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Do Cornwall 4s need a subwoofer


Fido

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Ok so due to lack of room for the Cornwall 4s I will be keeping my Fortes even though my wife gave me the green light to move up - I think the Fortes with my subwoofer will still sound better than just the Cornwalls without a sub and there is no way to fit that all in my small living room - Drat!!!!

 

Moving right along!!!!

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I think you may be missing something here. It’s not only the lowest octaves where the CW has the advantage over the forte. The midrange is smoother and more detailed. The presentation is decidedly bigger overall.

 

Don't get me wrong, I lived with and loved forte IIIs. But I would take CW IV over them even if subs were added to the fortes. Especially if your room is smaller than mine, then the gap in the lower frequencies closes further.

 

Shakey

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9 hours ago, wuzzzer said:

Yes, virtually all speakers benefit from a sub. 

And remember, the rule of thumb is as long as you can still walk around your room no sub is too big.  😀

 

Whew!  I just barely meet your standard.  The four small tapped horn subs, each flat to 25Hz, tucked into the corners leave just enough room for the “Supered” HIPs and to walk around the coffee table.  Since I gifted the inboard DIY Supers to a nephew, there’s nearly room to dance.

 

 

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10 hours ago, Fido said:

Do Cornwall 4s need a subwoofer - with my fortes and my sub woofer it sounds great but if I get Cornwall 4s my subwoofer will no longer fit - do the cornwalls go to those lowest octaves?

What do you listen to? Any HT for these or 2 Ch only,

 

Are their any songs on Fortes that you find ok without your Sub? What?

 

A sub with a CW IV becomes much more a matter of personal preference, type of music, etc. and if it is doing HT duty. The CW IV is night and day above a Forte side by side. But if your ears are tuned to certain kind of bass, or music, you need to know that going in.

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6 hours ago, Fido said:

Ok so due to lack of room for the Cornwall 4s I will be keeping my Fortes even though my wife gave me the green light to move up - I think the Fortes with my subwoofer will still sound better than just the Cornwalls without a sub and there is no way to fit that all in my small living room - Drat!!!!

 

Moving right along!!!!

Can you look at subs that would sit under the C4's and not take up any additional floor space?  

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4 minutes ago, Pete H said:

Can you look at subs that would sit under the C4's and not take up any additional floor space?  

 

Any sub you could sit the CW IV on top of would place the speaker way above the optimum listening height. I would not consider that option.

 

 

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3 minutes ago, Shakeydeal said:

 

Any sub you could sit the CW IV on top of would place the speaker way above the optimum listening height. I would not consider that option.

 

 

Not necessarily.  A low profile folded or tapped horn utilizing 8" drivers might work, and just like many floor standers have risers to angle speakers up, you can angle them down as well to achieve the desired result.

Depending on the room and furniture, maybe a larger horn sub that can do double duty as a piece of furniture could possibly work as well, or an IB setup, depending on whats above the ceiling, or below the floor.  Just thoughts.  When you get the green light for a purchase, you need to strike while the iron is hot.  LOL

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Well in my opinion, for that to work with the Cornwalls, the sub would have to be no more than 1-2" high.

 

With the risers, they are the perfect height for my listening position. If you had a higher chair than mine, you might be able to raise them a few inches more. Putting them on top of a subwoofer enclosure would totally skew the tonal balance of the speaker.

 

Hey, it's not like we are talking about a bass shy speaker in the first place. In a non home theater setting, most would be more than happy with the bass output.

 

Shakey

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I just recently integrated Cornwalls into my livingroom system. They are original Cornwalls, not IV, but since your concern is bass my experience should be relevant. The Cornwall bass is much cleaner, detailed, and more impactful than the Forte (I currently own both). You will miss some lower stuff without a sub if it is doing movies, but not so much for music. If I was in your position I would not hesitate to get the IVs. With both cleaner bass and far superior mid range it's a winner IMO

BTW I do use a tuba table sub with mine... but the livingroom system is primarily for movies.

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My current system fills the entire space I have available for my audio/video gear. I do share my dedicated 2 channel setup with my HT setup with Fortes, HSU Subwoofer and integrated amp and AVR. Add my subwoofer up front along with my vinyl setup and Super Heresys for my rear surrounds. My wife is cool with my gear taking up most of the living room but does not want the speakers extending past the wall openings and I agree. I was excited when I thought the Cornwalls could possibly work but I probably just need to stay off the Klipsch forum until I can just get over the idea of upgrading - I guess I'll just buy new tubes for my Integrated instead - burning a hole in my pocket wanting some new gear - lol - If that wall was just another foot longer I could almost make the Cornwalls work but...

IMG_1225.jpg

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On 12/17/2020 at 2:56 PM, Fido said:

My current system fills the entire space I have available for my audio/video gear. I do share my dedicated 2 channel setup with my HT setup with Fortes, HSU Subwoofer and integrated amp and AVR. Add my subwoofer up front along with my vinyl setup and Super Heresys for my rear surrounds. My wife is cool with my gear taking up most of the living room but does not want the speakers extending past the wall openings and I agree. I was excited when I thought the Cornwalls could possibly work but I probably just need to stay off the Klipsch forum until I can just get over the idea of upgrading - I guess I'll just buy new tubes for my Integrated instead - burning a hole in my pocket wanting some new gear - lol - If that wall was just another foot longer I could almost make the Cornwalls work but...

IMG_1225.jpg

Very nice room, I like all the wood and light grills.

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39 minutes ago, Ceptorman said:

Very nice room, I like all the wood and light grills.

Thanks for the kind words. It sounds really good, also. I wish I could just be about the music but being a pro photographer for many years I need the room to look and sound fantastic. It can not be one or the other.

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On 12/17/2020 at 8:39 AM, Pete H said:

Not necessarily.  A low profile folded or tapped horn utilizing 8" drivers might work, and just like many floor standers have risers to angle speakers up, you can angle them down as well to achieve the desired result.

Depending on the room and furniture, maybe a larger horn sub that can do double duty as a piece of furniture could possibly work as well, or an IB setup, depending on whats above the ceiling, or below the floor.  Just thoughts.  When you get the green light for a purchase, you need to strike while the iron is hot.  LOL

My coffee table sub with a LAB 12 driver makes uses 11 pieces of ripped lumber at 30x60 inches 14 1/2 inches tall. You can eat on the sub Japanese style. Ruler flat from 20-60 Hz., useable down to 15 Hz.

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I have Cornscalas with two 10" subs.  This with bass traps makes some very, very good bass.  Even without more subs, some sound treatments will do a lot for the bass.  in your case it looks like you have a pretty open area which limits sound treatments and takes more subs for the true bottom octave.  My subs go to the 20s which is plenty.

 

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