Klipsch The Fives Powered Bookshelf Speaker Review

[Phidel]

No parametric EQ in the built-in firmware, only the very basic (and next to useless) 3 band EQ.
You need to use software on your computer, or a hardware DSP that supports Parametric EQ if you are to import the profiles and use them. This means you are then limited to use the EQ only through this software, or via the hardware DSP. There is no way for the speakers to remember it.
For watching on TV with speakers connected directly to the TV this will mean definitely you cannot use Parametric EQ without a dedicated MiniDSP or similar. Not sure if any support Optical or HDMI though.

A lot of the reviews would have been done when the speakers came out with the original firmware. Not sure if they have fixed HDMI not sounding as good as Optical, but I've only ever used mine with the latest firmware and I haven't found this problem.

In your situation you will want to keep the speakers set to night mode. When connecting to your computer you can use Parametric EQ in software like Equalizer APO+Peace. When using without a computer, for example directly from your TV this Parametric EQ cannot be used, but the best sound will still be with the speakers set to night mode.

Of course, It's a personal thing too, you don't have to like the accurate sound and can use the speakers however you like. At the end of the day if you are not happy with them (and this is just general advice) then you are best returning them while you still can to avoid buyers remorse.

I'm using these speakers as a PC monitor 95% of time and I'm using APO+Peace interface with Maiky78's parametric EQ, but I'm asking if there are new parametric EQ for the lastest firmware. I'm happy with The Fives, I only want to improve at maxium their sound quality with subwoofer.

If I set the "Night mode" I loss all the punch bass and the music sounds soulless and if turn on the "Dinamic bass" option I feel the bass too overpowered and false. Some people recommended me this: https://www.fidelizer-audio.com/ but not sure if it will improve something, anyone know it?

 

[Dodgexander]

I don't think that will improve the audio quality. If you don't like night mode then you can keep it disabled but don't use the parametric EQ this way as it will not give an accurate result.

For someone to release EQ for the new firmware a new review will have to be done. The night mode is the same as the bass-cut mode used to create the EQs in this thread so it shouldn't be a problem.

I think there's a conflict of interest here. I do not believe you are looking for the most accurate sound and instead want more colour to your music. You should just change settings how you like and forget using the parametric EQ if it doesn't sound good to you. You're probably posting in the wrong forum. Check what adjustments people have been using on the Klipsch forum or Reddit.

 

[Phidel]

At this moment I have the parametric EQ off and its true, the sound is better (has more air and amplitude) night mode off and dinamic bass off. If I'm asking is because there is 0 information about any EQ with the new firmware and I don't know what I must do to get the sound that I want, but I remember when I had the Edifier SB360 in the same position, their had a sound with diferent planes for the instruments, the voice, the bass, etc., with The fives seem all the sound is represented in the same plane and the same position (they have more overall quality than SB360 but a poor imaging), in other words, the SB360 have a special 3D effect very beatifull for music and games. I'm looking some information to get a similar efect but with the superior sound quality of The Fives and there is no information in internet.

Also I'm looking how I should set my subwoofer, now I set it with invert phase on, level at 70% and low pass arround 80%, but no information founded in any web

 

[Dodgexander]

At this moment I have the parametric EQ off and its true, the sound is better (has more air and amplitude) night mode off and dinamic bass off. If I'm asking is because there is 0 information about any EQ with the new firmware and I don't know what I must do to get the sound that I want, but I remember when I had the Edifier SB360 in the same position, their had a sound with diferent planes for the instruments, the voice, the bass, etc., with The fives seem all the sound is represented in the same plane and the same position (they have more overall quality than SB360 but a poor imaging), in other words, the SB360 have a special 3D effect very beatifull for music and games. I'm looking some information to get a similar efect but with the superior sound quality of The Fives and there is no information in internet.

Also I'm looking how I should set my subwoofer, now I set it with invert phase on, level at 70% and low pass arround 80%, but no information founded in any web

I haven't tried those Edifies. If you don't like the sound with the EQ then you are not looking for the same sound as most people on this forum and should just use whatever settings you want in the app. You can also use a multi band EQ to achieve more of a V curve if that's what you want.

Soundstage will get better if you have the speakers farther apart and not angled towards you. If you have the speakers angled towards you and near the sound will be very focused.

