High Sensitivity Speakers

@chilli42 --

I’d agree with poster @mrdecibel - 17 years of age shouldn’t be a problem, but there are interesting other options to be had if you’re so inclined.

My recommendation, also to address the possible coherency issues pointed out above, would be to go all-horn from an arena in sound reproduction not commonly thought of as "hifi doable," namely Danley Sound Labs Synergy horns paired with Danley’s tapped horn subs. On top of the coherency offered by an all-horn approach you’ll have phase-coherent main speakers to boot - a "killer" combination, if you ask me. Think of models like SH50, SM96 or SM60F Synergy horn main speakers paired with two TH50 tapped horn subs. Any of these 3 main speaker models in conjunction with named subs would be a set-up to admire and capable of any music genre and SPL in a domestic environment one would care for - full range at that, and with headroom to spare.

@mahlman --

You touch on something rarely mentioned I fully agree with. Pro gear just has much more headroom and effortless superb output. All I would consider for my own use is now Klipsch pro gear starting with at least a KI-904 or better or older versions at least as good as the KPT-456 or better. Some of my speaker buddies have Danleys and love them. It really boils down to what is most important. Sound or looks and here sound wins. Danleys are darned hard to find and so is Klipsch pro gear but the Klipsch does show up from time to time. I listen to a takeoff of the MWM bin from the MCM-1900 ( stock MWM is 40" deep mine is 60" deep same basic configuration though just bigger) made so it goes down to an honest 27hz and with a Klipsch 402 horn and driver on top out to well past 18khz. This is a true two way all horn system and you just cant beat horns for best sound. It is why I recommended the Jubilee because it too is an all horn system and the gateway to superb sound.

Thanks for chiming in. Pro gear usually has that rugged and industrial look, and with amps and other electronics I actually tend to prefer that look; it’s just more "honest" with a functionally clean, understated and at times even elegant appearance (take the Crown Studio Reference or Macro Tech amps, as an example). With speakers I like it when they’re made of and actually looks like wood (i.e.: not lacquered to glossy death), but that comes expensive. I would though gladly and without any hesitation whatsoever go with the "ugly" pro speaker if it means better sound (and much cheaper at that), because as you say it’s what truly matters vs. mere appearance.

Klipsch pro gear has great offerings - the Jubilee’s among others have had my attention for a while. Going all-horn is a necessary step few are willing to take, but it makes a potential difference the majority will likely never face.

Pro gear is usually where the real innovations are made, like Danley’s Synergy horns. It’s arguably approaching the holy grail in sound reproduction as a single, phase coherent point source per channel - carefully summed by a closely placed, multitude of drivers - that covers down to where the subs take over. It’s brilliant, really.

@atmasphere --

Also the bass got flabby/slow/less present.

@chilli42 One thing to be careful about in the bass department: ’tight’ bass is a coloration brought on by the amplifier having excess damping of the woofer(s). Many audiophiles like it, but out in the real world its a very difficult thing to encounter! [...]

What’s really addressed by the OP here is a lack of coherency; the authentic fullness of bass reproduction that is to be implied by the quoted passage of you above (and that I agree with as something that doesn’t come across as "tight" per se), doesn’t distinguish itself incoherently from the rest of the frequency spectrum above, but rather it "flows" in organically. If that’s what the OP had actually heard - i.e.: named authentic fullness - he’d have known the difference and wouldn’t fault it.

Indeed, a specific term calls attention to itself from poster @chilli42’s description, namely "presence," or a lack thereof. One of the core characteristics of horn-loaded bass is exactly that: presence, and one that is wholly enveloping in a way the direct radiating bass, distributed array or not, won’t achieve in a similar fashion. What’s more, "flabby" and "slow" bass as an antithesis to "tight" is hardly a compelling trait as something associated with natural bass.

This is not about the age of speakers, and that’s not saying the OP should keep his current horn-hybrid speakers. On the contrary, I clearly feel he should replace them and patiently seek out an all-horn approach that will maintain high efficiency, but add in coherency. This has been done for decades by those sufficiently dedicated. What could be a further interesting addition though, and where the latest technological advancement comes in handy, is effectively emulating a point source and achieve coherency in the time domain as well.

@atmasphere --

Just to be clear, nowhere did I state that

What’s more, "flabby" and "slow" bass as an antithesis to "tight" is hardly a compelling trait as something associated with natural bass.

Correct. I read your remark in reply to @chilli42's comment "Also the bass got flabby/slow/less present" as a presumption mostly that his idea of natural bass might be have been inclined towards unnaturally tight bass, and thereby indicating, without elaborating on your own idea of natural bass, that what he lamented was a closer match to authentic bass. 

I simply pointed out that overdamped speakers often results in a phenomena known as 'tight bass'. I've heard it in stereos many times but have yet to encounter it in the real world.

I fully agree on this, and it's a rare sentiment that counters or exposes an element of "analysis" in assessing sound that veers away from authenticity - not only in the realm of bass. In general and in the whole frequency band it seems "fullness" in the reproduction of sound (which I believe to be an important aspect in realism as well) in domestic, audiophile environments is avoided in preference of a leaner, more HF or detail oriented presentation.  

Horn loaded bass is a rare thing to hear- on account of needing a bass horn that is very long- 20 feet or more. Even audiophiles with a relatively wide open budget may find such size a bit daunting!

It is rare, yes, and explains why few can ever comment on the sound of horn bass, but while 20 cubic feet (folded) horn subs aren't small, which gives you 20-25 Hz, they're manageable still - at least to those who haven't abandoned the mere thought of their implementation for whatever reason (mostly practical, it seems). What might surprise some is that building, or having build horn subs (apart from a few pre-build options from the likes of Danley Sound Labs and JTR) mayn't be that expensive, certainly not compared to Funk Audio or JL Audio with a comparable radiation area. Indeed, mostly what it comes down to is deciding to house horn subs and have them build (or building them oneself), and not that their price empties pockets. 

But the issue that isn't solved by any bass system that originates in front of the listener is standing waves. Standing waves can't be solved by room correction either; if there is a standing wave causing a lack of bass at a certain frequency at the listening chair, you can put as much power as you like into it without significant change. But if you employ a distributed bass array the standing wave is corrected and you will have 'wholly enveloping' bass.

I won't deny the importance of this, and had space and budget permitted I'd have gladly gone with 3 or 4 horn subs. But to reiterate, 2 subs - symmetrically placed to the mains - can make wonders still with care invested in their integration, and I'll maintain that a symmetrical placement in close proximity to the mains is of utmost importance (depending to an extend on the chosen cross-over region). Believe me, I've tried a myriad of combinations placing my subs most everywhere else, but the symmetrical option has always prevailed; things simply fall into place sonically. Having an array of direct radiating subs around you can certainly envelope one with bass in a literal sense, but even a pair of horn subs 'envelope' in a way quite differently. The proof in the eating of the pudding, as they say.