Heresy vs. Forte vs. Cornwall

[crazytubepower]

Which is the best value, are the cornwall really worth 200 more a pair than the forte's, I already have heresy's so is it worth ditching the and buying a pair of one of these speakers, give me the pros/cons of each speaker

Thanks

James Eland

[smuttynose]

I just brought my new (used) cornwalls home and hooked them up in place of my hereseys. they are fantastic. the sound is so much more full, the volume i use on the amp is nowhere near as much, which leaves me looking forward to the tube amp i am shopping for. i will still love the hereseys hooked to my alternate stereo, but these cornwalls are really something else. i do not regret buying them at all and if i had it to do over, i would have gone to alot more trouble, fortunately i didnt need to. go for the cornwalls if you can.

[Duke Spinner]

probably a Big Bargain ...at only $ 200 more ..

[crazytubepower]

I also forgot to tell you guys that my music room is 12 by 14, if that matters at all

[Number 9]

I previously owned Cornwalls, and now own the Forte II, but that is only due to space limitations. The Fortes are great, but the Cornwall is a step up.

My current listening room is 19 x 16 which to me seems to be the perfect size for the Forte, and the Cornwalls just would overwhelm the room, not only music wise, but physically. I originally bought my Cornwalls when I had a rec room that was 24 x 18.

In a 12 x 14 room, I doubt you will get the best out of Cornwalls ... some will argue with me, but that's my opinion based on my experience with a room that is even larger than yours. Do you live with a significant other, WAF will be low in putting such big speakers in a small room, unless the room is all your own.

[Parrot]

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On 4/23/2005 8:39:22 PM crazytubepower wrote:

I also forgot to tell you guys that my music room is 12 by 14, if that matters at all

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Number 9 is absolutely right. Cornwalls would be too much for that room. I'd go with Heresies.

[DrWho]

I think I would take the forte's over the heresies though because the floor space taken up would be about the same (gotta put them heresies on stands or something). The forte's also have a ton more low end which may or may not be important depending on the music you listen to.

[KungFuNat]

as someone who recently upgraded from heresys to cornwalls, i can say that the cornwalls are a big improvement in every area, especially bass.. if you can, i say go with cornwalls. even in smaller rooms they sound unbelievable.

[TBrennan]

The deeper, more robust sound of the Cornwall will be better in almost any room. I've used Heresys and Cornwalls in both large and small rooms and the CWs were better. Indeed, I think the Heresys actually sound their best in a big room where one isn't directly assaulted by them.

And my best friend uses CWs in a very small room to good effect.

[arfandbark]

Love my Cornwalls......

I am biased..

Woof!

[Randy Taylor]

I have never heard or seen a pair of Cornwalls, are they a lot bigger in size than the Heresy II's ? I was just wondering because I always hear about how great the CW's are, and wonder why if they are so good, why they don't make them any more, but they still make the Heresy II which a lot of people think the the CW's are better than.

[tillmbil]

I have all three and the CW's outshine them all by a good bit. I actually have me CW's in a 12x14 room (den). With all the right gear they sound good.

[Audible Nectar]

Cornwalls are MUCH larger than a Heresy.

Cornwall: 35 3/4" H x 25 1/4" W x 15 1/2" D.

Heresy: 21 x 15 x 13.

The Cornwall went out of production in 1989 or so, presumably from low sales as a result of the HT market going "small" on speakers. It was one of the dumbest ideas in audio, as there is no defying the laws of physics. The Cornwall is an excellent main speaker if one has the room and the electronics to feed them properly.

A 12 x 14 foot room is (by the book) a bit small for Cornwalls, that is if you want them to really sound like they should (if imaging is important to you). Most would go with Heresys in that application in a normal setup, possibly Fortes in a floorstander. I have seen (and done) Cornwalls/Belles in similar sized rooms, and you end up with more of a "studio" sound, where the speakers just fill the room with sound (but no real soundstaging). In my case, the arrangement is/was temporary, because I prefer the effortless and commanding presence and sound of the bigger Heritage - and will not live in this dwelling long term - and wanted to buy the speakers ONCE (not much upgrading necessary later). I said "forget the smaller stuff" because I will be moving and wanted the bigger sound, so I bought them.

