Klipsch Cornwall IV


Hello all,

I'm interested in what people who have heard the speaker feel about it. I currently run spatial M3 turbos and have an all tube analog setup ( line magnetic, hagerman ) with an oppo 105 being the digital front end.


Previous speakers have been acoustic zen, reference 3A, Maggie 3.6, and triangles. I am more concerned with a huge immersive sound stage than I am with pinpoint imagery. I have a big room and have plenty of space between the back wall and my speakers if I need it.


Any thoughts?
128x128simao
For me, mid horn design and construction material extremely critical, Tractrix design and wood construction. Exponential metal or plastic horns cannot provide natural dispersion or timbre. Tweeter and mid drivers need to be in proper physical alignment for speaker time alignment, improves mid and high frequency balance .I have both mid and tweeter horns on separate baffles for optimum toe in or out, major improvement for sound staging, imaging. Improved crossover parts also improve timbre, sound stage and imaging.

Stock Klipsch Heritage greatest inherent quality is incredible micro dynamic expression, sense of live performers in room intoxicating. Resolution and transparency wonderful as well.

I understand some of my mods would not be easily applicable to a consumer market loudspeaker. Still, I'd like to see a Heritage state of art model; an ultimate expression of the basic design. As Don stated above, a speaker that does all the things stock Heritage does, only does it better. There really is no contest, modded Heritage is my final loudspeaker. I don't say this lightly, have never called any piece of audio equipment my end game, this is the single exception in over twenty five years as audiophile.
I'm not saying stock Klipsch Heritage is not a fine speaker, I understand the enthusiasm.  Matched with sympathetic partnering equipment, inherent limitations can be minimized. I use mine with 845 SET, 300B monoblock SET and EL34 push pull, all wonderful, I'd next like to try 2A3. I'll also reiterate I've not heard latest Heritage, I'd hope they've improved since earlier models.


@donsachs Have you ever thought of YouTubing your Cornwall upgrade process? I'd love to see the step-by-step action from removing the back through putting it back on after all the mods.
No, I am a tube amp, preamp, and phono builder, not a speaker guy.  I have a pretty big list of things to build.  I just do those other things for myself and really don't have the time for youtube or social media.  I really wouldn't want to be responsible for someone destroying their speakers and voiding their warranty if they watched my video, but they didn't know what they were doing.   Or having to answer multiple inquiries on something that isn't even my product.   So I stay out of the limelight.....All I will say is if you know what you are doing you can improve this speaker considerably without losing any of the things you love about them.
@raindog69,  I have some photos that I could share.  I performed a similar if not identical upgrade as donsachs.  

I would say this is an intermediate level project.  I didn't find it terribly challenging on the skill level, but I did find it taxed my patience.  

There’s no question in my mind that the CW IV crossover can be easily bettered with more substantial parts. The caps and resistors are run of the mill. Careful here--I’m not saying that leads to run of the mill sound. See my post on modifying the Carver Crimson 275 amp. Bob used some decent and some dirt cheap parts in it. The coupling caps in that thing were the size of my pinky fingernail. They are inexpensive and not of good quality. Can they sound ok in a good circuit? Sure. Same thing with Klipsch CW IV.

I’m not saying folks should do this to the CW IVs. But, I will venture to say, and I’ll bet DonSachs would likely agree, many folks will question what he and I have done here while they are out buying very pricey power cords, interconnects and so on. This upgrade will best all of that in my humble opinion.

My CW IVs are about 100 hours in or so. They sound glorious. VCap ODAMs are really special caps. They almost sound like the cap is out of the system.