tuba Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 Hello everyone, This is my first time on the forums and recently jumped into the rabbit hole into HiFi after feeling shortsighted with a full Bose 500 3.1 setup. I've decided to buy some floor speakers and plan on pairing with a SET tube amp, most likely a el34 but looking for an affordable 300b tube amp. My budget is less than $2000, and I am open to other speaker suggestions, as long as they are highly efficient. I am able to find a dealer in Canada selling BNIB pair of Heresy IIIs for $1700 shipped and a local seller asking $1600 for a pair used of Cornwalls II but I feel that he is motivated to sell. I like the Heresy because it would be new and I am fond of Heresy's history. I am aware of the lack of low end but whichever speaker I buy, I plan on adding a SVS pb-1000. Does anyone know which choice would be the smarter buy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pzannucci Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 Two different animals. Depends on the size of your room and your lust for big sound. Both can be very good though. Way up from what you have now. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin S Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 Assuming that you have the space for them, in terms of being able to place them fairly wide apart and some flexibility in toeing them in, I would buy the Cornwall’s. And I would cross them over to the sub very low at 35-40hz or so. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjimbo Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 With that sub, I would definitely get the Heresy III. Enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 21 minutes ago, Kevin S said: Assuming that you have the space for them, in terms of being able to place them fairly wide apart and some flexibility in toeing them in, I would buy the Cornwall’s. And I would cross them over to the sub very low at 35-40hz or so. Bwtweeen the two, agreed. That sub, no offense likely isn't sufficient for those heresys IMO. The heresy IIIs would excel out of the BOX (but are limited in bass extension). You won't need a sub with the Cornwalls and a couple cheap tweaks to them can get them sounding VERY good. Also agree on the room, really depends on if you have the room. I have Cornwall IIs that I'll be keeping. I have had heresy III, Cornwall III and Forte IIIs in here, among others. Cornwalls 8 feet apart and in the corners, on the walls, they are quite impressive. @Dave A has MAHL tweeter sets that sound excellent, as do Crites tweeters/ titanium diaphragms. Little crossover recap and you are good to go. Just my 2 cents. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polizzio Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 I vote Cornwalls. You don't even need a sub with them for music. I have CW3s and the only time I now use my sub is for action blu-ray movies on the tv. My corns will reproduce 30 hz in my room, I have checked with sample test tones. Probably down 2-4 db @ 30 hz but they are impressive. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 Although I am fond of bigger speakers, I will agree with jimjimbo on the Heresy IIIs, except, if you are wanting to go the SET route, the Cornwalls might work better. I have used a pair of 2A3 SET amps on my Heresy II speakers with great satisfaction, but extreme volume gets a bit soft. The SET amps work great on La Scalas and the other fully horn loaded cabinets, though. Bruce 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnA Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 I'd get the Cornwalls and skip the subwoofer. There is very little music below 40 Hz. Spend that money on electronics. You would need at least 2 of those subwoofers with the HIIIs and perhaps 4 with the Cornwalls to keep up. You probably should look at the 3000 series. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 12 minutes ago, JohnA said: I'd get the Cornwalls and skip the subwoofer. There is very little music below 40 Hz. Spend that money on electronics. You would need at least 2 of those subwoofers with the HIIIs and perhaps 4 with the Cornwalls to keep up. You probably should look at the 3000 series. Completely agree. You would need to spend double to do heresy IIIs correctly if you must have the lower bass. You get it with Cornwall and have the option of flavoring them to your taste with mods or just a recap of Crossovers and enjoy as is (listen to them first liek this before you decide to modify or not). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RRR Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 54 minutes ago, JohnA said: I'd get the Cornwalls and skip the subwoofer. There is very little music below 40 Hz. Spend that money on electronics. You would need at least 2 of those subwoofers with the HIIIs and perhaps 4 with the Cornwalls to keep up. You probably should look at the 3000 series. Depends on what type of music you listen to. There is nothing musical below 30 Hz or so, that would be a great place to aim for most types of music but that does not mean frequencies below 30 Hz cannot add another layer to the music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polizzio Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 1 hour ago, JohnA said: I'd get the Cornwalls and skip the subwoofer. There is very little music below 40 Hz. Spend that money on electronics. You would need at least 2 of those subwoofers with the HIIIs and perhaps 4 with the Cornwalls to keep up. You probably should look at the 3000 series. I agree with the Cornwall selection as Cornwalls will reproduce down to 30 hz. But I disagree on the "very little music below 40 hz". A standard piano will generate sounds to 25 hz on the low end, so will electronic synthesizers utilized in a lot of pop and rock music. Not to mention a pipe organ will go to 20/25 hz too. To limit one to a full range loudspeaker with a low frequency cutoff of 50-60 hz is silly, if you want to hear all of the music. Shoot even my Elac debut 6.2 bookshelf speakers I use at my desktop pc will play down to 35-40 hz. