Klipsch, high end?

I'll stop posting I promise. I'm just trying to address the question, which gets lost on alot of threads I've noticed. I think what alot of people mean by "klipsch being a good speaker for mass-market gear" is that they may be one of the fewer higher end/higher priced loudspeakers that present a nice stable resistive load for the amplifier. That coupled with high efficiency means that someone who doesn't want to give up their reciever but move up to better speakers will be able to hear the advantages of the klipsch. Obvioulsy, a pair of Thiel's (which, incidentally, is what replaced the epic-series 2) may not give much of a sonic improvement if the amp now struggles.

Ez I was waiting to see if you have anything more to add before I jump back in :-)
Dynamat on SIDEwalls is something I'm going to ask you about; that sounds interesting (most people just put it on the horns). However even the good old Klipsch can be harsh-sounding if you don't have them set up well, which can be difficult. You simply must have good cabling & equipment matches for the application in order to achieve good sonic results, while realizing the efficiency & dynamics of horns. It is no easy feat to pull off the right balance, so if one is not willing to work at it then you will be probably dissapointed as-above.

Here's my story:

When I was looking for speakers I read that "Higher Life" by Steve Windwood was a good cd with which to audition speakers. Yes, the sould was LOUD and strong and in your face specially at the start of that song with all the percussion. However, the commanding "beat" is what made the impact. When I tried the same cd on a comparable player/preamp/amp combo BUT with a pair of psb stratus golds the "main" beat was not as strong or present as with the Klipschs'; however, on the psb's I could hear every single downbeat between the louder main "whacks" which were so lacking through the klipschs that I felt like I was hearing a very different piece of music. From that moment on I knew I would never spend my money on Klipschs.
I guess it's like Bose systems' everyone has heard of them and thinks they're great until they hear a decent pair of speakers where you can actually tell if the low chords are being played by a cello of a bassoon.
Don't fall for the hype, keep looking for a set of speakers that will reproduce your music more faithfully.

P.S. Metalheads seem to swear by Klipschs!, no surprise!!

I recently auditioned speakers and found Klipsch particularly harsh. I listened to RB3 and SF2. I don't know, those horn tweeters were just too much for me, especially on very brassy passages. My ears were ringing. No doubt they had great bass response and presence, but the treble/midrange was just too much. I ended up going with PSB Stratus Bronze, at a lower cost than the RB3 here in Canada.

Viking there is absolutely NO metal at our house, nor any rap-crap for that matter either. And don't even SAY that B-word! These classics are so revealing that you won't like 'em unless the setup is just right (which is not easily done) so your experiences don't surprise. That's MY story and I'm stickin' to it!