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I certainly do!

I bought a pair of ‘85 La Scalas yesterday, and the finish is pristine raw birch. I mean, like brand new. As in, they look like they’re literally made of plywood (because they are). I’ve always seen them with a thirty-year old patina, or stain. It’s cool, but it’s not going to fly in the family room (WAF). So this is a refnishing question: what can I put on that will accentuate the grain, add a finish (satin—even glossy, if it improves the depth) and depth but not really color the wood? And preferably something that won’t yellow over time (like boiled linseed oil). Note: I am NOT experienced at wood finishing. I use Watco Rejeuvenating Oil on my oiled walnut 85 Cornwalls, but it works because they’re dark and all I have to do is rub it on. From what I’ve read, the preparation steps are: light sanding with >220 grit sandpaper, followed by a mineral spirits wipedown, followed by a prefinishing conditioner (obviously with time in between for drying/evaporating). I guess the $64 quesion is: what to apply after that? I only get one shot, I want to get it right the first time. I’ve got a real opportunity here. Thanks in advance.

I leave for a few hours and you turn your La Scalas into laundry machines. Well, whatever makes you happy.

Very true and after my kids were older, they read to me. They would bring books on our vacations and would take turns reading aloud as I drove.

Do you remember the scene early in Easy Rider in which Captain America (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper) have completed their big score, by bringing a quantity of cocaine across the border from Mexico? Now that they had the money (although by modern standards neither the quantity of coke nor the amount of money seemed like very much), they were set for at least quite a while. The next thing that Peter Fonda did was to take off his watch and toss it away, indicating that they were now free of any schedule and were at last truly free. It was an evocative move that I’ve never seen in any other movie.

This here seems like a great deal if looking at used gear:

Thanks. I'll have to look for that. The original pressing has a locked groove at the end of Side 1, in which a voice says "Turn me over. Turn me over. Turn me over." again and again. At the end of Side 2, the locked groove voice says "Play me again. Play me again. Play me again." That was pretty unexpected in 1969. If you have some stories that you're willing to share, but not in public here, message me. You've got me curious now. Yeah, even in the Seventies with Barnstorm, Joe didn't like to hang around for an encore. When I saw him at the El Mocambo in Toronto (the same small but famous club where The Rolling Stones played. in 1977. I was outside but unable to get in for that one. Security was tight and the only fans getting in were those who had won tickets on a radio contest.), the fans were thumping and clapping after Barnstorm's set, but all we got was Joe coming out with a towel around his neck, telling us he was tired and he was done for the night. The last time I saw him was a bit of a disappointment. It was at a winery in Woodinville (that's not a typo), Washington, which had a large grassy area surrounding an open-air seating area in front of the stage. It was a bit of a hassle getting there, because I'd taken the ferry, picked up a friend who had moved to the US, who was happy to be invited along, booked a couple of nights at a hotel, and arrived at the show quite a bit out of pocket, although the tickets were only $75USD, and you could buy wine before and during the show. I was expecting a great evening, then we learned that he had fired the opening act a few minutes before they were to start, but he and his band were not going on early. Maybe he wanted to wait for sunset, so the lighting was more interesting. Anyway, his set started on time, and he did a good 90-minute show. And that was it. Our back-row seats were not great, and there was no photography permitted. This was in sharp contrast to the outdoor show he'd done at a casino north of Seattle in 2012. That was a great week. I saw Joe play in Victoria on the Tuesday, and at the casino on the Thursday of the same week! I had front row seats for that one, and nobody objected when I pulled out my monopod and DSLR, complete with 70-200 2.8 lens. I shot a solid 30 minutes of HD video at that show, plus took quite a few stills. It was a fun evening. The next day, before going home, we visited the Flying Heritage and Combat Armor Museum, which was located nearby, and it was a Sunday afternoon well-spent. If I seem ambivalent about that particular concert, it's because that weekend cost me $1200CAD in total, much more than I had expected. Naturally, I didn't expect my lady friend to pay anything, especially since I had invited her. The next time I see Joe play, it will be on Vancouver Island, where I saw him play at an outdoor show in 2012 for $100CAD, at a venue only a 10-minute drive from my place. I might go as far as Vancouver, but the ferry and obligatory hotel room plus meals (the last ferry is at 9 pm) brings the cost to at least $300 for most mainland shows, before even buying tickets. Maybe seeing Joe live 9 times is enough. I may just buy concert Blu-rays in future.

