Zeke_in_KC Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 I spend my time over on AudioKarma but dug around -- becoming a member -- here to get some background on my $40 garage sale speakers purchased on June 5th. The good folks at AudioKarma are great and, thus far, I have found this forum to be excellent, as well. (If you haven't been, I recommend a visit.) In any event, it appears that I found the Holy Grail: a sonically pure pair of Cornwalls that cleaned up nicely for an unheard of price. I do, however, have a newbie query. I presumed these were 1984 vintage due to the model/serial number (CWO-841XXXX) but I have since seen all sorts of crazy serial numbers on the Internet. What do I have here? They're placed 12' apart in my living room with a slight inward toe and sound magnificent using high quality vintage SS amplification. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3dzapper Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 "$40 garage sale speakers" WOW!!!!!!!! Welcome to the forum ! Is that fourth digit an X or a number? If an X they are '83s if a number they are '84's. You luck dog! Did you play the Lotto? Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 You have a pair of Walnut Oil Cornwalls made in 1984, Klipsch quit using the S/N's with the "Alpha Characters" in them in 1983 and briefly used the first two digits of the S/N to indicate the year of manufacture. Man if you got those for $40 you should have been holding a gun to the guy's head because you robbed him. Usual selling prices depending on year and over condition can run from $500 - $1400 or more a pair. Those look to be in very, very nice condition for $40 and they have the cane grills that make the darker wood look really nice. I have a pair of 1962 Vertical Cornwall II's in Walnut Oil, and a pair of '86 Cornwall II's in Raw Birch that have been finished in Oak stain with a satin poly finish. Either way you have a nice set of speakers that you got for song. Welcome to the forum and most of all enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale A B Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 Welcome to the Klipsch forum. I visit audiokarma.org frequently and saw your post on that board when you found the Cornwalls. What a steal/deal you got there! (And free delivery, too!) Yes, those sound like 84's. Previous years had letters in them that correspond to certain years, and that decoder sheet has been listed on here prior. Some people swear by tubes, but anything larger than a clock radio should sound fine. Klipsch speakers are very addicting and it won't be long that you'll need a pair of K-Horns or such. Man, I still can't believe what you got those for - ENJOY! Dale in WI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piranha Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 Just to put your find into perspective. I bought a pair of 84 Cornwalls last year for $750. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyKlipschFan Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 Not sure if they should be on the sides... You want the mouth of the tweeter and midrange to go left to right... Older Cornwall II's were made to be on the sides.... called Verticall Cornwalls. now horizontal driver wise on the sides.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeke_in_KC Posted June 21, 2004 Author Share Posted June 21, 2004 Man, folks reply quick here! Thanks for the tip about placement/standing. They actually have a small riser on them making it fairly evident which direction they should be placed -- I was just too damned tired, after lugging them each solo up two flights of stairs, to even set them upright. I quickly grabbed a camera and a malt/barley beverage to admire them laying in my living room. (The photo was taken from the large couch they now bracket.) Thanks again, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piranha Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 ---------------- On 6/21/2004 3:17:33 PM IndyKlipschFan wrote: Not sure if they should be on the sides... You want the mouth of the tweeter and midrange to go left to right... Older Cornwall II's were made to be on the sides.... called Verticall Cornwalls. now horizontal driver wise on the sides.... ---------------- What Indy said Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 congrats zeek, a real steal you got there, enjoy them, they are fine speakers! welcome to the forum, tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 You done good, Zeke, and I believe you, unlike the guy a month ago who *claimed* he had been given rosewood Klipschorns for being willing to haul away the "junk." