Klipsch forte II what league are they in?

You can laugh all you want. I've owned Vandersteens, Aerial 10T, Dali's, PSB's, Inner Sound and a bunch of others that don't come to mind right now. First of all it's a misnomer that Klipsch need to be used with tubes, they can work wonderfully with SS. I have a pair of Forte I's, they sounded good but grainy when I first got them, I replaced the caps in the Xover which made a large improvement. The Klipsch do some things that other speakers simply don't do like dynamics and pace and rythym, set up properly with tilt back and toe in they image suprisingly good, they also benefit from good speaker cable. You want some volume, go ahead they will coast when other speakers will be popping their woofers. They have a fullness of sound that audio weeny approved speakers will never have. No they are not perfect, no speaker is, if your priorities match up with the Klipsch they are a lot of fun. The bonus is they can be used with low powered tube amps. If you are into music you may love them, if you are into sounds then don't bother. For what they sell for I will keep these around and upgrade the tweeter diaphrams next then damp the horns and the woofer basket. If you can find a pair at a good price you will always get your money back if you don't like them.

I'm not laughing. I'm suspending judgment. I have heard them only in their stock form. I have not heard them with the mods people talk about. I am open but skeptical as to the degree in which mods can transform this speaker. Even with the mods the cabinet materials/design and drivers remain the same. Compared to the other speakers listed i would give them a 5/10 and the others a 8.9/10 I have researched them a bit and was hoping they would be a pleasant bang for the buck. One thing i read was how one guy packed plastercine around the plastic horns and he claimed too the difference is significant. So with plastercine, new crossovers maybe, maybe not. Who knows it might have floated my boat, it might not have but with my excellent gear and in its stock form , relative to other speakers i've heard , what i heard , turned me off to them. That was my experience, it might not be someone else's. I prefer rather to take my gamble with smaller manufacturer's who love music and who build speakers 9 to 5 365 with an obsession. Speakers like that sometimes yes, do cost a little more. No, i am not "into sounds" i am an audiophile. I love good timbre, tone, dynamics, sweetness, accuracy, dynamic range, transient speed,prat, soundstaging and musicality as a means to an end. Which is enjoying the music. I dont have a lot of money. I drive a ratty 82 civic worth 500 but own a amp that retails for 11,000 dollars and believe that i have my priorities in tact. In its stock form i give it a 5/10. I have formed no conclusions in its modified form nor am i commenting on a modified forte because i have no basis on which to form those conclusions, only educated guesses and speculation. At this juncture i dont want to persue modifying a klipsch forte. I bet some of the classic klipsch built under the original designer using real wood have some real nice qualities to them. I'm happy you found a speaker you really enjoy. All the best to you and happy listening.

There are a few points that nobody has brought up: First, you can get a pair of Fortes for $400 or even less, if you're patient (as I did just a few months ago). This is simply not true for the other brands you mentioned - and if you want a floorstanding speaker, not monitors, the delta only increases.

Second, the Klipch Forte is 98db efficient, making it a great match for low-powered tube amps - AND bass goes down to 32 Hz.

To me, this is an important point: If you are looking for an efficient speaker (let's say over 96db, just for the sake of argument), and you don't want to spend more than $500 on speakers, your opportunity set is quite limited to begin with. If you want bass, it shrinks even faster: while there are full-range, single driver speakers in that range that supposedly have plenty of bass, I have not been satisfied with the ones I've heard with my gear in my room.

You can always add a subwoofer (as many of the manufacturers actually recommend) but that'll put you over $500 pretty quick! I have not seen anyone ever recommend adding a subwoofer to enhance the bass of the Forte - it doesn't need it! Additionally, many sub-$500 speakers can take a while to sell, whereas if you look at historic prices on Audiogon and ebay, you'll see that Fortes tend to hold their value and sell reasonably quickly.

I love the midrange of 300b tubes and I love rock music. With the Fortes I have absolutely no complaints - I can listen to the White Album and hear Paul just fine. The midrange is great, especially with vinyl. I don't hear the brashness some people complain about when they talk about horns. Both Miles Smiles and Paranoid are fun to listen to, although I absolutely agree that they need to be positioned away from the wall to sound good.

As for whether it's hi fi vs. mid fi, I frankly don't care. To my ears, they sound great with the music I listen to and the equipment I have. If you like tubes, rock, and bass, and you like owning a speaker that's easy to sell if you want to try something different, it is unlikely that there is a better speaker for a similar price.

If you have not replaced the caps in the crossovers yet I suggest that you do, it makes for a nice improvement.

Phill

Hi Phill,

Thanks for the suggestion. I've been interested in doing a small DIY project, but frankly I haven't soldered anything in a few years. Is it easy to do?

James