....anyONE have Klipsch Forte or Forte II

[dee1949]

......How would you compare the SOUND to say:

....Polk Sda-crs

....speakers of the caliber of Meadowlark or Vandersteen.


...I will post my impressions later. Don't want to influence outcome. I have OLD ears.

[ajcllc]

I have Forte I's and II's. Both have a revealing sound, but can be bright at times. Sometimes they are too "in-your-face". I would have to say that the Forte I's are more musical, however.

I have had a chance to compare them to my SDA 2's, and prefer the SDA's over the Klipsch by a slight margin. In a nutshell, I find the SDA's to be slightly more detailed with tighter bass.

My order of preference would be: 1. SDA 2's 2. Forte I's 3. Forte II's

[george daniel]

have you tried them with tubed amplification?

[ajcllc]

have you tried them with tubed amplification?

I tried the Forte's with my Dynaco ST70, and they sounded warmer. However, for my taste, they still sound too bright. I have yet to try my SDA's with tubes and am looking forward to it.

I am stripping the top off one of them right now and preparing it for new veneer because of "let's-put-a-plant-on-the-top-of-the-speaker" syndrome from the previous owner.

[BottomFeeder]

I had Forte 1's for 20 years. I loved the clarity and the bass, but I couldn't get them to image worth a darn.

How 'bout you?

[ajcllc]

Imaging in the Forte I's is better than the Forte II's, but just by a little. Overall, the SDA's image much better than both.

[dee1949]

...I find the Klipsch Forte II's - upfront - in your face - for active listening - do everything right for daylight listening. Nice sound stage . Great for playing "loud" - all kinds of music. But somewhat fatiguing over long periods. I think the Forte with tubes would be best match. Great bass. Like bigger rooms. I drive the Forte II's with a NAD 2600.

But for nighttime relaxing audio the Meadowlark or Vandersteen are hard to beat. Close your eyes and float on clouds of pure MUSIC. Wide sound stage & great imaging - non fatiguing. Not so great for loud rock. Not as much bass. I drive The Meadowlarl Kestrels with a B&K ST140.

Both amps fed by B&K 10proMC preamp.

Friends who are musicians prefer the Forte's - have that live sound. Deep bass .

Both are great for different listening experiences

[Conradicles]

bump...I am on the verge of getting a set of Forte's...can some others chime in?

[tonyb]

Just about any Klipsch speaker benefits from tubes. I have heard a variety of their speakers on solid state and had to run out of the room in 5 minutes. The listening fatigue comes on strong with SS gear. They are good to jam loud as others have said,question is,how long can you stand those harsh highs ? Ya needs some tubes baby.

[leftwinger57]

I've heard both sets and I would go w/ the Forte1s. KLipsch to me has the clearest
cleanest sound for price point. Would love a pair of Heresys.
h/t
Yamaha rx v665
Denon 1910ci
toshiba au47
Klipsch 500w/ 8insub

[indyhawg]

I drive the Forte II's with a NAD 2600.



I am using that same set-up. I have them set up in a spare bedroom. I am wanting to get them into a bigger room in the future. They get great bass. I have played everything from jazz to blues to metal on them and they sound great.