KLIPSCH FORTE IV LOUDSPEAKER
No one taught me more about the heralded tone of Ortofon SPU cartridges, the magical pacing of idlerdrive turntables, or the dynamics and speed of horn-loaded speakers than Art Dudley, Stereophile’s late deputy editor. His equipment reviews and monthly Listening columns weren’t merely tutorials on how to review audio equipment with insight and an individual voice; they were also an entertaining, informative immersion into the kind of hi-fi he loved. We also shared many conversations, though too few.
Whenever Art lacked the time or interest to review a horn-loaded speaker, I pounced. Between May 2017 and August 2019, I reviewed the Volti Audio Rival, the Burwell Mother of Burl, the Klipsch Heresy III, and the Klipsch Forte III. In my review of the Forte III, I praised its reproduction of percussion, writing, “the entire drum set had its own distinct stage, each decay, cymbal ring, and drum resonance part of a larger percussive whole that poured forth from the Forte IIIs with exhilaration.” The III offered solid “bass reproduction, some CDs or LPs creating visceral yet agile, creamy yet forceful” sounds. The Forte made the most of jazz trios: “I could easily hear the moments of contact between Ray Brown’s fingers and his bass strings, [Shelly] Manne’s sticks and drums,
