ChrisK
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another shot of the 2nd pair before refinishing...
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Chris King - I've thought about your Cornwalls alot. When I first saw the pic, I assumed they were veneered as they were too 'clear' for the mostly crap birch I see constantly.
I'm thinking with these birch Klipsch, there are 2 types floating around.... the paint grade birch ply with fungal, sap, etc. stains, and the 2nd type - clearish. Unfortunately, I don't see the latter much. Sometimes I'll see them with one nice clear speaker, and the other having 'the stains'.
My LaScalas have some ugly staining in them, I'll try to attach a pic of my problem areas. I've tried to search on this to see if it can be somehow removed, or at least blended in.
I just found a pair of decorator Corns at an estate sale (they took credit cards and I had an empty van outside - what's a girl to do?).... I 'think' they are pretty clear under the WALNUT stain, but it's hard to tell. Dark stains are tricky as heck on birch, maple, etc. and I think people are makeing a mistake by staining them like this. One should use conditioner, etc. else it'll get all blotched up. I want to redo them, and pray if I do, they turn out as nice as Chris's (clear).
Chris - I'm assuming you got lucky with a pair that has none of this staining? But I'd love to see a pic of both of them if you're able.
Howdy,
My CW's have quite a long history with me and another Klipsch Board member (Joshnich), but I'll give you the short version. They were origianlly treated with tons of Linseed oil and hand rubbed. Over the years the linseed oil yellowed quite a bit and there was some water staining (planter rings, etc.) on the tops. My son and I sanded the living daylights out of them and that seemed to "blend in" 90% of the problem, but a fair amount of yellowing remained. I brought them to a woodworking shop and the owner told me he could further sand down and then stain them, but like you mentioned, he recommended not staining too dark. Instead he suggested a light brownish color that turned into the beautiful cherry-like color when applied to the still somewhat yellow (almost yellow-blonde) wood. The water staining is almost completely gone and very difficult to discern from the natural grain of the wood. I'll try and post some pictures in the next few days.
Quite frankly, the stains on your new CW's look like they might "sand out" nicely. But, I'm no expert at all. I did restore a similar pair last year that wear only sealed originally and in pretty rough shape. They came out very nicely. I'll post some pictures I have on my laptop of them before and after refinishing.
Good Luck,
Chris
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Michael,
Take a peek at the front view photo on the 1st page of this thread. You can see the layers of the plywood.
Chris
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sorry...double post
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Michael,
Mine were not reveneered, just refinished. The wood is that good! I'm told it has to do with being "Decorators". Something about Klipsch using extra nice pieces of wood because most (or all?) were shipped unfinished.
Chris
So that's really just the Birch veneer on the 7 ply with a cherry stain and hand buffed by virgins?
I've never seen one that had miter joints that beautiful. My Decorator Heresies had the flush motor board and no provision for grille, but BSButtons early photos of them show butt seams all around.
Michael
My CW's don't have miter joints. They're butt seams all around. As far as hand jobs from virgins...I'm doubting it as the name of the shop that did the work is "The Strip Joint". No joke.
I'm guessing Fini could have a field day with "butt seams", "hand buffing", "virgins" and "Strip Joint".
Chris
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Allan,
We really had a great time Friday night. I hope your wife is felling better. BTW, my father in law wants to adopt you.
Regards,
Chris
PS Post a picture of your license plate so everyone can see how demented you really are! kidding...
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Michael,
Mine were not reveneered, just refinished. The wood is that good! I'm told it has to do with being "Decorators". Something about Klipsch using extra nice pieces of wood because most (or all?) were shipped unfinished.
Chris
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Michael,
If your Heresy's are the pair I'm thinking they are, they look great! As far as wiping mine (speakers, that is) goes, once every month or so does the trick. It's my danged turntable that requires regular cleaning. All acrylic (the cover too) and a big pain in the arse!
Chris
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djk,
They sound no different than with original dust caps. Which is to say, they sound great!
Here's a shot of the side view.
Chris
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Sounds like a great idea. My in-laws may come too. Now, if we can find a babysitter....
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....Is it a good example of his B3 and/or a good recording?
JIMMY SMITH/'75/LIVE IN TEL AVIV
Music Direct has it (on vinyl, of course) for $11.99
Thanks,
Chris
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Hey Sensei,
Can I try before I buy?
Chris
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Hey Scott,
Very nice looking work. Just curious, how long did the job take? It seems to me that the better work a craftsman does, the longer it takes. My last refinish job was in the shop for a couple months. BTW, I sold them (Decorator Cornwalls) to a semi-famous session player keyboardist here in Los Angeles. He's going to use them in his home studio with his (hey Allan) B3. He's a really great guy and sits on the board at UCLA's Mancini Institute.
On another topic, what do you think of Luxilon string? I switched a couple of months ago and LOVE it. BTW, Josh and I are going out to Indian Wells today for a tennis orgy. Nothing but playing tennis, going to the Pacific Life and drinking beer. Should be big fun.
Love your speakers,
Chris -
Allan,
Holy Smokes Sensei! Do you know the buyer? You've mentioned before that there's only a handful of Blue Note fanatics like yourself that drive these crazy prices. I'm guessing, that to my tin ears, my $30 Classic Records 200 gram re-issue would sound as good or better. But, once again, that's my taste. Which isn't saying much.
I'm gonna spin this one as soon as I get home. Haven't heard it in awhile, been on a Ben Webster kick this week.