Honestly these speakers are not 'light and airy' but more rich and bold so perhaps you just don't like how they sound. EQ can change a lot but not everything. You can change the paint on a car but that won't change how it handles. It may just be you need return the speakers if you don't like them.

The subwoofer cut off frequency is 80hz not 80%. Invert phase shouldn't be used unless you have two subwoofers afaik.

 

[Sheriff1972]

Please download Klipsch connect and adjust from there with respect to room positioning (-6, -3, 0dB). I use without the loudness contour engaged, running with -6dB in terms of room positioning.

You can dial in from there.

Please use Klipsch Connect from time to time, as OTA updates appear here when they are ready to be pushed

 

[Phidel]

I haven't tried those Edifies. If you don't like the sound with the EQ then you are not looking for the same sound as most people on this forum and should just use whatever settings you want in the app. You can also use a multi band EQ to achieve more of a V curve if that's what you want.

Soundstage will get better if you have the speakers farther apart and not angled towards you. If you have the speakers angled towards you and near the sound will be very focused.

Honestly these speakers are not 'light and airy' but more rich and bold so perhaps you just don't like how they sound. EQ can change a lot but not everything. You can change the paint on a car but that won't change how it handles. It may just be you need return the speakers if you don't like them.

The subwoofer cut off frequency is 80hz not 80%. Invert phase shouldn't be used unless you have two subwoofers afaik.

The separation between the speakers are 2m aprox. and yes, I have it in V position pointing me, I'll try to put it more plane but I have a wall beside the right speaker and I think the sound will rebound in this wall...

Please download Klipsch connect and adjust from there with respect to room positioning (-6, -3, 0dB). I use without the loudness contour engaged, running with -6dB in terms of room positioning.

You can dial in from there.

Please use Klipsch Connect from time to time, as OTA updates appear here when they are ready to be pushed

I have a subwoofer connected and as I said before there is a wall beaside the right speaker and sincerely I don't ear any difference between the 3 positions, I leave it in -3dB (other) dinamic bass and night mode off.

 

[BillGrimm]

If I could get some opinions from some of the membership on this, I would appreciate it: I am thinking of getting a pair of these for my TV room. They would have to sit on their sides on a shelf above the wall-mounted TV (the shelf isn't tall enough for them to sit upright). Everything I watch is played through VLC player on the Android TV (Sony), so I use the built-in equalizer to help with audio. Sony TV speakers really suck. Anyway, I am a lifelong fan of Polk Audio, and I have been listening to my Monitor 10Bs basically everyday since I bought them in 1986. I listened to some Klipsch speakers at that time when I was deciding what speakers to buy, and found the horn tweeters a bit annoying. That shop sold Klipsch and Yamaha equipment, while the competing shop across town sold Polk, Harman/Kardon, Carver, and JBL. I bought the Polks and an HK 795i receiver to power them. Never looked back.

My question to you is: will the Klipsch Fives be something I will likely enjoy, or will I find them annoying as I found Klipsch speakers back in 1986? The closest thing I can compare the floor-standing Klipsch speakers I heard back then are Peavey performance speakers. Loud, with no subtlety. I sit next to my 10Bs and it is like having a conversation--everything is clear and effortless.

Also, if the Fives will likely not be my cup of tea, do you have other recommendations, particularly among powered bookshelf speakers?

Thanks! I really enjoy reading the views on this site!

 

[beaRA]

If I could get some opinions from some of the membership on this, I would appreciate it: I am thinking of getting a pair of these for my TV room. They would have to sit on their sides on a shelf above the wall-mounted TV (the shelf isn't tall enough for them to sit upright). Everything I watch is played through VLC player on the Android TV (Sony), so I use the built-in equalizer to help with audio. Sony TV speakers really suck. Anyway, I am a lifelong fan of Polk Audio, and I have been listening to my Monitor 10Bs basically everyday since I bought them in 1986. I listened to some Klipsch speakers at that time when I was deciding what speakers to buy, and found the horn tweeters a bit annoying. That shop sold Klipsch and Yamaha equipment, while the competing shop across town sold Polk, Harman/Kardon, Carver, and JBL. I bought the Polks and an HK 795i receiver to power them. Never looked back.

