but it would take a lot of amps, an electronic crossover and DSP. What happens with all that then is "sterility" with what seem to me, no harmonic decay, too much electronics digital and analog between the source and the speakers, I’ve heard it so many times with DEQX type manipulated systems, "lifeless sterile music" a bit like what class-d does. Cheers George |
George, behave yourself. No one mentioned class D amplification in this thread....:-) |
In my initial opinion, the new Klipsch Heritage line seems/feels cheaper than the old stuff. Things feel more veneery or plasticy than the older stuff and definitely not premier multi-thousand $$$ quality finishes. If you knock on the sides of the Forte iii, you still get a hollow sound showing there's little to no engineering done on the interior of the box, yet you're paying for it.
Maybe this doesn't really affect the sound, fine, but it doesn't feel like a premium product and I'm a klipsch fanboy.
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My Heresy III "Capitol Records" edition (meaningless relative to other Heresy IIIs other than the "special" ebony finish that looks like dark purple) pair are built like little tanks, and if you knock on the sides you get nothing more than a bruised knuckle. |
While I can sympathize with many of the aspects (i.e.: flaws) pointed out in the thorough measurement section by John Atkinson on the K-horn AK6’s, below quoted paragraph in particular is instrumental I believe in exposing a bias for non-horns that fails to acknowledge limitations inherent to this speaker principle as well: I wasn’t too surprised by the Klipschorn’s limited low-frequency extension despite its size. I was reminded of the impact Acoustic Research’s first loudspeaker, with its relatively small sealed enclosure and "acoustic suspension" woofer, made in the mid-1950s. "My measurements showed that my little prototype had better bass and less distortion than anything on the market, yet it was one quarter the size," wrote AR’s founder, Edgar Villchur, adding "I thought, ’This has got to be the future of loudspeakers.’" (footnote 3) It was.
I’m sure Mr. Villchur was invested in promoting an invention of his that catered to a majority of buyers to whom looks and size was a primary concern - including most current audiophiles, it would seem - while at the same time claiming superiority in sound reproduction from his miniature design. In other words, he’d like to have his cake and eat it too - and so Mr. Atkinson in his consent - but you don’t shave off size down to a quarter followed by a massive lowering of sensitivity involving plain physics without compromise - end of story. Giving critique in this case of the K-horn is only fair when it’s worth pointing out, but notably Mr. Villchur in his praise of what became the AR1 "listens" to his measurements only; perhaps it’s worth reading through the last paragraph of Mr. Dudley’s review conclusion: I found in the Klipschorn AK6 an imperfect loudspeaker that satisfied many of my long-standing longings and a couple I didn’t know I had—for amazing sound way off-axis, and for big, beautiful pieces of old-school audio art in my listening room. The AK6 also seems to offer exceptional value: for the technology, woodworking, and sheer size it offers, $14,998 for a pair of these is a steal. No one with a taste for realistic playback, and especially no one with a taste for low-power amps and high-sensitivity speakers, should miss a chance to hear these.
To reiterate: ".. a steal." Surely there’s something to treasure with these speakers at a calling price of $15k/pair, but you wouldn’t notice it focusing blindly on Mr. Atkinson’s measurements and comments nor the parrot squeaks or the ardent disciples of his in this thread (or simply K-horn/Klipsch Heritage haters). Lastly the K-horns in their latest incarnation aren’t solely representative of horn speakers. It’s called listening, folks, with your ears, and knowing there’s compromise in any venture. |