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeloManiac Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 Last night I was switching between my small tubecube amp and my solid state marantz amp, and it must be said that my 3.5wpc Tubecube produces more low frequencies than the Marantz, through the same Heresy speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeloManiac Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 37 minutes ago, polizzio said: I agree with the Cornwall selection as Cornwalls will reproduce down to 30 hz. But I disagree on the "very little music below 40 hz". A standard piano will generate sounds to 25 hz on the low end, so will electronic synthesizers utilized in a lot of pop and rock music. Not to mention a pipe organ will go to 20/25 hz too. To limit one to a full range loudspeaker with a low frequency cutoff of 50-60 hz is silly, if you want to hear all of the music. Shoot even my Elac debut 6.2 bookshelf speakers I use at my desktop pc will play down to 35-40 hz. I like this graph a lot, but it completely ignores electronic/dance/hiphop etc. music which often goes way lower than 40Hz. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polizzio Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 9 minutes ago, ILI said: I like this graph a lot, but it completely ignores electronic/dance/hiphop etc. music which often goes way lower than 40Hz. Classical music generates sounds lower than 30 hz. Acoustic instruments. Synthesizers or a Moog will go down to 20 hz (electronic generated sounds). I really like piano music and the low tones generated. I cannot imagine listening to music cut off @ 50 hz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete H Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 I run a sub with everything including Cornwall 2's, RF7's and other bass bins that dig down to below 40. I've never put a sub on something and dialed it in and then thought that the speakers sounded better without it, but that's me and I don't listen to any pipe organs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted November 15, 2019 Moderators Share Posted November 15, 2019 37 minutes ago, Pete H said: I run a sub with everything including Cornwall 2's, RF7's and other bass bins that dig down to below 40. I've never put a sub on something and dialed it in and then thought that the speakers sounded better without it, but that's me and I don't listen to any pipe organs. Exactly, I feel the same way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 2 hours ago, polizzio said: A standard piano will generate sounds to 25 hz on the low end 27.5Hz, actually... 1 hour ago, polizzio said: Classical music generates sounds lower than 30 hz. Acoustic instruments. Barely... unless you are talking about a pipe organ. No acoustic stringed instrument goes that low other than the piano. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polizzio Posted November 16, 2019 Share Posted November 16, 2019 16 hours ago, Marvel said: 27.5Hz, actually... Barely... unless you are talking about a pipe organ. No acoustic stringed instrument goes that low other than the piano. 10-4 Marvel, thx. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juniper Posted November 16, 2019 Share Posted November 16, 2019 I have had 2 pairs of Cornwalls and have heard Heresys, I liked the Cornwalls better, but i would find some Altec 604s with your price in mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Klipsch Posted November 16, 2019 Share Posted November 16, 2019 (edited) On 11/15/2019 at 2:43 AM, tuba said: Hello everyone, This is my first time on the forums and recently jumped into the rabbit hole into HiFi after feeling shortsighted with a full Bose 500 3.1 setup. I've decided to buy some floor speakers and plan on pairing with a SET tube amp, most likely a el34 but looking for an affordable 300b tube amp. My budget is less than $2000, and I am open to other speaker suggestions, as long as they are highly efficient. I am able to find a dealer in Canada selling BNIB pair of Heresy IIIs for $1700 shipped and a local seller asking $1600 for a pair used of Cornwalls II but I feel that he is motivated to sell. I like the Heresy because it would be new and I am fond of Heresy's history. I am aware of the lack of low end but whichever speaker I buy, I plan on adding a SVS pb-1000. Does anyone know which choice would be the smarter buy? I have both but for$take Cornwall ll you'll have them 4ever. Edited November 16, 2019 by Kevin Klipsch Thank God you got rid of the Bose crap. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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