JohnW
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Posts posted by JohnW
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55 minutes ago, KT88 said:
I also would like to see some pics, TBH I cleaned my 1977 LS 16 years ago and left them BR until now. The first owner tried to paint one sidewall in an ugly brown tone to match his furniture, happily I could remove it by stripping with lye. I could imagine that shellac would give a good look.
I’m ok with unfinished, but the wife says it won’t match the rest of the room, and as usual, she’s right.
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Danish oil? Tung Oil? Stain? Shellac? Just bought an unfinished pair of ‘85s, and I’m looking for all the info and ideas I can find. (I only get one shot at this)
How did you finish yours? Pics, please.
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14 hours ago, svberger said:
Cool John! Congrats on the LS's. If they have the same tweeter protection as the AA discussed above and particularly if you're finding any harshness out of the tweeter, give the little disconnect mod a shot. I bet you'll be really surprised.
If I understand correctly, all I have to do is remove just one of the zener diode leads?
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svberger, thanks for this thread—I too am about to make the transition from Cornwalls (1985, recapped with SoniCaps) to La Scalas (also ‘85, AL crossovers).
La Scalas are in the garage, unfinished, waiting for me to learn, practice, and experiment with different finishes…only get one shot ;), but they are connected to a late model H/K receiver out there, no room treatment or correction, and now that I’ve replaced the blown tweeter diaphragms, sound sublime. Can’t wait to hear them with my good gear, in my corrected family room.
Anyway, lovely thread, and good luck with the Klipschorns.
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Would you mind posting pics of them with the Danish Oil finish? Trying to figure out what finish to put on my mine (just got them yesterday).
Amazing work, btw. Gorgeous. Bet they sound amazing, too. -
14 minutes ago, Dave MacKay said:
Beautiful speakers!
Since I'll be refinishing my BR La Scalas this spring, I'll follow this thread with interest.
A few questions:
- What are the black rectangles on either side of the tweeters? Are they cut-outs? Velcro patches for attaching grills?
- I'm unfamiliar with prefinishing conditioners. How do they help? What have you used?
That’s Velcro from the previous owner. Removed with a heat gun last night.
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I bought a pair of ‘85 La Scalas yesterday, and the finish is pristine raw birch. I mean, like brand new. As in, they look like they’re literally made of plywood (because they are). I’ve always seen them with a thirty-year old patina, or stain. It’s cool, but it’s not going to fly in the family room (WAF).
So this is a refnishing question: what can I put on that will accentuate the grain, add a finish (satin—even glossy, if it improves the depth) and depth but not really color the wood? And preferably something that won’t yellow over time (like boiled linseed oil).
Note: I am NOT experienced at wood finishing. I use Watco Rejeuvenating Oil on my oiled walnut 85 Cornwalls, but it works because they’re dark and all I have to do is rub it on.
From what I’ve read, the preparation steps are: light sanding with >220 grit sandpaper, followed by a mineral spirits wipedown, followed by a prefinishing conditioner (obviously with time in between for drying/evaporating).
I guess the $64 quesion is: what to apply after that? I only get one shot, I want to get it right the first time.I’ve got a real opportunity here. Thanks in advance.
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Tweeters have consecutive serial #s, couldn't see them on the K-55Ms.
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6 minutes ago, 001 said:
yes and no , let's say the serial numbers of the drivers are consecutive , then we can deduce that the serial number of the speaker is off by 1 digit , but you would need to have at least 1 serial no tag from 1 speaker but not the other - otherwise we would only be able to determine the year of the speaker -
I have one tag on one speaker. This is getting interesting. Would we confirm it by deducing it, or is it confirmable from Klipsch? And if so, can they issue new labels?
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7 minutes ago, 001 said:
@JohnWactually , there are still serial numbers on some or most Drivers of the speakers after 1983 that can help us to determine the MAN/YEAR
Per example , the woofer serial no is 1 way to lookup the Manufacturing Year of the speaker , even if the speaker serial no TAG is missing .
Is it possible to determine the exact serial # of the speaker that way?
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When did Klipsch stop stamping the serial numbers into the top edges on the backs of La Scalas? I'm looking at a pair of '85s, and only one has a partial label. Doesn't seem to be any stamped serial #s.
So no serial numbers aside from the paper labels on '85s?-
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When did Klipsch stop stamping the serial numbers into the top edges on the backs of La Scalas? I'm looking at a pair of '85s, and only one has a partial label. Doesn't seem to be any stamped serial #s.
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Was googling this and was amazed at how little was out there on this. Has this question simply never been asked?
I love my ‘85 Cornwalls—the imaging, the smoothness, the depth of the bass…but I’d sure like to hear a detailed description of the specific differences from those who’ve heard both. And given the ubiquity of Cornwalls of all stripe, there’s likely several of you.
So how different do they sound? And how?
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Prices for La Scalas seem to keep going up.
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The Gold Lion 12ax7s are fine, and I'm sure it depends on the amp, but all the NOS 12AX7s I've tried best the GLs.
Trouble is, you have to buy a bunch just to find the ones you like, then sell the ones you don't.
But hey, that's TubeLife. -
On 10/18/2021 at 2:00 PM, bmoran said:
^I am far from experienced with tube rolling. Just sharing what I've learned so far about the A12. I think you'll enjoy the amp. The midrange is very nice out of the box. I think the EH 12AX7's improved the sound, particularly the highs and center image.
You guys are where I was at a couple of years ago after I bought my Cornwall Is. I decided to skip dipping my toe in tubes and just went for it with a Jolida Fusion 3502P...which is a great amp, albeit push-pull. That Tubecube7 has me thinking about SET again.
Here's what I've learned:
When it comes to 12ax7/ECC83 tubes, NOS is king. SOOOO much better than anything being made today. I hate to say it, bmoran, but those Electro Harmonix just scratch the surface. It's both been an adventure and a curse searching for the best sound.
When it comes to power tubes, I've found the best sounding current issue tubes are all made by Gold Lion. I've tried everything else, except NOS, which are prohibitively expensive and have a minimal impact on sound compared to your 12AX7s.
What's worked for me, in MY system, with MY preamp, and MY amp, and MY Cornwalls, in MY room, with MY ears (because all of those come into play when it comes to sound quality), is a set of Gold Lion KT88s with either Tungsram or Matsushita 12AX7s...and I'm still testing to find the best set of 12AT7s in that combo.
It's wonderful, it's exhausting, it's obsessive, it's rewarding, it's cool, it's amazing, it's a gigantic time suck...but welcome to the world of tube rolling.-
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Looking for transport of a couple of La Scalas from Charleston, SC to San Diego, CA
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That's a great price.
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Holy shit. Wish I lived closer.
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Weren't they going for about that price?
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Hold it—they dropped the price $3500 just to move them?
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On 11/27/2021 at 9:09 AM, pcbiz said:
$9,000, free shipping, B-stock new Al5s.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/393066344952?hash=item5b849471f8:g:8VwAAOSwhZFf4k61
Almost enough to make a man pull out his plastic. Almost.
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Welcome to the forum...I'm up in Escondido.
LaScala for this room
in 2-Channel Home Audio
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Odd. No diodes on these.
And just hooked them up, ran room correction, did a bit of tweaking...these things are super sensitive to toe-in.
Going to have to fiddle about a bit. This change from the richness of the Cornwalls' bass to the tighter LS bass will take a bit of time. The soundstage seems to have receded a bit as well. Perhaps updating the caps/switching to AL3 configuration might help?
I haven't given up hope yet. I've only just begun.