Klipsch have decided to go old school with the release of the legendary Klipschorn speaker.
Not only have they decided to release the flagship of the range but will launch 3 other models in the Heritage range.
Descended from a single, revolutionary loudspeaker, designed by founder Paul W. Klipsch in 1946, the 2009 range pay absolutely no heed to the concept of fashion, for once function absolutely and utterly dictates form.
The legendary Klipschorn: £5999
There are four loudspeakers in the range. The flagship is, of course, the legendary Klipschorn. This mighty behemoth, which stands 1.28m high and weighs 79.5kg, is essentially identical to the model developed 60 years ago.
Featuring a horn-loaded Phenolic diaphragm 1in compression driver tweeter, 2in midrange and a 15in fibre-composite woofer the Klipschorn achieves a sensitivity of 105dB, making it – like all Heritage speakers – an ideal partner for today’s new generation of valve amplifiers.
Next in the range is the La Scala II. Originally designed by Paul W. Klipsch in 1963 as a P.A. speaker for Arkansas gubernatorial candidate Winthrop Rockefeller, this fully horn-loaded, 3-way loudspeaker sounded so good that people wanted to use it as a domestic hi-fi speaker.
Smaller than its legendary forbear this model features a grille to cover the mid and high frequency horns and an exposed bass horn cabinet.
The La Scala II: £3399
Originally designed as a centre-speaker (yes centre speakers!)to be used in conjunction with a pair of Klipschorns the 3-way Cornwall III offers the full-range bass response of the Klipschorn – thanks to its direct-radiating 15in woofer – but with a sensitivity and output that approaches that of the fully horn-loaded models. A riser base, to lift it from the floor, comes as standard.
Cornwall III: £1699
Last model in the Heritage line-up, the Heresy III. Easy to place because of its relatively compact dimensions (it stands a ‘mere’ 60cm high) the 3-way Heresy, which was first produced in 1957, has been improved over the years so that it now boasts a more powerful woofer, a bi-wire network and a titanium diaphragm-equipped tweeter and midrange units. A slant riser base for floor placement (removable for cabinet installations) is supplied as standard.
The Heresy III: £849
All the speakers in the Heritage range are built to order in Hope, Arkansas, USA (the birthplace of the Klipsch brand) and take approximately four weeks to construct.
Model
Klipschorn £5999
La Scala £3399
Cornwall III £1699
Heresy III £849