Klipsch Cornwall I in search of advice

[Bugetnirvana]

Hey Will2225, I'm curious about the mouth of the mid horn in your Cornwalls. Mine are late run series I, as in right before the switch to series II and have a different one from what yours look like. Yours appears to be taller and less wide, mine are less tall and wider, maybe 2 1/2" x 12" (tweeter and mid are the same as my series I Heresy). Could be camera angle/perspective, but they really do look like a different shape. Anyone else care to chime in as well?

That's odd. If your midrange horn is the same as a Heresy then it is not a K-600, it would be the K-700 variation. You could pull the back covers and look at the model # on it to verify.

 

[wyceeric]

Budgetnirvana, I compared the appearance of each with a couple of quick searches and it appears you are correct about the K-700. Can't look at them directly as I am currently finishing the lower level of the house (walkout level unfinished when we bought it, doing wire, sheet rock, flooring, etc.) and most of my gear is buried in boxes. The upside is that when I get this (1100 sqft) project done, part of it will be a dedicated listening space.

Thanks and sorry for the thread hijack.

 

[LAB3]

I have tried a lot of different SS amps with my one owner 1979 Cornwalls and a few months ago a friend loaned me his ALK Universal networks and his K77M tweeters from his LaScala. My Adcom GFA 555 has never had smoother less harsh mids with tone control off, ALK networks are worth the extra money.. Selling my Type B Crites networks and CT 120 tweeters. Then he came over with his ST 70 Dynaco push/pull tube amp and a SET tube amp..... That SET tube amp is AWESOME I liked it so much I purchased one........ should have done this decades ago.

 

[Bugetnirvana]

Budgetnirvana, I compared the appearance of each with a couple of quick searches and it appears you are correct about the K-700. Can't look at them directly as I am currently finishing the lower level of the house (walkout level unfinished when we bought it, doing wire, sheet rock, flooring, etc.) and most of my gear is buried in boxes. The upside is that when I get this (1100 sqft) project done, part of it will be a dedicated listening space.

Thanks and sorry for the thread hijack.

Wow! Cornwall 1's with K-700's from the factory. Makes me wonder what crossovers you have in them, because a K-700 is supposed to be crossed over at 700 hz. 600 Hz is too low for them. You might have Heresy crossovers! Something really strange seems to have happened with your particular speakers.

If you are interested, Bob Crites has replacement horns for Cornwall !'s called the C-600. I have them in my Cornwall clones. They are basically identical to the klipsch K-600 horns.

 

[Will2225]

Hey Will2225, I'm curious about the mouth of the mid horn in your Cornwalls. Mine are late run series I, as in right before the switch to series II and have a different one from what yours look like. Yours appears to be taller and less wide, mine are less tall and wider, maybe 2 1/2" x 12" (tweeter and mid are the same as my series I Heresy). Could be camera angle/perspective, but they really do look like a different shape. Anyone else care to chime in as well?

Internal wiring looks different too. Mine is clad in white. Also, I know an EE (who designs circuit boards for a living and has built his own components from scratch) who is a fellow audio nerd, and he has a pair of ALK universal/basic crossovers in his K-horns and absolutely loves them. He understands the math and the design, whereas I just have to go on sound. They do sound pretty damned good.

Thanks in advance

Hi, I'm a bit confused on how to tell which horns the mids are. From an old photo I can tell the driver on the mid horn is a k-55v. Not sure if this helps though.

Also I think the internal wiring on mine might have been changed at some point. I know the crossover in these Cornwalls says type B but they were updated ages ago to B-2.

 

[Will2225]

I have tried a lot of different SS amps with my one owner 1979 Cornwalls and a few months ago a friend loaned me his ALK Universal networks and his K77M tweeters from his LaScala. My Adcom GFA 555 has never had smoother less harsh mids with tone control off, ALK networks are worth the extra money.. Selling my Type B Crites networks and CT 120 tweeters. Then he came over with his ST 70 Dynaco push/pull tube amp and a SET tube amp..... That SET tube amp is AWESOME I liked it so much I purchased one........ should have done this decades ago.

