Klipsch RF7 iii vs JBL 590

[Kleinst]

Has anyone heard both the Klipsch RF7 ii or iii and RC64 I or iii vs JBL 590s?

I have 590s and an Infinity Rc263 with 530 surrounds. I like that combo.

Missed a chance to get the RF7 setup a year ago before I got 590s and wondered if I missed anything. Obviously the RF7s are WAY more expensive

know most here don’t love Klipsch but I’m 100 percent home theater and RF7s are supposed to be good for HT
Thx

 

[mazersteven]

I have 590s and an Infinity Rc263 with 530 surrounds. I like that combo.

No you don't. You wouldn't have asked this question if you did.

You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about on Forums

 

[carlthess40]

You
Mist out big time


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[Kleinst]

No you don't. You wouldn't have asked this question if you did.

You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about on Forums

View attachment 39660

Yes! I am guessing this is true. The problem was that the only place that would fit these would be my upstairs set up where I have my JBLs. I watch maybe an hour a day up there. Most of our TV/Show watching is downstairs and they simply won't fit there. If they would I'd probably spend that level of $ now. I just found it interesting that noone here seems to mention these yet I've heard they are amongst the best for home theater. So was curious for those who have had or listened to both.

 

[mazersteven]

yet I've heard they are amongst the best for home theater.

I don't know where this comes from but, I've sat in front of the RF7's for hours one day in someones Home Theater. (I've also listened to them on other occasions.) And to tell you that I couldn't wait to get the Fuc out of there is an understatement. I listened to Country, Rock, Jazz, R&B. I demo'd movie scenes from Master and Commander, Finding Nemo, U-571, and others.
I'm not going to say they where a bad speaker. Obviously the Engineers at Klipsch know what they are doing. But they are not for me.

I think the (best for Home Theater) statement is because these get Loud. Very Loud if they want. Which I can understand for Home Theater

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

JBL 590: 1" Compression Driver (glass/Teonex polyester), dual 8" woofers (poly-plastic)

RF7-III: 1.75" Compression Driver (Titanium), dual 10" woofers (Aluminum)

So I think based on these specs, I would take the RF7-III for 3 reasons.

1. Titanium & Aluminum are better than Plastic/glass
2. 1.75" is better than 1"
3. dual 10" is better than dual 8"

Of course, the argument is that size and materials alone do not guarantee anything. But that's what I think.

Would like to see some counter-arguments from the opposing counsel.

 

[surfacetension]

Everyone here loves to hate on Klipsch so I'd never bother asking this forum what they think of them.

 

[ryanosaur]

To be fair, the RF8000s do show some flaws in their measurements, though most who have heard them say they sound great.
I think the most obvious concern with Towers like the Klipsch are that you need space for the individual drivers to integrate properly into a cohesive sound. That requires a big room and about 2 meters minimum seating distance with 3 meters being preferable.
We had one friend here change out his SVS Primes for RF8000s, then those for the JBL590s, all three matching towers across the front. He indicated that the JBLs did sound smoother overall than the Klipsch did, and was still even a little conflicted because he did like the Ks.
@Danzilla31 you still kicking around, buddy?! Missin ya! Care to chime in with your experience?

 

[Kleinst]

Thanks for everyone's feedback. I was just curious because those R7 iii's just look so kick ass and from what I'm told are much better even than the RP line and are really dynamic. But I haven't had any so I don't really know. Frankly where I'd make the investment to put them, I can't fit them. So probably a moot point but I was wanting get others experiences if anyone had some.

From your experience, what other speakers give the best and most dynamic home theater performance? Unlike many others, I really just use my system for watching movies/shows/etc. I'm sure that any good speaker can do both music and HT well though but I had just heard that those Klipsch RF7 iii's were good in this regard. Could be wrong though.

 

[mazersteven]

My choices in the $3500-$4000 range

Paradigm Prestige 85F

Prestige 85F

4-driver, 2-1/2 way floorstanding

www.paradigm.com

Monitor Audio Silver 500

Silver 6G | Silver 500 | Monitor Audio

Monitor Audio’s top-of-the-range Silver 500 is a loudspeaker for the serious audiophile and promises seismic bass, delicate treble and a realistic mid-range.

www.monitoraudio.com

Monitor Audio Gold 200

Gold 200 | Floorstanding Speakers | Monitor Audio

Monitor Audio’s Gold 200 floorstanding loudspeaker produces a powerful audiophile sound wherever it is positioned.

www.monitoraudio.com

Salk Song3

Salk Sound

www.salksound.com

Canton Vento 896.2

Vento 896.2 DC

What makes the Vento.2 even better? Along with the first-rate tweeter system made from ceramic and high-fidelity titanium membranes, the Vento .2…

www.canton.de

Dynaudio Evoke 30

Evoke 30 | Floorstand | Born in Jupiter

Put a pair of Evoke floorstanders in your living room and even the least ‘hi-fi’ person in the world will know you mean business.