My question to you is: will the Klipsch Fives be something I will likely enjoy, or will I find them annoying as I found Klipsch speakers back in 1986? The closest thing I can compare the floor-standing Klipsch speakers I heard back then are Peavey performance speakers. Loud, with no subtlety. I sit next to my 10Bs and it is like having a conversation--everything is clear and effortless.

Also, if the Fives will likely not be my cup of tea, do you have other recommendations, particularly among powered bookshelf speakers?

Thanks! I really enjoy reading the views on this site!

The shelf isn't tall enough because it is too close to the ceiling? That's not great placement for any speakers. If you are really limited to speakers laid on their sides, your best bet are coaxials from Kef.

 

[warpdrive]

If I could get some opinions from some of the membership on this, I would appreciate it: I am thinking of getting a pair of these for my TV room. They would have to sit on their sides on a shelf above the wall-mounted TV (the shelf isn't tall enough for them to sit upright). Everything I watch is played through VLC player on the Android TV (Sony), so I use the built-in equalizer to help with audio. Sony TV speakers really suck. Anyway, I am a lifelong fan of Polk Audio, and I have been listening to my Monitor 10Bs basically everyday since I bought them in 1986. I listened to some Klipsch speakers at that time when I was deciding what speakers to buy, and found the horn tweeters a bit annoying. That shop sold Klipsch and Yamaha equipment, while the competing shop across town sold Polk, Harman/Kardon, Carver, and JBL. I bought the Polks and an HK 795i receiver to power them. Never looked back.

My question to you is: will the Klipsch Fives be something I will likely enjoy, or will I find them annoying as I found Klipsch speakers back in 1986? The closest thing I can compare the floor-standing Klipsch speakers I heard back then are Peavey performance speakers. Loud, with no subtlety. I sit next to my 10Bs and it is like having a conversation--everything is clear and effortless.

Also, if the Fives will likely not be my cup of tea, do you have other recommendations, particularly among powered bookshelf speakers?

Thanks! I really enjoy reading the views on this site!

the key feature which separates these from other powered speakers is that they have an HDMI ARC input.....which means they handshake with your TV (HDMI CEC) for power and volume. The only other speaker that I'm aware of that has this feature is the new ELAC ConneX.

From the measurements, this speaker is "less Klipsch" sounding than other larger Klipschs which are brighter and more forward/exaggerated.

However, the elephant in the room is placing the speakers on its side. The Klipsch has a narrow sweet spot and the sound degrades quickly up and down, and side to side. When you flip the speaker on its side, it makes the vertical dispersion flaws apparent and these are not a good choice. A lot of other speakers will not fare well either.

If you have to do the shelf on its side thing, your best bet is to use an external amp and buy some KEF Q150. Use a cheap AV receiver with HDMI ARC (all receivers should have that) and the passive KEFs. Choose the one that fits your budget.

 

[BillGrimm]

The options I was looking at, all in the $500 range (currently, with the Fives being on sale): Klipsch The Fives (lying on their side), Kanto YU6 (sitting upright), Audioengine A5+ (sitting upright), or ADAM T5V (lying on their side). Have I left out any contenders in this price range or lower? I'd rather not have to purchase both an amp and speakers, even though that is what I have currently.

I appreciate the suggestion about the KEFs, but I'd have to also get an amp to go with them, pushing me well outside the $500 range I am restricting myself to. I also don't know what KEFs sound like. The reviews of Q-series KEFs on here have not been that great.

Of course I have to admit just about anything would be a step up from what I have now. I guess I just have to pull the lever on it and make a choice.

 

[beaRA]

The options I was looking at, all in the $500 range (currently, with the Fives being on sale): Klipsch The Fives (lying on their side), Kanto YU6 (sitting upright), Audioengine A5+ (sitting upright), or ADAM T5V (lying on their side). Have I left out any contenders in this price range or lower? I'd rather not have to purchase both an amp and speakers, even though that is what I have currently.

I appreciate the suggestion about the KEFs, but I'd have to also get an amp to go with them, pushing me well outside the $500 range I am restricting myself to. I also don't know what KEFs sound like. The reviews of Q-series KEFs on here have not been that great.

Of course I have to admit just about anything would be a step up from what I have now. I guess I just have to pull the lever on it and make a choice.