You're definitely making it tempting to buy the ALKs universal crossovers. Gonna have to wait awhile though, just installed the crites caps and the crites 120 tweeters.

 

[Will2225]

Although I never owned a Marantz 2270, probably the most iconic and most popular receiver of the lot, I have owned a total of 9 Marantz Receivers. Some were two 2330B, 4400 quad, 2265, 2238B, and the top one I liked best with not only looks, but sonics as well, was a Euro Black Face 2285B. Should've never sold that last one, it was mint, and I had the matching mint 5025 Black Face Cassette Deck (Both those units are pictured over at the vintage Marantz site)

Marantz Receivers always seemed a bit "warmish" to me in their presentation, lacking some detail, and often, like with the two 2330B units seemed the more I fiddled with the Tone Controls, the worse the sound became.

My buddy paired his Cornwalls often with simply a re-capped Sansui Seven Receiver that he's owned all these years bought new back in the 70's, and it sounded surprisingly good.

One thing for sure with the Cornwalls, one doesn't need a McIntosh MC-452 Amp or such monsters to power them, and although one can hook up anything they choose, I think an Amp with 125wpc max is fine for them.
So many killer combinations out there that aren't too expensive.

I always personally liked McIntosh Pre-Amps, in that they afforded good tone controls, and often many had a loudness compensation dial as well. Purists might frown upon them but when set to flat, the tone controls are out of the circuitry and have no influence. How many have to "roll" Pre-Amps like dice to find the one that personally suits their needs. Without going crazy with EQ's, and other such devices, the Tone Controls usually are able to fine tune the sonics favorably for personal tastes, and different rooms-speakers.

Good amplification and pre-amplification though is never a waste of money IMO. The better the quality insures a front end in front of the speakers that's up to the task to handle many other speakers down the road.

That's definitely fair about marantz receivers. My first entry into vintage amps was a small marantz 2215 so I'm partial to them. I'm definitely open for suggestions on something more modern to power these, I've wondered for awhile if I'm missing out by sticking completely to vintage.

 

[wyceeric]

Hi, I'm a bit confused on how to tell which horns the mids are.

You'll have to pull the rear panel and have a look. The number will be part of the casting and should be visible from the bottom. If it isn't cast into both sides, you will need to stick your phone up there and get a shot of the top of the horn. Not the end of the world, but it might be easier to put it face down on a blanket/rug for the sake of visibility.

Also, I haven't tried tubes with these, but the best sounding matches to the Cornwalls that I have are a 2285B, an 8080DB and an MA 5100. You should be in good shape with the 500 and the 2270. Hope some of that is helpful

Looks like I have some excavating to do as well to actually put some eyeballs on this to confirm horn and crossover type, as it's going to bother me until I take a look. It has been years since I have had them open (when I got them) and have never taken photos. Seems odd that something that unusual would be factory, but the baffle appears stock.

 

[lokerola]

Here's another photo show casing the nice finish on these Cornwalls which the previous owner did. Really great guy too.

Gorgeous speakers - they are mint. Also, when one of your speakers is bigger than your stove, you're doing something right!

 

[Will2225]

Gorgeous speakers - they are mint. Also, when one of your speakers is bigger than your stove, you're doing something right!

Hahaha thanks I agree! I love them.

 

[moray james]

if your mid horns are metal then they are k600 if they are plastic then they are k601 since I have not held either in my hand I cannot say for sure but I think a very good guess is that you have metal k600 which is what ought to be in them. Not sure exactly the date of the switch from cast metal to cast resin around 1983 or 1984 would be close the CW ll was 1985, I believe someone with the date code info can tell you the exact date of your speakers manufacture from the serial numbers. I just remembered there is a sticky on this forum here is the info you need to correctly date yur Cornwall's.

https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/klipsch-heritage-s-n-dates-code-decoder.147797/

 

[wyceeric]

So... I uncovered both pair of speakers and measured the sizes of the openings in the baffles. Turns out that my memory is not so reliable. Clearly different sizes, which I will chalk up to never having looked at them at the same time and optical illusion due to the larger baffle. In any case, I could not have been more wrong because the tape measure does not lie. I appreciate everyone's responses and once again, apologies for the thread hijack Will2225. I would be interested to hear about how you feel about your Cornwalls after living with them for a year or so and what additional amps you have the opportunity to test with them.

