HK-430 Revisited + Cornwalls + La Scalas

[dkalsi]

I wasnt in the market for new speakers but there was someone local selling the Klipsch Cornwall for 650. I had never heard the speakers before but when I went to test them out - no negociation - I bought them. Was that a rip-off? I don't know, but to my ears they were worth every penny. The guy I bought them from was the orignal owner. He bought them unfinished and never got a chance (since 1977) to finish them. None the less he owns a woodworking shop and he sanded them down for me like the day he received them. I love the speakers.

Next I bought the La Scala, without testing them out locally from an orignal ower, I am suppose to pick them up this week. Perfect condition. Was it worth it for 750? Don't know yet.

And lastly, there is someone loca selling the HK-430? Read good stuff about it here. He claims it is in excellent condition and he is silling it for $40... have not made purchase, but do you guys think I should go for it?

[oldenough]

Yes, you will love it, and the price is right. Welcome to the madness.[]...John

[oldtimer]

Where do you live that people are practically giving stuff away?

[dtel]

Those all seem to be really good prices. The HK's do have a very nice sound, and should sound great with the Cornwalls or the LaScalas.

To me the Cornwalls sound different than the LaScalas, but I like the sound of both.

The top half of the LaScalas mated with the bottom end of the Cornwall would be my favorite ! Some people on this forum have done that already !

[dkalsi]

Other then the Forums here, not much is talked about the Cornwalls. You can alway find positive feedback on the La Scalas or any one of the Heritage series anywhere on the web...but never much about the Cornwalls.

But, it was the Cornwalls for me that made me love Klipsch so much. 2 days before I auditioned the Cornwall, i was at Soundworks listening to JM Labs Focal Electra speakers, $9,000 hooked up for Mccintosh equipment. I heard the Cornwalls with a mere pioneer best buy receiver and sony cd player..... I auditioned the same CD on both....but to my ears...the Cornwalls were sooo much better. I am not talking about how one measured "technically" compared to the other....but simply the way the music was pleasing to the ears.

I just can't believe a speaker built in 1977 at par with $9000 pair modern day speaker.

I will leave feedback on the HK430...if the person still has it and I am able to buy it. I will probably look into replacing most of the fuses as most have.

Thanks for the comments guys.

[colterphoto1]

Good price for good condition, nekkid is hard to find! []

Welcome to the Madness, indeed!

Michael

[oldenough]

If you do manage to aquire the H/K430 you'll probably need to by some contact/switch cleaner, the buttons and pots are notorious for getting gunked up and is the reason for more percieved problems with these recievers than just about anything else. I have the 430, 630, 730 and 930 all of which needed cleaning before they would operate correctly.Keep in touch... John..

[lwhaples]

Congrats on the Corwalls! Sweet deal on the HK,and can't wait to see what you think of the LaScalas compared to the Corn's.

Larry

[dkalsi]

What's going on guys? I missed the deal on the HK-430 (how unfortunte).

To audition that speakers, I have them hooked up the a Super Impact - T amp (5 watts per channel) and a regular JVC dvd playet. I think both, the Cornwall and La Scala absolutely amazing.

Its tough to decide which one sounds better, I feel as if the top end on the La Scala is better than the top end on the Cornwall, however, I think to lower end (bass response) is much more accurate on the Cornwall than the La Scala (<--which sounds more echoic).

Mind you I only have them hooked up to small T-amp. I don't know how well the little amp does in controlling the bass.

I wish I triend the speakers with a more powerful amp (not to play loud, but have more control over the woofers). I ended up selling all my Parasound equipment to get these to set of speakers.

I still can get over how a speaker that is 30 years old sounds so much better than most speakers out there. Furthermore, I am curious to know how much better the Cornwall II or III are from the orignal Cornwall. For now, I am very satisfied.