you just saved yourself from having to add more

Naa @dirtmudd it was the 101 and the 151 that pickled my first filter! I only did 24 to 36 brewskis a night. I've severely limited my intake since I tossed those chips out, still got Bill's Book though. Stinkin' Thinkin' @grasshopper it was more than I meant to put on and since there aren't any fillers in what I get it clumped up.

either would this

Most days I don't need to know. 😉

I’ll get into a write up later this week. Long story is these are mind blowing. Many here know I’ve build a lot of cool stuff. Thus far… with only one done, these are the best speakers I’ve ever owned including a set of Jub clone bins with eliptracs. Wholly different speaker but still. off to sleep. This build too the better part of 10hrs. Center section is crossover, wiring junction and and tweeter.

Thank you!! Pretty much what I expected accept it does have feedback, I will calculate how much they are using. I don't like the current source at the output tube, you just cannot beat a simple RC network, the CCS at the cathode will have awful overload characteristics and with such a low powered amp you do not want that. I know they are en vogue at the moment but it's just not a place I would use a CCS. Other than that it's a pretty cool little amp, I like it.

Oh man, that is one sweet dryer! You have the more desirable model with the top load lint trap. The door mounted one takes a 90 degree bend and can build up lint. Yours makes a little mess when cleaning, but is much safer. I have had a Lady Kenmore Series 90 washer and Whirlpool dryer for over 30 years. Just replaced and cleaned each over the last few years. These things are really well thought out and easy to work on. I needed a transmission shaft and found a local repair person on Craigslist. He said that people get rid of these, get new ones and then come to him to buy the older models again as they last forever. If you have to service, but genuine Whirlpool parts. I put some plastic pads in from Amazon and my washer still vibrated, bought the Whirlpool parts for much more but everything spins nicely now. No more 60s muscle cars for me, these are my hot rods now.

But the freedom of not having to or not knowing. There has to be something to that.

The deep south didn't take to longhairs for many years. Some places still don't.

The Autobot A Side

Lightly coat with Permatex or similar and let cure. Tape off where you need to.

This was Vinyl I absolutely had to buy new! Till All are One!

The video that showed up after the Corona ad was Echoes: Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii. Coincidence? It’s always time for Pink Floyd!

I"ve always dug this beer commercial, since it first landed on tv. Not quite tossing a watch, but similar idea and something I would have done, if I ever had one that is.

I've been working the system for a couple days now with no issues. I'm ready to declare that you were right! awesome! I am a happy camper with my Forte IIs. Thank you all again for your help. (What they do for movies is amazing!)

Is there a pair of burnt-looking dinner knives in the case with it, or is that era long past?

Then onto something more like I was feeling early on this eve. Glad I got to see two of the above multiple times. But Deep Purple? They came to town once after I was old enough and I didn't see the "Perfect Strangers" tour.

Been back to normal for me today. What has inspired and/or uplifted you today?.. I ask. Those that know me know it's all about the 70s! Started here:

too much parm? I don't think that is possible

The entire thing is thick ceramic so it holds in the heat really well. Coupled with a thick pizza stone and preheating to over 700° it works really well as a pizza oven. it was pricey but I spend a LOT of time cooking outside during the warmer months. On the opposite end of the spectrum it can hold temp at around 225° for almost 24 hours which makes it perfect for smoking pork butts overnight without me having to wake up constantly and check on it.

I see it differently. EvCo built a pair of speakers (a proven model that I am sure will sound great). He spent about half of what you are suggesting. From that he will have years of enjoyment and the pride that comes from accomplishing the project himself. EvCo is to be congratulated and I hope his build will inspire others. -Tom

Converting the garage speakers from passive balancing networks to 2-way bi-amped with a digital crossover allows me to utilize a nice pair of Sony ES power amplifiers.

