Klipsch Chorus II or Forte II - Secondary system


I have a secondary system in my basement that's been neglected for years. It's a combination of Rotel electronics combined with a pair a DCM TimeWindow 1a speakers. They are nice speakers, but I really have no reason to listen to them when my main listening system has Vandersteen speakers that do everything better.

I've decided to shake things up a bit by going a completely different path with the sound of my second system. I want to go from the more laid back sound of the the DCM's to a more in-your-face rock sound.

I've narrowed my choice to a set of Klipsch Forte II or Chorus II's based on whats locally available and price. I'm looking for opinions from anyone that's listened to these. The Forte II's have a better bottom end, but the Chorus II's are generally regarded as a better speaker. My preference would be to NOT use a subwoofer.

Thanks!
mustangjeff
Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. I ended up finding a beautiful mint condition pair of oiled oak Chorus II's.

These are a completely different animal than the Vandersteen's and not necessarily in a bad way. I have them placed in the corners of my living room, and toed-in to face my couch. They are extremely sensitive to placement, but it also means you can tweak the sound by simply moving the speaker just a little bit. I need to play around this weekend to fin their sweet spots.

I ran through tons of different music, and I have to say that they sound great. I'm running an Anthem MX receiver with the front pre-outs going to a Rotel RB-1080. Even though I'm not running tubes I didn't find them harsh at all.

I find them extremely lively and engaging. Vocals really pop out at you. Copious amounts of low end for a speaker that is supposed to be weak in that area. Initially I found the low end a bit boomy, but moving the speakers about 3-4 inches away from the corner made a huge difference in tightening up the sound. The horn tweeter and midrange have an airy quality to them, and in my room I thought they imaged extremely well.

These things really shine as you increase the volume. The louder I went, the better they sounded. I'm going to have a hard time moving these to the basement. I think I'm going to leave them on my main system for awhile.
Good for you! You are going to really enjoy them. By what you've posted I can tell you understand them well. Once you find the spot you want them they'll keep getting better. My forte's take a good two or three days to settle when I move them (even longer if they are on carpet). Enjoy!
I started with a pair of cornwalls that surprised me so much that I sold a pair of Reference 3a grand veenas. I have since moved on to a pair of cornscalas and could not be happier. Horns done right are VERY hard to beat.

I predict that a pair of horns will ultimately be your main speaker.

Shakey
Shakey-nice system. Im sure it is dynamic. Question: do the crites' klipsch image/soundstage very well? thanks
They image and soundstage as well as any speaker I have owned. And set them up right and they disappear better than any large speaker should.

Shakey