hklinker Posted October 11, 2009 Author Share Posted October 11, 2009 CT-125 vs. K-77 Revisited After two weeks of listening I was faced with a dilemma.... The Eminence tweeter just wasn't there, at least not enough to give the Cornscala an open sound. On the other hand, the K-77 was over the top. All the brashness of the cymbals were present, way too present in fact. At higher volumes the K-77 tended to become a strain, causing listening fatigue. I put in tweeter attenuators trying to bring the K-77's into balance with the squawker. That helped but I kept going back to the 125's, trying to get them right. I learned from Bob Crites that the K-77 was a very inconsistent performer, some being very loud, others just the opposite. Finally, I decided to contact JWC who designed the crossover to see if he had any ideas... This was the breakthrough I had hoped for! He explained that the crossover was designed for the K-77 and that if they were particularly bright that I should attenuate them. If I was going to go with the C-125's I need to move the tweeter's tap from the autoformer and connect it directly to the input post.The right speaker I connected to the K-77 and attenuated it -9dB. Then I played a mono source through one speaker then the other. My wife made the definitive remark, " I can understand the words better on that speaker" (the one with the 125) Alleluia!..Alleluia!... The results have been very, very pleasing. Even though the CT-125's are still not quite as bright, they are well balanced and very clear. even my wife remarked that she could hear subtleties that were previously unheard. The increase in output from before was very obvious. But most pleasant was the clarity of the top end, without the brashiness heard in the K-77. I spent this evening listening to a variety of music, classical, swing, pop, etc. The clarity of the CT-125 is now apparent... and I am happy! Now to get the grills installed and finish this project! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robi Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 W O N D E R F U L !!!! [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H. Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Wife commenting on how nice the Speakers sound.......................PRICELESS ! More Pictures Please..................[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted October 26, 2009 Author Share Posted October 26, 2009 Wife commenting on how nice the Speakers sound.......................PRICELESS ! More Pictures Please.................. I spent the weekend doing some modifications to the wiring and cabinets. In doing so I came across a real find. I've been using 14 AWG Monster XP for speaker cable, using 10 ft. per speaker. When I was ordering some terminal cups and caps from Parts Express I needed to order a bit more to get free shipping. They had a close-out on AR Master Series speaker wire. For $38.00 I picked up 50 feet (2X25 ft.) of 10 AWG silver-coated, oxygen-free wire with banana plug connectors.Yesterday I installed the cups, replaced one set of tweets caps with Auricaps, and changed the connectors from clips to solder on the woofers as the clips did not give me a snug fit. Did the first speaker and compared the sound. The very high end was slighty smoother, which I attributed to the cap change from a very good Jantzen to the exellent Auricap. I plan to change out the remaining caps as the budget permits. Then I opened the wire and installed one on the modified speaker. The improvement was significant. Not only were the highs much clearer and more detailed, the bass was much tighter and went deeper. Not really louder, just more noticable. If you are looking for the most bang for your buck, I highly recommend this wire. It's probably not the best high-end wire, but like you guys say, it meets the 95% rule! -Herb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted December 18, 2009 Author Share Posted December 18, 2009 The Finished Project... Well almost! Here is the finished product with the grills installed and name plates attached. I picked up a pair of new pie emblems but haven't yet installed them. After about two weeks of listening the itch began to tinker with them, in fact I was going through "tinker withdrawal"! It was then that I decided to "upgrade" the crossovers. GotHover sent me a schematic of a design he was using that incorporated the Radio Shack attenuator, which I had bought to tone down the hot K-77's. It also featured a "switchable" 400/600 Hz woofer Xover. I really liked the design so I decided to build my own pair. The finished Cornscala. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted December 18, 2009 Author Share Posted December 18, 2009 A closer look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted December 18, 2009 Author Share Posted December 18, 2009 I began the crossover project by assembling the components. GotHover supplied me with the mounting board, autoformer and barrier strips at a reasonable cost. This was a great advantage as I did not have to design the layout. He also provided me with the parts lists and schematic as well as a wiring diagram so that I could see how each piece fit together. He even drill the holes for me and put on the rubber feet. Here is what he sent me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted February 27, 2010 Author Share Posted February 27, 2010 The finished product: Switched from the original brass nameplates to the PWK pies. Replaced the rickety rattan stand with an 64" HDTV table to highlight the old gear. Picked up a Panamax to power up and down the Mac gear, while leaving the TD-124 and iPod charger unswitched. WAF is now a solid 10! Thanks everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kg4guy Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 Cool system Herb [Y] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest David H Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 Yes, looking good.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finallygotmyheresies Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I was looking into some Cornscala projects and found this one that has a great writeup making it a nice read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bliss53 Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Still prefer my cornscalas over all the stuff I cycled trough my room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted November 2, 2011 Author Share Posted November 2, 2011 I was looking into some Cornscala projects and found this one that has a great writeup making it a nice read. Thanks for the nice words, I loved this project! Starting to think about the next one now. I've always wanted to do the same type of mods to a pair of Klipschhorns, but it's hard to find a pair nearby that need restoration at a reasonable price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gyrene Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Enjoyed reading this and the pics were great.Seems like you nailed it.I have a set of Cornwall which are my dedicated biamped speakers.I think they are very good but know they could be awesome with some help. To be honest some of these threads about upgrading the Cornwall to Cornscala loose me with all the alphanumeric code being offered. Would you consider condensing the upgrades you did as a list.Remove original/install upgrade part? While reading its confusing to go between the JBL's and the Cornwall originals and then toss in the upgrade numbers and letters. I'm thinking of going with Bob Crites CT125's and appreciate the work you did to reveal the differences in that and the original. My crossover has been upgraded using the Crites set up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hklinker Posted January 12, 2012 Author Share Posted January 12, 2012 Haven't been on the forums much lately but saw your note and wanted to give you my two-cents worth. The woofers are the original Klipsch K-33's. I changed the horn from the original to the Fastrak wood horn made by GotHover. Still using the K-55 Driver. A BIG improvement, highly recommended! Tweeters are now the Crites CT125's but I made a set with a pair out of the APT drives mounted on a horn made for me by Kg4Guy. They are identical to the Crites tweeter. I really like the CT-125 sound. It is not as loud as the K-77's but I think they are much smoother and cleaner, especially on cymbals. The K77's are kinda more "in your face". The other change I made was that I built a pair of crossovers, using a configuration I got from Gothover, but it is the design of Al Klappenberger. Spent a lot of time researching caps and finally settled on a Sonicap blend that also made a big difference in both clarity and imaging. Dave (Gothover) is now doing a project with the crossovers that bears looking into. Not sure what you mean by the alphanumeric code reference but I did not get to empirical with my project because I don't have all the test gear that some of these guys have. My attitude was if it sounded better I went with it. If you want, send me a private message and tell me more about what you are doing with your speakers. Herb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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