....anyONE have Klipsch Forte or Forte II

dee1949
dee1949 Posts: 1,425
edited April 2014 in Speakers
......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.
Post edited by dee1949 on
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  • ajcllc
    ajcllc Posts: 138
    edited November 2008
    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
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited November 2008
    have you tried them with tubed amplification?
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • ajcllc
    ajcllc Posts: 138
    edited November 2008
    george daniel wrote: »
    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.
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  • BottomFeeder
    BottomFeeder Posts: 1,684
    edited November 2008
    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?
    "Wish I didn't know now what I didn't know then." Bob Seger
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  • ajcllc
    ajcllc Posts: 138
    edited November 2008
    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.
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  • dee1949
    dee1949 Posts: 1,425
    edited November 2008
    ...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
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  • Conradicles
    Conradicles Posts: 6,335
    edited August 2010
    bump...I am on the verge of getting a set of Forte's...can some others chime in?
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 33,068
    edited August 2010
    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.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
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  • leftwinger57
    leftwinger57 Posts: 2,917
    edited September 2010
    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
    2chl- Adcom GFA- 555-Onkyo P-3150v pre/amp- JVC-QL-A200 tt- Denon 1940 ci cdp- Adcom GFS-6 -Modded '87 SDA 2Bs - Dynamat Ext.- BH-5- X-Overs VR-3, RDO-194 tweeters, Larry's Rings, Speakon/Neutrik I/C- Cherry stain tops Advent Maestros,Ohm model E

    H/T- Toshiba au40" flat- Yamaha RX- V665 avr- YSD-11 Dock- I-Pod- Klipsch #400HD Speaker set-

    Bdrm- Nikko 6065 receiver- JBL -G-200s--Pioneer 305 headphones--Sony CE375-5 disc
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  • indyhawg
    indyhawg Posts: 1,670
    edited September 2010
    dee1949 wrote: »
    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.
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  • Mystery
    Mystery Posts: 2,546
    edited April 2014
    Conradicles wrote: »
    bump...I am on the verge of getting a set of Forte's...can some others chime in?

    So did you get them?
    I just got a pair of Forte originals and like them a lot.

    Klipsch RB81, KG3.5, B&W DM602.5, Polk.
    Subwoofers: Klipsch RW10, Triad ProSub Bronze.
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  • Conradicles
    Conradicles Posts: 6,335
    edited April 2014
    No never did. However the Forte and Chorus are on my list of must demo speakers.
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  • Mystery
    Mystery Posts: 2,546
    edited April 2014
    Conradicles wrote: »
    No never did. However the Forte and Chorus are on my list of must demo speakers.
    Oh okay. good luck...

    BTW, thread back from the dead. :lol:

    Klipsch RB81, KG3.5, B&W DM602.5, Polk.
    Subwoofers: Klipsch RW10, Triad ProSub Bronze.
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  • iskandam
    iskandam Posts: 704
    edited April 2014
    I had a Chorus II, Forte II, and Forte I modded with Crites drivers and crossovers. The modded Forte I's are the best sounding out f the 3, but if you had the space I'd recommend the Chorus with all the upgrades. They're quite a bit more dynamic and have better bass than the Fortes... of course they're also bigger and heavier
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  • Mystery
    Mystery Posts: 2,546
    edited April 2014
    I'm liking Forte's quite a lot.
    Different sounding than BA400's and quite punchy. :smile:

    Klipsch RB81, KG3.5, B&W DM602.5, Polk.
    Subwoofers: Klipsch RW10, Triad ProSub Bronze.
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