JohnA

Check these pics. The first is dated 1983 on the HPS4000 site. This one is the Klipsch pro Jubilee. Something is fishy in Boston! John

I don't know anything about HPS. Since they changed the design, and the La Scala patent has long expired, I'm sure it's O.K. Since the site said the speaker was made for HPS, I think that's a clue. Les brags on his La Scalas with the K-43 woofer having more bass, a 106 dB rating may well be possible. John

Chris, Your tweeter can be repaired. Call Sam Stafford at Techstar in Nashville, Tennessee. The phone # is 615-242-2925. Their address is/was 750 Cowan St. #9; Nashville, TN 37207. Most any Pro Audio shop should be able to fix is as well. You need a diapraghm at @ $22. John

Well, we all bloody well know what THIS is! It is also EXCATLY what I had in mind for mine. Maybe it's not so ugly after all. John

Steve, I just corrected the typing errors in the link in your first message. Tham you're supposed to have something like at each end. John

Not the way you intended. Try this: John

"The capacitors they are using are very likely the most "bang for the buck" around!" Absolutely! The thing we are doing that improves the crossovers is the use of modern technology. Al's computer analysis and the newer cap and inductor designs all reduce the loss of signal or change in signal that any crossover network causes. In addition, the networks Al builds would probably have to sell for twice what he asks in a low production, retail environment. In short, the cost of each Heritage speaker would go up around $200, if Klipsch did the same thing. John

I got another pair of La Scalas. They are 8734029 & 30. Today, I took the bottoms off to inspect the woofers and Lo and Behold, they are labeled K-33-E and have ROUND magnets. My first set are 81/82 models with K-33-Es with square magnets. The first set have K-77-M tweeters with rectangular magnets but the '87s have tweeters that look the same labeled K-77. Is this just normal production variations? Have the '81/'82 pair been "updated"? I thought the square K-33-E was the latest version. John

DDick, You're right. I've already thought of that, but we need more info to see how the K-55-M is different from the -V Al designed for. BTW, I got them installed and calibrated this afternoon. The difference between these La Scalas and my old Bostons in the rear is really noticible. Better clarity and from the rear corners, plenty of dispersion for Pro-Logic. Rears matter. Size matters. We watched "The Sixth Sense"; spooky. Now I get to go upstairs and scare the living *&*& out of Cathy. :0 John

I found the problem! It was a loose wire from the + input terminal to an 8 uF capacitor. It was supposed to be clamped and soldered, but the red wire has never seen solder. I'd still like to get a copy of the Type AL schematic. This thing is needlessly complex. drobo sent me a copy of Types A, AA, and AL-3. I think the AL-3 may be the direction to go. Maybe I should have said "stole" rather than bought. I expected far worse problems. John

I bought another pair of La Scalas for rear channels. They are '87 models, I think with Type AL xovers. One is fine. The other one has good drivers, but no sound comes from the squawker and tweeter, if you use the input terminals. Nothing is obviously wrong. This is the xover I never could quite sketch correctly. Does anybody have any ideas about what may be wrong? Do you have a schematic of a Type AL? John

To All, Why isn't the 3" x 13" slot in a La Scala the "throat"? Mine begin an immediate expansion from there. Also, I sold my spare parts to Leonard Frisch (driver & xover). He's still short a K-400 horn. He didn't realize the driver was just the "softball" on the back. If anyone has an extra, he can complete his pair of La Scalas. John

Peter, Ed, The idea is to build a J-shaped (L-shaped?), unfolded bass horn with the mouth against the floor, and place the HF section on top of that. The woofer would fire downward, its back air chamber would be between the HF section and the bass horn. I'd hope to make the footprint about 2' x 2' and have the left and right sides parallel. I'd try to vary the front and rear to achieve expansion. Since it would be tall, stability will have to be addressed. The killer for this whole project might be cost. If I can buy La Scalas for the same price, why bother? Even Cornwalls on stands would perform the way I want. John

ED, I've got your spreadsheet. Thanks! I have a drawing that shows the slot the La Scala woofer fires through (throat?) is 13" x 3". That would give a compression ratio of 3.4. Is that accurate? I can't reach that far into the bass horn and it too much trouble to dissamble one right now to check. If so, I can build a 45" J-horn and set a La Scala top end on it and have a stunning rear surround. Your calculations are for a square horn, is rectangular expanding to square acceptable? It is most important that the area expand exponentially for the horn to have proper performance, is it not? John

I think 50 to 60 Hz is plenty. All I think I need is a pair of 6' tall La Scalas. John

Gary, Al has a line on good components and a nice upgrade to the T2A autoformer. I'm sure the woofer could be run without an inductor, but PWK must have discovered it blends better with the mid using the inductor. A single element in a crossover gives a 6 dB/octave slope, not much, so the speaker depends on the the natural rolloff of the bass horn at higher frequencies. E-mail Al and be sure to orient the inductor and autoformer at right angles to each other to limit the influence of one on the other. John

Ed, I'd like to have the spreadsheet. I've got a cabinet maker in mind for the building. I need to see if the size will work out, though. The La Scala bass horn is pretty short, so I ought to be able to do it. John

I'm not having the luck I expected on ebay finding something for the rear channels, so I want to see what I can gin up myself. I was thinking about a K-33 firing into a J-shaped horn about 5 feet tall and the mid and tweeter on top. Maybe the horn would need to be a "C" to get it long enough. To find out, I need the design equations and a drafting board. I just noticed the new star. John

I'll keep looking, but I didn't find anything last night. John

How is the shape of a horn and the curve of its sides calculated? Is there a good design manual for horns? I have a design in mind and I want to calculate the size and shape required. John

Look at this post: http://www.klipsch.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000419.html John

I got thi image off of E-bay, but I've seen it fairly often elsewhere on the web. John

This is a picture of the group of Klipsch speakers I mentioned in another section. I recognize the K-horn , Belle, La Scala and Cornwall. One of the two in the front is a Heresy; what's the other one? This is an old group picture. John

We are waiting with baited breath! John

The discussion, "Modernize the Klipschorn ....", brought out a point that the K-400 throat and driver may be mismatched. It got me thinking about my own La Scalas. I bought them used and I am probably the 3rd owner. If I remove the K-55-V I have a red rubber washer in the throat and its i.d. is less than the i.d. of the horn and less than the o.d. of the screen protecting the phase plug of the -V. I'm pretty sure my speakers were monkeyed with before I got them, I just don't know how much. What size washer is correct? Shouldn't its i.d. be a smooth fit with the i.d. of the throat? John