Khorns, Cornwall IV and Decware SE84UFO2

[ned]

Executive summary of a long post:  the Decware SE84UFO sounds great through 1979 Klipshorns and 2021 Cornwall IVs. It sounds better through the KHorns.

 

My system hasn’t changed in years apart from a cartridge here and there. And then suddenly it changed a bunch, all at once.

 

I went onto the Decware list in September of 2021. A month ago, the Zen triode SE84UFO2 arrived. I hooked it up to my 1979 KHorns and it sounded great. Plenty loud, very open presentation - I could hear more distinction between instruments and very crisp starts and stops to notes like the crack of a snare or a dampened string. I hadn’t started to listen critically but I liked it from day one.

 

Days later, a friend’s widow asked if she could store my late friend’s Cornwall IVs at my house while she makes some decisions. So, now I have a couple of amps, a couple of pairs of heritage speakers and a preamp that has outputs for two amps. The Parasound A23+ is fed through the balanced outputs, the Decware is fed by line. Yes, the balanced outputs are louder but it is easy to adjust the gain on both amps and I’ve got the A23+ dialed back.

 

So, the Cornwalls went on the Decware and sounded great. The midrange was forward and clear and everything sounded as it should, although the room was not as sound-filled as I was accustomed to with the KHorns. So, I put the CWs directly in front of the KHorns and powered everything on. Wow. I was swimming in sound and it was clear and lovely. (Let’s not talk about comb filtering just yet).

 

I lowered the KHorns a couple of dbs and it was the best sound I’ve ever heard. Mono recordings were brilliant, small jazz ensemble, opera, hip-hop, girl with guitar - all was wonderful. Loud or quiet.

 

I powered on just the KHorns alone (through the A23+) and I felt like I was missing some life in the midrange. Since these are my forever speakers I was concerned.

 

Then I switched amps. The KHorns alone through the Decware sounded better than the CWs through the Decware, they sounded better than both sets of speakers together. They sounded the best I’ve heard. I’m thrilled. By now the Decware has 100 hours or so on it.

 

I believe in psychoacoustics. The mid horn on the CW IV is a thing of beauty - in fact the whole speaker is. The mid horn on a KHorn is a thing of utility. It does not excite the eye into thinking that magic would emerge. But it does.

 

This is neither an amp or speaker review, It might be a wordy explanation of finding synergy between amp and speaker. I'm putting the CW IV in the bedroom. Boom chicka wow wow.

[CWelsh]

Someone is sure living right! Great post...thank you for sharing. It's fun reading about your experimentation and experience.

[Flevoman]

I can only comfirm what you said, I also like my Decware a lot

Will never sell this little amp for sure. 

[Idontknow]

Nice to hear that the Decware is working out. I used to have one but Decware really just opened up because of the YouTube channels. There's other great amps to choose from now. 

[ChrisK]

Of all the amps I've rolled through my system, a Decware SE84 had the sweetest sound overall. However, not quite enough punch when needed for my large room with high ceilings.

[ned]

2 minutes ago, ChrisK said:

Of all the amps I've rolled through my system, a Decware SE84 had the sweetest sound overall. However, not quite enough punch when needed for my large room with high ceilings.

I see the Mcintosh in your system. That'll do it! I have a few mono push/pull amps (Fisher 200s) and they are sweet. too hot for summer and not warrantied for life. I'm enjoying the plug and play lifestyle and the SET sound. 

[Coytee]

So, are you high in the Rocky Mountains.....or are you high in the Rocky Mountains?

 

(had to ask!!)

 

[ned]

3 hours ago, Coytee said:

So, are you high in the Rocky Mountains.....or are you high in the Rocky Mountains?

 

good question. Let me clear that up. I am high in the Rocky Mountains. I live at 7,000' above sea level