 

[Will2225]

if your mid horns are metal then they are k600 if they are plastic then they are k601 since I have not held either in my hand I cannot say for sure but I think a very good guess is that you have metal k600 which is what ought to be in them. Not sure exactly the date of the switch from cast metal to cast resin around 1983 or 1984 would be close the CW ll was 1985, I believe someone with the date code info can tell you the exact date of your speakers manufacture from the serial numbers. I just remembered there is a sticky on this forum here is the info you need to correctly date yur Cornwall's.

https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/klipsch-heritage-s-n-dates-code-decoder.147797/

Hi, thanks for that information. They are definitely metal so they must be the K600. I'm very happy with them so far, although I am tempted to put the stock tweeters back in to compare to the Crites ct 120. I did the tweeters and the capacitors in the crossovers at the same time so it's hard to tell whats a result of the new caps and or the new tweeters. Still not certain I prefer the ct 120 tweeters to stock although normally I'm a big fan of Crites upgrades. As far as other mods, I've read a lot on rope caulking the horns, but I've also read that it can ruin the interior of the cabinets over time and can create quite a mess. I'm not sure if it's really worth doing any more upgrades for now, might be better to focus on just enjoying my equipment instead of constantly trying to upgrade haha.

 

[Will2225]

So... I uncovered both pair of speakers and measured the sizes of the openings in the baffles. Turns out that my memory is not so reliable. Clearly different sizes, which I will chalk up to never having looked at them at the same time and optical illusion due to the larger baffle. In any case, I could not have been more wrong because the tape measure does not lie. I appreciate everyone's responses and once again, apologies for the thread hijack Will2225. I would be interested to hear about how you feel about your Cornwalls after living with them for a year or so and what additional amps you have the opportunity to test with them.

No worries at all for the thread hijack. I'm definitely jealous that you have more than one pair of cornwalls. Also I'll try to write something again about the speakers after I've lived with them for longer and have a chance to try pairing them with some different amps. I am very tempted to try something modern with them. Maybe Schitt's new continuity Class A amplifier.

 

[wyceeric]

Sorry for the confusion, only one pair of Cornwalls. My mistake was in thinking the mid horns appeared to be the same as the ones in my (series I) Heresy, post #38, pg. 2. Sounds dumb looking at it now having just eyeballed them side by side, but I would have bet good money they were the same, due the relative size of the openings to the baffle area on each pair and the difference between them.

Anyway, awesome speakers. It seems we are on the same page with regard to feeling fortunate to have the budget and the space to be able to have them, since not everyone does. If you find yourself in Michigan, PM me and invite yourself over for a listen. Different room, different sound, and there's booze on the shelf, beer in the fridge, treats in the stash. You're welcome any time, as are the rest of you folks.

 

[Mr Derph]

I auditioned my pioneer sa-7500 on cornwalls. SS amp sounded great.

 

[wape hatson]

hello,
does the bottom left terminal look like the wires have come loose slightly on this capacitor in a B network CW?
also, wondering why the top is a different color than the bottom? Oil?
as in replace asap?
thanks

 

[opnly bafld]

hello,
does the bottom left terminal look like the wires have come loose slightly on this capacitor in a B network CW?
also, wondering why the top is a different color than the bottom? Oil?
as in replace asap?
thanks

You should start a new thread, more eyes, more replies.

 

[wape hatson]

You should start a new thread, more eyes, more replies.

excellent advice
thank you

 

[ClaudeJ1]

View attachment 1860927 If you will look at the crossover for your particular model you will see what looks like a transformer with multiple connections. Get a schematic for your crossover and you will see the connections, Try a different one to tone down the mid driver a bit. Or you if you can find a variable 8 ohm T-pad to use as volume control will work to. T-pads keep the impedance constant, L-pads do not. You should also add the more advanced protection network for the tweeter. not shown here.

Bad advice on the L-pad. The impdance of the circuit is almost 64 ohms with the autoformer.