Klipsch’s Heritage series of speakers have traditionally evoked a mid-century modern style, with wood veneers and fabric grilles that look as if they were pulled straight from the sets of Mad Men. The company’s latest additions to the Heritage lineup — Buy at Klipsch ($249) and Buy at Klipsch ($399) tabletop Bluetooth speakers — keep that same mid-century modern vibe, but reinterpret it with rounder edges, a simplified set of controls, better compatibility with digital audio sources, and lower prices. Both speakers are available in black or walnut finishes starting September 25 at klipsch.com and select retailers.
- 1. Klipsch The Three Plus
- 2. Klipsch The One Plus
Though they’re technically an evolution of Klipsch’s $299 (Version II), The One Plus and The Three Plus take their design inspiration from Klipsch’s more recent Heritage models, The Sevens and The Nines. The smooth, unbroken lines on the cabinets, the single-tone fabric of the grilles, and the use of an oversized, knurled volume thumbwheel are all stylistic callbacks to Klipsch’s newest powered stereo speakers.
Another trait they inherit from The Sevens and Nines is compatibility with the Klipsch Connect app (iOS/Android). The app lets you adjust EQ settings and get firmware updates. And for The One Plus and Three Plus, it also enables Klipsch Broadcast Mode, which lets you connect up to 10 Klipsch One or Three Plus speakers to get synchronized sound from multiple speakers — though the distance between speakers will be limited by Bluetooth range.
- 1. Klipsch The One Plus
- 2. Klipsch The Three Plus
Both speakers use the same basic formula as their predecessors: 2.1-channel stereo sound via a set of matched full-range drivers, plus a woofer, with Bluetooth for wireless audio streaming and an analog input for wired audio sources. However, the Plus speakers go a step further as their names suggest, with better Bluetooth (version 5.3 versus 4.0), and the addition of USB-C. Each model has a USB-C port that accepts digital audio from computers and it can also charge external devices. Klipsch says it has a enough voltage to power a wireless audio streamer.
The Three Plus goes further still, with an optical port that can decode up to 24-bit/96kHz lossless audio, and a set of stereo RCA inputs with a selector switch for line-in and phono modes — and yes, there’s a ground wire terminal too.
The One Plus is 12.5 inches wide, and about six inches tall and deep — about the same size as The One Version II. Inside is a similar setup: two bi-amplified 2.25-inch full-range drivers and a 4.5-inch woofer with 60 watts of power and a frequency response of 55Hz-20kHz.
The Three Plus also carries similar dimensions to its predecessor at 14 inches wide, 8.3 inches tall, and 7 inches deep, and similar internals: two bi-amplified 2.25-inch full-range drivers, a single 5.25-inch woofer, and two 5.25-inch dual opposing passive radiators with 120 watts of power and a frequency response of 45Hz-20kHz.
