Comparing JBL L200s and Klipsch Cornwalls

Mojave17

New Member
I picked up a pair of L200s a few weeks ago, but now have the chance to buy a pair of Klipsch Cornwalls locally for $1000. I haven't been able to listen to the cornwalls yet, but I know they are the cornwall I. Very first cornwalls which I'm told sound better than II or IIIs..I would have to sell the L200s so I would be able to buy the cornwalls. It seems the L200s are a little harder to find, but I do like how the cornwalls sound, I know the L200s are a 2way and the cornwalls a 3way...I know its preference on what sound you like. The cornwalls might be an upgrade from the L200s. Does anyone here have any insight on what would be a "better" speaker or has had the chance to demo both side by side...
 
That's a real tough one if you don't have the ability to hear them both. If at all possible buy the Cornies to A/B and sell the 'loser'. Don't know where you are, but around here Cornwalls don't bring in 1K, offer $800
 
I love my Cornwalls, and I've been in front of many speakers... but never L200s. You know that space and equipment play a huge part in the relationship with your speakers. I'd say RuralTom has the right idea. Buy the Cornnies and compare. You should upgrade the Corn caps at least, and for 1k, I hope they are the oiled walnut.
I sometimes run my Cornwalls with an old 24wpc Fisher integrated and nothing compares with their sensitivity and synergy with a low watt tube amp IMO....
 
IMHO--stick with the JBLs--I have owned Klipsch and still own several pair of JBLs. Not knocking the Cornies in any way, but that asking price is way at the top end of their value range (unless they are absolutely pristine and you are desperate for Cornies). The JBLs are far rarer, and can easily fetch the $1K mark, but then, again, it really only matters as to which sound you prefer. The Klipsch can be driven easily by a flea-watt tube amp, the JBLs prefer a substantial SS amp with some serious balls to really "open up".
 
Ok right now the JBLs are running with a 50 watt per channel push pull tube set up, a harmon karin pre amp I'm borrowing and a Yamaha yp-d8 TT w a ortofon red
 
Here are some pics of Cornwalls I was sent...You can see in 1 photo that the top is pretty faded and will need to be refinished. You think $1000 is too high if a price for these speakers?

cornwall.jpg cornwall 2.jpg cornwall 3.jpg
 
Even though your L200s are not the "B" series, you'll likely prefer the bass response of the JBLs over the PWKs. Even without a true UHF driver, the highs will likely be better, too! Let us know.
 
Definitely a bit more wear and tear than I'd accept for a grand, but it seems like you may be in full acquisition-lust mode! ;)
 
Crossovers and all drivers in tip top shape for both pairs and I'd put my money on the L200's and let it ride but hope you buy the Cornwalls (for a reduced price) and report your findings!
 
I can't speak to the Cornwalls (although I have heard good things) but I have had my L200's since new and while they are not exactly the most beloved by JBL fans, they are still a pretty good speaker, particularly if you experiment with placement and as savatage1973 says, a good SS amp with power. When I got my Kenwood (170wpc) recapped and back in service I was pleasantly surprised how well the low frequency tightened up. I was able to further add to that by plugging off one port. There are lots of things you can do to further improve the 200's. Some can be real projects but others not so much. I added 077 (2405) tweeters to mine and really like what that did. Next up I need to rebuild my crossovers and see what that will give me. Also elevating these 6 to 10 inches helps.
 
I've heard of Akers here turning there L200's into a 3 way speaker and it sounds intriguing, is that someone a newbie would be able to tackle?. I'm a little turned off by the condition of the cabinets as I've seen great looking cornwalls sell for the 900-950 range. His asking price is $1200, but I'd offer $1000 or maybe even less as no one is going to buy these for $1200. Right now I'm running the JBL's through a 50 watt per channel tube set up. Like others have said the L200's are a rarer speaker. I'm set to listen to the Conrwall's on Sunday, If i'm not blown away by these I'll be keeping my L200s. Would the L200s benefit from a higher wattage tube amp set up than what I have? All this info is really helpful.
 
