Opinion on Corwall II sound quality?

[Super_BQ]

I'm looking at buying a pair of used Cornwall II that appear to be in reasonable condition and need to know what they are worth $$?

Like the Klipschorns, was there a period of time where Klipsch made bad runs (changes in the xover / drivers) to the Cornwall II ?

Which line of speakers do the Cornwall II sound closest to? (comparable freq. repsonse?) I do own a pair of the Chorus which probably just came out after Klipsch discontinued the Cornwalls.

I can not audition the speakers so if I do buy the speakers, I would be doing so blindly. The particular set will be picked up by a friend of mine until the time I arrive back to pick them up at his place.

Awaiting for your comments.

[Chris Robinson]

The Cornwall II's are a lot like the Cornwall I's except for the sensitivity of the tweeter (K-77 vs K-79). The B-2 crossover is carried over, I believe. There should be a lot of similarity between the two.

I owned a pair of the CW I's for about nine months before scoring a pair of very early Cornwalls, and I think they're fine sounding speakers. I think they are the closest in sounding like the Klipschorns, except the bass is not as pronounced. That being said, with their freestanding orientation (and not being bound to corners like the Khorn), you have a lot of flexibility in positioning to get the most imaging and soundstage -- more than the Klipschorn unless you have a "perfect" room. The Klipschorn, however, will FILL a room with music which will make some forget about imaging and soundstage.

To put it another way, I have a Belle, two old Cornwalls, a pair of Heresy I's and an old pair of Klipschorns. I'd rate the Cornwalls and Klipschorns as a tie but for entirely different reasons. The Cornwalls are going to my boy and the Klipschorns appear to be heading to Kelly when I croak.

Ribbit.

[mobile homeless]

Heh...indeed. I see that wacky James Brown has gone straight to your skull, bypassing the Medulla!

kh

[mobile homeless]

As for the Cornwall II question, I assume you have read this review of the CWII? It has some interesting observations.

Klipsch Cornwall II Test Report

kh

[marksdad]

like mobile homeless said! i found that article the day before i bought mine, and i have to say that i have absoutly no regrets. my new corns have brought new dimension to everything i listen to. read my last post in general questions, post title "add on to are they worth 1100"

[HDBRbuilder]

IMHO, the Cornwall is one helluva speaker, no matter which version it is!!

Sure, there are small diffences between the various models: different horn lenses, different woofers, different tweeters or mid drivers, and different crossover network designs...and when heard in side-by-side comparisons some of these differences can be picked up by one's ears(but they are STILL very subtle differences!!)...and different people favor different ones for that reason.

But, the fact remains: ANY Cornwall is a GOOD Cornwall, and ALL CORNWALLS sound GREAT!

So, if you are worried about a Cornwall purchase based SOLELY on these changes over the years, don't be!

[Charles Turner]

I'm sure someone on this board will disagree but I chose the Cornwalls over the Klipschorns and I have never regreted my decision. It was the late 70s and I listened mostly to rock and they simply sounded more realistic to me for rock and roll. The Klipschorns sounded a bit better on classical but not enough so to make me change my decision. At the time I seldom listened to jazz and the price difference was not really a significant factor.

Although a now listen to rock, jazz, and classical I still prefer the cornwalls. The closest I've ever come to country is Neil Young and he sounds wonderful.

I've not paid enough attention to the criteria to know for sure if mine are Cornwall Is or IIs. The horns are mounted horizontally with the speaker standing on it's shortest side. The components are K-33 woofers, K-55 mids, and K-77 tweeters with type B crossover. Serial numbers are 8P864 and 8P865.

I recently moved the cornwalls into a smaller room (12 x 15 x 8) and changed the crossovers to ALKs and the sound is overall smoother and some of the harshness I found present in a smaller room is gone.

[Charles Turner]

I just realized it might be helpful when you evaluate my recommendation to know what components I use...

Rega 25 turntable

Micro Benz H2 "woodbody" cartridge

McIntosh C-15 SS preamp

McIntosh MC225 Tube amplifier

12 guage Monster speaker cable

Double shielded "orange" Radio Shack interconnects

[mobile homeless]

See below and LINK. It's a site I made on the date codes.

Klipsch Speaker Date Codes w/Explanation

You have 1976 Cornwalls. I have the 77 Designer Series and we both have the same components. I, on the other hand, am VERY taken with the original Type B crossovers with oil caps. These do very well with low watt tube amplification with the oils providing very natural presentation. If you still have your Type B crossovers, perhaps Deang might be interested in a purchase.

kh

ps- I find the original Monster cable to not have the smoothest highs either. After cycling through a number of wire options, I found the Belden 89259, 22awg, 1 conductor, 1 Coax, RG Type 59/U, 7x30 Stranding, Bare Copper, Foam FEP Insulation, Braid Shield, FEP Outer Jacket configured in a TWISTED pair to be VERY good with the CW. A shot of the final product appearance is here: Twisted Cross Connect

[HDBRbuilder]

I think Kelly(Mobile Homeless) probably has more listening experience with Cornwalls (especially with the interior components his have!)and the many things that can (or can't)bring out their best performance than about anybody on this forum. He has been using his Cornwalls as "reference speakers" for an ungodly number of component and tweak tests for a very long time now! So when he talks about things that work best with them, it is a good idea to listen!

[heresy2guy]

Mobile Homeless gave an GREAT link about Cornwall testing! Thanks!

Here's a thought - Cornwalls VS. La Scalas - I say, albeit without hearing either of them, that the La Scalas would triumph.

