hklinker

Sounds like it's time for some Crites CT-125's. They can handle a lot more power than the K-77.

Sounds like a focus? group I could really get into!

Ara, Nice job, keep us posted on the comparison of the Litz vs. solid wire inductors. I used foil for the mid and tweeter in my universals and have been considering moving to the litz air core just for an experiment. I cannot agree more with the volume comment, even on the universal. There is a distinct point where just a slight increase in volume brings the music to life, especially the vocals. A great thread, I learned something, validated something, and want to try something new. Thanks Al for your contribution! Herb

Michael, I just learned of your loss. Our beloved Pumpkin died the same way as Gypsy. It will take a long time for the pain to subside, it never will completely go away. We try so hard to protect our creatures and when we fail them it haunts us terribly. My heart is heavy for you my friend! Herb

You never stop missing a good dog!

Mike, Sorry I missed it! I'd love to hear your system. Hey Colin, are you ready to host a listening party? I'm dying to hear your 2A3's and bi-amped Khorns! After I get back in August I might be up for hosting one in Mount Dora. Herb

ROTFLMAO!

I tried both 400 and 600 for the lower crossover and liked the 600 better. It just seemed a little boomier at 400 because the woofer doesn't change, it's controlled by the inductor. So dropping the squawker down to 400 gave me a "hump" in the 500Hz range. I don't have the analyzer to confirm this but I just liked it better at 600. As for the higher crossover, I go back to what I posted earlier and reiterate the strength of the Fastrac is it's ability to reproduce the warm, natural vocals and horns. Dave's testing shows the K-55/Fastrac strong up to 6kHz. It's not that the Crites won't go down there, it's just a matter of which driver you want to produce that range of music, and for me there is no comparison between a K-55 and the APT-150. I have a pair of JBL L-65 Jubals with the 2405 tweeter, which is highly sought after by the Japanese, often selling for $300 per driver! They cross the tweeter at 6500 and it's presence is mainly to provide the harmonics and percussion. If I disconnect the midrange driver I can barely tell they are playing. In a stock Cornwall I would go with 4500, but with the Fastrac for me it's 5800! I am very satisfied with the Sonicaps, which you can purchase from Bob. I have the tweeter attenuator on the board but I don't use it in this configuration. ALK was critical of it and I tend to agree with his contention that it would affect the overall impedence. Al prefers Litz air core inductors over the foil but I am very impressed with the foil. I think that the real difference is in using the right capacitor. I hadn't used a router in years, but the template Dave provides makes it easy. The key is to go slow and use a sharp flush bit. I used a cheap, 1-1/2HP Ryobi router and it worked great. Try practicing on some scrap pieces of wood to get the feel of the router. Once you do it you will wonder what you were afraid of, go for it! The screw holes you use to mount the template are exactly the same as mounting the horn. It truly is a piece of cake! That's my two cents worth! If you want to talk, send me a PM and I'll give you my number. Herb Herb Klinker

If you can solder and have a little patience it's a piece of cake. The hardest component to obtain is the autoformers. Dave's horn comes with a template to mount on the inside of the motorboard and it's a five minute job to route out the opening. Go for it! Herb

When I was trying to decide on whether to build my Cornscalas or just retrofit the old cabinets I consulted with Bob Crites who has an excellent web page describing his Cornscala project. He told me that the volume of the cabinet should have a minimum volume of 6 cubic feet. Before I had a chance to build it out, I came across a pair of cannibalized cabinets for fifty bucks so that solved that problem!

