TubeGuy

Sweet work! I've laced many miles of cable in recording studios. There is nothing that compares to that look. Looks like you have mastered the technique very well. Ya gotta love true craftsmanship!

Choice of wire is a pretty controversial subject, but I'll dive in anyway. I rewired my 1989 Khorns with Kimber 4TC many years ago. The Kimber replaced the original Monster Cable and the improvement was quite noticable. I've since rewired two other sets of Khorns with 4TC and one with 8TC. The owners were very pleased with the results. Results: Bass became tighter, mids were more open sounding and the highs were less splashy and overall there was more detail. The difference was slightly more pronounced when replacing the original Klipsch lampcord tinned wire than the later Monster Cable. I also think that the teflon coating will have a much longer life than the original wire. The Monster had turned green after just a few years. I recently reworked all of the connections when I installed Al's Trachorns. There was no corrosion on the Kimbers after ten years of use. Terminating the 4TC takes a while and will put a blister on your thumb, but IMO the pain is well worth the results! Oh what we sacrifice for this audio habit[]

I'm very familiar wit AA's, AK2's and Al's ALK's. Both the AA or the ALK will be a huge improvement IMO. The ALK's have one advantage over the AA's in that they mate with single ended tube amps extremely well due their constant impedence to the amp. If you are interested in going this route in the future this would be something to consider. I use single ended amps, and chose the ALK's largley for this reason - and also because they sound great with any amp!. You've come to the right place for information and advice. Be ready for info overload. You're going to have fun!

One of anything on a desert Island would be torture, well almost anything. I could pick just one off of the "Prettiest Girl on the Planet" thread.

I couldn't hook my KHorns up for three years so I relegated my music listening to the car. Hey, if you can't have the real thing, you might as well listen to something where you have no expectations! Three months ago I was able to put my system back together and it's been bliss ever since. From the subtle shadings of Sarah Jones voice to the dynamics of Rickie Lee Jones "Under the Boardwak" , the rock of Nektar, or the expressiviness of Lorendo Almeida, it's all there in ONE speaker. Fifteen years with KHorns and they never cease to amaze. I had Cornwalls for ten years prior and felt as passionate about them too. Thank you Paul Klipsch and all of the great people that continue to make a speaker that can bring so much enjoyment.

Seti, Thanks for posting the pix. I haven't seen that one in years. It's my favorite Klipsch picture. I don't know which is more awesome, the speaker or PWK. Can you really seperate the two. I think I'm going to put my Khorns back to stock for the week end and have a music fest in the Col's honor!

Hey, I like my bike powered soldering iron! It's just that after a few drinks I tend to get alot of cold solder joints. I'VE GOT TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT POWER STABILIZATION! Great job Mark. You're in an enviable position. BTW, I've tried chewing Juicy Fruit while listening to music. It didn't help. I guess I'm just going to have to buy a Blueberry.

Efzauner, your memory is good. In the late 70's DBX and Phase Linear both made these type of products. I had a Phase Linear 1000 II, purcahsed in 1980. Had a compander function for recording and an "autocorrelator that removed record surface noise and pops & clicks. It worked as advertised, but as my system became more high resolution, I noticed it's affect on the music. Needless to say it's gone now.

As long as the first watt is clean, you'll be fine. Later on you'll be able to try some low, or lower power, tube amps and can make up your mind which technology works for you. With Khorns you have CHOICES. That's a very good thing!

Congrats from behind the Zion Curtain (that's Utah ) It's always nice to see deserving people being recognized. Klipsch reaaaalllly does have a future!

