justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 If any of you have read some of my previous posts, you can see that I enjoy build Klipsch inspired speakers. 1 mistake I always seem to make is wanting to build the cabs just a bit bigger and then coming to my senses and adding material to get the cab back to the correct volume. So far I have built, a pair of single cab Cornscalas (All sourced from Bob Crites (K55, PH-800 horn, Ct125 tweeter, Bobs 15" Woofers, and his Crossover)). 1 Pair of rehabbed Heresy's (New Crites crossover, and 12" woofers, APT50 tweeters, 1 pair of Split La Scalas (New everything from Crites... again :-). 1 pair of CS-1s Parts from Bob, and what I thought were my last speakers, my Split Cornscalas (K401/K55 Selenuim 220ti/HM17-25, Eminence 15C woofers and Bobs crossovers. During the last several years, this has been my hobby and how I’ve spent my free time... listening to music in the middle of night, etc. Part of the hobby has been the continuous learning process. All these builds resulted in a bunch of speakers sold for 50cent on the dollar as finding the right buyer can be hard. As a result I didn’t get to keep all my creations but held on to the cornscalas as they were the most pleasing to me. About a year ago I began to lust after Bob's part list for the Selenuim based 3way… using the massive D405 driver. Shortly after the discovery of the HF200 I saw Dave Harris’ Eliptrac horns and fell in love, but couldn’t justify the costs. 2 save cash I tried the HF200 with the JBL2380 as a 2way and they just didn’t have the same luster my split cornscala’s had. (I built the 2way into a separate top hat and was able to A vs B the 2 speakers. Some parts left to fund my expansion, and I got the Eliptrac 400 and Dave was kind enough to graft into my existing 2way cab. As a 2way (HF200/ Eliptrac 400 1st order crossover @500hz.) I still was not in love the Eliptrac 400 was a significant improvement and yes I knew I could live with it, but this was to be my last speaker for a while. So I was left with the 3way top-hats in the closet, easting up serious space… I was unwilling to sell and lose more money, and I had the Eliptrac 400 that were a serious improvement, but I missed the 3way sound. What to do? I did some more reading from Dave and ALK and started thinking about space and my existing investment., and what I could afford for floor space. I knew I didn’t have the time to build another set of cornscala’s from scratch. Having seen Dave’s work, I asked if he would build me a set of narrow Scala 3ways with his horn. Dave said he couldn’t due to time constraints, but that he has a Split Cornscala cabinet empty and needing a good home. (Now Id have a Harris build speaker!). This Split Cornscala was the initial work of another forum member and the craftsmanship shows. In speaking with ALK I became interested in the ES5800 network and the possibility of 2way/3way on the fly operation. So we are using ALK’s AP12-500 for a gentle slope and the ES5800 for the 3way operation. I hope ALK or Dave can chime in on the work… I got to be the recipient!. There is a switch on the back that allows for toggling between 2way and 3 way operation. Dave’s cornscala is a show piece of what’s possible, his Eliptrac 400/Faital HF200, his Conical tweeter lens for the Selenuim 200ti and the Eminence 15C. All these parts kick *** on their own, but together became my last speaker. When run against my 3 way split cornscala’s (K401/k55, Selenuim 220ti/HM17-25 I found my beloved speakers sounding honky/ and rough in the top end. Im not seriously wondering how to make adjustments. (Im not great at describing speakers… Long story, short… these seemed right. The mid bass, mids and highs were so accurate. I like the bass from my splits better, but that’s a question on cabinet build choices… My bins should never have been made… 3x thicker than they should be… mad as a mistake… though a good sounding one. Needless to say, my last speaker is my favorite speaker. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 lets start this build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 The Steriod parts... The Tweeter lens made such a difference. We were going to us the Selenuim CD Lens, but Dave's was a monumental improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 Part of the Magic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 The Naked shot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 Family Photo time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 Proof that the Cornscala design has legs... http://www.voltiaudio.com/alura.shtml http://www.critesspeakers.com/cornscala-style-d.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang guy Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 When PWK died his soul jumped out of him and into you. Beautiful work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 Really sweet, Not my work.. Dave Harris and ALK, and the origonal builder of the Cabs... I do love Klipsch Speakers... Now I just need a bigger listening room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest David H Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Jorjen built the orignal cabs, and did a great job. Everything was square, good quality ply, and precise cuts. I have to say this build was rewarding, I found Justins choice of parts work amazing together, and I would reccomend them again. Woofers: Eminence 15C, This is the fist time I had heard this woofer and am still surprised at the sound quality. I had intentionally steered away from this driver in the past, due to its low cost and modist spec's. Mid driver: Faital Pro HF-200, I am not a bit surprised at the quality of this driver. Faital builds a quality driver. Tweeter, Selenium D220ti: The Selenium HF driver, like the Faital drivers have become a well known product here on the forums. When Justin showed up with this driver and Baby cheeks lens, I thought it was a great choice. I am not sure why I showed him my Circletrac lens, but it found it's way from a box to Justin's hands in a matter of minutes.. Next thing you know he had shipped me a pair of bolt on D-220's so I could A/B the different lenses, and although I thought I wouldn't be able to hear and audible improvement, I agreed to test both. To my surprise, the lens's sounded very different, and Justin and I both prefered the sound of the Tractrix. The final piece of the puzzle was a no brainer, a switchable 2/3 way ALK AP12-500/ES5800 (DROOL) Nearing the end of the build, I got a taste of this speakers performance. Using a T-Amp and an IPOD I ran these speakers through the paces, tweaked the crossovers by ear to get them close, then grabed measurment tools. I was fairly close by ear, tweeter was one tap high, and mid was a bit low. When Justin came to pickup is new treasures a hearing test was performed. I decided to power the speakers with a Decware SE-84-C amp, next I set the tweeters 2 db too high, and switched one of them into 2-way operation. First let me tell you Justin has good ears, he picked out the lack of tweeter on the right side instantly, then asked if I could bring the tweeters back a few db. Seems I didn't need an FFT at all, Justins ears would have been fine. Next we did some 2/3way comparisons, although both sounded great, the 3-way added some extra shimmer and what is best describes as a larger sound stage. Either way the combination of drivers horns and crossovers is a winner. