Bought the original Forte a couple of years ago and in researching for opinions in the forums at the time, the consensus from a few that have had experience with both iterations of the forte, was that the original is the better of the two. I personally haven't heard the Forte II but I can tell you that the original is a great speaker period - and not just for the money. It has excellent bass, it's very transparent and very dynamic with a high "jump factor" that makes it just plain fun to listen to with rock, techno, pop etc. Setup correctly the Forte has great soundstaging and imaging capabilities as well.
On the minus side, it's a little hot in the mid and treble regions and for that reason I think it takes a bit better to tubes that give it that little extra sweetness while still maintaining the great dynamics. The Forte can sound good with solid state as well, but it gives a dryer presentation and you have to be careful with the mating amplifier and cables so as to not be too bright on top. IMHO I don't think that a receiver will make the best match. A 15-20 Watt EL84 tube based amp on the other hand would make a great match with the Forte and there are a few out there for not a lot of dough. If you buy used, both amp and speaker could be had at around $1K or a bit more and the sound could be worth a million bucks!
Happy Listening!
