I've heard both extremes: seems that people either really like Klipsch, or they *really* don't! I've always been a fan of Khorns, & ever since I was privileged to spend some time with Mr. P.W.K. himself, I simply HAD to get a pair for my own. Don't have much corner-space (or any open space) in my large-ish living room, but when I happened into a good deal on Belles, I jumped & have never regretted it. Belles are made to work close to back walls, so that's a good fit for my situation. Yes the horns do have some tonal colorations, but they are super efficient & quite revealing, not to mention the speed & slam-factors. You can also tweak them better with Dynamat & lamb's wool, etc. (email me for details) there are a lot of tricks that you can play around with. I prefer the solid-state sound, & I've always found that S.S. mosfet amps worked much better on my Klipsch than bipolar's do. BTW I'm using MIT Music Hose 750+ speaker cable (for SS of course) real nice matchup & not hugely expensive. I auditioned only one tube-amp (Sonic Frontiers Power 1) which I didn't like; I don't think that's an SET design, but dunno for sure? MANY dealers have tried to sell me on tubes for my Belles, but I have many reservations (yes I admit being prejudiced against glassware, despite the fact that Klipsch was designed with & FOR tube amps, back in the days before SS was even available). I even cut my audio-teeth on tube gear, so go ahead & laugh - I just like SS better). A trusted dealer even talked me into keeping my Belles, at one time when I was considering alternatives, & that dlr. certainly had a vested interest (his profit) in selling me some other speakers instead. He still wants me to take home an SET Cary or a Manley amp for audition; says I'll never bring it back to the shop! Presently I have a McCormack DNA-1 amp in use, but I like the Ayre V-3 better (I have two) when coupled by a high-$ Synergistic AC cord. In fact I'm going to the shop tomorrow, to pick up that new Designers Reference AC cord, which just came in per my request. Cost a side-issue, the Belles can really pump-it-out too. We once measured 125dB SPL on the coffee table, with a lab-grade meter (unbearably loud & it'll kill your hearing, so *don't* try this at home - hee hee). Sorry this is too long - I got carried away - but that's how much I like Belles.
