Horn Speaker Recommendations

riaa_award_collectors_on_facebook please report back after you get the Forte III's your listening impressions.  I really intrigued by these it seems some of the reports are very good and others can't seem to get the setup to sound right.  I used to own KG4's and Chorus I's back in the 80's and enjoyed them unfortunately never heard them with tubes as nobody I knew had tubes nor did any of the locals shops sell them.

@georgesallit325 --

If anyone is interested I have just finished reviewing the Klipsch La Scala AL5s (the new ones) at: https://hifiwigwam.com/forum/topic/134937-klipsch-la-scala-al5/
A UK view. 

Well-written, and very positive review of the La Scala AL5's, George. 

Being a UK-based Wigwam scribe, have you by any chance listened to Simon Mears Audio Uccello's? 

" Place them in a 15 by 20 room, a standard sized listening room for many, and yes, they would be overwhelming, both visually, and acoustically. Now, knowing who you are, I can understand your viewpoint. "
LOL yeah they are not real esthetic I have to admit. I find that I listen to music quite often at 70 to 80db though so it is not like I have them thumping a lot. Way to easy to harm your hearing.  I went through a lot of speakers to get to this point though including many La Scalas. I have four sets in the shop right now in various stages of restoration so I am quit familiar with them.
 What started my love affair with bigger was a set of KP-450's which were a two way system with two 15" woofers and a fairly large horn with the 1132 driver on them. The sound was so compelling and so superior to La Scalas that I never looked back. People that have owned both the next generation which was the KPT-456, which sounded even better, and KHorns, which as you know is better than La Scalas, prefer the KPT-456's.  Problem with older used gear is they are quit scarce and you can look today for these and find KHorns or La Scalas most every day. But not the KP or KPT's because once the movie theaters sell them off and they get into private hands they stay there and are not sold again except between friends from what I see.  What I have really been seeking over the years was something that could play classical organ music like Toccata and Fugue in D Minor just like I was there in person. I wanted to hear and feel it just like real life. But then also play Cello or bagpipes or classical rock or blues just like I was there too. It is amazing how many low five string bass notes people have no idea even exist in music because their system cant play that low or big kick drums. And yes large horns deliver the crispest most precise tight bass out there along with punch you can feel and direct radiating speakers don't. Although I have to admit the KPT 456 came somewhat close but with muddier sound.
 I went to Metropolis Outfitters in Paducah KY once because Cory had the new La Scala III's and a Jubilee with the 402 horn on top in his sound rooms. The La Scalas looked really nice but paled into insignificance compared to the Jubilees. Now the La Scalas III's are as good a speaker as many will ever hear since they have gone to 1" sides and the resonance problem is gone. Problem is there is just so much more that can be had for the asking.  I can tell you flat out though that big speakers do not overwhelm rooms and there are guys on the Klipsch forum with those fabulous MCM 1900 systems in their houses along with Jubilees. I have personally sold 10 sets of KP450's and KPT-456's to home owners and they are for 200 seat theaters and they love them. Kind of industrial looking for sure but the detail and superior listening experience at any volume just works in any room. If you are ever near southern middle Tennessee you are welcome to stop in and hear them just PM me.

" A lot of love for Klipsch speakers on this thread.  Hmmmm, I wonder why there are so many for sale on the US audio mart website? " 
  Might be because there are 33,000+ forum members and who knows how many buyers of Klipsch so yes they do show up and don't last long unless grossly over priced.
" 60 foot sound stage LOL sounds to me like someone has no experience with large horn systems. I sit in my office listening to a community leviathan system in nearfield low level rooms 14x17 it images wonderfully massively low in distortion interacts little with walls floor etc has a normal soundstage like a normal speaker would as do my Shearers my giant RCA front horns my electronluv horns my WE horns etc etc all just reproduce music in a natural real way. I just don’t get why state absolutes when you have never experienced what you say all big horns do? I can understand size issues but the rest is just uninformed bias. "
100% agree. Looked up that horn and it looks like they were thinking like Danley but years earlier. I would like to hear those some day. Near field indeed LOL!

@georgesallit325...nice review, as you posted it earlier on this page. @johnk. We obviously listen differently, and want, and enjoy, different things. This was apparent when we had a debate between Lascalas and Altec 19s. I have owned a pair or two of 19s ( and modded many ), and I prefer the Lascala. I am " sensitive " to many hybrids ( a non bass horn ), as I hear the transition between the woofer section and the horn, and a lack of speed and finesse, with many of these bass sections, of some hybrids. I know you hear this, but maybe, you do not care about it. As far as large horn hybrids, or large full range horns ( the ones you speak about ), of which I have heard plenty, particularly many of the Klipsch KPT series, I prefer some distance,  between them, and I. There is no discussion, or argument, here. This is what " I " prefer, and that is all. My perception of many of these units, when I am listening too close, is not a presentation that I feel is real, correct, or enjoyable. Again, this is me. You can rant all you want about me being wrong, as it does not matter to me. I do not need to explain how I developed my listening biases, nor defend them. I simply know what I like, and again, this is what matters. So, my take away from all of this, is that you, and Malhman, feel you both are correct, and that I am just plain wrong. So be it. 50 years in the high end audio industry, much time around live, un-amplified music, 50 years around, and a fan of, horn speakers, and, my ears have developed with a knowing of what I like. I also had, and still have, the ability for me, to help listeners create sound systems in their homes. And, guess what, johnnie boy. Not all of my customers, acquaintances, or friends, prefer horns. Although I do, I respect them all, and never judge them for what they prefer, and enjoy. Many people in this industry, seem to forget this very important point. We are all different. @willgolf. I know this is your thread. I do apologize for any thing I might have stated out of line, with you. My only advice for you. Try and listen to everything you can, before you buy, and, if possible, to listen in your new room. Yes, I am a Klipsch guy...Enjoy ! MrD.

" I am wondering if Roy Delgado would feel the Jubilees would work in a 15 by 20 room. Sorry if I offended you. Enjoy ! MrD. "
  No not offended at all I just think people get cheated out of some systems because they don't realize how they really function. Met Roy at the last Klipsch gathering and here is a bit of Klipsch history for you. A select group of speaker owners were invited to Klipsch to preview the Jubilee and none of them were, as far as I know, professional sound stage guys representing theaters or industry. Claude and Coytee on the Klipsch forum were two of them and still active there and they probably would fill you in on the details if you go there and ask. Suffice it to say Roy would approve of their use anywhere I believe. It was the last speaker he and Paul Klipsch worked on together so it has a place in his heart. Would he say so in public since Jubilees are far more sound than KHorns at half the price? We think this is why the Jubilees are kept industrial looking so as to not compete with the much more refined appearance of veneered boxes. Plus it is pretty hard to make the 402 horns on top of them pretty with zero WAF.
  My main goal in pushing these horns is based on the food chain many of us waste our time and money on. We keep spending a little more looking for that great audio and then go through way to many sets before we find what we were looking for. I had to waste a lot of time and money before I had ever heard my first real good 2" horn driven pro speaker and I just wish someone would have shown me those when I first became interested in Klipsch.  By the way, if anyone reads up on those Super MWM's the 3D or 2D files are freely available to anyone who wants to build a set for personal use. This is not permission to start making these for profit.