The Faital drivers sound great and have a good look mounted on the K-402. I didn't even know I needed these until I saw them for sale recently. Thank goodness for the Klipsch Forum Garage Sale section.

Hello everyone, the time has come to upgrade amps and really see what these 904s can do. I sold my Marantz 4300 and 2230, still have a Yamaha CA-1010 and Marantz 4270. I am entertaining the thought of bi amping, perhaps Adcoms? I have never done this before, only ever used receivers or integrated amps. What do you recommend? Cheaper the better, I enjoy great sound on a budget rather than just throwing money at stuff. $1000ish budget, but once I have recommendations I will take my time finding deals. Open to pro gear, or tubes, or solid state.

Near Tyler, Texas are a pair of Chorus II's that could use much love and care. Seller, who's asking $500, states that they sound great. https://easttexas.craigslist.org/ele/d/chandler-klipsch-chorus-ii-speakers/7437450725.html

Iron is going to be the bulk of the cost unless you have a clever design to use a low cost low voltage transformer in a voltage doubler circuit. I for one would splurge a little and spend a bit more for “more of whatever” the extra dollars would bring.

Boy there are sure a lot of folks online who really hate these speakers😅 Makes me love them all the more.

I run an all girlie setup myself. All pink SS amps with more than 2 watts each.

ouch! looks like some pretty bad damage on the backs of the cabinets, possible water damage since the wood looks swelled & the seams expanding. would need possible cabinet repair & re-veneered, but worth the asking price in parts. woofers & passives look good.

Yea, I did the dogs, springs, clutch (very important), pads and rebuilt the transmission even though it just needed a shaft. If thew clutch wears out the shaft teeth can wear each time it goes through a cycle. The Whirlpool clutch felt the same as the old one but did work. The dryer was even easier. I cleaned everything and replaced a few wheels that hold the barrel. Runs like a champ. Ready for another 30 years. I got my washer and dryer and La Scalas confused. About the same size.

Will anyone be willing to open one up and take some pictures for us? Has anyone drawn up a schematic from one? I can probably do it from pictures if posted. My guess is it's a simple 12AX7 common cathode gain stage AC coupled to the EL84 wired for pentode operation. I don't think there is any global feedback as the measurements are that great, at 1 watt there is not much above 10kHz. If you stay under 1 watt performance is ok but at 3.5 watts I wouldn't consider it 'hifi' but I am sure it sounds good measurements be damned. There seems to be a huge market for inexpensive tube equipment for people to play around with. I have been thinking of designing a small amplifier like this for forum members except with much better performance. For $200 I am thinking I can do at least 5 watts per channel, I'll shoot for 10 watts but size will need to be larger with less than 1% THD at full output power 20-20kHz.

The Time Had Come that day?

Will bass improve? No LaScalas are all about the human voice, primarily on the mid range horn aka squaker Putting the mid range horn at ear level will definitely improve the human voice quality, specifically female vocal. aka Angels singing. I raised mine with 4 175lb load wheels from Ikea that have the "furniture look". Cleaning and maintenance became a lot easier I have a front-fire sub I use with my LaScalas, on or off it doesn't make much difference for the music I listen too. Maybe needed for pounding techno

I'm currently reading Douglas Adams "The Salmon of Doubt". In case someone is not familiar with Adams, he was the author of "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy". This is a book pulled together from essays, speeches, musings, and fragments of book ideas by Adams friends and associates after his death. A very unique book from a very unique and brilliant mind presented with Adams typical humility and humor. I highly recommend it.

When the garage speakers were previously PASSIVE BI-AMPED with the built-in amps of my AVR, I selected the internal BI-AMP configuration on the Speaker Settings Menu, and also the 4 Ohm Speaker Setting, because the Onkyo TX-NR1007 manual simply states "If the impedance of any speaker is 4 Ohms or more but less than 6, set the minimum speaker impedance to 4 ohms." My presumption was that the 4 Ohm setting optimizes the amplifier outputs to the Low Ohm speaker load, since the owner's manual did not say anything else about that mode selection. Well, thanks to @314carpenterand @captainbeefheart I have recently learned that this 4 Ohm menu option is not the best choice, because it actually lowers the voltage supplied to the power amp, reducing the total available wattage output. The opposite of what I presumed of that option. It seems that the reason several receiver companies incorporate this optional reduced power mode is to allow the units to pass a certain Low Ohm impedance qualification test without overheating. Most Klipsch speaker owners would probably never notice the power reduction, and I never experienced a problem, but if I paid for 135 Watts, I might as well set the mode (high ohms) that provides the entire available wattage.

There is a reason why the Heresy only goes to 50Hz. It was designed to be efficient, low distortion, flat response speaker. The woofer only has a 1/8” excursion. 1/16” out and 1/16” in, this leads to the low distortion that Mr. Klipsch achieved. The Heresy is voiced to what goes in comes out with no coloration. He could have ported the cabinet and threw in a long throw woofer to get deeper bass but a woofer flapping in the air would add coloration and distortion. There is some musical information below 50Hz but not a great amount. If you are a basshead and want to rattle walls and shake the floor then you need a subwoofer. If you want an honest non colored low distortion speaker then the Heresy in its stock form is what you are looking for.They we’re intended to go on the floor in a corner. Corner loading reinforces bass. That is where they really sing. Slanted riser bases were optional to lift high frequencies into the room. Any modifications to the Heresy changes the sound. It may sound different but not better. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Dust in the wind. All we are is dust in the wind.

Plywood: You'll need three sheets, around $70/each. There are tools online that you can input all the dimensions into and it'll lay out the most efficient cuts and it's considerate of grain direction. Hardware: Around $30. Including screws, brad nails, and glue. Time: I had about 30 hours in building my set.

In July I purchased up a pair of vintage La Scalas even though I’d never heard a La Scala before. I thought that a post explaining why, and what I’ve done with them could serve to introduce me to the forum. I had wanted La Scalas for more than 40 years, ever since a friend and I went shopping for a sound system for our high school for dances. We went to a dealer who supplied the top clubs in town with their sound systems. He was a huge Klipsch fan and convinced me that Klipsch horns --- and particularly the La Scalas --- were the “Cadillac” of speakers. I've aspired to have a pair ever since. But life got in the way … Until lately. Spending more time at home on account of the pandemic led to a rekindled interest in audio. Perhaps I haven’t been looking in the right places, but my experience has been that La Scalas don’t come up for sale very often up here (near Toronto, Canada). I found a pair listed on Facebook Marketplace that were about a 3 hour drive away. The speakers were were 1986 La Scalas in Raw Birch that the owner had coated with polyurethane. They had AL networks. The cabinets had some damage: scratches, chips, stains, gouges, missing veneer, broken corners, etc. I purchased them for CAD $2800 (~ US$2250). Since the speakers would feature prominently in my living room, I knew I'd have to repair and refinish the cabinets. I wasn’t keen on the look of paint and figured that I’d likely re-veneer them. Although I originally intended to keep the speakers close to stock, as I learned more about the La Scalas (mostly from this forum) I knew that I’d want to make some changes. I started with the networks. I knew that the 35-year-old capacitors in the networks were likely past their “best before” date and should be replaced. I also knew that the AL networks in my speakers weren’t well regarded. The cost of replacement capacitors from JEM Performance was high enough that I opted to spend a bit more and get new AA networks from Crites. I took all the components out of both speakers and gave the cabinets a thorough cleaning. Because a mouse had built a nest in one of the doghouses, at the recommendation of some forum members, I used Dettol to clean and disinfect the cabinets. I thoroughly cleaned the woofers, squawkers, and tweeters, filed down rough spots in the K400 horns, replaced the gaskets in the squawkers, and treated all of the connectors to a liberal dose of DeoxIT. I sanded the squawker and tweeter horns and then sprayed them with Rustoleum Satin Black paint. Then I turned my attention to repairing the cabinets. Following suggestions from some forum members, I decided to laminate new panels to the cabinets. I chose to do that for two reasons: 1) to provide a smooth surface for veneering, and 2) to stiffen the cabinets to eliminate a reported resonance in the bass bin I started by stripping the old finish. I used paint stripper, scrapers, and sandpaper. I did a pretty fair job on the exterior of the cabinet but didn’t do nearly as well stripping the doghouse. I used wood fillers and wood epoxy to repair the damage to the cabinets. In the end, the damage was easier to fix than I'd anticipated. If I were to do it again, I'd use bondo (not wood epoxy). Also, some wood fillers were too grainy; I found Timbermate and Wurth wood fillers to be very good. I laminated oversize 3/8" baltic birch panels (my supplier was out of 1/4") to the sides, top and bottom of my cabinets. I used about 3 quarts of Titebond III and a few hundred 5/8" brads (since I had no suitable clamps) to attach the new panels. After the glue had dried, I used a flush cutting bit in a router to trim the panels to size. I then used wood filler to fill any gaps and the indentations made by the brads. Then I sanded the cabinets smooth with 240 grit sandpaper. The new 3/8” panels have increased the thickness of the cabinet sides (and top and bottom) to 1 1/8” without changing any of the interior dimensions. By my figuring, the cabinets now weigh about 80% as much as the MDF-made La Scala IIs. The cabinets are certainly stiffer so that the bass resonance problem should be dealt with. It turned out that my repairs to the cabinet were good enough that I probably could have veneered them without adding the new panels. If I were to do it over, I might just add braces to the bass bin and not bother with the additional plywood panels. I’ve reassembled the speakers and have been enjoying them. I’m mainly using Spotify as a music source via my Yamaha R-N803 (100W/channel, solid state) receiver. Generally speaking, I’m really pleased with how they sound. I have noticed that they seem to really shine with some songs but not so much with others. A neighbour nicknamed the speakers “the blondes” on account of their colour and the amount of attention I was giving them. I haven't yet started to veneer the cabinets. I'm leaning towards something that will be light (blonde?) in colour: maybe quarter-sawn anigre or quarter-sawn birch. Because of the lead time to get the veneer that job will have to wait until spring when the temperatures in my garage are warm enough to work with contact cement. Some forum members have suggested applying veneer with PVA (letting it dry and then applying it using an iron). My experience with PVA and veneers hasn’t been good --- the glue has tended to bubble beneath the veneer. But maybe I’ll experiment with that over the winter. I haven’t decided on what finish to put on the veneered cabinets. I’m thinking of a natural-coloured Danish Oil or a clear polyurethane. Suggestions about what finish (and what veneer) to use would be welcome. What’s next? I have purchased plans from Bill Fitzmaurice (https://billfitzmaurice.info/) to build a THTLP subwoofer. The THTLP is a horn design that, I hope, will pair nicely with the La Scalas. I should probably leave the speakers as they are. I doubt that my hearing is acute enough to be able to discern much difference from, say, improved tweeters or a different crossover. But I do like to tinker …