I'm running 6 Cornwalls (and two JBL twin 15" woofer cabs as subs) in a 15 x 20 foot room, and Belles in a 13 x 16 foot room. It's not optimal, but it still sounds incredible and effortless, and as I say, I'll be moving eventually and will get a dwelling for the setups, and I'll be free of chasing my speakers once that move takes place.

If your 12 x 14 foot room is seen as "permanent", the Corns may not be for you - think Heresy or Forte. If you plan to move in the not too distant future, you can go big, live with them, and have some KILLER main speakers for life - just get a home with room for them No matter which you buy, if you pay a reasonable price for them, and you don't like them, come back here and sell them. As long as you pay a fair price, you have little to lose $$$wise and much to gain in sonic happiness.

And yes, IMO, the Cornwall is worth $200 more than the Forte. Absolutely.

[Number 9]

In a 12 x 14 room, as AN says, you will get poor imaging. You will have your speakers along one wall, and have to be sitting almost all the way on the opposite wall, which is probably the worst place to be sitting to attempt at some sort of imaging. Ideally, you should be sitting at least 3-4 feet from any back wall, but then, you will likely be too close to the speakers IMO.

And I'm not getting into all the issues of the bass nodes becoming overloaded ... the smaller the room, more accentuated peaks and dips in the bass region. Will muddy up not only the bass but also the midrange.

Some people I guess will say that the Cornwalls will sound great if you shoved them in a closet I guess. Hey, I'm a Cornwall fan, had them for ten years, but they need room to breathe.

[Randy Taylor]

OK! they are a lot bigger, I have only seen pictures on line and really could not tell. I do have a small home and a small living room, so I will stick with my HeresyII pair. I would love to have the top Klipsch (K-horn) but I don't Know if I could get them in my house and I do love my Heresy II's.

[colterphoto1]

two words- Cornwalls ROCK!

if space is limited, you might try Chorus. Same height as Cornwall, but about 2/3 the footprint.

Heresies are too lacking in bass to be main LR IMHO.

Michael

[TBrennan]

I fail to see why a Cornwall wouldn't image as well as a Heresy in a small room. There is very little, if any, difference in the dispersion above 700hz and not that much below 700; according to Olson at 500hz the difference between a 12" and 15" direct radiator at 45 degrees off-axis will only be a couple of dbs at most.

There may be some process at work other than the actual directional characteristics of the speaker, a masking caused by the better bass response of the Cornwall? Or perhaps the lesser performence of one speaker is interpreted as being better?

[Audible Nectar]

I think, Tom, that it has something to do with the fact that the woofers in both are responsible for a large part of the midrange material. In the Heresy, the woofer is much closer to the other drivers. In the Cornwall, the woofer is more at an "off angle" to the listener (vs. the Heresy) when at close range.....more spread out from the other drivers. I think this helps the Heresy in smaller areas - I've heard Heresys sound very good at ear level in several "small room" environments where I'm sure Corns wouldn't image the same - or even fit, for that matter.

The smaller, sealed cabinet may have something to do with this as well, but attempting to explain why is beyond my level of expertise. Maybe the Corns overload the room more easily, I'm not sure....but the Corns definitely benefit from more space.

[jt1stcav]

I have to say from my personal experience that in my tiny 12 x 13.5 room, my beloved Cornwalls sounded too shrill and harsh in the higher frequencies at louder volumes, whether with SS McIntosh amps or even my current 300B SET. They certainly need more room to breath as I have heard other Cornwalls sing effortlessly in huge music rooms. To me, imaging and soundstage was okay in my small room, but I suppose it could be much better if installed in a much larger room. Until I can relocate my entire system into a much larger room in the house, I'll continue to keep my Cornwalls in temporary storage, and use my brother's Triangle Zephyr towers.

IMO, for your room size, I'd keep the Heresys and use a decent subwoofer; having never auditioned a pair of Fortes, I cannot comment on how they'd work out for you, although they might sound just fine.

Just my two cents...

[Number 9]

Tbrennan: There may be some process at work other than the actual directional characteristics of the speaker, a masking caused by the better bass response of the Cornwall?

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I think that is exactly it. Who would argue that the Cornwall's bass is well "energized". A good ol' 15" woofer seems to create more energy than the 8" jobs you see these days. Combine that with the fact a small room will have more pronounced resonant nodes, this will muddy up the midrange and impact not just tonality, but also imaging. People hear this effect all the time when they have tried digital room correction such as with a TACT.