Klipsch Heresy III and the S.E.X. - any thoughts?

[corndog71]

Earlier this year I traded in a pair of Heresy IIs for a pair of Klipsch KG4.2 towers and haven't regretted it.  There were a lot of things I liked about the HIIs but ultimately they lacked any bass below 50 Hz and image height was about 3'.  Also they needed to be on the floor.  I tried raising them up on stands and lost a lot of bass.  I've heard they need a big room to really sound their best.  In my small apartment they just couldn't image as well as I wanted. 

Now also consider that I added some upgrades to the HIIs.  I added No Rez (https://017ef43.netsolstores.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=103) to the insides of the cabinets which made an instant improvement in clarity and seemed to tighten up the bass a bit too.  I also upgraded the crossovers with all new parts with much tighter tolerances and remounted them inside for lower crosstalk and improved response.  This also took them to another level in clarity.  Finally I replaced the stock tweeters with Bob Crites' titanium tweeters which extended the treble and gave the sound more sparkle but without adding excessive brightness.  Another worthwhile and inexpensive upgrade. 

The Heresy II was a fun and very efficient speaker.  But when I heard the KG4.2 (which I've heard was the last model to be designed by the old man) they proved to be superior to the Heresys in all of the areas I faulted except one.  The Heresy II seemed to be able handle more power without compression than the 4.2s.  The latter definitely have their limits.   Both are  very efficient.  But both made the sex amp lose steam at high volumes.  The Heresy was superior in power handling but still sounded better with at least 35 watts.  At low to moderate volumes the sex amp was good but after much careful listening I think was just not enough power.  In the end though the 4.2s have a much bigger and wider soundstage and imaging and much better bass quality and output.

I've since replaced the crossover of my 4.2s and in turn raised their performance level as well.  (Any speaker more than 10 years old should probably have their crossovers changed to newer parts as they tend to drift off spec over time.  The crossovers I've seen in these old Klipsch speakers all consisted of low grade parts which I'm sure was a compromise for  price)  These also seem to want a bigger room than what I have but they still sound great at moderate volumes.

If all you're using is the sex amp for power then you may want to consider a more efficient speaker.  The 99dB HeresyIII might be decent but you'll need a sub if you want any bass below 50Hz.

[Dr. Toobz]

I've looked at used KG 4.x speakers in the past, but I think I'm leaning towards a three-way, if possible. One of things I didn't like about my RF-5's (or Polks or current Klipsch Icons) was the midrange, whose upper regions seemed too high for the woofers and too low for the horn tweeter to handle capably. A nice, warm mid-horn will do wonders for jazz.

I don't think the S.E.X. amp "running out of steam" will be an issue with me, thankfully, since I listen at very low volumes in a medium-sized living room with wood floors. The 99dB of the Heresy III's at one watt is much louder than I probably would ever play them (which seems to be the Achilles heel of a lot of speakers - most don't "wake up" until high volumes, whereas the Heresys are said to have good qualities at low ones).

I'm waiting to pounce on the first new set of $1000 H3's I see. The usual seller on eBay and Amazon that has what are probably mismatched sets seems not to have any for sale ATM, other than sets with a lacewood finish and no risers (which is a deal-killer for me). Klispch wants $1600/pair for these, not including tax and shipping. Not sure I want to go that route yet.....

[corndog71]

Another option that might be worth exploring is to see if you can get the H3 upgrade kit which is just the drivers and crossover.  (They can go right into an H2 cabinet)  Then build the boxes yourself or have a cabinet maker do it for you.  I would give this some serious consideration because one of the other things that bugged me was the complete lack of bracing inside the cabinets.  As long as you get the right internal volume and baffle dimensions it shouldn't be too difficult a project.  Might be cheaper to do it this way than buying new ones and you'd get a nicely braced cabinet to boot.  Also you could finish the cabinet anyway you liked with paint or veneer. 

And you reminded me of another thing I liked about the H2s.  The dedicated midrange horn definitely added something special to the sound.  Vocals were very fast and present. 

[RPMac]

I don't have golden ears and can't describe the nuances others can hear, but here are my thoughts.Presence is a strong point...bass is lacking, but not absent.
I first powered them with a Nakamichi TA-3A which has Nelson Pass designed Stasis power section. When listening loud and long, harsh mid and high caused fatigue. The best thing I ever did was to power them with Bottlehead gear...FPI and Paraglows. Modifications I've done...
Dampen the horns...this is a must. I used plumber's putty on the back of horn and driver...about a 1/4". I believe much of the harshness problem is secondary vibrations picked up from the woofer. The music became clearer with more detail and a lot easier to listen to.A tip I picked up from reading Lynn Olsen...felt around the mouth of the horns. I used drawer felt padding from Lowe's with the sticky back. About 1" around the mouth and going back into the throat a few inches.
Replaced the caps in the mid and high crossover with Auricaps...better detail.
Added bracing inside the box on all sides...2"x2" pieces glued and screwed in a cross. This took the sound of the enclosure out of the bass. Added foam padding to the sides and filled the box loosely with polyester. Subs would definitely help these speakers. My mother-in-law has a pair of H2s exactly like mine, but unmodified that I used to A/B...no comparison. I hope this helps.

[corndog71]

Great idea with putting putty on the horns.  I wondered if there was something I could do to damp vibrations in the horn like that and now you gave me something to work on and the best part is it's a cheap tweak.

Thanks!

[Dr. Toobz]

Since Klipsch has a return policy on their Heritage products, I went ahead and put in an order for the H3's about 6 weeks ago. They arrived earlier this week, and I think I made the right choice! They are smooth, image well, and actually have a lot of bass, due to the new woofers (K-28?). My jaw dropped as I turned them up with some Sonny Rollins  - it was like a saxophone was playing in my room instead of me playing a record of a saxophone. Plus, they practically shatter windows with the S.E.X. amp turned all the way up (the Quickie helps here as well - putting in a robust signal helps the S.E.X. amp achieve to its potential). Practical listening levels seem to be on the order of 1/4 to 1/2 watt.

I'll post some more extensive observations once they break in, which will take some time. So far, though, I think these speakers were made for the S.E.X. amp - and are definitely voiced differently than older Heresies (i.e., it's pretty clear that Klipsch intends these for use as mains). Bass doesn't go down below 50Hz, but neither does most of my music (older jazz). On the upside, my MQ irons and some better coupling caps arrive this week, which should take things to yet another level....