near the corners of the 18-foot ends, on either side of a couch. I can move them around — closer or further from the couch, closer or further from the wall. But I can't raise them above the height of the couch or move them out in front or over to another wall. That discussion went nowhere!

What should I do?

 



brooklynluke

Showing 9 responses by mapman

mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
This is an interesting topic for me.

I have been on the fence about trying Klipsch Heresy III in my second system. I run Triangle Titus and Klipsch sw-308 subwoofer there currently. Amp is Bel Canto C5i integrated. The sound is lovely. I have also used my OHM Walshes and Dynaudio monitors in this system but with only 60 w/ch and certain placement limitations I lean towards the higher efficiency Triangles, especially with the powered sub in play. I tend to listen at modest to lower volumes with this system.

I like Heresy’s I have heard of other SS amplification (modest A/V receiver at dealer) but have not listened at low volume. Need to do that I suppose. For now the sound I have  is most satisfying when I listen so no great rush to drop 2 grand on another pair of speakers quite yet.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
I always have an itch to try different speakers in my second system and I might scratch it again soon. Heresy III is a leader for next speaker up. IT would work well in my family room especially with the Klipsch sub there, 60 w/ch amp, also WAF, and something different and fun. I’ve heard them and was very pleasantly surprised. They made me a fan in a short audition. OR maybe Thiel? Harbeth? ELAC? Who knows.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
Ohms are not high efficiency like Klipsch.

They do not require fuss to sound good but fussing to get them set up just right pays big dividends.  

mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
I’ve been giving more serious consideration to trying out higher efficiency speakers with my 60w//ch digital integrated amp mainly to go louder and similarly clear when needed.

Current speakers are 89db refurbed OHM Ls.

Been eyeballing used Klipsch Forte or Heresy and newer very high efficiency Klipsch monitors with 8" bass drivers similar to the Ls. These have similar frequency response specs but with sensitivity in the high 90s for $600 pair. What to loose trying at that price?

These specifically:

http://images.klipsch.com/RB81IIcutsheet_635042118979170000.pdf

Similar smaller Klipsch monitors I’ve heard in passing sounded good enough to make the cut.

Can’t be too big or wide in particular. Will be about 2’ out from rear wall.

Would like to try something that has bass well down into the 40s (Klipsch monitors), 30s if possible (Forte). Heresy does not make that cut without subs I think and I’d rather not have to deal with subs if possible.

I also may get to hear larger Tektons this weekend if I make it Capital Audiofest as planned. We’ll see how that goes as well.

Have heard Zu Essence I believe several times at shows and never quite floated my boat so far. Might try again.

mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
Its a very good idea to experiment with placement to get a better handle on the room acoustics. In most cases things are far from optimal when waf is a big factor and that is often tricky to address well with just eqiuipment changes. 

mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
I’ve considered Klipsch Heresy or similar Klipsch for use with my Bel Canto c5i digital integrated. Wonderful 60 w/ch Class D digital integrated with all the modern bells and whistles. No tone controls but this amp is smooth airy resolving and neutral like the best tube amps but makes all speakers I use with it sound their best ever. As long as 60 w/ch is enough. Plenty for the Klipsch and enough to do a very nice job with Ohm Walsh as well to which I can attest.

mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
Wolf beyond the bass enforcement possible with corner placement (which can be tweaked with exact placement relative to corners), I find it also works very well with wider baffle more traditional box speakers in particular in terms of enlarging and opening up the sound stage and thereby reducing "congestion".
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
COrner placement with Audio Note speakers is a very good suggestion. A/N corner setups are always among best sound at shows I’ve been to.

But guess what? You can do the same corner placement trick with most any good quality speaker (including Heresy) and get similar results. I do it all the time now with my traditional box design speakers as needed both old and new. The A/Ns are very nice but have no monopoly on corner placement. Give it a try just for comparison sake. I’d love to hear how that works out.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,925 posts
 
That was a big change in regards to speaker design and sound!

You should expect to have to tweak further whenever a major change is made.

I would probably want to use a tube amp with Klipsch Heritage speakers including Heresy.

Whereas with the original OHMs the key would be throw power and current at them for best results. Class D amps are a natural for those.

Klipsch and OHM are about as different as can be. No other single gear is likely to sound optimal with both.

You need to decide where to start and then be prepared to optimize around that accordingly. You can start with the right speakers (gotta make the wife happy), which is a very practical approach, or the amp, if you gravitate towards particular kinds for example tube or SET amps. End results will be radically different in each case for best results.

It may take some time to get everything just right. Buy and sell used if you can so as not to be able to experiment and take a few chances with minimal financial hit. Do not assume more cost = better results. BEst results are obtained by choosing good gear that works well together and sounds right in your room to you.

First step with the Heresy's would definitely be a tube amp, maybe a SET.   Then go from there.    Or try a good quality Class D amp, 100w/ch or more with the OHMs.   Or set up both concurrently and compare and then sell off the losing gear.

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