www.dynaudio.com

Focal Aria 926

High-end loudspeaker Aria 926 - Focal

The Aria 926 loudspeaker by Focal symbolises the return of the 'true' acoustic loudspeaker. Dynamic and design for those who are passionate.

www.focal.com

Polk Audio Legend 600

LEGEND L600 Premium Floorstanding Tower Speaker | Polk Audio

Bring amazing audio into your home with the LEGEND L600 PREMIUM FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER Floor standing tower speaker. Expect Great Sound™ with Polk. Click to learn more.

www.polkaudio.com

Don't know how I forgot about these. Definitely would be on my list to audition

Legacy Audio Expression

High-End Speakers and Audio Systems

High-end audio accessories company specializing in high-performance loudspeakers, subwoofers and system electronics for home theater and audiophiles.

www.legacyaudio.com

Legacy Audio Classic HD

Classic HD

Classic HD is designed from the ground up to deliver amazing sound. Great as a front pair in home theater applications; exacting enough for the most…

legacyaudio.com

 

[carlthess40]

I’ve had the RF7 series 1 and 2’s with the series 1 Rc64 and an RC62 , the combination is phenomenal. I’ve owned numerous models of JBL‘s from the professional line to the home line of speakers I really do like the JBL‘s in the 2 way configuration ,but I really really love the sound of the Klipsch rf7’s . Many people believe that the older models are very harsh on the highs. they are ,but as you get older you start losing your hearing in the higher frequencies and they really helped bring out the higher frequencies
when you start getting high frequency hearing loss , this really helps
The newer models are a little more laid back


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[Kleinst]

I’ve had the RF7 series 1 and 2’s with the series 1 Rc64 and an RC62 , the combination is phenomenal. I’ve owned numerous models of JBL‘s from the professional line to the home line of speakers I really do like the JBL‘s in the 2 way configuration ,but I really really love the sound of the Klipsch rf7’s . Many people believe that the older models are very harsh on the highs. they are ,but as you get older you start losing your hearing in the higher frequencies and they really helped bring out the higher frequencies
when you start getting high frequency hearing loss , this really helps
The newer models are a little more laid back


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Thanks for sharing, I'll be on the lookout likely for a used set at a value price. Would love to try them. Till then, my JBL setup is paid for and sounds great so it's hard to invest $3K+ to replace

 

[Old Onkyo]

I think what if is a part of the game...

 

[carlthess40]

Thanks for sharing, I'll be on the lookout likely for a used set at a value price. Would love to try them. Till then, my JBL setup is paid for and sounds great so it's hard to invest $3K+ to replace

Your EV’s can be updated just like Klipsch can. New crossover parts and so on. Even making the cabs stiffer can help
Just enjoy them


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[robwas]

I’ve had the RF7 series 1 and 2’s with the series 1 Rc64 and an RC62 , the combination is phenomenal. I’ve owned numerous models of JBL‘s from the professional line to the home line of speakers I really do like the JBL‘s in the 2 way configuration ,but I really really love the sound of the Klipsch rf7’s . Many people believe that the older models are very harsh on the highs. they are ,but as you get older you start losing your hearing in the higher frequencies and they really helped bring out the higher frequencies
when you start getting high frequency hearing loss , this really helps
The newer models are a little more laid back


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Interesting observations. I've had some similar setups, when I was a young man in the 80's I bought a pair of gigantic Cerwin Vega D9's, as much as "audiophiles" mocked them the sound was solid at least for what I liked listening to. Moving forward something happened to my D9's and they sounded horrible, maybe the crossovers broke down or something? Anyways I picked up some JBL speakers and was fairly pleased although I still think the vegas sounded better when they were working correctly. Fast forward many more years, I'm now in my 50's and when I was younger and had absolutely excellent hearing into my mid 30's I had listened to a pair of Klipsch RF7's and liked them. I saw a pair on FB marketplace a couple years ago and the owner was asking $500... I offered him $350 for the pair and he accepted! I wasn't expecting them to be in mint condition and in fact the dust caps have some bumps likely from a child's fingers pushing on them but they're perfectly functional and sound great. I wasn't sure how I'd like them after all those years and after using the JBL's for quite a few years but immediately I liked them more, I felt like the entire sound of the system "opened up" and I started hearing nuances in recordings I had only noticed wearing headphones previously. As we age highs start to go, I have seen my high frequency hearing degrade quite a bit in the past 5-10 years and the stronger highs of the Klipsch are appreciated, however if i listen to them at even moderate volumes (maybe it's louder than I think) for long periods of time I actually get pain in my ears something I never had in my life. It's really strange, never had it happen with other speakers at what I'd consider reasonable volume. Nowadays it's hard to listen to speakers in person and even moreso with covid. I remember the days when every department store or electronics store had every speaker they sold setup in one of usually two "sound rooms". The rooms were usually built to contain the sound so other shoppers weren't exposed to louder listening sessions. I miss those days, I probably listened to 1000 speakers in my time and loved doing blind listening tests to see what I picked. Even when I was younger and had hearing up to 20K I never seemed to like soft dome tweeters and always preferred the harder sound of metal tweeters.

