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No substitute for cubic inches!


Bonzo

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My Dad use to drag race and would always tell me, "there is no substitute for cubic inches." Of course he was talking about engine displacement but it seems to hold true for woofers also.

This is nothing new but I just want to share some casual observations.

I had a pair of Forte II's with k-stacks, spiked cabinets etc. They are a great speaker but, I was never impressed with the low end response. After moving them around and putting them in different locations, which are limited in my room, I just couldn't get it right. I ended up selling them and wanting a pair of Cornwalls again but they are just too big.

As luck would have it, I found a pair of Chorus I's locally in very nice condition. I put them in the normal position and, WOW, BASS. I don't know if it's the 15's, front ports, no passive radiator, bigger cabinet or all the above, but now I am a happy guy! I am having to chase down rattles in the living room that just didn't happen with the Forte's. Using cone spikes helped a lot also. My wife even likes them as they are in oak and match our entertainment center.

For me, the Chorus I is my new favorite and have a "permanent" place in my home?

I guess the old man was right, but I won't tell him that!

Mark

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My Dad use to drag race and would always tell me, "there is no substitute for cubic inches." Of course he was talking about engine displacement but it seems to hold true for woofers also.

This is nothing new but I just want to share some casual observations.

I had a pair of Forte II's with k-stacks, spiked cabinets etc. They are a great speaker but, I was never impressed with the low end response. After moving them around and putting them in different locations, which are limited in my room, I just couldn't get it right. I ended up selling them and wanting a pair of Cornwalls again but they are just too big.

As luck would have it, I found a pair of Chorus I's locally in very nice condition. I put them in the normal position and, WOW, BASS. I don't know if it's the 15's, front ports, no passive radiator, bigger cabinet or all the above, but now I am a happy guy! I am having to chase down rattles in the living room that just didn't happen with the Forte's. Using cone spikes helped a lot also. My wife even likes them as they are in oak and match our entertainment center.

For me, the Chorus I is my new favorite and have a "permanent" place in my home?

I guess the old man was right, but I won't tell him that!

Mark

I agree completely as long as you can integrate it to the room.Now that you have some bass start working on your room,been tuning mine and WOW everything is cleaner.Bass is a wonderful part of the musical presentation if done right.

See my system profile.

Greg

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Hey Steamer,

I just looked at your profile, HOLY CRAP, two Bag End 18" subs??? Have you checked the nails on the outside of your house? I'll bet you will have to pound them back in! How big is your listening room if you don't mind me asking? I may try some room treatments but I am pretty happy with it as is. It is our main living room so I can't do much or I will be doing treatments in "the dog house", if you know what I mean. I was just lucky enough to find a pair of oak Chorus' that match our furniture. The good thing is, I had Cornwalls when we first met so she is happy they are not too big. Glad I had my Heresy's in my bedroom. The first thing she asked was why I had the washer and dryer in the living room? I should have known then it would be an up hill battle.

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Hey Steamer,

I just looked at your profile, HOLY CRAP, two Bag End 18" subs??? Have you checked the nails on the outside of your house? I'll bet you will have to pound them back in! How big is your listening room if you don't mind me asking? I may try some room treatments but I am pretty happy with it as is. It is our main living room so I can't do much or I will be doing treatments in "the dog house", if you know what I mean. I was just lucky enough to find a pair of oak Chorus' that match our furniture. The good thing is, I had Cornwalls when we first met so she is happy they are not too big. Glad I had my Heresy's in my bedroom. The first thing she asked was why I had the washer and dryer in the living room? I should have known then it would be an up hill battle.

LOL like the part about the washer and dryer!

I have my rig in the basement,the room is 30 long by about 13 or 14 wide.

Been playin with the homemade bass traps and worked on early reflections today...WOW big difference.

You might think Holy crap because of 2 18's but Ill tell you they just cruise with the music.Best bass I have heard in my system and I ran Velodynes for years.Think it has something to do with 2 of em and the integrator they come with.Basically an EQ device w/x-over.BTW they integrate very well with the system as a whole and the system is not bass tilted at all,and I can adjust the level with one knob on the Rane usually about 1 or 2 db depending on music or my mood.I can make it sound like a band playin at the local pub with lots of clean punchy bass(definately tilted toward BASS).

BagEnd claims more impactfull bass at lower volumes and YES they deliver.

Greg

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I hate to pick on my wife and I'm sure she was kidding when she said that? Although, she was the one who said she hated her lawn mower because it was so hard to push. You guessed it, it was a self propelled mower and she didn't know you had to push the lever to engage the front wheels. I still wouldn't trade her for the world! Anyone that can put up with me this long is VERY special, or crazy?

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My acoustic memory is pretty short, but as I recall, the Corns had a bit better low bass and upper treble.

I also had a different amp then, an NAD 218, which drove them pretty well. For now, I am using a Yamaha 100 watt RX-777 stereo receiver which is actually a pretty impressive piece of gear. Just sold my Anthem tube integrated to maintain our marital bliss. Now I'm looking for a SS integrated that is easy to use, with remote. I am in no hurry as the Chorus' sound damn good with the Yammy!

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Know what you mean...two 18" Bag Ends are quite impressive. And like you said, it doesn't have to be overpowering to produce clean, tight (and low) bass at lower volumes.

A few years ago my kid brother built two pairs of Linkwitz-designed "H"-shaped open baffle dipole subwoofers, each with two efficient 15" drivers in push-pull configuration wired in parallel, and each about the size of Cornwalls (only a little taller and deeper), powered by my old Carver M-400t amp, controlled by an AudioControl Richter Scale Series III bass EQ/crossover. With his bass management software program installed in his laptop, these monster subs each went down to a respectable 18Hz at about 100dB(?)...their only drawback were their size, especially when he later installed an InFocus wall-mounted HD projector and a 109"+ screen...the subs got in the way of the image! He later bought an impressive SVS PB12-ISD2, but its huge enclosure also caused problems with placement and interfering with the projected image! The family room/HT is about 15 x 30, so now he's considering a low profile enclosure (ported or sealed) utilizing four 15" Dayton sub drivers and a QSC pro amp capable of 800 or more watts that will also incorporate his center channel, and will fit under the wall-mounted screen.

No current pics, but here's his DIY open baffle dipole subwoofers and system (all now sold)...

post-11084-13819281277498_thumb.jpg

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WOW,that is some serious gear,great pic.

My BagEnd's are compact for 18's and are sealed enclosures,they have a close bass signature to the LaScala's(also a sealed enclosure)and yes there is no replacement for displacement especially when you are trying to run with LaScala's

Greg

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