If you have a very large room in your house, a very large amount of disposable income, and a very large obsession with sound, there’s a good chance you’re going to want to check out Klipsch’s Jubilee speakers — a very large pair of two-way, fully horn-loaded floor-standing behemoths that will set you back $35,000 per pair. Can’t wait to get them delivered? They’re available now through Klipsch’s certified Heritage dealers.
The Jubilee take a special place in the Klipsch line-up, not only as the company’s most premium flagship speaker, but also as the last product that founder, Paul W. Klipsch, worked on before he died. According to the company, it was his dream to create a fully horn-loaded speaker that would satisfy the most ardent audiophiles. The Jubilee was originally intended to be the successor to the Klipschorn — Klipsch’s previous flagship, but the project grew beyond a simple upgrade of that product.
Standing almost 5 feet, 8 inches tall, just over 4 feet wide, and 2.5 feet deep, each Jubilee speaker is nothing short of gigantic. Inside the main cabinet is a horn-loaded, vented, low-frequency enclosure that houses dual 12-inch woofers that move air through three 4-inch ports. Sitting atop that cabinet, providing the high-frequency output, is an unenclosed, horn-loaded, compression driver with a 7-inch axiperiodic titanium diaphragm.
When you combine these two elements, each Jubilee weighs 408 pounds and is rated for a peak power output of 1,600 watts.
Klipsch says that each component is specifically optimized to operate in its individual pass-band, and claims that this makes the Jubilee one of the most efficient loudspeakers on the planet.
As you’d imagine, driving such a giant set of speakers comes with its own set of challenges. To pull it off, while delivering a promised “accurate, true-to-life sound reproduction,” Klipsch developed an active crossover network with a built-in digital signal processor (DSP) and equalizer. Separate amplifiers are used for the high frequency and low frequency drivers, eliminating phase cancellation in the crossover region, according to the company. This component can be shelf or rack-mounted.
The Jubilee speakers are designed and built in the U.S. and carry a 10-year warranty. Each speaker is grain-matched using wood veneer panels from the same timber and they’re available in two finishes: satin black ash and American walnut.
Klipsch recently announced new editions of both its Reference and Reference Premiere speaker lines for 2022.