High output, low distortion, great micro and macro dynamics, smooth response, and great clarity and imaging.

Not the last word in depth. Big boxes may have a low spousal acceptance factor.

The Klipsch La Scala came out in 1963 and was in continuous production from then until it was replaced by the "II" version in, I believe, 2006. While very similar, there are substantial differences too. The drivers are essentially the same, but the cabinet is much beefier and finished much nicer in the newer version. Essentially, Klipsch combined the beauty of the discontinued belle klipsch with the drivers of the old la scala to create the La Scala II.

Looking more closely, the most obvious differences are the beefed up woofer cabinet, which is now made of 1" veneered MDF, rather than 3/4" birch ply as before. And now, the speaker is a two-piece affair, with the mid and tweeter horns, plus the cross-over, residing in a separate enclosure that sits on top of the woofer cabinet, isolated by four heavy rubber bushings. Overall weight has gone up to about 175 pounds from the previous 125. Dimensions are 38.5" high, 24.25" wide and 25.25" deep. Make room for Big Daddy!

This is a fully horn-loaded, 3-way loudspeaker system. There is a 15" woofer that operates up to 400Hz where it hands off to the 2" midrange. It in turn runs up to 4500Hz and then crosses over to the 1" tweeter. Both mid and high frequency units are compression divers with phenolic diaphrams.

Frequency response is stated as 51-17000Hz +/-4dB. That spec may not look too good compared to most conventional speakers, but the proof of the speaker is in the listening! Bass is lean and clean below 200Hz and is mostly dependent upon room and set-up characteristics below 100Hz. You may get good solid bass right down to 50Hz with corner placement and/or sitting close to the rear wall. On the other hand, if you pull the speakers out from the corners and have your listening position well away from walls, you may find yourself longing for a good sub or two! But, the addition of quality subwoofage transforms the LS2 into a system with world-class performance for a relatively bargain price, imho. Dave Wilson better take his little Watt/Puppys to the pound, cause this bruiser is gonna eat their lunch! And for a fraction of the price Dave charges.

Mids are ultra-smooth and natural. Not forward, not laid back, but neutral, just as they should be. Highs are just a bit subdued, but to us audiophiles of a certain age, they are oh, so smooth and clean! And everything is delivered in ultra-high clarity due to the "controlled directivity" of the exponential horns. Less sound is bounced off room boundaries before it reaches your ears.

Now for the kicker. These big boys IMAGE! I was pleasantly surprise myself, at how precise the imaging was and how un-boxy these big boxes sound. Instruments and voices do not cluster at the speaker like it does with some size XL systems. They are spread evenly between the speakers and if the recording allows, they will even extend beyond the plane of the speakers. Nice! Depth is good, but not best-in-class. These aren't Maggies, after all.

Do you really need me to go into dynamics? Well, OK. World class, my friends, world class! With 105dB sensitivity rating and 400W peak power handling, these babies will effortlessly deliver live rock&roll levels, all the while retaining full, clean dynamics. And micro-dynamics are absolutely stellar, too. A closely-mic'd plucked guitar reproduced through these will deliver unsurpassed "jump factor". You know, that instant of suspended belief that you are "only" listening to a recording. They can sound THAT real!

Distortion is vanishingly low at any sane output level. The mighty klipschorn is the only speaker I've heard that might have lower audible distortion.

These La Scala II's, especially when mated with good subwoofage, will excell with all kinds of music. Believe me, my musical taste is all over the map, and these things sound wonderful with it all. Classical and jazz, bluegrass and country, and all styles of pop and rock...they deliver it all.

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Similar Products Used:

Klipschorns, Klipsch Cornwalls, B&W 703's, Bose 901 IV's, ESS amt-1b's