wsu99999

In responce to CECAA850's first remark - I don't care if I build it or buy it already built. I just want the best I can get for under a grand. If it happens to be the ED sub you recomended then great - If I can build the same sub for less, even better. If there is something I can build that will blow it away for a little more, even better. I really just want the best sub I can get within my budget limitations. Any more suggestions?

Thanks for the support Brac. I think subwoofers are one of the most diffucult peices of home theater. Maybe I should add my current setup before people would begin helping - I'm running 2x 1976 (ish) LaScala's with 2 1990's Forte II's as my surrounds. I just sold my center and will be purchasing a new one shortly. I'm already aware of the center I'm going to get, but just need a subwoofer that will work well with the LaScalas. To further elaborate... I have read a lot on the forum, and it seems to be a general opinion that subwoofers from manufacturers are overpriced (or that you could build a DIY for cheaper and better). Maybe in my range I'm wrong - I just don't know. What I do know is the SUB-12 didn't cut it for what I'm looking for. My main's would completely drown it out. I need MORE!!! What's out there that I can build - specifically - I'm really interested in kits so I don't have to build the box. If the boxes really suck please let me know!! If there is a better place to go for this stuff, please direct me as well.

I recently sold my SUB-12 and I'm interested in building my own subwoofer. I would like to spend under a grand and wanted some advice. I've looked at parts express and wanted to know everyone's thoughts about a route I should take. Should I pick up one of their DIY kits like the Dayton T1503K 15" Titanic Mk III Subwoofer Kit - it's like 700 bucks and has a 1000w amp w/ a 15 inch sub. Would something like this blow away the sub12? Could I do better for under a grand? Is there a speaker manufacturer out there that has a better sub for under a grand? Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks!!

That definately helped. How can I tell if the tweeters are blown from their impedance? They don't sound blown, just slightly distorted. What would their impedance read if normal (optimal) and blown?

Hey fellow Klipsch junkies, I had some quick questions for you guys and I hope someone can help me. I purchased some LaScalas and so far, everyone has been great in helping me get them as good as new. I asked a lot of questions on refinishing the cabinents and everyone walked me through it. I have some additional questions and hoped you could be of assistance. The LaScala's I got are from 76-79 (I can't remember the year). The Tweeters are metal and gold in color. The Mid tweeter is grey and metal (looks like the bottom of an oil filter kinda). Can you help me identify which version of speakers these are? I have the type AA crossover with the little oil can looking things on there. Sorry for the overly technical jargon I have had these for about a month and a half now and at first I thought the sound was simply amazing. Now, I am starting to find it lacking. It sounds great turned down low, but when I play it at high volumes, it honestly starts to sound sort of distorted. I can hook up my Forte II's next to them and switch back and forth. The LaScala's sound better at low volumes than the Forte's but the Forte's stomp the LaScalas at high volumes and are MUCH clearer. Something clearly is wrong! I guess now my question is what do I need to do to get these things to sound like the LaScala II's or better? I've auditioned the LSII and it completely blows mine away. I know that the original LSs should sound at least 95% as good as the new ones, but mine are performing around 50%. I would like this question to go in 3 routes - and I know this has been asked before, but I would like someone to explain these things to me in a way I can understand..... I would like a route showing how I can make my LaScala's sound the best money can buy (updating and upgrading them without cost in mind), A route that is in the middle (the economical upgrade, things to buy that will be almost the best, but not quite) AND a route that will be as dirt cheap as possible. With my current setup, I'm sure at the very least I need to update the crossover but should I update it or get one of the new fangled ALK's? What replacement speakers are out there and which ones do most people use? What about the woofer - I haven't read much on that. - Any help is appreciated! Maybe one of the people that actually makes the speakers and crossovers could chime in and show me different packages and prices related to my current setup. Thanks guys!! With my

Hey Rocko, I just read your post. I actually went the same upgrade path as you. I went to Bestbuy and purchased my first Klipsch speakers (F-3's) and thought they were the cat's meow. Then I decided I should try the higher end stuff - which was RF-35's. WOW What a difference! Then, after owning those for a few months, I kept hearing about their heritage line. Finally I decided to give that a shot and went to audition the Lascala's. If there is anywhere in your state that you can go hear these I highly recomend you doing so. I think you would be better off finding a pair of Herseys, Forte's,Chorus's, Cornwalls, or LaScalas/Khorns. After hearing the LaScala's - the difference was so substancial that I knew what I needed to do. I sold my entire RF-35 system and purchased 2 LaScalas for really cheap (600 bucks) and some Forte II's for cheap as well. The bottom line is if you are already going to buy used speakers, buy Heritage! If nothing else, at least try to hear some to make the decision.