I prefer the Cornwall I before they updated the crossover to protect the tweeters. The 3rd ordered crossover adds a little peak around 6300 hz, that can be irritating on some recordings. It allows the speakers to handle more power, and as the tweeter diaphragms are not replaceable, you would have to upgrade to Bob Crites new tweeters would be my suggestion with his updated crossovers if you like to rattle the walls. So you can see moving up to Cornwalls could be expensive. You could always add ring radiator and crossovers to your L200 and make 300s out of them. The Cornwall has a more focused sound than the JBL's and have a smaller sweet spot. So depending on your likes and dislikes, you have some serious choices to make. I am not fond of Ring radiators and JBL's lens horns, and really prefer line arrays. But that said I've sent many hours listening to Cornwalls and enjoyed every minute of it.
 
The Corn wall is 5 to 6 db more efficient than the JBL so you really don't need more power. As a three way system it has more output above 9 kHz giving a different sound. I also think the The Cornwall has more fundamental out put below 50 hz than the JBL. They maybe both horn loaded speakers with ported woofers but other than that they are totally different speakers.
 
I've heard of Akers here turning there L200's into a 3 way speaker and it sounds intriguing, is that someone a newbie would be able to tackle?.

Adding the 077/2405 tweeter is easy, at least the way I did it. I just used a 1uf cap and an Lpad. The LE85 horn driver rolls off naturally so the 077 fills in the upper frequency well. I am sure there is a better 3 way crossover that would be the best setup, but the way I did mine was a marked improvement. As for mounting the 077, that involves getting a holesaw the right diameter, removing the drivers and going to work. I did that an easier way too, I bought some stainless steel brackets that fit the 077 perfectly and mounted them to the baffle board. There is just barely enough room behind the grill screen for these to fit. I may someday go ahead and drill the baffle board and mount them like an L300. Probably the hardest thing about doing this mod is paying for the 077 or 2405 (expensive). If you go this route the 2405's are functionally identical but are more plentiful and are less $ on ebay.
SAM_3779 copy.jpg
 
OK, that is good to know. What would you pay for these speakers (cornwall I) if you were in my shoes?....If they do sound good and everything checks out....Also what should I be looking for in these speakers when I hear them? (serial numbers, problem areas, checking woofers, etc). I have seen nicer Cornwalls on forums with minty cabinets but nothing in my area.
 
Adding the 077/2405 tweeter is easy, at least the way I did it. I just used a 1uf cap and an Lpad. The LE85 horn driver rolls off naturally so the 077 fills in the upper frequency well. I am sure there is a better 3 way crossover that would be the best setup, but the way I did mine was a marked improvement. As for mounting the 077, that involves getting a holesaw the right diameter, removing the drivers and going to work. I did that an easier way too, I bought some stainless steel brackets that fit the 077 perfectly and mounted them to the baffle board. There is just barely enough room behind the grill screen for these to fit. I may someday go ahead and drill the baffle board and mount them like an L300. Probably the hardest thing about doing this mod is paying for the 077 or 2405 (expensive). If you go this route the 2405's are functionally identical but are more plentiful and are less $ on ebay.
View attachment 739009
That looks tempting. I did see the JBL 2405H pro series slot tweeters on eBay for $400. are those the same model you have? Nice to find a step by step thread someone posted in the past on how to do this. Great info and very tempting.
 
That looks tempting. I did see the JBL 2405H pro series slot tweeters on eBay for $400. are those the same model you have? Nice to find a step by step thread someone posted in the past on how to do this. Great info and very tempting.
I believe they are the identical physically although the appearance is slightly different in that the slot wedge piece on the 077 has the look of a prism (clear) whereas the 2405 one is black. The 077's came stock in the L300, and L65 (and probably others). Mine I removed from my L65's just to see if they would make a difference in the 200's. Now if I am going to get the L65's up and running again I will need some 2405's for it as the 077's have a new home!
There has been quite a bit posted on other sites about converting the L200 to a speaker that resembles an L300 in sound quality. The LF driver gets changed out, the cab gets bumped out slightly on the bottom to match the cubic inch of the 300. Then the horn gets swapped out to the longer one in the L300 which makes it necessary to cut out the back. And so it goes.

Anyway, I guess the best thing for you to do is decide if the Cornwalls are something you want to buy, and then try to keep the L200's so you can do some serious listening to each before deciding which pair to sell. Of course that will be a whole lotta speaker sitting in your room but at least you wont have regrets later no matter which you go with.
 
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