n2dablue

Hello, All! My cheapie portable cd player is nearing the end of its life. I am kinda glad because the sound quality is/was horrible. Can anyone suggest a "Good" player? I know they are rare, but are there any with multi-bit D/A's out there that anyone knows of? I don't care about "Anti-Shock" or MP3/WMA capability, I am looking for simple, sturdy, and good sound (at least as far as portables go). Any thoughts? Thanks for reading! Paul Larson bigmanpaul@worldnet.att.net

Sorry to wake this thread back up, but I didn't see the sense in starting a new topic for it. I got my KG4s into our new place the other day and got them set up where they sound just about right, I am very happy with them! Anyways, I still want to upgrade to extract the most from these, as I plan on having them for a long time to come. I am planning on experimenting with sound damping, spiking, upgrading wires, and Capacitors with original values. I was also considering replacing the inductors, does anyone recomend a particular brand/style of coil or is most anything better OEM? I think I will probably not modify the OEM crossover boards, but rather make new ones, so I have something to fall back on. DeanG, any suggestions as to what method to make my own boards? I was just going to use the custom board etching kit like the one at RadioShack, they are pretty easy to use. What da Y'all think?

Ok, so I have a few potential receivers lined up that I can get that I am serious about. *Denon DRA 825r, used, OK condition, no remote(i need a universal anyways), $150+35 shipping *Denon DRA 835, used, includes remote & manual, great condition, $150+18 shipping *Nakamichi TA-2, used, includes remote & manual, FULLY functional, $150 + ~$20 or so shipping. I believe both of the Denons are of the early '90s vintage, the Nak is late '80's. I believe both of the Denons are 100 WPC, more than I would ever need for KG4s, and the Nak is 50 WPC. The Nak is older, but I keep hearing (reading) good things about the incorperated "STASIS" technology. Of these, what do you guys think would match best? I am still considering an Adcom amp and a Preamp of one kind or another, but the cost is probably going to be double that of one of these receivers, I wonder what kind of performance/sound margin we are looking at though...Hmmmm.

Thanks, I found the schematic, but only after I opened them up, lol. More quetions: Was(is) the 1.25" foam on the interior wall sides from the factory or someone else's mod? FYI: these are 6 ohm, '90 models. What is the purpose/name of the small component that looks like a ceramic capacitor that is labled PS1 on the board, labled "RDE 070" on the schematic? Is it upgradeable? What is upgrading the Caps/coils going to do as far as sound? The wiring, while it is in good shape, seems to be a little on the puny side, should I bother replacing wires?

Just my $0.02, if you are going to do something, do it right. I would remove the old veneer before applying the new. Sure, it will cost more, but its a much safer investment. Again, its just my opinion, BUT its a belt sander, not rocket science, I used them in my first year of high school wood shop, It shouldn't cost a WHOLE lot more to sand them down first. Also, if you are serious on keeping cost down, take a trip down to the local high school wood shop. Talk to the shop teacher about getting one of the more skilled kids to do the sanding. You'd be suprised how hard the kid will work for you if you slip him 20-30 bucks! Sure, there is some risk, but chances are you can find at least one kid that has some good skills whos always up for something to challenge them! Just be sure to remove speakers/wiring/xovers, etc. first!

I am going to open up one of the speakers today to see what we have got, I will post what I find out, as well as pictures for those who are interested.

Thanks for all the input guys! Yeah, I am probably going to stay with 2 channel for now, I compared the sound of the Denon surround units with their 2 channel units and given that you are looking in the same price bracket, the stereo outperforms the multichannel units in stereo mode, by quite a bit! To answer someones question, my KG4s are '90 models and are 6 ohms. I picked up an open box Onkyo 8511 with no real intention of keeping it, unless it blew me away, and it is definitely going back. Its nice and all, but it just lacks a certain something that I cant put my finger on, I dunno its just not for me. I am leaning towards a Denon DRA 395, 685, or a used 825R. The other option I'm still rolling around is a Nakamichi, because I just cant find anything bad being said about them! What kind of sound do the old Naks put out?

