twu

Yes, I'm blown away by how good the H/K 430 sounds with La Scalas. I've been using my Marantz SR7001 with a small 8" sub crossover at 60hz, which sounded really nice but I feel that setup never really took advantage of the punchy bass La Scala is capable of. When listened to the H/K 430, no sub, I then realized what I was missing. My friend who I got the H/K 430 from loaned me his ADC turntable so now I'm listening to vinyls with H/K 430 and La Scala, unbelievable. I've been pretty much listening to all digital music up until I picked up a pair of La Scala, now I find myself looking at vintage receivers and playing records again. Funny how that works.

Welcome. I'm also using my Marantz SR7001 in my setup with La Scalas. Although I've never heard Fortes, I can safely say you are going to love what you hear. A good dedicated amp (tube or SS) will be better but there is no need to hurry. Enjoy your new setup for awhile. I've had my setup for about six months now and I just picked up a H/K 430. I'm still an infant in my audio progression relative to some members on here.

Thank you. I couldn't quite figure out how to get the line to break

Some of the horns on here are just ridiculous, in a good way. [] http://www.flickr.com/photos/audiovoice_hornloudspeakers/page1/

Neo, what binding post did you use in your crossover? I like what you used there, nice and clean. I was thinking of using something similar for my crossovers. Can you send me a link to where you got them? Thanks.

Well, the wife and kid went out for the day shopping so I had the entire day with my La Scalas and man it was fun. I won't go into the details, let's just say I've never had so much enjoyment listen to all my music. Yes, I can listen to lower volumes and it still sounds wonderfully detailed and well balanced. It's just more refined. There was even a bit more punch in the bass than I remembered with older caps. I listened for about five hours (went by fast!) and felt like I could go for another five. No fatigue what so ever. I played just about genre in my collection, from Krall to Van Halen, Maria Callas, Tomatito, Oakenfold, Soloman Burke. It was cool. I remember hearing a ringing in my ears after listening before, like after going to rock concert. It must have been the harshness. With the new caps, I don't get any of that at all.

That is a beautiful piece of work. Well done and congratulations! I'm guessing it's was way more satisfying than buying new.

Uh, I think I'd have to say that the new caps are "working." People regularly pay huge amounts of money to get the same changes (I will not say improvements because you are not sure if you like it) that you are experiencing. Try this. If the speakers sound more "balanced" and "laid back" can you listen at lower volumes and they still sound right? Like do you now listen at low volumes and feel like you do not need to turn it up to sound "right." Try listening to extended periods of time. Can you now listen for hours without fatigue? Maybe the hard impact is gone but for some reason you can just keep on throwing records on and listening for hours and they just seem to sound nice. Or you throw on a record and songs that you normally do not like are now listenable. I like Fleetwood Mac's Rumors. About 5 great tracks and the rest are merely good. But when everything is sounding just right in a system, the whole album sounds great. Can you now listen at lower volumes and maybe the hard impact is gone but you hear detail that you never heard before on tracks that you have listened to for years? And you listen at lower volume. Do a little research on the web. We have an emotional response to boom and sizzle because it grabs our attention (fight or flight response). But the same response is not confortable for long periods ot time and makes you want to turn it off. This has lead to the compression wars in recordings (ruining some very good music) where music is compressed to sound louder on the radio to get your attention, but it sounds like crap. Give your system some time and enjoy. You will see a big thing with tubes. Tube amps have a mellow sound, not a hard impact sound, and they are sought by many who listen for hours. Thanks! These are very good suggestions. My back is feeling a little better so I think I'll be able take another good listen soon and let you know if the new sound is better or not to my ears. I think you are correct that my expectation of the "impact" I liked with the old caps has to do with the harshness and the concentrated mids. I also remembering listening to Paul McCartney's Unplugged album with the old caps, the "And I love Her" track, his voice came out very strong, more than the instruments, like it was over emphasized in the mids. I initially thought it sounded pretty good. Then when the same song with the new caps, I didn't get the same mids I was getting, and immediately thought something must have gone wrong. I then play the same song on my Dad's Quad ESL and I was basically getting the same balanced sound as my La Scala with new caps, then I knew it's was the recording and that the La Scala is now playing true to it's recording. My lesson here is try the same song with different speakers and compare that to old vs new caps.

Here's mine. Got them about two weeks ago. Not as nice as of some posted here but I'm very happy considering the price I paid for them. What does it cost to reveneer them?

Well, I've been laying on my back for the last couple of days unable to sit or stand for more than a couple of minutes. I have a herniated disc. My wife thinks I hurt myself moving the speakers. Risking losing the speakers, I told her it was something else. I'm not sure how it happened to be honest. Anyway, as soon as I'm better and not drowsy from pain killer, I'll take a good listen to report back.