Anybody who's listened to both care to throw their two cents in?

[HDBRbuilder]

Heresy2Guy,

That is a matter of each individual's listening tastes, and what parameters they want out of the speakers they purchase. I just finished posting about this in the General questions section today. Give it a read if you want...it details the differences between the two speakers!

[heresy2guy]

Will do - thanks!

[Charles Turner]

Mobile...

Thanks for the clarification of production year on my cornwalls and I have no plans to part with the original B networks...one day I may decide to switch back.

The twisted pair speaker cable you mentioned is the one I decided once before to try but I've just not had a chance to get it done...it seemed to represent the best value of all the options I researched.

A bit off topic but i've spent a few weeks building a Microsoft Access Database for my lps...I decided to build my own in Access because it allows me to easily make changes, do queries, and eventually port it down to a Windows CE based "Palm" device to carry with me to garage/estate sales and thrift stores.

[Super_BQ]

Thank you all for the input. I'm pretty sure I will not be disappointed with the Cornwall II. Nowadays it's so hard to find a good sounding speaker no matter if it cost over $10,000usd new or not.

I recently auditioned a complete Naim system (SL-2, NAP-500, CDX, new pre-amp, and their Naim rack system) which sold for over $50,000usd - i was completely disgusted with the flat sound that I wondered who buys such a setup?

BQ

[mobile homeless]

Charles, throw me an email concerning that Access LP database. Can I take a look at how you opted to construct for LP cataloging?

Andy, thanks for the tip to see the General thread. I never hardly enter that forum and miss things occassionally.

I have much more experience with gear outside the Klipsch realm and have to admit to only being a lover of Klipsch relatively recently in the grand scheme of things compared to some that have been with their Klipsch for 20-30-40 years. I wasnt as much a fan of the Klipsch Heritage sound until going with tubes on them. I still think there are better speakers for certain types of rock and believe that Klipsch do have some weaknesses. They can be awfully unforgiving with less than steller recordings or recordings that have a certain tonal balance that bring out glare. On the other hand, they can be magical and world beaters given the right amplification, source, and music (not to mention setup).

Bad solid state, however, makes for a bad horn experience. And bad solid state with HIGH POWER is unbearable to me. But once you have experienced horns of some sort in the reproduction chain, it is hard to forget the dynamics and quickness along with that amazingly OPEN alive quality that eludes many a speaker. I still love a good pair of monitor speakers however. And other horn options outside the Klipsch realm are sure to enter in the picture when more room permits.

kh

ps - I have actually like NAIM gear and find it unusual that you thought it flat. It is not etched or aggressive, which some do mistake for detail, but is does have nice tone and is very rich for SS. Still, it is surely not the same on a horn setup. But dont mistake overly pronounced highs for detail, a common mistake.

[Colin]

I am not surprised to hear that someone would choose the Cornwalls over the Khorns for bass. The Cornwall Is which I had exhibited a pronounced bump in the 100-hz region, in a number of rooms, which gave them a great rock n' roll feel. The Khorns are deeper and smoother over all with excellent integration between the bass regions and mid-range. They sound more like a string bass than an electric one. The sound, although more accurate and refined, is not as punchy. Nevertheless, with double the sensitivity, their dynamics are much greater and the Khorn is a much better loudspeaker. Despite their unusual large size and weight (their mass is three that of the Cornwalls) they sell for two to three times the price.

With big old horns, bigger really is better. Be forewarned however, that unless you have a superb sounding solid state front-end, the revealing nature of big old horns will wear out your ears. If you find yourself turning off the music after a few hours (thats enough of that), the mental fatigue may be coming from this unhappy coupling. Think tubes or very high quality low power amplification.

Either way however, the large size and unique requirements have made the big old Klipsch horns a rare bargain in the audio marketplace. ****** them up! Where else can you get a quality 15 three-way with 100-dB/w/m sensitivity?

[HDBRbuilder]

Kelly,

As for the S/S issue with Klipsch speakers(especially the Heritage models)...I have found that I do NOT like almost ANY S/S amp that is rated at over 100WPC through them...with just a very few exceptions! I have also found that in the S/S amp realm with them, the MOST listening enjoyment for ME doesn't require many watts to begin with...and, generally speaking, the lower the RATED output power of the S/S amp used, the better it tends to sound to me...all other things being equal, AND providing the amp has the ability to apply ENOUGH power to cover the needs of the speakers when complex transients are involved! Some folks just like lots of "rated" wattage power, but I have found that for me, that hasn't been the case!

I am more the kind of person who thinks: "That amp really DOES sound good...how much is it? GEEZUS KEERIST!!...well, it doesn't sound THAT great, and I know of others that sound just as good, or better for alot less!" Results? AMP model/make deleted from list! LOL! And thereby lies MY thought process! With VERY FEW exceptions! LOL!

As for my statement about your experience with Cornwalls, it still stands! I readily admit that there are numerous members here who have many more YEARS with their Cornwalls than you have, but you have probably done more experimenting with trying to squeeze out the best from yours than most of the Cornwall-owning members have tried!...or at least AS MUCH! So, what you say about things in that realm counts alot, and should be well-considered by others! IMHO!!

[cornwaller]

Kelly and HDBRbuilder,

Please refer to my post of 12/22 (this BB) regarding "Tube Amp and Preamp with Turntable vs SS with DVD-A". I think the points you are making pair nicely with that topic. Once you read what I had to say let me know if you think I'm all wet.

Thanks,

Cornwaller