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kvsound Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Very interesting thread this one. I'm very close to building myself a pair of Cornscalas and I have all the parts at hand, just not the time to build them yet. I have a pair of Eliptrac 400's and Faital HF200 and and ALK AP12-500 crossovers, also the Crites woofers. I've also got an existing pair of Cornscalas I built for my dad which I'm going to veneer before handing them over which are 3-ways with Selenium D405 and D220ti drivers with Selenium horns and Bob's crossover so lots of options to play around with! Dave, the conical tweeter horn looks very interesting! How long have you had this for and what is the cost? Also, much difference between the Eminence and Crites woofers? Would a cheaper ALK mid to tweeter crossover change the sound much? Justin, why the switch for selectable 2 or 3 way operation - does 2 way or 3 way suit some music better? Right now, I'm running the AP12-500 and Faital drivers with Selenium 4750 horn in the existing Cornscala as a 2-way and like what I hear but I'm yet to try the Eliptrac. The 3-ways sound great and the 2 ways as well though maybe not as big a sound stage but more detail perhaps. I shall switch back to the all Selenium 3-way and that should clarify the differences as I've been running it as a 2-way for a few weeks now. So many choices, all good it would seem. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kvsound Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Can anyone tell me why my post appears as one long paragraph when I typed it as several paragraphs with a blank line in between? John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Welcome John! You are perhaps using Safari on a Mac? You will probably have to manually put in line breaks by adding the html code as you type, if you want the breaks to show. When you want a break, just put in a < (less than symbol), a 'p', and a > (greater than symbol). A bit annoying, but after you type one in you can just do a copy/paste to do the others. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moray james Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Quote: 'I like the bass from my splits better, but that’s aquestion on cabinet build choices… My bins should never have been made… 3xthicker than they should be… mad as a mistake… though a good sounding one.' Just a suggestion if your cabinet volume is on the small side as a result of the thicker wall build but your port dimensions are correct for the standard size volume then you can add some damping to the cabinet to adjust. That might just get your bass tunning right again. Your new cabinets look great and I am sure that you will be very pleased with these for a long time to come. Just so long that is if you have not been bitten by the bug. Looks like you have a very special reference on your hands. Play them every day and enjoy. Best regards Moray james. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted July 1, 2011 Author Share Posted July 1, 2011 James I think the Bass is right is each speak, just a bit different. I actually built a tappered transition piece for my origonal split conscalas... fixed any port mismatch issues... took nearly 8hrs worth of wood working... :-(. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted July 1, 2011 Author Share Posted July 1, 2011 The 2way/3way swtich was for both use with different types of music and verification. If you have the ES Network + AP then the switch is an easy add in. The extra parts for the 3way I would say were not needed unless you want to get the last 5%. I wanted to try everything I could in one package and then stop build for a while... This was the result. Going 3 way was addative to the top end shimmer (forwardness). Without it seemed more relaxed. Dave's tweeter lens/horn was a serious addition. All the parts came together well and produced a cohesive whole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted July 3, 2011 Author Share Posted July 3, 2011 Not in the last pic, is my 100% Bob Crites sourced Cornscala. I have to say, each is different but I would take any of my 3 pairs happily, the last pair more happily than the others :-). The PH800 is an improvement over the K401 for sure. Dave’s horn beats them all. The Cornscala lets builders go from mild to wild. We have choice of crossovers, drivers and horns at any price point... Sort become the Dynaco ST70 of speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IB Slammin Posted July 5, 2011 Share Posted July 5, 2011 Not in the last pic, is my 100% Bob Crites sourced Cornscala. I have to say, each is different but I would take any of my 3 pairs happily, the last pair more happily than the others :-). The PH800 is an improvement over the K401 for sure. Dave’s horn beats them all. The Cornscala lets builders go from mild to wild. We have choice of crossovers, drivers and horns at any price point... Sort become the Dynaco ST70 of speakers. "The Cornscala lets builders go from mild to wild." .........and then there is the Cornscala DBB.......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironsave Posted July 5, 2011 Share Posted July 5, 2011 Wow.... Those are gorgeous...... (The bigger pair are as well!) Thanks for posting! [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny's Jill Posted July 5, 2011 Share Posted July 5, 2011 Do you have any pictures of the 2-3way switch installation, and which do you prefer overall. Craig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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