When I built my crossovers, I originally wanted to cross them over at 4500 Hz, but Dave talked me out of that and I'm glad he did. The beauty of the Fastrac horn is it's ability to make vocals (especially female) and horns sound so natural and realistic. Reducing the squawker down from 5800Hz to 4500Hz detracts from it's very strength. Just because the Crites driver (APT-150) will go down that low doesn't mean it will do a better job than the K-55 matched with the wooden horn. The great JBL tweeters are crossed at 8K to 10K so that tells you something. Tonal quality is different than frequency ability ...that's what living in the midrange is all about! Herb

Don, Very nice. I have an almost identical pair that I finished a couple of months ago and love them! About the only difference is that I used Sonicaps and foil inductors on the squawker and tweeter in the crossovers. You will hear things that you never heard before in the music! Enjoy them. Herb

Robi, Your attention to detail really showed in your project. It should serve as inspiration to all those who are considering the Heritage speakers for their system Turning a stock Cornwall into a Cornscala is one of the easiest and cost-effective projests one can undertake. One can keep all the drivers, and just replace the squawker horn which really improves the midrange. Of course you can spend another $400 to $500 and get the Crites CT-125 Tweeters and crossovers, but that can be done in stages so you don't have to break the bank. The final product will be an incredible speaker that sounds a nice as those costing several thousand dollars! Ciao, Herb

This would make sense since a filament that heats faster would probably run at a higher voltage.

The 12AX7A is designed for a faster warm up. Back when solid state became the norm, tube manufacturers tried to overcome the "wait time" for tubes to warm up by designing filiments that heated faster. I would not mix and match them, but as a matched set they should be interchangable. Maybe another member can expand on the rolling issues. Herb

Harry's right, one at a time. That way you isolate which individual tube is bad. Herb

The easiest thing to check is the tubes. The good news is that it is only in one channel, so you can take one tube at a time and swap left to right and see what happens. If that doesn't disclose the problem then you might have a bad capacitor. My Mac MX110 recently developed a hum in both channels that was traced to a bad power supply capacitor. Good luck!

WOW! A beautiful system. I love the TD124/MX110 combo. Keep us posted on your vinyl adventure!

I took a pair of the raw birch and applied a Red Mahogany stain made by Cabot. I finished them with shellac and three coats of beeswax. They match the woodwork in my living room so the wife is happy. Here is a link to the project so you can see the finish. http://community.klipsch.com/forums/p/124427/1257822.aspx#1257822 Herb

Using a Rat Shack station that doesn't cut the mustard! I'm looking at the Haako 936 which is not too pricey at $75. Here's the link;http://www.kimcodistributing.com/store/item.asp?DEPARTMENT_ID=461&ITEM_ID=7&gclid=CPCoofuXy6ECFSYJswod91aUdQ How was Key West? Herb

Ditto on that Dave. Robi, you did a great job with this project! What is next? Herb

Just checked the Schopper site, it costs $790 plus shipping to and from Switzerland! Here is a more reasonable site I found on eBay. I've dealt with him and he is reputable. http://cgi.ebay.com/Thorens-TD-124-Turntable-Chassis-Restoration-Service-/350327891591?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51912b6687 Herb

Nothing from Schopper is cheap! You got that right!

You're right, I'm not hot about the matte black, although gloss black might look funky. But it's your table so do what you want. It might affect resale value though? I see from the picture that there is some paint missing around the speed selector but for the most part it is in good condition. There is a service done by Schopper in Switzerland that will sandblast the chassis and repaint it with the original cream paint or any color you choose. It's not cheap though, about $550. The link to this site is www.Octaveaudio.com Or you can do what I did and get some Testors model paint and mix it to match the existing paint to do a touch up. Not perfect, but it will cover the bare metal. Since you've had the table for two years, it must not be a high priority project so maybe the touch up paint will get you by until you do the sandblasting. I see you are in the Air Force in Florida, are you stationed at Tyndall AFB?

Click on the options tab, and you can attach a photo file. After locating the image you want to attach scroll over to the right to save it. When you post the message it will be inserted.For my two cents worth, I've seen TD-124's with a nice plinth and SME arm go for up to $2,000 on eBay. Slap an Ortofon SPU on that puppy and it will sound like a million bucks! No way I'd part with that table! Here's a picture of mine: Herb