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Interesting to see you have given this driver a try. It was my intention to stay away but I will give it another try. For the upper frequencies boost this is a good place to use the HI SHELF option on the xilica. Use a very high Q setting around 7000 Hz. Boost will be dependent upon your setup. I would say exactly what it is but i am at work. You will gain a bit more phase change but also gain a smoother response. I go with Geddes dictum of frequency response is the most important of all parameters. I had noticed (using the RTA) that while listening to music there was very little output at the high frequencies so why not boost it up there? I have boosted as high as the xilica will allow and at home listening levels I never heard any bad effects. This was when i was trying to retain the sensitivity in the lower regions. Now I am splitting the difference between the low and high to keep my filters in balance - too much boost or cut affects other parts of the response more than we want. I am not sure if amplifier quality has a bearing here asking for this boost at these frequencies. I have not tried any amplifiers other than the ones I have. I have found the MEH sounds best when you throw away most of the acoustic transformation. Luckily even with low powered amplifiers the things get plenty loud. I think it is a bit of a misnomer to consider the K401 MEH a horn loudspeaker in the classical sense - at its best we are using it as a waveguide. I have come to conceive that most of what most people object to in a horn loudspeaker is the sound of the acoustic transformation, The most notable exception is Romy Besnow who seems to thrive on it but then he is using his horns in very limited frequency ranges so the acoustic transformation is more equal between the various horns whereas with our systems we are blending the two modes and I suspect this discontinuity is what most people identify as "horn sound". No question in my mind the CELESTION is the best compression driver I have ever heard. I never got a chance to try the 4002 which is said to be greatly superior to the 4001s I did use for few years. The 4001 is said to only work with its companion horn. Using the Edgar round horn it sounded pretty bad - but the reputation of the thing kept me listening to it long after my ear/brain said REPLACE THEM. Of course, everyone knows this now. My system has been completed for a few months now and I still keep tweaking the EQ - funny thing is - no matter what I do the intrinsic nature of the loudspeaker is always there and the intrinsic nature is very fine. There is no doubt when one finds something that works better but this is not hyper critical. One could easily come up with a decent sounding setup without much trouble. But of course, with a fascinating puzzle like the MEH and xilica the desire to try to get it a little better every day is impossible to resist, getting really close though. No question the speakers are dynamic beyond my expectations. Drums sound more like drums than I have ever heard - even at reasonable volume, there is no need for them to be LOUD to hear something that sounds like a tom or a rimshot. - the center image is rock solid and the space between center to the sides are well defined - the loudspeaker disappears. The tonality is simply realistic. Massed strings sound very refined. Vocals can be eerie in their realism. Blah, blah, blah I had hoped these speakers would be better than my previous setups - I knew they would be better and I knew they would take up much less space but I was and remain extremely happy with how much better they are. I cannot imagine anything I could afford that could come close to what I am hearing. I have found that placing a two inches sheet of 20 ppi reticulated foam with a cut out for the opening - but a bit smaller than the horn opening makes for a greatly improved sound. This seems to be well documented as something that improves any horn.. In my case it was instantly apparent. One would think there would be a loss somewhere in the response but in actuality dips in response in the 5 to 7 kHz region were mitigated. Another thing to try is a very stretched out bit of long fiber wool right at the CD opening. Visually transparent - I used two sided tape.to keep it in place. Makes a minimal change in measured response at 18 to 20 kHz but the the sound becomes much more refined. I think both of these things are affecting the horn far more than the driver. No question the 401K MEH is a great loudspeaker, a great stereo loudspeaker and the Celestion driver is an important part of the whole in my experience.

I am running the 10 x 18 ZXPC horns with HF200s. I am using RF-7 IIIs for bass until I get my Quarter Pies done. I have a XP-4080, a PLX-1804 for bass and a DIY First Watt F5 for highs running 2 way. This setup sounds much better than the RF-7s, but I haven't been able to compare it to other speakers. I am thinking of getting BMS 4592ND coaxes, but I don't know if the improvement is worth the $1000.

Which 2A3 do I like the best would be hard to answer since I believe the Amps Design could easily change my preferences as well as the system its used in. For example the AES SE-1 with the 6SL7 input/driver tube which has a low sensitivity really needs a good pre-amp to get the best sound(the bass and drive are really improved) and then it really comes alive and in this case it works very good in a Khorn system because the gain and noise floor are a great match for the Khorn where sometimes trying to use a pre-amp with a high sensitivity amp causes noise issues in a Khorn system. I have Sovtek in my Cary Cad 2A3i push/pull integrated Amp and I have been very pleased. The bass and vocals are very good. I also have a modified Audio Electronic Supply AES SE-1 single ended amp with RCA dual plates which I like especially for vocals but when I get a chance I need to try the Sovtek 2A3 in it. My opinion is the Sovtek is hard to beat for the price/performance. I hope to try some mesh plates in the future. mike