Thanks for the tips, are there any recomendations out there for receivers that have remotes that might be worth my time? A remote control comes highly valued in this house! (I know, I know, I'm a child of the '80s/'90s, go ahead and laugh) BTW, do any of you know anything about this receiver? It looks pretty nice, but I just dont know Denon real well... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3095838842&category=3279&sspagename=STRK%3AMEBWA%3AIT&rd=1 Thanks Paul

Cool, I have been soldering for years, that would be no problem. Replace all the Capacitors or just specific ones? What aspect of sound does this improve? I really appricate you time! Paul

Am I in the correct frame of mind thinking that a warm sounding receiver is the way to go? BTW, Just HOW old of an H/K are we talking about?

I was just curious if there are any upgrades for the KG4's that are "worth it". I am new to these speakers, but I have heard things about the wiring being on the cheap side, and I also remember hearing something about adding sound damping to improve bass response. Does anyone know if these things are true, or just people BSing. Any input would be appriciated! Paul Larson

Hello All, Like the subject line says, I just got my KG4's off of Ebay for $193. They are in great condition, as they have 1990 serial numbers on them. The only flaws are some chipping of the veneer (sp?) on the corners of the bases, but no big deal. I am 19 and in the Air Force. I am no Audiophile, but have a pretty good ear and appriciate good sound. My parents have a pair of Fortes that are just awesome, in my opinion. I bought the KG4's because I miss my folk's system and that Klipsch sound, but was still on a tight budget. It's now time to think about a stereo receiver that is going to make the grade, and the budget. Between my Fiance and I, we listen to a very wide range of music, and perhaps the KG4s were not the best choice, especially for classical. It was suggested by an "Audiophile" friend of mine that I should try to mate these speakers with a Denon receiver, reason being that the Denon line is typicaly a warmer sounding receiver. What do you guys and gals recomend for driving these speakers in a small to medium size room, and having decent ability to play many different types of music without my Fiance (who is a musician) wrinkling her nose? We mainly play standard CDs and the very occasional SACD(2 channel of course). We will also be using this for watching movies. I am looking to spend no more than 300-350 on a stereo receiver, and am not afraid of scrounging around ebay for used equipment. Thank you for your time, everyone! It seems you are all most helpful on this forum! Paul Larson

Actually, not as much into the blues as I should be, n2dablue is also my ebay user id so I can remember it. It is sorta derived from "...into the wild blue yonder..." I'm Air Force, you see... Thats funny, I didn't even think twice about that, oops! Yeah, I'll let everyone know how it goes, it seems that this is a great forum, Thank you all for your time! Paul Larson

I won for $193.01, yay!

Are they still?

This auction is the reason I was asking about the KG-4s, I lost the bid earler on some beat up Fortes that ended up selling for $375, I was angry, lol. Should I go for them? How much should I max out at?

Shipping is not very safe I'm guessing? I gather that the KG-4s don't really compare? Or is it that there are just better choices out there? Please excuse the silly questions, I have only personally listened to the Fortes.

Im here in Washington state right now (military), 500 is a bit high, unless they are still available later in the summer.

Around 300 - 400 (400 being the max) For right now, I could spend more later on (which is why I looked at the RF-35s and a few others).

Hello All, I have a question for those of you who have been around the block a few more times than I. Here's a little bacground. Growing up, my folks had a great set of Fortes, always mated to a Yamaha reciever or amp of one kind or another. Now I am no real audiophile, but I do recognize and appriciate the sound that those speakers were capable of. I've been out of the house for nearly two years now and have a bad itch that no boom box is going to scratch. I sampled some RF-35s the other day and they were very nice, they reminded me a little of the Fortes (gotta love those horns) but just didn't quite bring it home for me, they didn't have the same spunk in the low end. This is when I realized there is no way I can afford something new that I will be content with for many years, heck, affording the RF-35s would be painful enough! It doesn't look promising to find a set of Fortes in the price range that I can work with, However there are a number of KG-4s floating around on EBay right now, with wallet-friendly prices. They seem to get nothing but great reviews. So here's the question- Will the KG-4s quench my thirst the way the Fortes could? If not, just how close will they come. I'd be running them on a Yamaha reciever (not sure on the model number) from the LATE 80's/early 90s, at 50WPC. (Actually it's the first reciever my folks used on the Fortes back in the day, and sounded great, yes its old, but also free!) Thank you in advance for your time! Paul Larson