Klipsch RP-600M Speaker Review

[QMuse]

Hello John. I agree with you for folks in our age bracket. I suspect much younger folks though will hear that last octave as brightness. Have you checked that with someone in their 20s?

LOL I'm 56 so allow me to join this discussion. I have done a precise hearing test few months ago and it turned out that anything above 12kHz is supersonic to my ears. But then, here's the spectrum plot of the song I'm currently listening to (Beth Hart - Caught Out In The Rain) and seeing this I don't feel that much handicapped. The other side of that same coin is that I may be as well comforting myself with twisted truth that suits me.

 

[tuga]

Hello John. I agree with you for folks in our age bracket. I suspect much younger folks though will hear that last octave as brightness. Have you checked that with someone in their 20s?

Most pro audio sources I've seen say "air". "Brightness" is lower in frequency. For example:

http://alexiy.nl/eq/

This source refers to the "brilliance" band to the range above 6kHz:

https://www.teachmeaudio.com/mixing/techniques/audio-spectrum/

 

[QMuse]

Most pro audio sources I've seen say "air". "Brightness" is lower in frequency. For example:

http://alexiy.nl/eq/

This source refers to the "brilliance" band to the range above 6kHz:

https://www.teachmeaudio.com/mixing/techniques/audio-spectrum/

Are you saying I lost my air? That sounds really scary to me.

 

[stevenswall]

"Klipschit" is a word that only existed in my head until today.

Hopefully their higher end models aren't just a scaled up version of this. People fawn over them in budget audiophile forums and such, my guess is because they look like they should sound fantastic. Something about colored drivers makes people go wild.

 

[BYRTT]

Not sure if mentioned yet, but I would appreciate measurements AFTER EQ if it is done. I know the measurement takes awhile but I think it would help harmonize how useful EQ is from a pure measurement perspective.

I don't have a means of capturing Roon EQ and translating it into a curve for Klippel measurements. It is possible but way outside of the realm of this lazy man right now.

That listening test used Roon PEQ example of +3 and +5dB @1931Hz/Q1,3 and should in horizontal plane look like below prediction if measured:

 

[amirm]

Most pro audio sources I've seen say "air". "Brightness" is lower in frequency. For example:

http://alexiy.nl/eq/

This source refers to the "brilliance" band to the range above 6kHz:

https://www.teachmeaudio.com/mixing/techniques/audio-spectrum/

I don't put much stock in such charts. It is not like it is backed by any kind of formal study to show it is correct.

In this speaker I specifically dialed in a filter as I howed and it definitely lowered the brightness. Now, the filter could have impacted lower frequencies as well.

 

[tuga]

It is not like it is backed by any kind of formal study to show it is correct.

What do you need a study for? It's a naming convention.

 

[amirm]

What do you need a study for? It's a naming convention.

What? Are you not following the conversation?

 

[Jon L]

Hi Amir, when you write in this graph “Peaking above 10kHz will sound bright,” that hasn't been my experience. Excess energy in the top octave, if also present off-axis, tends to add "air" or fizziness and lispiness if extreme. If the excess above 10kHz is small and the tweeter's dispersion is limited in this region (as they almost all are), then it can actually result in a neutral top-octave balance in all but small rooms. Brightness, I have found, tends to be due to too much energy between 5kHz and 10kHz.

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile

John, how many of us audiophiles are in their 20's at this point? The RP600M's do sound to my ears as having airy presentation with engaging, forward vocal images, likely due to narrow directivity. The 1.9kHz dip happens to ameliorate some of the poor recording qualities of digital medium, and many of us know how to change up cable/tubes to come up with acceptable balance in our particular room. For $600/pair of speakers, they are good fun to listen to. Try listening to something like Leonard Cohen "You Want It Darker" album on them, especially via good tubes Thanks, Herb.

 

[Xyrium]

Preference Rating
SCORE: 4.0
SCORE w/sub: 5.8

A sub can't fix this mess....should be more like 4.1 with a sub.

 

[Xulonn]

Something about colored drivers makes people go wild.

Like these?

 

[Haint]

I feel like amir just became a "made man" but the speaker mafioso. Nice review.

It'll be an accident. "Local man killed by garage robot as neighbors complained of repeated chirping sounds"

 

[LTig]

' HR also wrote that he had 'a slight preference' for the sound of the RP-600Ms with their grilles on. The grille reduces the tweeter's output by 1dB or so between 3 and 8kHz."

Welcome to ASR!

What is your experience regarding speaker grills in general? Is it typical that the difference in sound w and w/o grille is audible?

I'm curiuos because when I bought my K&H O300D Markus Wolff (chief designer of then K&H and now Neumann) told me that the difference in sound for the O300D w and w/o grille is measurable but too small to be audible - something I'd take for granted for a studio monitor.

PS: The grilles were horribly expensive but almost indistructable (you could beat them with a hammer and they'd still protect the speaker) so you get what you pay for.

 

[Kw6]

I almost bought these. What intrigued me was their liveliness but it sounded lean but to my 53 yr old ears treble was sweet with a bit of air when they played a Tony Bennett video concert. Instead I recently purchased the discontinued Klipsch Heresy III. I must say I am quite enjoying them. Just makes me want to listen to music. Maybe a member has access to one you can measure or even the new Heresy IVs! Enjoying the thread as usual!☺

 

[QMuse]

That listening test used Roon PEQ example of +3 and +5dB @1931Hz/Q1,3 and should in horizontal plane look like below prediction if measured:
View attachment 55192

These 3 simple PEQ filters seem to flatten LW almost perfectly and they don't affect LF response at all. Can you plz try them with your simulation?

 

[BDWoody]

-measurements-measurement
John Atkinson

Welcome John. I hope you become a regular contributor.

 

[LTig]

Welcome John. I hope you become a regular contributor.

Me too.

 

[BDWoody]

Products don't get reviewed they get promoted

+1

Perfectly stated.

 

[QMuse]

+1

Perfectly stated.

Ehh, don't give him too much credit, he read it somewhere.

 

[John Atkinson]

Welcome to ASR!

Thank you. And to everyone else who has welcomed me to this forum.

What is your experience regarding speaker grills in general? Is it typical that the difference in sound w and w/o grille is audible?

There isn't a general rule regarding grilles. Some speakers are intended to be used without grilles or have vestigial grilles that don't significantly affect response or dispersion; some, like the Vandersteens, have grilles that provide the necessary acoustic environment for the upper-frequency drive-units; others, like the Klipsch RP600, tend to sound better-balanced in the treble with the grille in place, though very often with small peaks and dips due to early reflections from the grille; these reflection-induced effects are ubiquitous with speakers like the GoldenEars where the grille stands away from the baffle and can't be removed.

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile