Heritage Cornwall Iv's vs ZU Audio Omen Defs


I do love my ZU audio Omen Defs that I've been listening to for the past 12 years. Just for kicks,I'm now considering a another pair of speakers (keep the Zu's--for a possible second system) to mate with my Class A Luxman L- 595ase. 

Only the general BiG Box Retail Klipsch speakers are available locally. 

Just curious if anyone can describe how different or similar the Heritage Klipsch sound is compared to ZU. Or specifically the Cornwalls vs Omen Defs

aberyclark
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I heard the Cornwall IV and they are the best sounding of all the Cornwall series. They do not sound shouty or bright at all, not like some of the older Cornwalls. I’m hoping to buy a pair this year. I heard the ZU speakers in general at 2017 RMAF and walked out of the room as it was too bright. I do not know what was playing.

Cornwall certainly had a more full and satisfying sound than the Union I tried. The Zu did have a fun a lively sound but needed EQ work. They only had 300 hours or so, so maybe that was it.

The Cornwalls sound natural and alanced..not like a PA speaker (due to horns) correct? 

I suppose they sound natural, they sound like regular speakers and not horns if that’s what you mean, only larger and more efficient. They have a pronounced bass response so not exactly balanced per se but compared to other high efficiency speakers which have very little bass, yes I’d say they are more balanced. Everything is relative.

My brother has a pair of Klipsch Chorus (which are in between the Fortes and Cornwalls).I have Omen Defs.The Klipsch lean towards the warm side and sound spectacular when cranked up,even in his 10 x20 room.They don't distort.At low volume they are nothing special though. Of course they aren't Cornwalls but they share a house sound.The Defs as you know sound like the musicians are in the room.They are different from each other but I enjoy both.

The Cornwalls do not have “horn honk”. The horn coloration is from defraction  back down the feed throat of the horn, almost all modern horns have solved this issue with computer modeling. Klispch’s fix is the “mumps” in the horn. If you look at JBL’s M2 closely there is some similar curves inside the horn. 
 

the Cornwall IV is more or less flat sounding. I felt like the soundstage changed a bit in width with frequency so I would guess the lateral dispersion lacks some uniformity. I demoed them a few times (loudly) and came away with pretty tired ears each time. 
 

In general I have some issues with the cheap drivers they use (stamped basket etc,), and thin plastic horns but the end result is fine. Some of that stuff does not show up with negative effects until played very loud. I would have tried the La Scala (I demoed it) but I could not get past the bass driver used, again a stamped basket in a $13,000 speaker…. I ended up finding a good deal on a pair of JBL 4367s and never looked back. 
 

All in all the Cornwall is pretty good in its price range and an enjoyable speaker to listen to, but if you are picky and listen closely it has a few flaws for sure.