Cornwall IV vs. Volti Rival, Razz; Razz v. 1, 2, 3 -- what changed?

@eoj4952
Since I don’t own the speakers, it’s hard to bet everything on the prospect that dynamo tape will be enough. It’s not that I don’t trust other people, but there are so many other possible variables that guesstimating that some tape (or the right amp or DAC) will do it is a challenge for me. (An ordinary challenge, I admit, but I need to feel a bit more inclined toward the speaker initially to see it as manageable.)

@macg19
What about Tannoy? Very interested in Tannoy. Not as easy to get a listen to, but that is possibly a go-to for me.

P.S. It's hard to continue looking at Klipsch given these comments on the Volti site, which I am taking at face value, despite the fact that they are coming from the Volti owner. Others have testified to his no nonsense honesty, so when he says things like this, I really hesitate about Klipsch (at least about the Forte; I don't know if these comments also apply to CWIV): 

"The Klipsch Forte cabinet is made in China of material that is just a step above the highest grade of cardboard.  In this industry, there is a range of quality in cabinet construction from lowest to highest, and when it comes to wooden speaker cabinets, the Klipsch Forte cabinet falls into the lowest end of that range.  I don’t think it is possible to build a cheaper cabinet and have it still function as a speaker cabinet.... When I removed the woofer from the front of one of my Forte cabinets, I didn’t do it, but I’m quite sure that if I had grasped the edge of the woofer opening with both hands at about the 4 o’clock position, with one good twist I could have broken off a good chunk of the front of the cabinet.  By the way, I think I would have a harder time ripping off a piece of those big, thick, cardboard watermelon boxes you see in the grocery stores.  By contrast, I could take a Razz cabinet outside on my driveway, lay it down on its side and drive the front tire of my 2016 Chevy Silverado 2500 pickup truck up onto the side of it without incident."

https://voltiaudio.com/razz-forte-cabinets/
 

I have lived with my pair of Razz now for almost two years. I'm still madly in love with them. One of the biggest gains for me was their listenability. No piercing ear fatigue for me. (why they replaced a pair of Klipsch Heresy IV's).

I got to listen to the new Lucera at the FLA expo in Feb and had to strongly resist hitting up my savings right there on the spot. Lord they were wonderful. 

I've lived with the Klipsch Heresy's, listened to the Forte and Cornwalls some. But IMO it's Volti all day, hands down. 

Also according to Greg's latest newsletter, he's dealing discounts on what he has in stock, including a couple of gently used... wouldn't hurt to give him a call...

@doyle3433 Thank you for chiming in with your experience -- which is extensive! I find it really helpful. Much appreciated.

Don't have CW, but have Forte II's. I can tell you the cabinets are very high quality. They look like high quality furniture. Fit in perfectly with the furniture in my room. 

Agree the horns can be a little forward, and fatiguing. There is also a HUGE active Klipsch community. From my research on Klipsch, there are a few things to adjust the speakers.....

1. Dampen the horns. I removed mine, and put Dyanmat on them. This mellowed them out, made them a little warmer, generally smoothed them out. 

2. Crossovers, there are several types, but "steep slope networks" completely change the speakers. I'm waiting on mine to be built.

3. Placement, the consensus is you want the left speaker firing over your right shoulder, and the right firing over your left shoulder.  They should be closer tougher than the distance to you. 

For me, they have a HUGE soundstage, it's a wall of sound! They go LOUD and DEEP. Are very precise to the recording, that is both good and bad. Poor recordings sound poor, but good ones sound great. It's hard to explain, but at higher volumes these speakers have weight. Like the sound has a weight behind it. I LOVE THEM! 

For over 50 years I have been damping horns, of all speakers using them. They did not have Dynamat back then, but there were materials that we used that did the job, such as clay, mortite etc. Mortite is still an excellent damper of resonance and vibration, is cheap to buy, and very worthwhile. Horn bodies make a sound, especially those made from polycarbonate plastic (whatever), and aluminum/metal. If you have ANY Klipsch (and many others), I can tell you, this is an area of great improvement. Over the years, I have had hundreds of customers following my directions on doing these simple, inexpensive but somewhat time consuming procedures, and some say it is a different speaker altogether, saying the " nasties " have gone away. Woofer frames also benefit from damping. And cabinets...there are endless things one can do. As a Klipsch supporter (specifically the Heritage series) the newest versions are no different than the older ones. I can easily hear these colorations, as my good buddy Mike from NJ. I guided him on these modifications with his mid 80s Lascalas, and he no longer uses an eq to rid himself of some nasties that were there before. YMMV. My best, MrD.