klipsch cornwall iv upgraded crossovers

FYI, I exchanged emails with Don (he’s awesome, BTW), and in addition to the Dynamat on the horns, the crossover mod basically consists of replacing the cheap Chinese caps with VCap ODAMs (which I know Don has made clear he’s a fan of) and the sand resistor.

He also suggested putting some sort of damping material on the inside base of the speaker.

Thought people would want to know :)

@perkadin I mean, you may not like the DIY thing, but you can clearly hear the resonance in the horn. That horn is agitated as the sound waves cascade out of the horn. Now, is that enough to affect the sound? No idea. You'd need to test and/or listen.

Now, will the dampening make a difference? An improvement? Are you over-dampening the horns with the Dynamat? Not sure. You'd need to test and/or listen.

But saying that if the Cornwalls needed it, the engineers would have put something different than the $5 Chinese MKP caps in the Cornwall crossover would be a silly point. They're cheap caps in speakers that retail for 6 grand. That's something bean counters do, not engineers.

Modifications mean “tuning” the component to your taste and to work better with your other components.  That means that any particular change may not be an improvement.  Make sure that any change can be reversed.  Damping horns is something easily done and reversed.  Likewise, putting thin felt strips in the horn opening can be tried and reversed.  If you are going with crossover modifications, make sure that the modifier gives you back the old parts so you or someone else can undo the change.

The biggest change, most probably for the better, would be to find a suitable tube amplifier.  Take your time hearing alternatives. I know it is a matter of taste and system synergy, but, I find the MC 275 mentioned as a suggestion to be less than mediocre, particularly given the price.  There are many low power tube amps that would work well with these speakers.

@atlvalet id be less skeptical if one of these charlatans had the conviction to post before and after videos so we could A/B the difference. And not a bunch of useless graphs like Danny. Actually A/B the before and after with various songs in a controlled test. I also have no idea what obvious horn resonance you are referring to. If it’s so obvious please try and isolate the sound and share with the group. Im sure the guys at Klipsch would also appreciate this discovery.

As for things like “cheap Chinese” caps and crossover components, it’s the same rationale as generic cable vs pricey esoteric stuff, if the cheaper components do the job there isn’t much need to pay up, aside from placating a small, fickle group of audiophiles.
Sorry if I come across harsh but I’m just so sick of people pushing snake oil without proper blind testing. So many of the ideas revolve around cognitive dissonance and reviewer bias and lack actual merit. Klipsch has literally been making Cornwalls since 1959 and horn speakers since the 40’s, and not a single model uses sound deadening material on the horns. Yet Im supposed to take your word for it, because some other guy said it was a good idea? Hard pass, I’d rather listen to them as they were engineered to sound.

Klipsch used cheap parts in the xover and the binding posts are a joke. Face it, most of their client base is not into truly high-end audio, so why spend on ultra-premium parts? It would make no business sense. Subbing in great parts makes these good speakers great. This I know for a fact, having done it and heard the difference, which was not subtle.