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(More customer reviews)If you are reading this, you are shopping for an unobtrusive speaker. There are always trade-offs involved in trying to get music to sound good, but be invisible. What may the trade-offs be? Well, in the case of a speaker in the ceiling, the lack of directional control and the sense that the sound is coming from a tin can.
Directional control becomes less and less of an issue as you go into the lower frequency range. But in the case of the high frequencies, the best sound comes from the speaker pointing in your direction. This speaker allows a great amount of directional control for both the woofer and tweeter. The tweeter and woofer move independently of each other. And the tweeter has a greater range of motion. Depending on the size of the room and slope of your ceiling, you stand a very good chance of pointing this speaker in the exact direction you want to. I have the worst-case scenario, an 8-foot flat ceiling, and a long room. I maxed out the tilt of the speakers, swiveled them both to point inwards a bit, and it really works out well.
I'm not going to bother with a review of the quality of Klipsch speakers beyond saying that I have used them since 1993, and even now, with mass production, they turn out an amazing product. There are plenty of reviews to read out there, if you need to.
What we have with an in-ceiling speaker is usually a speaker without a cabinet. This affects the quality of the sound. So much just dissipates into the attic. You can purchase, or build an insulated enclosure to give punchier sound. But it might be overkill in this case. The adjustability of the CDT-5800-C also means lots of openings around the front of the speaker. So specific results of an enclosure may not be assured.
Here's what I did: I cut the round holes in the drywall, between the joists, and took a few measurements. Then went to an upholstery supply store and picked up some 2" high-density foam. Being between joists, I cut blocks a little less than 16" wide and 4" tall to place on either side of the speaker. I also put a panel of 1" foam above the speaker and between the 4" blocks (1" foam so I didn't compress the fiberglass too much). I ended up with a nice, clean enclosure that also helped prevent the sound from leaking to other parts of the house; a very simple, and relatively cheap solution.
The actual installation was incredibly easy. Just use an electric screwdriver with a torque limiter, and in 15 seconds, it's in there solid. Maybe give a half-turn or so more with a screwdriver by hand to finish it off. It's plastic up there, so don't overdo it.
But the question still remains about the fact that this is an in-ceiling speaker, so how can we make sure it sounds its best? Klipsch did build in a couple of tuning switches. One attenuates the treble by 3dB, and the other attenuates the bass by 3dB. This allows you to tune the speakers for the room. For example, if every surface in your room is hard. As in tile floor, wood furniture, no curtains, etc., the room will be "bright". The treble will need to be turned down, or else it gets hard on the ears. If the room is the exact opposite, all carpet, curtains, couches, bookcases, etc., then the room will have too much bass. I know this sounds strange to the uninitiated, but the way it will manifest itself will be for you to simply have the music on less and less frequently, or at a much lower volume than you would like. But, with the ability to tune the speakers for the room, you will find listening much more comfortable.
I personally do not use those switches. I'm just not a "set it and forget it" kind of guy. I use the bass and treble dials on the front of my receiver. They are usually set pointing straight up. But for the in-ceiling speaker (or outdoor speakers), I will adjust accordingly. For my very bright room, I will turn the base up to 3 o'clock, and the treble down to 11 o'clock. I have no idea how this translates to how many dB up or down, but what I do know is that I get a broader range of adjustment than those switches, and the flexibility to experiment. In doing so, I was able to make the speakers sound really nice.
But there is one final piece to this puzzle. A subwoofer. If you can have a subwoofer nearby, you will be very happy. It's pretty simple. You probably already have a subwoofer now. Ideally on it's own "subwoofer out" RCA cable. If so, then get yourself a speaker switch from Radio Shack or Amazon, and you will be set. No matter which set of speakers you have running, that subwoofer is always working. It's OK if the sub is in another room. Remember, the lower the frequency, the less directional control matters. If you think it won't make a difference, try it with and without, you will be pleasantly surprised.
Now a couple more things you need to know. Do not use a "fish tape " to run your speaker wire. Fish tapes are meant to pull wire through conduit only. Unless you are doing that, you will curse the day you attempted this installation on your own. Go spend your money in "fish poles". They are at every home improvement store. Just trust me on this one, spend the money and you will have a much easier time. Also, the grates are very difficult to get on and ridiculously easy to remove. Do not muscle these grates, you will bend them easily. Just be patient and firmly work them into place. Now for the removal. I really wracked my brains on this one. I wanted to mess with those switches after I installed the grates. It was so difficult, I thought for sure, I would never get them off. Well, with hope in one hand and a bamboo shish-kabob skewer in the other, the thing popped out with almost no effort whatsoever. Go figure. Not wanting to mess with that too much, I leave the switches on their default settings, and use the dials on the receiver.
Every time I use these speakers I marvel at the quality of the sound, without any of the bulk. This is money well spent, and I would definitely buy this product again.
Oh, I nearly forgot the home theater crowd. These would work pretty well. But I would have to recommend that you get enclosed speakers for the front, at least. Up in the ceiling, when you're hanging out, chatting and eating is one thing. But actually sitting down and staring right at the source is another. If you got the HD TV and a Blu-Ray player, don't cheap out on the speakers. These speakers would be a pretty good solution as an unobtrusive rear speaker. But remember, the rear speakers are there to provide atmosphere and depth. These speakers would provide directional sound. And in doing so may be great for planes and bullets whizzing by, but not the large sound field created by true rear surround speakers. BUT they would get the job done. I would place them above and behind the sofa, not directly above.
Buy and enjoy!
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Klipsch CDT-5800-C - Speaker - 50 Watt - 2-way - whiteWith integrated whole-house audio systems becoming more popular than ever, Klipsch designed the CDT5800C to meet the market's demand for a high-performance in-ceiling loudspeaker that easily challenges the inherent limitations of fixed locations.
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