Klipsch Cornwall asreplacement for JBL L100t?

[mslc791]

I need your opinion. I want to replace my '87 JBL L100t's with something comparable. I live in rural New England and have no chance to visit a dealer and listen to Klipsch, which would be my choice, especially Cornwall III. I use Sony TA-F700 ES integrated amplifier rated at 2x110W to power these speakers. Anybody can help w/ advice?

Thanks.

[traugh]

Interesting! I have never heard anyone liken the JBL's to the Cornwall system. (at least the older ones). Seems like in the old days they were worlds apart in sound.

[mslc791]

Well, I suspect so, too. Are the Cornwalls better than JBL 100's? I read a lot good about Cornwall's but never had a chance to hear them. I'm looking for a good bass, and that 15'' woofer should deliver, right?

[RoadRunner6]

Many people who have the Cornwalls swear by them. The originals did not go that low by today's standards (maybe 40hz at -3db). I think the new ones have better low bass extension (maybe 35hz) but obviously not as low as a modern sub. However, the Cornwalls are extremely efficient. That amp of yours would knock the walls down. I think if you like the old super high efficiency horn loaded sound you will like them a lot. Some very intersting photos here. Note the modern day robotic assembly process!

http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...ornwall-i.html

http://www.cyclonecj.com/dtel/Dtelco...all/index.html

RR6

[filecat13]

The Cornwall III is a lot more speaker than the L100t, though that can be both good and bad. I would not describe them as comparable, other than they are both three-way speakers.

The JBL is a direct radiator system, while the Klipsch relies on horns for the MF and HF. There will be more differences than similarities between them sound-wise. If you enjoy the sound of horns, then you will be pretty happy with the Klipsch, if you find direct radiators enjoyable, then you will happier staying with what you have.

What size room do you have? That's an important factor. Also, what are the floor, wall, and ceiling surfaces like? Cornwalls can knock you about in a smaller room with hard surfaces but can stretch out and run comfortably in a larger room that's been softened up a bit.

If you're single this last bit doesn't matter, but the Cornwall is 35.75" H x 25.31" W x 15.5" D while the JBL is 36" H x 15" W x 13.25" D. So the Klipsch is 10" wider and 2" deeper. Will your wife/GF/partner surrender that much more space? That may not seem like much to you, but put two cardboard boxes of that size in the room for a week and see what she says. If she says nothing, then you're in good shape; if she hates it, then it's a lot easier to take the boxes out than to haul out two 98 lb. speakers and ship them back to the dealer who doesn't want them back.

[DrMorbius]

If great music is what you want, (and I assume you do) you just have to take a little suffering and place those big 'ol Cornwalls in the best place to hear them sing!

Btw, does anyone know the minimum size room for the Cornwalls to sound their best? I always wondered.

[harley .guy07]

I would not know the exact room needed but I am sure they would need a descent sized room to let them breath and to sound their best but this seems to be the case with most of Klipsch 's more vintage styled horn loaded speakers. I have heard several of them in different models and most in larger rooms and they did fine but the pair I heard in a small room seemed to constrain their abilities to image and stage well but they were dynamic and it did not take much power to make them loud as heck.

[riker1384]

The L100T was very similar to the 4412 studio monitor . The closest modern equivalent would be the JBL LSR6332 monitor.

[Poultrygeist]

I recently refoamed a pair of JBL Lancer 77 for a friend. It has the same passive radiator and I was shocked at how good they sounded. I don't know that those huge Cornwalls would be an upgrade.

Have you considered the Tekton Lores or Zu Omens which are HE speakers like the Cornwalls but give great detail and sound less veiled.

[the hand of boredom]

Yeah, the Cornwall rocks. I heard a '79 vintage last week at a friends place. In the basement, about 12x20 bit opened up to the rest of the basement, driven by 20W QuickSilver monos, the Cornwalls played plenty loud without even any sign of distress from the amps.

Go for it.