I'm not sure where you are gathering that the Q-series is not well reviewed. They measure well for their price point and Erin subjectively preferred the Q150 over the highly recommended Emotiva B1+.

Kef Q150 Bookshelf Speaker Review

Kef Q150 Review

www.erinsaudiocorner.com

If you already have an amp, why would that push your budget? You can get a pair of Q150s for $400 or Q350s for $500 at Accessories4Less. A coaxial is just the right tool for your application. None of the reviews for 2-way speakers are valid for your configuration because they were not evaluated laying on their side.

 

[BillGrimm]

OK. Thanks.

 

[warpdrive]

The options I was looking at, all in the $500 range (currently, with the Fives being on sale): Klipsch The Fives (lying on their side), Kanto YU6 (sitting upright), Audioengine A5+ (sitting upright), or ADAM T5V (lying on their side). Have I left out any contenders in this price range or lower? I'd rather not have to purchase both an amp and speakers, even though that is what I have currently.

I appreciate the suggestion about the KEFs, but I'd have to also get an amp to go with them, pushing me well outside the $500 range I am restricting myself to. I also don't know what KEFs sound like. The reviews of Q-series KEFs on here have not been that great.

Of course I have to admit just about anything would be a step up from what I have now. I guess I just have to pull the lever on it and make a choice.

I would take a KEF over almost any other traditional 2 way speaker in a case like yours where the speaker is sideways. The KEF basically will sound the same whether on its side or not. You would still want to aim down downwards even while sitting on the shelf if the speaker is way up high on the shelf. And as mentioned, the KEF is a better performing speaker than the Klipsch.

If you don't care about HDMI ARC, then a Loxjie A30 for $160 or so should be able to drive the set of KEFs. You can use the optical input from the TV to the A30.

Loxjie A30 Amplifier Review

This is a review and detailed measurements of the multifunction Loxjie A30 power (speaker and headphone) amplifier with integrated USB DAC and Bluetooth input. It was kindly sent to me by a member and costs US $159 plus $7 shipping on Amazon. The A30 sports a high resolution and high contrast...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[BillGrimm]

Thanks warpdrive. I appreciate the suggestion. After looking back through reviews and whatnot, I think I'm going to try a set of Vanatoo Transparent One Encores. I can get them for $500, and they have the amplifiers built-in. Plus, since they're small, they can sit upright on the shelf. The KEF Q-series and the Vanatoo both use aluminum for driver materials, for what that is worth. I'm not sure what the subjective difference would be, but it seems like "soft dome" and "treated paper" and those sorts of materials would produce a less harsh sound than things like aluminum, but when it comes to the production of sound waves, maybe I am conflating things. Perhaps harshness has less to do with driver materials and more to do with frequency response and resonances.

Anyway, I know I like the sound of the Polks. I'm just trying to find something that will work in my situation (in my TV room) to approximate that sound for movie watching. If the Vanatoos don't work out (they have a 30-day return policy) I'll give the setup you described a try (if I can find the KEFs on sale).

Thanks again for the help.

 

[hindsight]

I'm having a persistent problem with my Fives. I've had this problem for months, and I thought this would be something that would be fixed soon, but maybe I'm the only one with this problem.

Whenever the input method changes for The Fives, any subsequent change in Input results in NO SOUND. Hence, if I go from TV to bluetooth, then I cannot go back to TV or to anything else. There is ZERO sound.

I've tried using the app's Auto Power Off feature on or off to see if that has an effect. The problem persists either way. The only way to make the speakers work is by unplugging the power cord, waiting a couple of seconds for the LED to go dark, then plugging it back in. Then I can select TV and the sound works again. However, while my TV is off, The Fives bluetooth LED indicator will blink non-stop, and when I turn the TV back on, there is NO SOUND again. Hence, I must go through the same process of unplugging the power cord again and re-pluggin it back in to get it to work again. Very frustrating.

I'm using my TV as an example for the sound source, but this happens with any input, such as the Phono input.

For info, my firmware and app are all up to date. The firmware was updated in December of 2021 using the then-convoluted Updater App App/ USB drive method. Then, all subsequent updates were made using the Klipsch App on my iPhone. After the December 2021 update, it worked fine. But early this year in 2022, an app update caused this to occur, and subsequent app updates have not resulted in a fix.

