Klipschorn advice needed

[jclayton]

I will be upgrading from my Heresy II's soon and decided instead of going first to something like the La Scala or Cornwall I am just going to take the plunge and go for the big daddy. I do have a couple of questions:

1. Should I buy new or used (I am so scared of getting burned on something so expensive, I have been burned on cheaper as-is type deals before)?

2. If I buy new, are the horns plastic? My father-in-law has some old La Scalas with metal horns and my Heresy II's are plastic, when I am playing newer electronic/techno music the horns will sometimes resonate with the beat (as well as the plastic terminal on the back). The La Scalas sound great with any music, at loud volumes (you just have to worry about vibrating things in the house).

3. New or used...should I upgrade the crossovers? Is this only for used or is there any advantage in upgrading new ones? I think Bob Crites are the ones I see online the most.

4. How small of a room will these work in? I am using a 10'x15'x8' room now that is soon to be devoted just to audio (only my rig and LP/CD collection). I am buying these speakers to have for decades (I am 32 now) so when I upgrade houses down the road I plan on using them in a more suitable room, I just don't want them to sound bad in a room too small.

Any info greatly appreciated.

[Auricauricle]

I had a friend at one time who owned a pair of La Scalas, using Heresies as rear channels. According to him (FWIW) the horns on the LaScalas and the Klipschorns are the same, the difference in the folding inside.

God, why is my skin so green?

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

I will be upgrading from my Heresy II's soon and decided instead of going first to something like the La Scala or Cornwall I am just going to take the plunge and go for the big daddy. I do have a couple of questions:

1. Should I buy new or used (I am so scared of getting burned on something so expensive, I have been burned on cheaper as-is type deals before)?

Buy new if you can afford it. It is a great investment that would last for years. The newer Klipschorns are much better made, and have had all the problems of the previous Klipschorns worked out as well.

2. If I buy new, are the horns plastic? My father-in-law has some old La Scalas with metal horns and my Heresy II's are plastic, when I am playing newer electronic/techno music the horns will sometimes resonate with the beat (as well as the plastic terminal on the back). The La Scalas sound great with any music, at loud volumes (you just have to worry about vibrating things in the house).

The metal mouths also had resonating issues, but instead of the buzzing you hear from the plastic horns, you hear a harsh metallic tinge accompaning the output from the driver. The newer horns on all Klipsch speakers use a composite material that does not resonate.

3. New or used...should I upgrade the crossovers? Is this only for used or is there any advantage in upgrading new ones? I think Bob Crites are the ones I see online the most.

If its new, no need to upgrade the crossovers. If older, then you should do the upgrade.

4. How small of a room will these work in? I am using a 10'x15'x8' room now that is soon to be devoted just to audio (only my rig and LP/CD collection). I am buying these speakers to have for decades (I am 32 now) so when I upgrade houses down the road I plan on using them in a more suitable room, I just don't want them to sound bad in a room too small.

Any info greatly appreciated.

Personally I think a 10x15x8 room would be too small for the Klipschorns. However if you have a eye on a larger room in the future, you could work through the small room issues for the time being if you really worked at it.

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

I had a friend at one time who owned a pair of La Scalas, using Heresies as rear channels. According to him (FWIW) the horns on the LaScalas and the Klipschorns are the same, the difference in the folding inside.

God, why is my skin so green?

Could it be the jello you smeared all over yourself?

[bfalls]

Given the choice between Chorus and LaScalas, I take the LaScalas every time. As Sir Terence explained they use the same component with different folded horn dimensions and are standalone where the Klipschorn requires a corner installation. You might also look at the Belles, which are a pretty version of the LaScala.
I wouldn't hesitate to buy used, but only after speaking to the owner. You can tell immediately what type of owner they are. Most owners who pay this type of money don't abuse their equipment. Ask for pictures. Chances are the owner has them next to pictures of his wife and children in his wallet.
I've been to one of the Klipsch retreats at their engineering offices in Indianapolis. They are very quality-oriented. I've seen the high-end xovers, but feel the original, if not too old, are very good. These are speakers you can live with for decades. I've had my KG4 since the mid-eighties and have no plans to sell. Check out the Klipsch forums on their website and on the AVS Forums website.

[Auricauricle]

Could it be the jello you smeared all over yourself?

Ha, ha. Tickle me.

[jclayton]

Thanks for all the great info. My father-in-law has an old pair of La Scalas (late 70's?) that are in mint shape (no scratches or major nicks in the wood). He only moved them once, in the mid-80's. He contends that his upstairs gameroom is too small (still much larger than my listening room) for these and he bought a pair of JBL L36's for the downstairs living room. He only played these a couple times in the past 20 years (last time was when the Eagles "When Hell Freezes Over" was released) and he was using a generic Sony 5 disc, and an old Sansui integrated (AU-D9, which I now have).

Anyway, he offered them to me this past weekend, but the wife does not like the size compared to the room they will be in. I actually thought the Khorns would be an easier sell because they do have a smaller footprint because they are cornerhorns. I know the crossovers will probably need to be replaced in the La Scalas but I am sure the drivers are in great shape.

I think in the end I am going to go with a new pair of Khorns. I am also going to audition some B&Ws and Paradigms as I think those might sound better for the electronic music I listen to. Unfortunately the only highend stores where I live are a little too high end for my budget or they mainly sell those big martin-logan type speakers which I don't care for. The rest are just Best Buy and Circuit City. We do have a couple of home theater stores that carry the two brands I mentioned plus higher end Klipsch so that is what I am looking at.

Thanks again for the advice.

[RGA]

I like the K-horns - good choice but in the room you list you are better off with smaller room speakers - I would suggest you explore very hard the Audio Note AN E or AN J speakers. They require corner placement like the K-Horn and won't have the absolute high volume levels of the K-Horns (few speakers do) but they do have deepr bass and a smoother overall sound. In other words they sound better but less oomph and slam.

You can seem my review of the AN J at dagogo.com - various versions of the E and J range between $2,500 and $125,000.