My first heritage

[jzoz01]

I've decieded to put off upgading to RF7s to try out a 2channel heritage system. It seems like I can can get a decent pair of Herseys for under $400 on ebay. Should I just get a pair for starter speakers or save up and get some cornwalls or something? I'd really like to try some heritage, but I don't want to blow a bunch of money and be kicking myself for not getting the new rfs instead.

[tpg]

Get a pair of Heresy's and a nice older tube amp for starters is what I say.... but I have neither so...

[Manuel Delaflor]

I prefer the sound of Heresy's than the sound of RF7's (except for bass extension), but the best you can do is buy them and then compare them with those Reference speakers, your ears should have the last word.

And if you like more the RF7's you can always sell the Heresy's for what you paid for them

[Professor.Ham.Slap]

Yeah, Heritage isn't really going to flex in value, so chances are if you don't like them you can sell them for the same price. Although I will say I do like the Cornwall much more than the Heresy (although honestly I am somewhat biased). The low end slam is very impressive.

[ricktate]

I would get an HK430 and a pair of Heresys,and if on smooth hard floor put grippers on the bottom of them and ,,,,stand back,,,,lol...HERITAGE be afraid,very afraid....lol rick

[krustyoldsarge]

Ditto, go ahead and get the Heresy's. I owned a pair for 17 years. Drove them with so many different receivers I've forgotten their names (kinda like old girlfriends). My favorite was the old Fisher 400T, however for SS these days, you'll get my Marantz when you pry it from my cold, dead hands!

It's really hard to go wrong with Heresies, I miss mine. One poster among us has even figured out how to mod one for a passive radiator on the rear. That ought to pump up the bass a bit.

[Bill H.]

jzoz01 ,

Go ahead and get a set of Heresys.

I had the Heresys with a HK 430, the sound was fantastic, open and warm. Like an idoit I sold both of the units, and regret it now. Though I havent heard the Cornwalls, one point with them is there size. If After you get the Heresys, and want to upgrade go for CW (room permitting).

As others above have stated, you Will be able to get your money back, if you need to sell your Heresys, with no problems.

IF, your going to get into HT, you might want to go with your selection of RF7's. It will be easier to get a center channel that matches your system, and you don't have to worry about Shelding your speakers........... JMHO.

[marksdad]

i like my heresies as well, but lets face it, if you want to experience heritage, go for it, the corns are like having 4 heresies, they are truly an impressive speaker. when i had them you could sit in the sweet spot and feel the bass, i could feel the bass striking me in the chest, i loved it, the highs are great as well, never any strain. they would cost between 8-1000. but at least these wont leave you wanting, once you get the heresies you would think, hmmmmm? i wonder what corns sound like, and back to ebay we go, i say this because i have bought so many times middle of the road, only to upgrade months later, i became a collector, eventually giving the electronics away, or selling, a very costly hobbie, so nowadays, i start at the end, after alot of reading and auditioning, you cant audition, but ask yourself, where do i want my 2 channel system to be? i have had in house cornerhorns, corns, lascallas, heresies, and after the cornerhorns, are the corns, good luck

[garymd]

If you can afford it, just buy the cornwalls first. You'll be glad you did. They are big though.

[stan krajewski]

I recently purchased a pair of Heresy IIs and sold a pair of KLF20's. I prefer the Heresy IIs for their extraordinary midrange.

Before I decided to make the switch I posted a question much like as you did and got this from the Ear.

********************************************

Stanislaw,

What you will lose:Bass slam,deep bass reach

What you will gain:Midrange clarity and definition in the upper registers.You get a slice of the Heritage sound. This is a true gain

The bass loss can be compensated with a good subwoofer(from HSU or SVS),and a good sub will more then compensate.Overall I think its a positive move(always listen before you switch )

**********************************************

His reply is exactly what I have found to be true.

Although I am completely satisfied with the Heresys, I realize that the heritage line starts at the Heresy and then Chorus,Cornwall,LaScala(Belle) and ends with the Klipschorn. Lets face it, every speaker Paul Kipsch developed after the KHorn was really a "heresey" of sorts.

My decision was based on the small size and very reasonable cost of the Heresy.

Bottom line - I am extremely happy with them.

Good Luck!!!

[hurdy_gurdyman]

I recently had a chance to listen to a pair of RF-7's in the showroom (see my comparison in the 2-channel section). Compared to my Heresy-1's, the RF-7's have more bass and treble extension, and more "air" in the treble. But the mids...ah, that is where the Heresy's shine! The mids are cleaner, with more "the musicians are here" presense then the RF-7's. Also, even though the bass isn't near as extended, what was there on the Heresys seems to be taunter, with more slam.

Now, my Heresys have a dowel added for cabnet bracing and stuffing added inside, as well as the bass driver having putty added to the frame legs and around the mid horn. These tweeks could be part of the sound that, to me, made the Heresy 1's a better sounding overall speaker. Of course, the tweeks are cheap and easy to do.

Dave

[Colin]

Bigger is better with comprehension-driver horns. The larger the diaphragm, the better the horn will sound. The larger the horn throat and flare, the wider and taller the soundstage will be. The larger the soundstage, the better the imaging, separation of the instruments and placement will be. The better the soundstage is, the more easily it creates the illusion of a sonic 3D holograph. The larger the horn, the clearer, cleaner and more distinctive the vocals will seem. The larger the horn, the more efficient and dynamic the loudspeaker will be. The more dynamic that the amplifier and loudspeaker combination is, the more realistic the attack and decay of musical notes becomes.

Bigger is better with woofers. The larger the cone area, the more air the woofer can move with less movement itself. The less movement the woofer has to make the smaller and lighter the rubber surround has to be; and the smaller the magnet could be. The less the rubber surround has to move, the longer it will last. Woofers on big ole horns easily last decades. The more air the woofer can move, the larger the bass wave can be. The larger the wave is, the deeper the bass will be. When the bass is deep, the sound can be flatter and more realistic, across both low and middle frequencies. The flatter and wider the frequency response, the more accurate, long-term enjoyable and less fatiguing is the music. The larger the woofer, the more efficient and dynamic the loudspeaker will be. The more sensitive that a loudspeaker is the more accurate, revealing and dynamic it can become.

The more sensitive a loudspeaker is, the more easy it is to couple it with an amplifier that provides all the headroom the speaker needs. Twenty watts is all the power that most big ole horns need for many types of music in average size rooms. The lower the power requirements, the more important the quality of those first few watts matters. Lower cost tube amplifiers can do just as well or better - with big ole horns as superlative Pass Laboratories Supersymmetry Balanced Single-Ended Class-A X250 monster amplifiers (http://enjoythemusic.com/magazine/archives/). The wider, flatter and most dynamic frequency response sounds the best in the long run.

Bigger is better with loudspeakers.