Can the Klipsch brotherhood give me some recommendations for a good matchin amp for the LaScalas or the Cornwall. I looking to spend around 300 - doesnt matter new or used (I wish I could speand more, but kind of low on budget). I read several places how the Klipsch "sing" with tubes and thought I try tubes for once (which I know absolutely nothing about). I was thinking about getting a used old Fisher 400 or something and fix it up and try work with that for now.

Any recommendations?

[Arky]

You might try the 70's vintage Marantz 22xx series, 2230, 2245 etc..

[dkalsi]

There is someone local selling a vintage Mcintosch MA6100 - for 550? Any good, that is obviously a lot more expensive than what I was looking for, but does anyone think that its worth it?

Here is what's available locally (in regards to vintage equipment):

McIntosh MA6100 - $550

Sony STR-6055 - $50 (person claims it "crackles in one of the speakers at times)

Pioneer SX-650 - $50

Sansui R-7 DC Servo Receiver - $40

Plus I will keep a look out for Marantz. thanks for your suggestions.

[easyone]

Wow, you really cleaned up on the speaker deals! Congrats!

I have had La Scalas since the mid 80's and must say they have been great for me. You might like the sound of a Mcintosh MA5100 integrated amp paired with the La Scalas. You can find the MA5100 in the $300 to $400 price range sometimes. Older NAD integrated amps can be found for really cheap also, and my La Scalas performed great with a NAD 3020 for years.

Tube equipment usually gets more expensive than $300 price range.

Good luck.

[lwhaples]

That Pioneer if it's working for $50. would be a good start.Good Luck!

Larry

[kaiser SET say]

Steal of a deal on those speakers[]

Tubes for $300.00?

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatube&1178408096

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatube&1177989990

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatube&1176674944 Little over but Scott gear is nice to Klipsch

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatube&1176079473

Pesonally I would save just a little because you can find some very nice amps in the $600.00 to $800.00 range out there, best of luck to you[]

[Doc Robin]

Look around for one of the HK's and give it a try for awhile; this will give you some time to save up some cash while you figure out what you would like to have. My HK's can only be turned about half way and it gets as loud as I can stand; and the sound is so sweet. I let my buddy borrow the Cornwalls and the HK 430; his son gave me a real funny look when I told them it was only 25 watts. They called back a couple of hours later to say how good it all sounded and how loud that 25 watts was. Oh you got a real good deal on all of them. The Heritage line rules. Later Bill

[dkalsi]

1977 Cornwall vs. 1983 La Scala

The winner is.................1977 Cornwall.

Just thought I share my thoughts. I think both, La Scala and Cornwall, are great speakers but if I had to choose one between the two, I think I would choose the Cornwall. I just love the overall sound of the Cornwall - they just seem as perfect as one speaker can sound. On the other hand, La Scala are great but really really lack in the low end. None the less, both speakers are great.

I am still looking into an amp/receiver for this set. There was someone selling a Nad 320BEE for $240 with warranty but I missed it....seems like it had good reviews.

[triceratops]

Depending on your room, the music you're listening to, the volume level, and your personal tastes, you may be hard pressed to find anything that sounds better than a nice pair of Cornwalls. I guess that's why I've wound up with 5 pairs...and I don't think Coulter even knows how many he has...

Take your time on the receiver. A word of caution--some solid-state receivers that sound great mated with other speakers can sound absolutely nasty with Heritage Klipsch. That's because they are idling at very low power because the Klipsch speakers are so efficient. Some receivers hate to run at a half a watt and they sound harsh, grainy, and head-ache inducing when they do. The Harman Kardon Twin powered 430, 630, 730, 930 work amazingly well with Klipsch, especially for the money. Many Forum members use these regularly and keep them as spares if they upgrade. You can also see certain models of Nakamichi, Denon, Rotel, Marantz, NAD and others that have gotten high praise here. As far as solid state McIntosh goes, the models with autoformers in the circuit seem to be the most popular solid-state models with Forum members, although a friend of mine had an old Mac 1700 and it worked out fine for him (no autoformers). I personally like the Nakamichi TA-2, TA-3, and TA-4 receivers that have a Nelson Pass designed "Stasis" power amp--that I learned about here from another Forum member (thanks, Derrick!).

