dr-dezibel

A warm sounding amp would be best. I have an old Marantz 2265B model powering my HIIs and it sounds very good and is inexpensive. One thing to think about: You may probably not be very happy with a amp without tone controls. HM music isn't always recorded well so you may want to ajust the sound to your liking. I found the tone controls on my Marantz very useful. Flexible and easy to use. I would never go without it.

Thank you all for your replies! I've not already purchased. I was leaning towards the Cornwalls, but mujch's post makes me wonder again wether the Valencia may be probably the better speaker for me. My listening levels are low to medium, never very high. Music is rock, most 70s and 80s, funk and a little jazz. The speakers will be powered by a Marantz 2330B. Which one do you recommend regarding this ?

And why? What are the advantages of the Cornwalls over the Valecias?

Since last year I have a look at the Cornwall III. Now I have the opotunity to get a pair of used Altec Valencia. It is about 25 years old and cost about 1,500 Euros The new Cornwall cost about 3,300 Euro. Which one would you prefer? And why?

Duke, do you have personal experience with Revox amps or receivers?

I'm going to buy the Revox receiver model B285 from the late 80s for a secondary system (stereo only). Anyone using Klipsch speakers with Revox amps/receivers? How do they match?

Colter is right, and you better listen. Thanks to his (and other's) advice I have Heresies all around. Here is a picture:

Thanks you all! No problem with smoke coming out of the Denon. :-) I don't listen at very high volume levels and the back of the rack is open so the Denon doesn't become too hot. The room can be darkened with roller blinds. This is essential for watching movies. Soccer, motorsport or winter sport can be watched without any darkening or with the roller blinds half-way down depending on the weather.

the rack

Left rear speaker

Rear view The couch is near the back wall so I put the rear Heresys in a back firing position towards the back wall providing more ambient sound. (suggestion of forum member colterphoto. Thanks colter, works great!!)

Sunfire Signature sub

the projector

the rack

front view

next one

Recently finished my HT!! Thank you guys for your support! Damn right you are insisting on timbre matching! Using the same speakers all around is simply the best.

Is it necessary to start three treads on the same subject??

If you only can put it vertical, do so. If not - don't worry. I had my Heresy on it's side above TV first. New furniture and a frontprojector made it possible to put the Heresy upright and it sounds a little bit better. The difference is noticeable but not as critical as you might think.

Denon 3805 drives my 5 Heresies. Sounds good and power is more than sufficient for my listening levels.

Congrats on your choice, you won't regret! We would be glad to hear your impressions.

concerning your mp3-music files: there are a few programs available that can "normalize" the volume. I use "mp3-gain" it's free and it works fine. http://mp3gain.sourceforge.net/download.php

My Denon 3805 works very well in my all-Heresy-system so the newer Denon with HDMI connections will, too.

Move them to the rear and look to get another pair or single Forte soon. You can simulate a center speaker but no rears.

You have a nice system! It is similar to mine. As you prefer listening at lower volume I would spend my money on getting a bigger picture.