Klipsch love them or hate them.

Actually, Taters, there a many speakers sold today that are far worse than the Klipsch line. I'm not attacking your point of view, but rather want to offer a somewhat different perspective.

I had a part-time job in the early 1990's and I sold Klipsch speakers as one of several product lines. Klipsch speakers may not appeal to your personally, but there are some things that they do very well. Without question, their inexpensive models have some major weaknesses, but their better models (such as the Fortes, Belles, LaScala, and K-Horns) are good to very good examples of horn-based speakers. Again, you may not like the sound of horn speakers, but they are capable of very dynamic presentation. The biggest drawback I found with the better Klipsch models is their lack of good low bass, which usually requires reinforcement with a good subwoofer.

It's useful to remember that Paul Klipsch first designed the K-Horn prior to World War II, and it was a hell of a speaker in the early days of the "hi-fi" industry. I think that the Klipsch line, along with Altec, is the oldest speaker manufacturer still in continuous business.

LOVE THEM, I HAVE BEEN USEING A PAIR OF CHORUS II FOR OVER 10 YEARS. THEY DO HAVE A DISTINCTIVE SOUND THAT I FIND PLEASING. I HAVE AUDITIONED SEVERAL SPEAKERS IN THE YEARS SINCE PURCHASING THESE AND HAVE NOT FOUND ANYTHING IN MY PRICE RANGE THAT HAS PERSUADED ME TO REPLACE THEM.
CHRIS

I would put my 2002 Klipschorns (newly redesigned this year) against ANY other design anywhere near the price. I am completely amazed at how much more transparent these speakers are than earlier iterations. They produce some of the cleanest and most airy transients I have ever experienced. I have not heard some of the other Klipsch offerings, but I really don't miss my Magnepans or Martin Logans at all!