The guy I got them from said the networks have not been touched. They were the oil can caps. From the looks of them, they looked pretty old. I'll post some photos of them. My dad's an electrician and I'm not sure what meter he used, might have been an ohm meter, he measureed the old caps and said they are bad because they didn't go down to "0". I don't know exactly what that means but I'm guessing anything other than "0" means the entire signal is getting through the caps, causing degradation of the sound? Before the caps were replaced, I thought the La Scala sounded incredible with my untrained ears, but that was my first time hearing La Scalas, ever. I think most people like myself, hearing these for the first time, you're just so overwhelmed by how dynamic and loud they sound, might even been slightly harsh. I don't know if that sound is due to old caps but I would have been happy them because for the first time, I felt the music in my bones and it was freakin awesome. So I thought, man..I can't even imagine what they'll sound like with new caps! After replacing the caps, when I first heard the sound, I must say I was rather disappointed because it didn't have the same impact. The sound was rather laid back compared to before. Maybe it's the harshness that I got used to hearing from the old caps? Maybe they're more balanced now? I distinctly remember hearing Ella Fitzgerald's voice and saying that it was a bit harsh and didn't have the velvety, breathy texture. With the new caps, her voice is not harsh anymore and it's what I would expect her voice to sound like. Whether that's due to new caps or not, it's what I'd prefer so I guess that's a good thing. Sorry, I'm just rambling. I would love to hear from anyone who's done A/B test, both subjective listening and technical measurements. Bottom line is I guess I don't know if new caps are better or not. It's just different. It's definitely not "night and day" for me, not now anyways.

Also check out the 2-Channel Audio forum about getting new caps or crossovers. Bob Crites and ALK or two that are widely used among La Scala owners here. I myself just got updated caps from Bob and the mids are not harsh as it was.

Thanks Dennie. It's an interesting little hobbie I've found myself in as a La Scala owner. Yes, I did read your post about "taking a blanket off of the speakers...". [] That's the general impression I was hoping to get when I first turned it on. But I'm glad to you said it was over a period of time that you noticed the improvements. I will give it time and report back.

Last night I installed new Soniccaps from BEC on my 1976 La Scala, Type AA networks. I've read many posts about people getting new caps in their heritage speakers and getting dramatically better sound. That the difference is so obvious that I should be able to hear it. Based on this, I was excited to hear what new caps can do for my La Scala. But, when I first turned it on, the improvement wasn't that obvious to me. I can hear a difference but I wouldn't say it's dramatic. I can hear the sounds from their respective drivers. Aside from getting measurements and charts, which I can't do for many reasons, how do I know that I've restored the sound of my La Scala as PWK intended? What should I listen for? Could I have done something wrong? Do new caps need to be broken in? What's the sound characteristics of La Scala with old vs new caps?

other speaker

Thanks Dennie. I'll definitely look into getting updates for the crossover, at least new caps as I hear that's the biggest gain with minimal change. These are the serial numbers on the label and stamped on the plywood 6P992 and 6P993. These don't match up with the coding that I've seen. Any ideas? Here are photos...

Well, I'm now a proud owner of a pair of 1974 La Scala! A very nice fellow was moving out of town and couldn't take them with him. Hours after his post on Craigslist, my Dad and I drove 35 minutes to see them. It took all but 2 minutes and $500 and they were mine. Today was a great day. Photos to come...

Thanks. The vintage route is appealing to me. I found this in our local Craiglist. http://classictubeaudio.com/ Seems like a good source for vintage amps.

The way I look at it, if your house is too small for your family, you find a bigger place. As with La Scala, they will be part of the family so I'll find a larger room later. I'm pretty sure this has been asked many times but what are some good amps at 1 or 2 watts output that is under $500?

Well..after today, I may end up getting ProMedias. My wife goes out and picks up a Gucci bag for about the same price as the the asking price without blinking and here I am mulling over for weeks whether I should pay a few hundred more for them. Sheesh.. I really have my heart set on La Scalas though, I realize my current room is on the small side and it's not permanant, I'll make room for them eventually.

Yes, I live in Washington and willing to drive to any of the bordering states and Canada. I pair popped up on Craigslist last night. I contacted the seller for info. He says the price is firm. I think it's on the high side. What do you guys think? http://seattle.craigslist.org/skc/ele/1494025153.html

"Depending on your patience, you can look for used ones." I'm finding that's tough to do. I can't afford to get new ones and waiting for a used pair to show up within driving distance is killing me.

Fastlane, i'm in Seattle. If anyone knows a dealer where I can audition Las Scalas, Cornwalls, or K-horns, that would be great.

Thanks for everyone's input, much appreciate it. Right now I'm using a Marantz SR 7001 receiver. I've been farily happy with it for HT use. If my AVR doesn't work well, I'm willing to get a SET amp or quality solid state amp with low distortion to drive them. I live in Seattle so if anyone owns La Scalas or Cornwalls near the area and willing to let me audition, that would be great. Hard to believe but I couldn't find a dealer that had them. I'm looking for a used pair, are there any big differences in terms of their sound from the newer models? Also, my first priority is 2 channel music but I will also use them for movies. I would assuming a two channel setup with La Scalas or cornwalls would work fine? Thanks again and sorry for the newbie quesitons.

Hi, I'm new to the forum. I'm considering buying La Scalas for my HT room but I'm afraid it's too small. 9' w x 19' l x 9' h. I'm currently using Monitor Audio GS10, they sound great but I've always felt like something is missing. I don't quite know how to describe it. I feel like the music is just there and I'm just listening but not feeling anything. It's like you're with someone and youlre having a great time hanging out but you don't have butterflies and you're heart's not pounding when you're with the person. I've never heard La Scalas but from what I've read, it sounds like that's what I'm looking for. If my room is too small, I may have to try Magnepans or something as I've read similar descriptions from those who own them.