Amp matching for Klipsch Forte III

An update...I've had the Forte IIIs for about three weeks now, driving them with a Pass Labs XP-12 preamp and XA-25 power amp. So far, I love some things about them, but don't love the presentation as a whole. With this set up, the Fortes are very dynamic and clear sounding with simple to moderately complex music. Acoustic and pedal steel guitars sound especially nice. Just listened to a couple albums by Neko Case and by the Avett Brothers, all sound very good. Also simple live albums like Curtis Mayfield's Curtis/Live! sound amazing. I do notice a slight midrange horn coloration on a lot of vocals, a slight resonance like one might hear if one is speaking into a tin can. It's slight, but it starts to bug me after a while. Highs are smooth and sweet. Bass has good tone but is less powerful than I expected, a bit blunted, although some of that could be my room acoustics. Overall the tonal balance is a bit leaner than I like. My biggest complaint is that when the music gets more complex, it sounds smeared and congested to me, especially from bass to mids. It's not music I consider very demanding, stuff like indie rock, 70's power pop/pop rock. Maybe this is a reflection of deficiencies in the XA-25, I don't know, since the Forte III is often recommended as a good rock speaker. The Fortes in this setup definitely reveal bad recordings to be nothing but bad. If it's dull or grainy or compressed, you hear it. I'll continue listening for a few weeks more, but I'm not sure at this point that the Fortes will stay. Not sure about the Pass gear either. Maybe I need to try different amplification with the Fortes. I also haven't used the tube preamp yet. Thanks to all who commented earlier.

Klipsch " Heritage " speakers are fun, and I am glad folks besides myself, think so. I have spoken here and elsewhere, about damping the mid horns ( the greatest improvement ), the tweeter horns, the woofer and passive woofer frames, and the cabinets, all to clean up those nasties, that ALL stock Klipsch, have. Louder volumes, the more this is noticeable. Many YT videos on what and how to do it. Dynamat is the go to product for this, but there are many other products that can be used. Peel and Seal roofing repair tape can be used and does a great job. Enjoy, be well and stay safe. MrD.

Klipsch Forte IIIs were my first high-end speaker and I played with low-wattage SET amps mostly.  They were so much fun and so revealing!  It seemed I could drive the Forte IIIs with the wattage generated by a lit match!  I noticed pretty quickly, though, that there was a harshness to them with poorer or more processed recordings (although with some many variables in a system, who really knows the cause).  Bob Crites, by email, suggested I try a fabric-based midrange dome (rather than titanium).  I never did that, though (scared of ruining the speaker).  I wish I had read more about the damping treatments that have been recommended here.  

I don't use the Forte IIIs as my main speakers anymore because I discovered the joys of single-driver (plus subwoofer) speakers for imaging precision, something the Forte IIIs were not as good at (lack of time coherence??).  My Omega Alnico driver has nicer midrange than the Forte IIIs as well, although dynamics are not comparable.

BTW, I also use Pass XA30.8 power amp w/ tube preamp.  Great combo!

This may be of interest.......

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=166996.0