Great thread. I've already got a wish list based on the replies! Hey, and it looks like it pulled Duke out of hibernation! That's worth it without the music suggestions! Here's a few from way back: Jazz: Keith Jarrett, "Koln Concert" The best improv piano ever, however I'm biased since I was there. (ECM records) Pop: Rickie Lee Jones "Girl at the Volcano" This is worth it just for her rendition of "On the Boardwalk". DYNAMICS to knock your socks off and the best version I've heard. This one will dispell any questions about the ability of vinyl to deliver dynamics. It's woken up countless non LP listeners to what they are missing. (this is a 7 inch LP record, 331/3) New Age: Oregon "Out of the Woods". I hate the term New Age in the context of Oregon. They're so much more. This is in the Paul Winters Consort vein. Awesome musicianship and a great journey! This is NOT like so much contrived blather that later defined the genre. (Elektra 6E454) Alternative Folk: Ferron, "Shadows on a Dime" The recording is just average but every song is great. (Redwood Records LR 004)

Uh oh, I can see ALK Trachorns in your future!!!!! Welcome to the Klipsch Forum - The best forum with the best people on the internet! And what a way to get started - nice review.

It's one of those audiophile sonic spectaculars. Back in the 80's it got played so much at shows, and peoples homes to show off their latest high end purchase, it became stale. Stale because the music is just average although the recording is superb. If you want a test record for imaging, it is a good one. The big thing is listening to the positioning of the audience and the tinkle of their wine glasses. (like anyone cares to hear glasses tinkle, but on the other hand, with KHorns even that sounds great! It is a great spacial recording for the anal retentive imaging folks. Frankly, give me some Ray Brown Trio or Keith Jarrett and I'm there!

In my experience the answer is Yes with SS and Yes with qualifications for tubes. When equipment is turned on the power supplies have a burst of energy as the caps charge and voltage comes up to operating parameters. These surges can affect many components downstream. Additionally, bias currents can vary wildly as the power supply and circuits come up to proper voltages. Solid state is not as critical as tubes in this regard. Many/most companies have "soft start" circuits to minimize turn on surges. Solid state still benefits from being left on as idle currents need time to settle down and components come up to operating temp. This affects sound quality in many ways depending on the circuit design and component choices. My experience has been that solid state needs MORE time than tube gear to warm up and sound their best. I've found that solid state amps need 24-72 hours to sound near their peak. (some people say they need more time) Given more time, the sound improves slightly. Initially solid state can sound somewhat strident/sterile with a slightly elevated noise floor and less of a three deminsional soundstage. This statement is NOT a blast against solid state! This is in comparison to the sound improvement after a lengthy warm up. After a few days the soundstage has opened wide and deep, bass becomes tighter and rounded/realistic and nuances in the performance emerge, probably due to the lower noise floor. Solid state also benefits in that it's not subject to the extremes of thermal stress that tubes are proned to. Bottom line for me was to leave them on unless I wasn't going to be listening for a week or more. Tube gear experiences much of the same phenomina but I've found that after 24 hours there doesn't appear to be any additional benefit - They are at their peak performance, with all of the proper warm up benefits as mentioned above. Tubes are sensitve to thermal shock and will degrade, and fail, over time due to thermal stress. You have trade offs to contend with. Once a tube is put into service, it starts a gradual degredation. The heaters have a given lifetime that they will boil off electrons. This will generally be the arbitor for the tubes life span. You can get many thousands of hours of service life from a tube depending on how the designer is operating the tube in the circuit. Additionally, you have a number of internal connections to grids plates etc that can weaken with constant on/off cycles due thermal stresses. The connections can become brittle and weak and break, causing open circuits, and worst of all shorts within the tube. Some designers allow you to disconnect the plate voltage on output tubes, essentially cutting the tube off, allowing you keep the heaters and power supplies at optimum temperature while not wearing the tube out. With tube power amps (without the ability to turn off plate voltages, I let them warm up for a day before a big/critical listening session. Here's the big tradeoff - Tube life vs. instant peak performance. If the amps allow plate voltage to be turned off, I run them as I would solid state. With tube pre amps, I leave them on as I would ss. The tubes are cheaper than expensive power tubes and I feel the lower noise floor of a properly warmed pre amp is critical to serious listening. I hope this helps. BIG DISCLAIMER: This is an area that has many different opinions. This is just what my ears tell me with the equipment that I'm familiar with. The bottom line is for you to try different scenarios to see what works best with your equipment and what trade offs your willing to make. Happy listening and don't stress over it too much.

NICE! It's always great to be reminded that not only was PWK a great business man, he was a real Gentleman! I hope his school lasts as long as his spekaers - TIMELESS.