Actually Speakerfritz, I did "heed" your advice with the chemical remover. It didn't cut it. These speakers had so much paint and wallpaper on them that sanding was required. I purchased the strongest chemical remover that HD sold and it didn't do the job needed. Since I last posted this thread, I have sanded the entire left LaScala and it is PERFECT! I just needed to sand with lower grit paper a little while longer to get the scratches out. These will be beautiful when finished and I will upload pictures.

I will just have to put some more elbow grease into it i guess. Why is going with the grain so important? I did it that way, but what difference does it make?

OK - I started the project, have the top of the speaker completed, and sanded down all the way to really fine sandpaper. When I look at the top of the speaker now, there are small scratches all over the place. It's really bad. I've went back and tried sanding more and more but the scratches either come back or it creates more. How do you get rid of the scratches or does the stain just clean it up

Hey Big Bad - I would sincerely reccomend the RB system. You said that this is to be your first "real" home theater but in all honesty all you would be getting is a REALLY GOOD HTIB setup. There are a lot of options out there for people with limited space. There are the bookshelf lines which would produce much better realism and quality for a step up in price. If price is the concern and you can't afford more than the cinema series then that's that. If you can afford to spend more money go for the bookshelf stuff. I have auditioned the bookshelf's for almost every reference series. While not for me (because I like bigger) I could see how someone could fall in love with any of the higher level bookshelf speakers - they truly sound phenomenal for their size. Another thing you may want to look at are Hersey's! They are really small (I guess small is relative), sound better than any reference speaker, and are affordable if you can find them used (even if you pay shipping from a forum member or off Ebay, you can easily pick up 2 of them for 400 bucks you would just have to pay extra to ship. If you had a system of 5 herseys, you would completely blow your mind, especially compaired to the cinema series.

Just to be clear - it would be obvious that I sanded through it? Will the wood pattern on the plywood match the woodpattern on the veneer? For example - If the Veneer has a large knot in the design, underneath the veneer in the plywood, the knot will not be there - right? In other words, if I've sanded and I still see the same grain pattern as was originally there I should be ok right?

Just curious - what does the wood look like underneath the veneer? Will it have a different knot pattern? I'm trying to determine if I've already sanded through the veneer.

I'm not talking about sanding through the Veneer, just sanding the top layer off of the speakers. I know the Vaneer IS the top layer, but I just mean sanding all of the color off the speaker, leaving the vaneer, just taking the top layer of the vaneer off.

Instead of getting seperates, I would reccomend buying better speakers. The 35's sound good, but if you really want to get more out of your speakers, new amps won't make a HUGE difference. Sure you will be able to tell a difference and if you can get a cheap preamp and amp then by all means give it a shot, but if you really want to make a difference, buy some higher end speakers.

Have you been to a dealership that has the 83's for audition? If I were you, before I spent all that money on them, I would audition them alongside of some Heritage line. I originally had a similar setup as yours (RF-35'sx2, RS-62s, RC-62) and wanted an upgrade. I went to a local dealership and auditioned the RF-83s and 63s. I was impressed! However, the dealer also had LaScala's, Cornwalls, Heresy's and Klipschorns. Upon auditioning the Heritage line I was floored. There was no compairision for me. I thought the entire heritage line sounded better than the RF-83's (just my opinion and I will probably get flamed for it) but the sound just seemed more dynamic and full. I ended up selling my RF-35 setup for more than I paid for it and got a pair of LaScala's and Forte-II's AND I didn't spend a dime out of pocket. I guess what I'm saying is if you haven't already auditioned the Heritage product line AND if you have the room (which you do), you may want to go Heritage. Just my 2cents. On the other hand, you can't go wrong with the 83's, they are fine speakers

A few more questions for everyone that has been so helpful.... When I'm sanding, what should I sand down to? Should I sand all of the existing color off (I believe these were finished Birch as there is some color in the wood). Should I go down below that layer and restain? I have read on here that staining the wood is undesireable. Honestly, I would like a dark red wood finish, I just think the dark red/brown would look beautiful with the speakers. Why do others discourage staining the wood? Does it effect resale value (not that I will ever sell these)? Will there be any negative effects by staining the wood?

