Klipsch Heresy report

[car67]

OK quick report - I bought the system for just under A$400 (which was my limit) which makes it about US$280. I just couldn't help myself! There's not really anything in this system that I wanted but here I am with a living room full of stuff!:rolleyes:

Here' the breakdown :
Heresy I in Walnut finish. Serial numbers 147, 148.
Yamaha R100 - receiver most likely from late 80's early 90's/
Pioneer PD5010 CDP
Sony video mulit colour corrector XV-C700(what the heck is this doing here??)

Any comments about value (we have already covered the klipsch a bit) or quality will be appreciated.

Whew, I am buggered from lugging all this stuff around. Have to go out soo and no time play with the toys until tonight.:(

Jack

[car67]

Hey Thoots,

thanks for the comments. The serial numbers really are 147 and 148 and it did make me stop and think. I'll try the the local market first though. They weigh a freakin ton and the cost of shipping might just kill any chance of a sale on ebay.

I'll be more than happy to get $100 for the rest of the stuff. Yep, I'll be on ebay soon to do some research. The receiver looks a bit trashed and who knows how I'm even going to test the Sony.
Main aim is to play with the Klipsch's a bit first to find out what all the fuss is about!:)

Oh, I luv the rush from biddng at these auctions!

Jack

[Walt]

Was there anyone else there bidding aggressively against you?

[car67]

Walt,

I was looking around for you!:D

There were about three other bidders who took it up to $300, then I joined in and there was only two of us left from that point. It wasn't as competitive as I thought it would be. Maybe that's not a good sign but I can't worry about that now. My credit card has already been zapped!:)

Jack

[Walt]

One was my phone bidder - NOT :D

Well done ...

[Don]

Wow, i'm intrigued by those heresys! Love to see some pics and to hear what you think of thier sound.

[THOR]

$280 US for a pair of Hereseys alone is a steal! Everything else is just a major bonus. Hurry up give us a report on how they sound.

[car67]

Okay, I had them hooked up to the Sansui AU-919 which IMO is a neutral amp. Put on some Rickie Lee and Spyrogyra and was mighty impressed by the clarity all-round and the dynamics!:)
I can understand why these are so highly regarded.

Yes they are loud. And they are bright, but I would never call them harsh. People don't talk about the bass on these much as dicussion tends to be about the horns but I thought the bass was very well controlled - yep, luv tight bottoms.

They are very analytical and certainly, matching them to the rest of the system is important. The sound with the AU919 is not what I could live with long term. Tube amps are almost a requisite. And I already have a pair of Audio Note speakers in case I ever go back to tubes.

So I'll play with these for another week and put them on the market. There's a guy I know who might want them but otherwise the trading post or maybe later, ebay.

No pics until later as I don't own a dig cam but I'm hoping to make a few bucks out of these to help pay for one!:)

Jack

[Don]

car you're right, they dont really have nice tight bass ...you have to step up in the heritage line to get that. or buy a sub.

[car67]

Don,

I actually thought the bass was tight, maybe not very low but definetly tight and clean. Might be due to the heavy 18in stands they are sitting on now.

Have you got yours on the floor? I noticed that in some pics , the Heresy's sit on a wooden base or plinth. Mine are just the cabinets.

Jack

[Don]

jack I just recently put them on 10" high stands. I didn't really notice a difference.

They do have tight bass but like you said just not super low

[car67]

I've been busy trying to find out about the origin of the low serial numbers. One of the ex Klipsch staff at the Klipsch forum thinks it could have been pinched by a staff member since the number does not conform to the format of the day in 1980 and he doesn't recognise the signature of the tester. :eek: Doesn't worry me. If anything makes it a bit interesting.

The Yammie R-100 was a bit dodgy. Only worked on speaker B outputs and the something inside kept clicking, maybe a relay. Decided I wanted to cut all ties with it, so took it to cash converters and they gave me almost $40 for it! Can't complain.

Here's a pic of the Heresy's - front view

[car67]

and another view :

[Don]

hey car I posted the question over there in the general forum a while ago. I wonder if anyone answered yet? :confused:

those are nice looking

[car67]

Thoots, if someone will pay me a $200 for that video colour thing then the heresy's might stay just that bit longer! ;) Anyway, I want to get rid of the Infinity's and Celestions first.
Kind of wish I still had my tube amp, then there would be shootout between the Heresy's and the Audio Notes. :)

Don, had a quick look for your post but couldn't find it. The heading on mine is "New to Klipsch" if you want to have a look.

Jack

[Brian]

Nice set of Heresy IIs. Looks like the cabinets are not the usual unfinished at factory.

They go done effectively to about 50hz. Because of the mids and highs the general impression is they don't go low. In comparisons with other speakers I owned some years ago, I used an equalizer and dropped all frequencies by 24 db aboce 150hz to see what the bass was like in relation to other speakers. On almost everything I played, the Heresys delivered as well. Only on organ at the lowest notes did they get lost. Actually, eveything I used had difficulty which could have been speaker and/or room. My conclusion was not that the bass did not go low but, the mids and highs being what they are shifted my perception to the upper frequencies. I have noticed with dynamic drivers I tend to have my attention focused more of mids and upper lows and away from the highs. Probably b/c of the levels of distortion which I did not experience when I had my electrostatics. The Klipsch also have very low distrotion in registry covered by the horns.

I've had mine for some 10 years and it has taken some time to fully appreciate them. I'd have probably dumped out of them except that I had a set of Cornwalls years ago I turned over b/c they were terrible sounding. The guy who bought them hooked them up with a Dyna SCA35 and when I listened I melted with envy.

I do use the speakers with a variety of amps. A good amp to sart with but will not drive them to thunderous levels is the Dyna SCA35. A good functioning 1 does show what the Heresy can do. Sadly the ST-70 which was the higher power amp doesnt cut it.

THey are floor standing speakers and not designed for use with stands. There are 2 bases (risers). The common 1 puts the speakers at a slant and was marketed for smaller rooms and the second does not slant the speakers and is for large rooms. Also, though not corner speakers such as the K'horns, try starting at corners for placement rather than the more common 3 foot from each wall suggestion for speakers designed for use with stands.

[Shain]

I know guys are sick of hearing about my Klipsch Chours,

................but, ....... the bass of the 15" woofer in the Chorus is what I see as one big difference between the Hersheys and other similar Klipsch.

The horns do provide all that has been said.

I just sold a pair of Hersheys. So know what they sound like. The Chorus is a more rounded (full range w/ more bass) speaker. Don't really need a sub. But, probably will try one just to see what it may add.

Just got an old first version, pair of Bose 301's. Too cheap to pass up, and nice condition too. May use in bedroom or??

REAL KLIPSCH SPEAKERS !!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1362203032

[car67]

Thanks guys. I agree, the Heresy's will sound excellent with a tube amp and there's always a chance I'll have a tube amp again so they are worth keeping for that purpose. Thing is, I've been keeping my Audio Notes for that reason as well. Tube amp would be very nice right as this moment :-)

Jack