 

[Kleinst]

I actually

Interesting observations. I've had some similar setups, when I was a young man in the 80's I bought a pair of gigantic Cerwin Vega D9's, as much as "audiophiles" mocked them the sound was solid at least for what I liked listening to. Moving forward something happened to my D9's and they sounded horrible, maybe the crossovers broke down or something? Anyways I picked up some JBL speakers and was fairly pleased although I still think the vegas sounded better when they were working correctly. Fast forward many more years, I'm now in my 50's and when I was younger and had absolutely excellent hearing into my mid 30's I had listened to a pair of Klipsch RF7's and liked them. I saw a pair on FB marketplace a couple years ago and the owner was asking $500... I offered him $350 for the pair and he accepted! I wasn't expecting them to be in mint condition and in fact the dust caps have some bumps likely from a child's fingers pushing on them but they're perfectly functional and sound great. I wasn't sure how I'd like them after all those years and after using the JBL's for quite a few years but immediately I liked them more, I felt like the entire sound of the system "opened up" and I started hearing nuances in recordings I had only noticed wearing headphones previously. As we age highs start to go, I have seen my high frequency hearing degrade quite a bit in the past 5-10 years and the stronger highs of the Klipsch are appreciated, however if i listen to them at even moderate volumes (maybe it's louder than I think) for long periods of time I actually get pain in my ears something I never had in my life. It's really strange, never had it happen with other speakers at what I'd consider reasonable volume. Nowadays it's hard to listen to speakers in person and even moreso with covid. I remember the days when every department store or electronics store had every speaker they sold setup in one of usually two "sound rooms". The rooms were usually built to contain the sound so other shoppers weren't exposed to louder listening sessions. I miss those days, I probably listened to 1000 speakers in my time and loved doing blind listening tests to see what I picked. Even when I was younger and had hearing up to 20K I never seemed to like soft dome tweeters and always preferred the harder sound of metal tweeters.

I was actually in a Nebraska Furniture mart this weekend and I listed to some Klipsch RF7 III's then listed to some Revel F36s for the same scene. The Klipsch do have a wicked dynamic for some of the action scenes but the voices to me did NOT sound good from them. It's possible it's the room or the EQ but it did not make me want to spend my money on those altough I'm sure they are fine speakers. But the voices sounded thin and unnatural.

The Revels on the other hand are more similar to what I have. The voices were much more clear. Not quite as exciting but frankly they can be turned up to a level where you get all the sound you want.

To do it over again, I probably wouldn't buy either of those unless they fell in my lap for 30 cents on the dollar

 

[robwas]

I actually


I was actually in a Nebraska Furniture mart this weekend and I listed to some Klipsch RF7 III's then listed to some Revel F36s for the same scene. The Klipsch do have a wicked dynamic for some of the action scenes but the voices to me did NOT sound good from them. It's possible it's the room or the EQ but it did not make me want to spend my money on those altough I'm sure they are fine speakers. But the voices sounded thin and unnatural.

The Revels on the other hand are more similar to what I have. The voices were much more clear. Not quite as exciting but frankly they can be turned up to a level where you get all the sound you want.

To do it over again, I probably wouldn't buy either of those unless they fell in my lap for 30 cents on the dollar

The more I listen to music on different speaker systems the more I realize oftentimes a lot of sound simply comes down to the source recording and how it was mixe, mastered and produced. Some recordings won't sound good on ANYTHING and others will jump out of your speakers. I won't say the RF7's are the best speakers I've ever heard but i do like them and even with vocals. I haven't actually heard the v3's but my center channel is a v3.

 

[Danzilla31]

To be fair, the RF8000s do show some flaws in their measurements, though most who have heard them say they sound great.
I think the most obvious concern with Towers like the Klipsch are that you need space for the individual drivers to integrate properly into a cohesive sound. That requires a big room and about 2 meters minimum seating distance with 3 meters being preferable.
We had one friend here change out his SVS Primes for RF8000s, then those for the JBL590s, all three matching towers across the front. He indicated that the JBLs did sound smoother overall than the Klipsch did, and was still even a little conflicted because he did like the Ks.
@Danzilla31 you still kicking around, buddy?! Missin ya! Care to chime in with your experience?

Ahhh buddy I miss you too!