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seadog Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 That's the best find that I've heard of in a very long time. Congratulations. Fair warning however, the Klipsch bug may bite you, and the only cure is more Klipsch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 Zeke, Welcome to the forum. That is the rarest find for $40. Congrats. I believe that the cane grills alone are worth more than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 Welcome to your second forum home (I, too reside at AudioKarma.org). And congrats on the steal of the new century! They look real nice, and the cane is so retro cool man! And yes, vintage SS sounds fantastic with these Heritage horns; I used McIntosh MC2100 and MC250 power amps with great success. Now I'm driving my Cornwalls with a '62 Magnavox EL84 SE tube amp (with about 2 or 3 watts) that's more dynamic than I would've guessed from an old console amp! Enjoy your "new" Cornwalls (and thank the seller for not knowing what he/she really had)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 SCORE!!!! Might be a Forum record for Corns Sold my super-sensitive walnut-oiled Cornwall 1s, with their B2 crossovers, for $1K, used them and classic Klipsch corner Khorns with sweet, little 70s vintage, solid-state harmon/kardon 330B receiver Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeke_in_KC Posted June 22, 2004 Author Share Posted June 22, 2004 Interestingly enough, Cornwalls do make my amplification setup somewhat overkill: I rarely listen to anything requiring >1W peaks but have an 180W vintage receiver. I do, however, understand what a high efficiency speaker is, now, as another personal setup features bookshelf speakers at only 89db sensitivity. I've experimented some with placement and have found that overall response is flatter if I pull the units out about 12"-14" from corners and toe them 25-30 degrees. (Too little toe gives muddy wall reflections and too much toe gives a stereophonic "in my head" feel.) The overall feel is that my combination is effortless in terms of reproducing sound. Thanks for the replies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted June 22, 2004 Share Posted June 22, 2004 ---------------- On 6/22/2004 9:42:08 AM Zeke_in_KC wrote: I rarely listen to anything requiring >1W peaks ---------------- How do you know? ---------------- On 6/22/2004 9:42:08 AM Zeke_in_KC wrote: The overall feel is that my combination is effortless in terms of reproducing sound. ---------------- That's *exactly* the right kind of system to have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeke_in_KC Posted June 22, 2004 Author Share Posted June 22, 2004 I rarely listen to anything requiring >1W peaks ---------------- How do you know? ---------------- Power output meter (into 8 ohms) on my amplifier. Actually, I'm a wuss, I've not seen >40W peaks using even the most ineffecient speaker: it drives me out of the house... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 22, 2004 Share Posted June 22, 2004 Corns are super-sensitive! My Pass III, series 2, tube pre-amplifier uses a Type A potentiometer dial, which shows approximate power output of amplifiers. At the 9:00 on a tube, I got 73 dB (+- 2 dB) at my listening spot, 72 inches away, with possibly about 1.6 watts, with a slow, C weighted, 1Khz signal. Noontime on the dial is about 91-dB average with about 3.2 watts. Three oclock with this extrapolation is 101 dB with about 4.9 watts. With the volume twisted far right to 5:00 on the dial, they will put out something like 6 watts, providing an unmusical pain at 110-dB! Actual in-room frequency response at my listening spot is very flat - within three dB from 50 to 10 kHz, covering the crucial portion of the music range. A good portion of the music range is handled by the mid-range horn. This sounds crisp and clear. Bass response at 80-100Hz and treble response at 7-9kHz is tipped up: acceptable to some, but ultimately annoying to me (especially in untreated rooms or with chintzy modern tin receivers). With the massive Pass Laboratories Supersymmetry Balanced Single-Ended Class-A X250 (http://enjoythemusic.com/magazine/archives/) solid-state stereo amplifier, we never saw the needles move out of the 75-watt Class A range, NOT even during power-sucking lightening strikes on Xmen at loud volumes. Learn their special diet, feed them well and they will serve you music for decades! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted June 22, 2004 Share Posted June 22, 2004 ---------------- On 6/21/2004 3:14:03 PM Piranha wrote: Just to put your find into perspective. I bought a pair of 84 Cornwalls last year for $750. ---------------- Just to put it More into perspective, a friend of mine paid $48 for a set of Cornwall Cane Grills late last year!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeke_in_KC Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 How's this for bringing up a dino of a thread? For years, now, I have enjoyed the Klipsch sound and -- today -- have my first problem: fuzz from the mid-range squawker during demanding passages. It appears my Cornwalls came from the end of the Cornwall I run, as I have most things incorporated in the Cornwall II but rear mounting hardware. In addtion, I have the B-3 crossover and a weird (K57) midrange. The well known Bob Crites has indicated that he will, soon, have a fix in stock and I see no reason to not, finally, put some $$$ in these. My intent is to get what I need for repair, a crossover rebuild kit and, perhaps, his house tweeter. Interestingly, I have been using high power SS amplification for years and have experienced none of the harshness that many have indicated is the natural emination of Cornwalls when fed such juice: which I attribute to the crossover and well maintained source/signal/wattage. My only fear with the Crites tweeter is increasing frequency response may change that. Thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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