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Music to my ears Gentlemen! Don, do you know at which point in the 60's this change was made?

Just wanted to begin this post by acknowledging the warm welcome I received from the forum and thank all of you that contributed to the great data presented. Additionally, I now have a newfound friend that is currently sacraficing to serve our great country in Lancaster, CA. Thank you for your service Dandoyan! He is also planning to go above and beyond (before a 20+ hour drive to Texas) to provide me with an in-house audition of a pair of out of the box 2011 K-horns. How am I supposted to sleep at night? The tubes will glow, the vinyl will spin, and the steaks will sizzle... I will post shortly after his visit. Keeping in mind my end goal is the best sound available for under $2,500.00 and based on the responses I received to question #1 and my subsequent investigation, I am now confident that I can provide acceptable DIY cosmetic reconditioning of whatever set of K-horns that I decide on. In researching the previous posts and comments on this site as well as others I have come to the conclusion that with the exception of some structural integrity and quality control issues that were noted on some sets that were manufactured in the 80’s the overall consensus is that the sound quality has improved incrementally with each subsequent model. This is not to say that there are dramatic differences (perhaps there are), but that the small changes do make small differences. On to Question #2: If you were to strip the electronic components out of a 2011 k-horn and install them in older models (assuming correct installation) from each decade since the 40’s could one expect to achieve similar sonic performance from each speaker? If the answer is yes my mountain just became easier to climb. Don’t bother reading the remainder of this question. 2b.If the answer is no, am I to assume that there was a structural change, or series of changes over the years, which also had an impact on the sonic performance of the speaker. 2c. If there were changes, were they limited to additions to the existing structures (for instance the addition of closed backs) or, did Klipsch also employ fundamental changes to the internal design / dimensions and /or the type/quality of the materials that were used in construction in order to impact the sonic signature? Looking forward to the responces…

Dan, I would love to take you up on your offer!!! Since the speakers will be located in my front room which happens to feed into my dining room we could listen while chowing down on some serious steaks or seafood. This would also let my wife see how good my finished product could look which in turn might help get her past the initial scare that might show up with some old beat up birch horns. Assuming you are AirForce living in lancaster??? I was in the Navy back in the day. I'll email you with contact info.

WC!!!!!! What a great response!!! Thanks a ton! I thought that I might end up doing some vineer work and I must say that the resources presented and the knowledge base available has me far less intimidated that I was!!! My father-in-law does woodworking as a hobby (he is retired) and is very good at it. I think I can count on him to help me with accurate cutting of the Veneer. We get along pretty good and he likes beer so it should be an enjoyable joint venture. Question #1 Answered: If I do not find a Cherry set with a preferred sonic configuration for under $2500.00 I am now prepared to purchase korns with an "other than preferred" finish for upgrade.That really broadens the market quite a bit. I will explore all of the data you provided as well as that from other post and move on to question #2 in about a week (I still about 2 months before I can start looking) Thanks again!

HI W.C., Located in Southern California but I have a work van and a good friend that shares my passion so we have already planned a weekend roadtrip if the need arises! Thanks for chiming in!

Series of cosmetic questions. Since I am not at all worried about resale value (sound and look are top priorities) I do not care about keeping my horns original in any way (unless it improves sound or look). I am a DIY kinda guy but with plenty of other obligations I do not take on a project for the fun of it or the gratification of its completion. If I take on a DIY project I do it for one reason. End result at a lower cost. In this case the end result is Klipshhorns in my house and a happy wife and if doing my own cherry veneer job can help to achive this I will be all in. Now on to the questions Unless I stumble on a special circunstance I how much more (on average) should I expect to pay for Cherry on the open market compared to other finishes (assuming same year and config)? Veneer What finishes best lend themselves to a Veneer job? Does Veneer, the quality of the supplies, or the craftmanship have any effect on the sound? What are the main steps taken in a Veneer job? Can you veneer directly on top of other finishes or other Veneers. Are there certain configurations / years that are easier to Veneer than others If I decide to take on this veneer thing it will be a one off. In that light, if I take my time (assuming that I am a proficient DIY-er) can I expect high quality results on the first try ot is it something that requires practice and experience. In this case I would like to get feedback from folks that had good or bad results on thier first veneer experience. Are there web sites or books on Veneering that are recommended. Is Vennering a word? Thanks in advance!

Thanks you all for the welcome and the encouraging comments!!! Groom, it is funny how you mention that your third pair "cherry" was adopted by SWMBO. When I bought my first pair of Klipsch speakers after getting married (RF-5's in cherry) the only thing my ever takled about (other than how big they were) was how pretty the wood was. I now have a cherry TV stand, a Cherry Audio rack, a Cherry Velodyne sub, and cherry wood floors. It all started with a pair of cherry RF5's. All of this is in the surround room, and the horns will be in my new 2 channel room so cherry is not a die hard requirement. However, there is no doubt that cherry is a WAF-O-Meter heavywieght. I have noticed that cherry compes at a premium so I have plan a and a plan b. Plan a, find the best model and performance that I desire in Cherry for under $2500, Plan B, find the model and performance that I want for under $1700 and learn how to veneer. That brings up my first couple questions.See following post.

Now 45 I have been a Klipsch diehard since the day I accompanied my uncle to the hi-fi shops in my youth. I have since owned a series of contemporary towers (mostly in surround configurations). Over the past 5 years I have aquired a series of components that I feel do an admirable job of producing and retaining signal quality from stylus to speaker. In order to justify the cost of the backbone of my initial visiton, a Macintosh 275, I rebuilt a turntable, and I built a kit based phonostage and preamplifier. In doing so I learned alot about tube amps, interconnects, mechanical isolation, power conditioning, ... as well as the many low cost upgrades that one can make in the signal path that can add up to a significant improvment in sound. I feel that my signal and power are now intact. I am currenty on course to achive a savings goal of $2500.00 on my birthday March 11th, 2012 . I will invest this amount in a pair of Klipschorn speakers that will fullfill a lifelong dream for me! If I were a single man this investment would not be nearly as important to me and I would probably have done this 20 years ago. However, as a family man (and I love my family) I do my best to measure my investments in self against my responsibiles as a father. In that light there is no doubt that this will be the last speaker purchase of my life. I love music, I appreciate sonics, I love volume, and did I mention I love music. For the past couple years I have been reading the two channel forum on a regular basis. I have developed an immesurable fever as I cannot describe how great this forum is and how exciting it has been for me to ride along with others who possess similar passions as they strive to achieve a personal best listening experience. Now it is my turn! In the next couple months I am hoping to pose a series of specific statements and questions born from personal investigation and in response to many of the subjects discussed on this forum. The purpose of these questions is simple, I have $2,500.00 and I want to buy the very best Klipshorns, based on my "best" criteria that I can get my hands on. With one caviot, my excitement will probably not allow me to hold on to the cash for too long. The scope of this resource can only be appreciated by the few that would venture here and in time I hope that my experiences can contribute to this wonderful community. Cheers!