Consumer vs. Professional

[rborder]

Hello,

I have some professional Klipsch speakers- 1 pair of CP-1's

(Cornwalls), and 2 pair of Heresy HIP. I am assembling a home

theater around these beasts. I am wondering if anybody knows the

actual differences between these speakers, and their consumer

counterparts. Obvious differences are the finish (textured, satin

black finish), rounded off corners, fuse protection at the inputs, and

handles for lugging them around. I've been told that they also

have "heavy duty" drivers, making them capable of handling more

power. Does anybody know if this is true? Does anybody know

what the actual power handling specs are? Are the crossover's specific to the professional speakers?

Right now, I've got the Heresy's torn apart to re-finish the

cabinets. They're sanded down, repairs made, and are ready

to re-apply texture. Anybody got the inside scoop on how the

factory did it? There is evidence of overspray, inside the

cabinet, and it really looks like it might just be wall-board texture

(thinned dry-wall mud), sprayed with a texture gun.

Lastly, how about paint? Just good old oil-based satin

black from the local Sherwin Williams shop?? I am guessing

that the factory did not use a latex paint.

[Jay481985]

I am not sure what exactly is different but usually professional to

consumer means that the parts are capable of more abuse or more mean

time before breakdown. That is why a professional laundry machine is

10000 dollars as opposed to one thousand. They are made to handle day

in and day out instead of one a week.

Latex paint is only good for walls..... and really just because you can clean them easier.

[Daddy Dee]

In the case of the pro or industrial LaScala, the K33 woofer is replaced with the K43 which handles more power. I would think the Cornwall would use the same K43 in the pro model since it uses the K33 in the consumer version.

I don't know what model woofer the pro Heresy would use, but would assume that it also handles more power than the consumer model.

It is my understanding that the other drivers would be the same in pro and consumer models.

BTW, welcome to the forum. Hope you have a chance to do some posting on your refurb project and to post some pics if you can.

[John Pearlman]

Just my .02, I doubt shooting texture on the cabs with a gun will work out; its OK for walls but I don't think it'll hold up too well on the cabinets. In addition, the spackle won't stick as well to the plywood as it would to sheetrock.

[formica]

Just my .02, I doubt shooting texture

on the cabs with a gun will work out; its OK for walls but I don't

think it'll hold up too well on the cabinets. In addition,

the spackle won't stick as well to the plywood as it would to

sheetrock.

On the subject of texture... SVS (the subwoofer guys) use pick-up

bed liner paint. Colour, texture, and durability greatly resemble

the finish used for pro speakers.

Paintable rocker (sp?) guard paint from the auto parts store is very

similar too, and is pretty easy to work with apart from the odor.

ROb

[DrWho]

Then difference between the pro versions is that they have more power

handling and can go louder (as already mentioned), but to achieve this

they sacrifice LF extension...so they won't go as low. Consumer

speakers generally have a flatter frequency response too. Since you

aren't going to even come close to the max SPL of the consumer

versions, you would be much better off moving in that direction. Who

knows, maybe you'll even find some people willing to make some trades.

I know of one guy with a bunch of consumer cornwalls that is looking

for a pair of the pro versions.

[rborder]

I dunno- I bought my Cornwalls (CP1's) new, quite a few years

back. I did side-by-side comparisons with a lot of

speakers, including consumer Cornwalls. What finally sold me on

them was their incredible low frequency response. I certainly

wouldn't call it something I compromised on :-)

I almost wonder if they deviate from a optimally flat response, if the deviation is such that the low end is slightly boosted.

The other point you made, about the flat frequency response was why I

asked about the crossover. It sounds like the pro versions

should have the same mid/tweeter setup as the consumer speaker.

If the crossover is the same, then the frequency response from the

mid-range up, should be exactly the same. No?

I run them through a Crown PSA-2; @~275wpc. Of course, I

don't think I ever use any where near that kind of sustained power; but

I'm a believer in having an abundance of headroom. Last night,

for the first time, I got them hooked them up to a pair of these amps;

bridged @~915W per side. I think the low end could now

break up a kidney stone.

A trade? I wouldn't trade them for anything.

The Heresy's might be a different story. I only played with them

for a few days before tearing them apart for the rehab. On one

hand the woofer might be less efficient, or have an inferior response

curve. On the other hand, the "P" in HIP indicates a ported

enclosure, designed to boost the bottom end. So, my guess would

be that they might have a stronger lower end, which doesn't extend

quite as far down in frequency. Side by side with the Cornwalls,

that was kind of the impression I got. If I had to choose a

word to describe it, they might be a bit "boom'y". Like the

Cornwall's, I found them to be VERY sensitive to the power amplifier

used; for instance an old Hafler DH220 I first set them up with almost

left me thinking there was something broken with the speakers.

Horrible. Hooked up to my main system (one of my Crown's)

they really came to life, and were a joy to listen to.

[rborder]

Well, let's see if I can post a pic. Here they are all torn down

(router, sanded, puttied, etc.). Since this picture was

taken, I also decided to router the openings for the drivers too.

Last night, I shot the texture on them. Played with

truck

bed liner, undercoating, textured paint, and texture from a can.

I finally decided that wall texture (thinned a bit, finest possible

spray) was the closest match I was going to get. I actually

think it turned out very well. I am hoping

to paint today. Will post another pic or two when they're done.

Interesting that the factory primer seems to be white. Faces of the speakers did not have this primer on them though.

[formica]

Your pro HIP speakers should be using a different x-over and should out

perform the unported vintage Heresy. You are also right about the

Heresy being no match to Cornwalls when it comes to frequency response,

esp bass.

DrWho is correct in saying that the K43 (pro woofer used in LaScalas) does

sacrifice bass response to improve power handling in that enclosure,

but this may not apply to the CP1. Depending on x-over, woofer,

and enclosure tuning... it would not be hard to improve bass

response. What's the model number on the woofers and x-overs (HIP and

CP1)?

Progress is looking good... the rounded edges and bedliner finish

should make them look new again. You should check out Tom Adam's

rounded over Heresys...

ROb