Tour the HQ of Klipsch

Terry Olaes

Terry Olaes

I Used to be the [H] News Guy
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Engadget took a tour of Klipsch’s HQ and took its readers along for the ride. Check it out if you’re curious at how a speaker maker plies its trade. It’s chock full of pics and videos so enjoy the tour.

Just so you have some background, Klipsch's headquarters are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, with another major production facility located in Hope, Arkansas. The Indy HQ (where we visited) is home to a dedicated design lab, one of only a smattering of anechoic chambers in the world, an in-house painting facility, a construction lab (for building wooden mockups as well as cabinets and the like), an environmental simulator for testing product response to weather variations and an SLA machine that's used to create minuscule mockups of earbuds.
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Definitely gonna click this link. Klipsch makes some awesome speakers. I had two pair of Klipsch LaScalas - simply the best speakers I'd ever heard.
 
Nice.

But, when are they going to get back to making 4.1 and 5.1 systems for computers?

A 7.1 would be grand, too

(Still have my 4.1 - and yet to find ANY computer speakers that compare...)
 
HvyMtl said:
Nice.

But, when are they going to get back to making 4.1 and 5.1 systems for computers?

A 7.1 would be grand, too

(Still have my 4.1 - and yet to find ANY computer speakers that compare...)
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I'll tell you what compares: Their 5.1 set. :)

I traded up from their 4.1 to the 5.1 back in 2003, they're still cranking along and still sound great. I also had a big Klipsch sub in my home theater for seven years, loved it. I finally gave it to a friend when I went all Bowers & Wilkins for my 5.1 living room audio late last year, but it was still really nice.

Either way, its a shame that Klipsch completely bailed on anything over 2.1 for their computer speakers, I guess they weren't selling enough.
 
I just ordered some RB-61s. I'm going to use them as computer speaker fronts in a 4.1 system. Looking forward to checking them out after all the hype!
 
The video regarding the frequency test was cool. Some tones kind of got my spine to tingle a bit. :D
 
Serpico said:
I'll tell you what compares: Their 5.1 set. :)

I traded up from their 4.1 to the 5.1 back in 2003, they're still cranking along and still sound great. I also had a big Klipsch sub in my home theater for seven years, loved it. I finally gave it to a friend when I went all Bowers & Wilkins for my 5.1 living room audio late last year, but it was still really nice.

Either way, its a shame that Klipsch completely bailed on anything over 2.1 for their computer speakers, I guess they weren't selling enough.
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+1 to that, I have the promedia 5.1 set too and it is still beyond reproach...everyone who hears it is blown away...got mine despite a very heated argument on a forum about QC with the set and I'm glad I disregarded the nay sayers. after all these years, multiple moves and marathon music, tv and gaming sessions they still crank
 
While they do make great computer speakers, their higher end home speakers are truly awesome.
 
I still have my promedia speakers also and they're badass, they blow my creative speakers away. I'm due for some 5.1 or 7.1 speakers now though. Not to mention the controller speaker on my 4.1 loses volume when the volume is adjusted so I'm due for some replacement.
 
That video of the frequency test let me find out what the resonant frequencies of some of the stuff in this room were. :p
 
Does anyone have any of the new RB reference series bookshelf speakers? Curious what yall think of em for computer front speakers.
 
OMG, flux capacitor!
klipsch-sketches-headquarters.jpg
 
thats how you tell a nerd from a non-nerd, i totally say some jay-jay in that sketch. this thread makes me wanna try my klipsch speakies so bad.
 
dang i cant figure out how to edit, meant to say "saw" instead of "say" ;) So whats the whole deal with their gold colored drivers, that got real gold in them somehow?
 
maademperor said:
+1 to that, I have the promedia 5.1 set too and it is still beyond reproach...everyone who hears it is blown away...got mine despite a very heated argument on a forum about QC with the set and I'm glad I disregarded the nay sayers. after all these years, multiple moves and marathon music, tv and gaming sessions they still crank
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I'm really happy that the volume control box on my 5.1 set has lasted so long. The volume knob on my old Klipsch 2.1 set wen bad after a few years. Turning it would create static and jumpiness in volume.

I just totally jinxed my 5.1s by posting this. :)
 
I miss my Promedia 4.1s. Best speakers I've ever owned, payed a load for em too at the time I got them ($400). I do say though, I'll always remember them ;)
 
thenewrick said:
Does anyone have any of the new RB reference series bookshelf speakers? Curious what yall think of em for computer front speakers.
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I don't have any RB from the reference, but I do have a full set of their Reference 62 series (RF, RC, RS and RSW combination) in my home theater and the RBs will sound great. I feel they are strongest in movies and TV, but I can't complain about the way music sounds on them either.
 
