Klipsch, high end?

I am not a big fan of the new series of Klipsch speakers. I think they took a very good name and they did more for their margins than they did for the quality. The older speakers were very good, with certain limitations. By older speakers I'm talking about the Heresey, Cornwalls, La Scala, and K-horns (Belles too, but you almost never see them used). Their strengths were efficiency and dynamics. For home theater, particularly if you like action movies, this was an outstanding combination. The limitations were imaging or soundstage, and roll off below about 35 to 45 Hz (depending on the model). Since your HT will likely have a subwoofer, this really isn't so much of an issue. So, I would recommend you listen to the older speakers if these limitations do not bother you. I used La Scalas and Hereseys in a theater set-up and was very happy. For that application they definitely hold up to high (end) standards.

go to uhf magazines's website for a recent review

I second Abstract7's comments. I use Heresy's in front in my movie system. Only horns duplicate that special "movie theater" sound--makes sense, since many theaters use horn speakers, usually Klipsch.

I've heard both extremes: seems that people either really like Klipsch, or they *really* don't! I've always been a fan of Khorns, & ever since I was privileged to spend some time with Mr. P.W.K. himself, I simply HAD to get a pair for my own. Don't have much corner-space (or any open space) in my large-ish living room, but when I happened into a good deal on Belles, I jumped & have never regretted it. Belles are made to work close to back walls, so that's a good fit for my situation. Yes the horns do have some tonal colorations, but they are super efficient & quite revealing, not to mention the speed & slam-factors. You can also tweak those resonances with Dynamat & lamb's wool, etc. there are a lot of tricks that you can play around with. I prefer the solid-state sound, & I've always found that big S.S. amps worked much better on my Klipsch than tubes do. MANY dealers have tried to sell me on tubes for my Belles, in fact Klipsch was designed with & FOR tube amps, back in the days before SS was even available. A trusted high end dealer once talked me into keeping my Belles at a time when I was considering alternatives, & that dlr. certainly had a vested interest in selling me some other speakers instead. I have used McCormack DNA-1 & DNA-1 Deluxe amps; the Ayre V-3 is even better. Cost a side-issue, the Belles can really pump-it-out too. We once measured 125dB SPL on the coffee table, with a lab-grade meter (*don't* try this at home - hee hee). I can't speak for any of the newer model speakers referred to above, but these old classic Belles are presently doing nicely in my $40K 2channel rig; hardly low powered / mass market.