Chris
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Hey Wardsweb, I have your new TT's little brother, a basic Champion. In fact I was on the phone yesterday with Musical Surroundings (Clearaudio's importer) about upgrading to Level II. At $2,400, I'm not sure about the sonic payoff. Not to mention, my wife actually likes the look as it is. My little TT sounds pretty darn good. I think the total RB250 re-work, coupled with the Six Stream wiring come together pretty well.
Good Luck and let us hear how you like your new toy,
Chris
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This thread kinda got me going. In fact after reading it, I did my own little vinyl/cd/sacd comparison...again. And once again it was unanimous amongst the participants (son - 11yo, son's friend - 11, son's friend's sister - 9, wife and son's friend's mother - both n/a) that the vinyl playback was clearly more pleasing to their ears than was cd. The difference was less for sacd but still discernible.
I liken the difference to how I reacted some years ago when a computer geek friend "fixed" the refresh rate on my computer monitor. I had thought the screen looked pretty good, but after the adjustment my eyes kinda went "ahhhhhhhhh". It was so much easier to look at. I had a similar reaction by employees that worked inside my office when I replaced the standard fluorescent bulbs with some sort of "full spectrum" type. All agreed things looked different, but in a very good way.
Not to mention, I feel like the only idiot around when I listen to my son's iPod. Rather, when I attempt to listen. It gives me a freakin' headache! Do people really enjoy listening to these things for moderate to long periods of time? It feels as though I really have to work at it to hear the music. The above mentioned son's friend's mother is a shrink and told me that our brains (mine being smaller than most) attempt to "fill in" poorly digitized sound in order to have it sound more "real". Makes sense to me. Not all that goes on in the processing of sound in our brains is immediately obvious I'm guessing.
As far as surround sound goes, for me it's kinda cool when bullets fly around or a helicopter thunders by. But I've never yet been to a live musical performance where I was positioned in the middle of the performers. And hearing the crowd next to and behind me adds nothing to the experience for me. Wait...I take that back...My son's middle school choir Holiday program had a big finale where the various choirs were positioned throughout the auditorium and the sound was coming from all angles. Then again, besides the parents present, not too many people would want to relive that experience....
Lastly, with all my blathering above in mind, playing records IS a pain in the tuchas. I'd really like to see some headway made in the mass market on higher quality digital playback. SACD sounds pretty good to me and it's too bad that neither sacd or dvd-a seem to catching on so far. Maybe the next format will hang in there.
Regards,
Chris
PS I guess I agree with Allan in his response to the original post...."Nonsense"
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I did quite a bit of reading before deciding to buy a pair of MC225's. Most of what I read (Audio Karma, Audio Asylum, ad infinitum) give the nod to 225's over MC30's. I've heard MC30's in a few systems and they DO sound pretty darn good. However, for my taste (and of course, that's not saying much) they are a tad bit too "brown" sounding. So far I've had in my system Cary 300B's, ARC Classic 60, Decware Zen, Scott 299A (mkII?), and a Brenneman Stereo 30 among others. Right now, one of my 225's is being re-chromed and screened, as will it's mate when the first one is finished. Can't wait 'till they're both done and can hear them mono-bloc'd.
BTW, the best sound that's ever come out of my sytem was delivered through a Decware Zen amp. If I could find that sound in an amp with adequate power....
Regards,
Chris
BTW, if the guys from the forum thet were interested in buying my Cornwall redux speakers read this, they're available. My laptop crashed a couple of weeks ago and I lost their emails. Otherwise they're going back on Craigslist and then eBay.
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Allan,
For free? Figures you wouldn't put anything in the tip jar....
Chris
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Ok, ok, I got it.
I'll forget the wireless part and use the Monster cable my son uses for his iPod.
Thanks for the help,
Chris
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Thanks for the help. That sounds easy enough for even me to accomplish. Is there a way to do it wireless?
Chris
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Does anyone know the best way to play music from my laptop to my 2-channel system? I know how to play mp3's, but I would like to play some streaming audio content from RealPlayer. I listen to a radio station from Northern California (KPIG) while at work and would love hear it over my system at home.
Thanks in advance,
Chris
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Charlie,
Very, very tempting for me. The first tube amp I had was a Decware Zen SE-84C. Overall, it was the best sounding amp I've had except for the fact that it ran out of steam when pushed beyond low-mid level listening. I wonder how much stronger a pair might be? If I ever go to bi-amping, a pair of those might be perfect for the top end.
If you list them on Audiogon, I'm guessing they won't last long at your asking price.
Good Luck,
Chris
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Last year Win sold me a Mac MC225 because he "wanted it to go to a good home". While I'm not sure about the "good home" part, I sure do love listening to it and very much appreciate his help putting my system together. Win is definitely one of the good guys and I wish him the best.
Chris
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Try the title track from "Voodoo" by the Sonny Clark Memorial Quartet. It was recommended to me by a serious audiophile friend of mine who also happens to be a part time jazz critic for the Los Angeles Times. He's seen it used for demonstrations at various audio shows. Doc Edgar uses a variety of artists when demonstrating his Seismic sub. One is a famous gospel singer who's voice goes incredibly low (I think it sounds like he's burping.), and another is Christian McBride's cd "Gettin' To It".
Regards,
Chris
Designer Cornwall?
in 2-Channel Home Audio
Posted
front view after refinishing...