Not all tube amps sound great idling either. I have a 1960's tube amp that is raved about by some folks on other forums with less efficient speakers, BUT it has a built in loudness circuit that can't be switched off. So the loudness circuit is active at low power when the Klipsch speakers (with their incredible efficiency) are blasting, which makes the bass sound terrible--like a thumping bass car radio on steroids!

You've made some great scores and you will never be sorry on those Klipsch purchases. If you ever decide to sell, post it here and you'll have people waiting in line. Have fun!

Triceratops

[dkalsi]

Triceraptos,

Thanks you so very much for your suggestions. I will definately look into the amps you suggested. One thing for sure, I do not think I will ever sell my cornwall now, I think they will go down with me. The La Scala, I am planing on keeping them for a long time as well, I just think I need to experiment with the type of equipement to go along with them. Furthermore, I think, at least for my taste, I will definately have to supplement the La Scalas with a sub. I plan on building my own subwoofer with TC Sound drivers to match perfectly with the La Scalas. I am NOT a Bass freak, I just think it has to be there and the La Scalas, if I am not mistaken, are tunes down to only 50hz.

In regards to the Cornwalls, I just finishes refinishing the with red mahogany stain and four coats of polyurathane....and I know people will yell at me for tampering with perfection, I did round the edges (just very very barely) with a router. ---> I had to, for wifey ( I mean two Klipsch purchases in one week. She really like the finish.

1) Furthermore, I am planning on replacing the woofers in my cornwall with the new cast frame ones from bob.....The ones I have now are 100% functional...They are perfect....the only reason for change is because on one of the woofers, the surface is a little scratched and the dust cap is push in......Now, since i change one, i have to change the other. The thing is that my Cornwall's have never been opened...this is going to be a first...this will also be an opportunity to see if all damping material in intact or if it has deteriorated with time...... I have already placed the order for the new woofers....but what do you guys say....should i replace them???? They sound perfect now, this is going to be more for cosmetic reasons. I've been told that the bass response on the new woofers is a little better.

And lastly, there is a MARANTZ 300DC power amplifier for sale on e-bay locally. The seller says I can arrange for a local pick up (this gives me a little price flexability compared to other buyers).....any opinions on the Marantz?

Thanks you all for commenting.

[jbsl]

I've heard Cornwalls, Chorus 2s, I own fortes, and 2004 La Scalas. The first three all do have a more balanced sound but the midrange and highs on the LS just sounds much better to me.

Now I'm using the Fortes for only the low freq and run the LS like normal. So I guess I using the Fortes as subs which blends perfectly!

When I got the Fortes(and heard CW and CS 2) and compared to the LS the first thing that came to my mind was how much I liked the HF of the LS then I acknowledged the lower bass on the others. I guess the way I am using the Fortes with the LS it is a type of Cornscalas or maybe FortScalas or what ever combo you want. I tried to get my RSW 12 sub to blend with the LS but did not sound good to me. The Fortes bass blends outstanding withe the LS.

So for me having good bass, not great bass, and great mids and highs is more important than having great bass and good mids and highs.

That is why the KHorn is king it has great bass, mids, and highs.

As always this is just how I hear the Heritage speakers.

[dkalsi]

Just a follow up.... I tried the Nakamichi TA-2 with me cornwalls (with new Bob C. cast frame woofers)...amazing....love it. I have yet to try it with the La Scalas.... to me personally...the difference between the sonic impact T to the Nakamichi was unbelievable.... .I got the Nakamichi for not too much of a steep price ($50).

Just out of curiosity....how loud can the cornwalls go before there is any threat to blow the woofers.... I dont plan on doing this...but I would like to know the limit.