 

[Danzilla31]

Has anyone heard both the Klipsch RF7 ii or iii and RC64 I or iii vs JBL 590s?

I have 590s and an Infinity Rc263 with 530 surrounds. I like that combo.

Missed a chance to get the RF7 setup a year ago before I got 590s and wondered if I missed anything. Obviously the RF7s are WAY more expensive

know most here don’t love Klipsch but I’m 100 percent home theater and RF7s are supposed to be good for HT
Thx

I have owned the Klipsch RP8000F and I've owned the JBL 590 and Bjorns has the RF7iii's
and I went up there just the other week and had them properly placed and set up right in a private room and listened to them extensively and AB'D them with golden ear B&W and several other high end brands

And except for ironically the M&K speakers the Klipsch were my favorite

If you guys remember I posted a thread on here comparing the JBL 590 to the Klipsch 8000f. And it was very close.

The 590 but the 8000fs held up really well

Basically the 590's could do everything the Klipsch could do just a little bit better especially with the tweeter and they could go louder with less distortion

Now the RF7 iii can do everything the JBL 590 can do a whole lot better even in the high end and play a whole lot louder with zero distortion.

And as dynamic as the JBL were the Klipsch RF7iii just were so much more dynamic. The bass is very balanced for those 10 inch drivers powerful but great balance midrange some of the best I've heard and the highs so so clear and quick and detailed with zero harshness at all.

They are easily one of my favorite all time speakers for home theater and they sound great for music too.

Compared to my RBH SV 831R though they put up a good fight but they lose out. But the 831R cost much more then the RF7 iii. Where the RBH win is they sound just as good for movies but they are some of the best speakers I've ever heard in my life for music.

They have a way of disappearing into the best Soundstage detail and imaging I've ever heard in my life. And every area midrange bass and tweeter is superb.

The Klipsch RF7iii have a characteristic I've heard with good horns. The Soundstage is more forward direct and in your face. This is not a bad thing They are never shouty honky or bright as poorly designed horns are they don't have the cupped hands effect. Its just the Soundstage is presented more in front and closer to you which is great for movies while the RBH has a Soundstage much further back and wider which I lose myself in and find I prefer for music especially its a tie for home theater

Bottom line The RF7III are one of my favorite speakers I've listened to. They are a very lively speaker with huge dynamics and can be driven at any level with no distortion. They sound as good at lower volumes as high. I would say they are one of the most exciting sounding speakers I've ever listened to and if you like a speaker that can do live music and rock while still belting out some classical then these are for you.

The key is what Ryan said. You need some distance from them for the magic to happen. And they need some breathing room off of the back walls

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I have owned the Klipsch RP8000F and I've owned the JBL 590 and Bjorns has the RF7iii's
and I went up there just the other week and had them properly placed and set up right in a private room and listened to them extensively and AB'D them with golden ear B&W and several other high end brands

And except for ironically the M&K speakers the Klipsch were my favorite

If you guys remember I posted a thread on here comparing the JBL 590 to the Klipsch 8000f. And it was very close.

The 590 but the 8000fs held up really well

Basically the 590's could do everything the Klipsch could do just a little bit better especially with the tweeter and they could go louder with less distortion

Now the RF7 iii can do everything the JBL 590 can do a whole lot better even in the high end and play a whole lot louder with zero distortion.

And as dynamic as the JBL were the Klipsch RF7iii just were so much more dynamic. The bass is very balanced for those 10 inch drivers powerful but great balance midrange some of the best I've heard and the highs so so clear and quick and detailed with zero harshness at all.

They are easily one of my favorite all time speakers for home theater and they sound great for music too.

Compared to my RBH SV 831R though they put up a good fight but they lose out. But the 831R cost much more then the RF7 iii. Where the RBH win is they sound just as good for movies but they are some of the best speakers I've ever heard in my life for music.

They have a way of disappearing into the best Soundstage detail and imaging I've ever heard in my life. And every area midrange bass and tweeter is superb.

The Klipsch RF7iii have a characteristic I've heard with good horns. The Soundstage is more forward direct and in your face. This is not a bad thing They are never shouty honky or bright as poorly designed horns are they don't have the cupped hands effect. Its just the Soundstage is presented more in front and closer to you which is great for movies while the RBH has a Soundstage much further back and wider which I lose myself in and find I prefer for music especially its a tie for home theater

Bottom line The RF7III are one of my favorite speakers I've listened to. They are a very lively speaker with huge dynamics and can be driven at any level with no distortion. They sound as good at lower volumes as high. I would say they are one of the most exciting sounding speakers I've ever listened to and if you like a speaker that can do live music and rock while still belting out some classical then these are for you.

The key is what Ryan said. You need some distance from them for the magic to happen. And they need some breathing room off of the back walls

You like big dynamic speakers, subs and ports, and you’re not gonna lie.