Has anyone encountered this? What should I do? Try to downgrade the firmware and re-upgrade?

 

[hindsight]

Would it be best to start a new thread regarding this input issue for the Klipsch The Fives?

 

[Dodgexander]

Would it be best to start a new thread regarding this input issue for the Klipsch The Fives?

I would do a factory reset, then re-update the firmware to the latest version following the USB, and then app update instructions on their website.
If that doesn't solve it, and you are sure it happens with other inputs apart from HDMI then I'd look at an RMA.

Why do I say apart from HDMI? Well, it's very normal to lose sound when going back to the HDMI input, this is down to HDMI CEC ARC and its shortfalls. It can act differently TV to TV too.

 

[hindsight]

Thank you for your thoughts. I was on my way to do exactly what you suggested, so I opened the app on my phone to see if there was a factory reset function on it. But when I opened the app, it said there was an update. The changelog stated that it's to resolve some issues with standby issues, which is the type of problem that I'm having with The Fives. So, I ran the update and will see in the next week or so whether the problem is fixed.

The update stated:
"Update for the [sic] Fives Bluetooth firmware. Addresses an issue where going into standby would cause audio playback issues."

This update sounds promising because the problem with The Fives that I'm experiencing began right after an app update earlier this year introduced a new function to toggle enable/disable auto power off. Before this new auto power off toggle was available, the speakers worked fine with the exact same setup that I'm using now, which happens to be HDMI ARC to my Sony TV (X900H).

I'll update here after testing the update.

 

[hindsight]

Ok, a week of using The Fives after installing the update I mentioned, I'm happy to report that the playback issues (i.e., no audio when switching to other input sources) are completely gone. I switched to various inputs all week and I no longer had to unplug the power to make the audio come back. So, for me, the bug seems fixed.

Overall, aside from a few quirks, I'm happy with The Fives. The bass is very thumpy for 5" drivers; dynamic bass or low volumes is very pleasing; the walnut veneer and overall design look good; friends and family are drawn to the dial controls; the app's 3-point equalizer is enough for my use (I'm not an audiophile); and the app now does all updates wirelessly without needing USB.

The bad: Volume control using the TV remote via ARC is slowwwwww; no WiFi connectivity; tweeters sound tinny; Klipsch App takes too long to connect (compared to my Bose App that connects instantly so I can quickly change sound profiles); no option to use with 5.1; and Klipsch customer service was useless gibberish in my experience.

If I had to do it over again, I'd still buy The Fives. If they had an updated version, maybe 6" with wider bass response, brighter tweeters, and WiFi connectivity, I'd buy that for sure.

 

[Phidel]

Ok, a week of using The Fives after installing the update I mentioned, I'm happy to report that the playback issues (i.e., no audio when switching to other input sources) are completely gone. I switched to various inputs all week and I no longer had to unplug the power to make the audio come back. So, for me, the bug seems fixed.

Overall, aside from a few quirks, I'm happy with The Fives. The bass is very thumpy for 5" drivers; dynamic bass or low volumes is very pleasing; the walnut veneer and overall design look good; friends and family are drawn to the dial controls; the app's 3-point equalizer is enough for my use (I'm not an audiophile); and the app now does all updates wirelessly without needing USB.

The bad: Volume control using the TV remote via ARC is slowwwwww; no WiFi connectivity; tweeters sound tinny; Klipsch App takes too long to connect (compared to my Bose App that connects instantly so I can quickly change sound profiles); no option to use with 5.1; and Klipsch customer service was useless gibberish in my experience.

If I had to do it over again, I'd still buy The Fives. If they had an updated version, maybe 6" with wider bass response, brighter tweeters, and WiFi connectivity, I'd buy that for sure.

I'm "happy" with The Fives, but they have 2 problems for me:

1. They have a white noise that I can't mitigate and I ask again, how a product like this has this problem? It is tipical from cheap powered speakers not for a suposed premium quality speakers.

2. They sound a bit muffed and the 3 bars EQ app is insuficient to fix it, we need a better EQ app (minium 12 bars EQ). Whem I use it with my PC connection I can use APO Peace interface and I can tweak the EQ, but there is 0 information in internet to get a good EQ for The Fives to unlock all their potential.

Anyone can help me to resolve these 2 problems?