tomato-soup

I big Thank You goes out to everybody who took the time to post here. I really do appreciate the help everybody gave me. It's one thing to lurk about and read all you can in order to learn but being able to directly ask a specific question and get feedback from other posters is what this forum is really all about and makes me glad I found it. I made the decision to hunt down a pair of Cornwalls, seeing how they already withstood the test of time and seem to have definitely achieved cult status with fellow KLipsch owners. I figured the Cornwalls would be the safest bet, but I'm sure the Fortes really kick butt as well. I'll post my thoughts on my Cornwalls when I get them and hook them up, in case anybody's interested. Thanks once more!

Tillmbil, what's the audible differences between you Forte IIs with the square horn and the Cornwalls IIs with their exponential horns? How does the midrange differ between the two? WHich one is brighter and more in your face? Is it possible for you to describe the differences in bass output between the single 15" Cornwall II woofer and the dual 12" Forte II woofers?

First of all I would like to thank those who have replied to my thread so far. I was first exposed to Klipsch from my uncle who has a pair Heresy IIs driven by a McIntosh amp. Although I can't recall the model I know it isn't a tube powered one. I really like the sound from the Heresy II speakers but would like more bass so I guess something that sounds like the Heresy but offers more bass is the way to go for me. Size is also a consideration, although not a deal breaker. I plan on putting them in the corners of a living room which is about 15ft by 14ft with hardwood flooring and a large central area rug. There's a fireplace in the middle and I'll be putting each speaker on each side of it, neatly tucked into the corners. A 15X14 room isn't all that big so I'm thinking it won't be that hard to fill it with beautiful music regardless of the Klipsch speaker I buy. After reading some of your responses so far I took a glance at the spec sheets and saw that the Chorus I levels off at roughly 45hz. The Chorus IIs drop to 39hz which is Cornwall territory. All of them are above the 32hz dropoff of the Forte though. Man, those Fortes dip pretty low. I also noticed Chorus II and Forte II have different midrange horns then the others, which is kind of like opening another can of worms since I never heard a square horn before. All I have to reference is the Heresy II. But I really like the Heresy's sound. I like how it literally sounds different then most other speakers I've heard. I've read some posts on this forum on how the square horn tends to alter or tame the klipsch sound. Does this mean it makes them sound more like other, conventional speakers? If so, I can say I'm definitely not interested in them. I don't want my speakers to sound like all the other ones out there, I want them to sound like the Heresys which sound really alive and dynamic. I can literally hear the difference between the horn driven Heresy IIs and conventional cone-driven speakers. That horn sound is what got me so that's what I want in my new (okay, used) speakers. I feel like the more I research the more I sink into the quicksand. The harder it is to make a decision, especially since I can't actually listen to them. I now see that the Chorus II and the Cornwall II have almost identical specs but that a major difference is the types of midrange horns used. And the fact that the Cornwall is much wider. Like I said, the more I research the more choices I have and some are confusing and none of them are easy. The main problem is that all of these speakers are no longer being made and that pretty much means you can't make an in-person comparison and then pick the one that sounds best to you. I'm forced to have to make a decision based soley on technical data without actually hearing the speakers first. I feel like I'm pulling my hair out!

After browsing this forum for nearly a month, I'm interested in buying some heritage speakers. I've narrowed it down to either the original Cornwall or the original Forte. They both have nearly identical specs, but the Forte goes lower (32hz) then the Cornwall (38hz) so I guess it has better bass. Especially when you consider that it has an additional 12" woofer in the back in the form of a passive radiator. They both have nearly identical sensitivity ratings too, with the Fortes at 98db and the Cornwalls at 98.5 db. Technically, the Cornwalls have a half decible advantage, but I wonder if you could really hear the difference? On paper, both speakers appear to be virtual clones so it makes it hard to chose. Since both are pretty old and out of production, I can't just walk into a store to conduct a side by side comparison. Any opinions on the subtle differences between these two speakers would help me out a lot. I'm looking to try and make a purchase in the next two weeks so I need to try and figure out what one I'd rather buy. Thanks for your help.