Klipsch Museum

The Paul W. Klipsch Museum located in the Foreman Engineering Complex at New Mexico State University has been updated and is now available for private tours and social gatherings.

Klipsch, a 1926 graduate of NMSU, pioneered audio systems by using scientific principles to develop a corner horn speaker that sounded more lifelike than any of its predecessors. In 1978, he was awarded the Audio Engineering Society’s Silver Medal for his contributions to speaker design and distortion measurement.

He was inducted into the Audio Hall of Fame in 1984. In 1997, he was inducted into the Engineering and Science Hall of Fame, an honor shared by Thomas Edison, George Washington Carver, the Wright Brothers and other distinguished individuals.

The museum is a tribute to Klipsch and his wife Valerie, who have given the NMSU College of Engineering memorabilia from the audio engineering field spanning more than eight decades. Exhibits include historical photos of Klipsch, many of his working papers containing his calculations and research results, and original publications containing articles by or about him. Additionally, the museum contains antique audio equipment owned by Klipsch, demonstrations of his various speaker designs, and awards he received.

One of the goals of the museum is to catalog and make available for research the technical correspondence of Klipsch, who during his active professional career maintained regular contact with famous engineers in the audio and related areas.

For more information or to schedule a tour or gathering in the museum, contact Cathy Lindsay at (575) 646-2913 or clindsay@nmsu.edu. Our virtual tour can be found here.

Klipsch graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering in 1926 and received an honorary Doctor of Laws in 1981. He earned a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1934.

Museum entry way including an Auditorium Folded Horn, Klipsch Forté, and Shorthorn speakers