Hello fellow Klipsch junkies, I am fairly new to this and I recently purchased a pair of 76 Lascalas in need of some fixin. They were covered with wallpaper and paint. I have stripped them of the paint and wallpaper using very mild chemical removers and the wood is in excellent shape except for two things. 1. There are a few spots where the wood is light (almost white). 2. Overall, the Lascala's look "dry" and have almost no reflective surface as others I've seen. I don't know if this is because there is still glue from the paper on there, OR if the chemicals took away their shine, OR if age took it away. My question is what do I do to get the lighter spots to be colorful and how do I get the wood to look new? I have done NO sanding, and I assume if I did so, the lighter spots would even out. When liquid is applied to the lighter spots, they look identical to the rest of the speaker, almost as if they are just dry. Should I sand the entire speaker to get down a bit in the veneer or is there an oil or wax that is prefered by forum members? Please point me in the correct direction - this is my first refinishing project and any suggestions are appreciated.

I understand the WAF - It's kinda funny but my woman prefers the look of the Lascala's to the sleek Reference series OR the Forte II's. Think of it this way, for the amount of money you are about to spend to completely update the Forte II's, you could sell the Forte II's and take the money you were going to put into them and combind both funds to buy something a bit further up the Heritage line. If you picked up some cornwalls, they wouldn't look that much different than the Forte II's (so your wife would probably be ok with them) and they sound a whole lot better! Plus, you could easily afford them with the money you got for your forte's plus maybe 100 or 200 bucks. My opinion is to invest in better speakers instead of better electronics. I really doubt your Forte's will sound much better with new gear. On the other hand, if you are going to be using a 5.1 setup, and would like to take advantage in optical/hdmi/coax/etc, a new receiver would be able to add a lot more functionality than your current setup although the sound quality would probably only increase a bit.

In responce to your home theater question, I use Forte II's as my rear surrounds and Lascala's up front. If I were you, I would move the Forte II"S to the back and get some slightly larger heritage for front. I am completely satisified with the Forte's sound and they open the room up way more than the best dedicated surround speaker out there. Prior to using the Forte's behind me, they were the main speaker in my setup and I had some RS-62's as my rear surrounds. Believe it or not, I sold the RS-62's on Ebay and found a REALLY NICE fourm member that sold me some beat up LaScalas for a really good price! THis was the best decision I have ever made in my life as the LaScala's are truly unbelievable.

There is a WAF involved, however, it isn't too strong. To be honest, I personally would like them to be as good looking as possible because I think they are amazingly beautiful speakers. Another question is are there people that professionally do this or is there someone in the Seattle area on the forum that would help me for a fee?

PrestonTom: Do you have a link for that modification, it sounds simple and cheap! Cheap best of all!! Thanks for your and everyone elses advice!!

Thanks for the advice Ray, on my Forte II's the 555 is a bit bright as well. I would probably make my ears bleed with the lascalas. It seems that most people are running these off tubes or amps with extremely low wattage, and I know that everyone says they are extremely efficient. Another question is this. The other Klipsch products I've owned have all been efficient, but with the 555, it has always opened them up a bit more than the other amps I've used. Granted, I have a limited selection, but it does seem that even though they are efficient, Klipsch speakers still like a lot of watts. Is this a misconception on my behalf? Also, I would assume the cleanest power I have is the Harman Kardon - does anyone disagree? Do you think I could end up actually using my reciever?

I am picking up a set of LaScalas this weekend and the cabinents are horrid! Please keep in mind that I am extremely new to this. I don't mind doing my due dilligence on things, and I've read the forum extensively on Lascalas. I came across a post about adding exotic wood veneer to the exterior of the cabinents. These LaScala's that I am buying have the wood in good shape, unfortunately they have been painted AND had paper applied to the exterior which is going to all have to be stripped off. I am not very experienced in finishing wood by stains or sanding, but I will have someone with me who is! My questions are as follows: What exactly did the poster mean when he referred to adding wood veneer to the cabinents? (I'm assuming he ment a thin layer of fake wood covered in plastic (kinda like wood grain in cars) How expensive would it be for the materials? Where would I get such materials? How diffucult of a project would it be? Would you reccomend this route or is there a better way to go? As of right now, I'm not too sure of the condition of the cabinents, but the drivers are great and the price is all I can afford. The sound is perfect, just they are painted ugly! Thanks as always for your help. The people of this forum are the most helpful I've found.

Seeing as I know absolutely nothing about Tube amps it seems as if I have some reading to do... When I Get these Lascala's clearly I'm going to have some work to do on them anyway and from the sounds of things I may be needing a new amp. Right now, I have a GFA-2, GFA-555 and a Harman Kardon AVR-745. While I'm waiting on a Tube Amp, which would you use to power the Lascalas?

Please keep in mind that I have never owned a pair of true heritage line before... Are tube amp's needed? If so, any cheap suggestions?