I absolutely love my Klipsch ProMedia Ultra 5.1 speakers. Even more impressive are my dad's Klipsch Cornwall speakers from the 70's, they are amazing and so loud.
 
I'm currently running my speakers through my subwoofer. I go from computer to receiver with optical audio cable, then from receiver to subwoofer using front outs on receiver to subwoofer, then subwoofer out via speaker wire to my speakers. I don't fully understand what crossover frequency I should set the subwoofer at, or if the xover function even works since I'm connecting the woofer to my receiver via speaker wire... It's all pretty confusing to me. I hope it's not degrading any sound quality by running the speakers thru the subwoofer.
 
I wish I knew a audio/hardware tech IRL to help me with all my electronics stuff. I've learned so much about audio electronics recently. I don't think I have a good ear for setting up audio equipment properly, and calibrating the settings optimally.
 
It'd be cool if there were a Klipsch insider that would come to hardocp and answer some product Q's.
 
i had a set of pro media 5.1's... didnt last more than a year and the amp blew. i was never overly blown over by them anyways, ive always had better stuff from the home theater realm... I have an 8" powered sub from them thats probly 10 years old though thats still pounding.
 
Still rocking the Promedia 2.1's here. Volume control box died and I replaced it just in time before they stopped selling the parts for them.

Now if I could just get my hands on some better gauge cabling with the connectors for the left and right speakers. :(
 
thenewrick said:
I wish I knew a audio/hardware tech IRL to help me with all my electronics stuff. I've learned so much about audio electronics recently. I don't think I have a good ear for setting up audio equipment properly, and calibrating the settings optimally.
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One important thing is to find a good audio shop in your area. Not a big retailer, a local shop that serves higher end brands with knowledgeable sales staff. The next thing is to audition a bunch of different setups and see what you like. I like Bowers & Wilkins but you may favor something different.

The other thing to recognize is that audio setups will sound different depending on the physical space that they're in. It may sound different in your room than it does in a showroom, and you may need to shift things around, place throw rugs on reflective surfaces like hard wood floors if they are making the sound too hot, etc, so keep that in mind.

Calibrating settings is easy with modern receivers and pre-pros. You can dial your basic settings in manually, then do the final tweak with an audio meter you get at a place like Radio Shack. Place it in the listening position and then cycle a test tone through each speaker channel. Tweak levels until they are all properly balanced, done.

Its a little research but it isn't rocket science. What I can't stress enough is to give systems a listen yourself. Oh, and go in with a budget. There is a lot of snake oil in audio but until a certain level the rule that "you get what you pay for" most definitely applies. If you cannot afford it, don't listen to it, plain and simple. If you do without a firm budget and are weak with your pocketbook then your costs will quickly start to spin out of control.
 
notice how no manufacturing photos? oh ya cause its all made in china :rolleyes:
 
Yeah, Klipsch sounded great but I had a set of PC speakers that developed bad distortion when adjusting the volume controls. It was a shame because I liked the speakers themselves it was just the controls that were garbage. Came to find out that just about everyone who bought those 2.1 speakers had the same problem.
 
Wow, people really like Klipsch... I used to be interested in Klipsch speakers back in the 90's, then when I saw the promedia 5.1's advertised I thought they would live up to the quality of the rest of their stuff so I bought them.

WRONG! from day one i was absolutely shocked at how bad they sounded. The satellites sound like a cheap speaker driver inside a soup can. It seems like there was such a huge gap in the frequency response between the satellites and the sub that anything in the vocal range suffered significantly. on top of that, the fact that the damn amp powering the sats died just after 1 year, and Klipsch would not repair them, they offered a shop where I could send them and pay for the repair, only to have the same failure happen again. according to the folks on the klipsch forum at the time, this was the typical Promedia owners experience. the worst of it all is that they didn't address the issue. there was no recall on the amps, and the same issue lived on even into the next 5.1 promedia product.

As far as I'm concerned klipsch can burn in hell. I will do my best to speak poorly of them regardless of what product line they are pitching or my experiences with it. For what they were, the promedia 5.1's were not cheap when they launched, and you'd expect something more than a disposable product from a high-end brand like klipsch. If they can't properly test, or support a product in the promedia's price range, who's to say they can do anything in their field right at all?
 
My klipsch 4.1 are still running strong after several years of (ab)use. Still sounds great for computer speakers.

Of course they are NOTHING like the LaScalas I had, but then the LaScalas literally cost 10X as much.

Get some klipsch home speakers that are in the $500+ range and you'll be amazed - even more amazing if you go up to some of the upper end stuff (thousands+)
 
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