DRBILL

I recall that the fellows at Hope had a great deal of trouble with the dimensional stability of plexiglass. It is more variable with temprature and humidity than plywood and hell to machine. It took a lot of trys. They would cut one out, and the parts wouldn't fit. After they were put together, seams would open. It was an advertising aid, not a serious speaker to be put into use. I remember seeing them in the plant. I'm sure more than one was made. DR BILL

We have our K-Horns on the wide wall in two excellent corners. We have a center, additive, phantom, Heresy. My wife, who is no audiophile, indeed, just barely tolerant of my addiction, mentioned the other night, "Have you noticed that when you close your eyes the wall behind the speakers disappears? The room seems almost twice as big." This just about summs it all up. We were listening to a technically excellent recording of a Dixieland band (no mixing, just two mikes). You could place every instrument spatially in a 180° arc that began on either side and in front of the flanking speakers and extended behind all three walls. A lot of recordings have been so "fiddled with" by overzealous engineers, that you can't be sure what your speakers are doing. Too bad. DR BILL

Gentlemen-- Try to imagine this! DR BILL

TO: FRANK SPEAKER Many years ago I was a voicer/finisher for Casavant Frères, Limiteé (Canadian), perhaps one of the foremost pipe organ builders in N. America if not the world, and had considerable experience tuning pipe organs. The open metal pipes of the low octave of a 32' rank were most often "cut to length" and had no means for tuning them because they never went out of tune. The reed ranks of a 32' pitch were quite another thing. They had to be tuned regularly "on the wire" as we said. Hearing protection helped, but every body cavity was assaulted by the sound pressure of such a grave pitch at such close proximity. This was especially true in the case of the high pressure, wooden resonator, E.Skinner pipes as described in the Invention & Technology magazine. Too long at it and you got a dizzy, light headed euphoria. Way too long and you would hurl! But fortunately, a sort of "cube root" principle prevailed. Out in the hall they sounded musical! These pitches are hard to record and even harder to reproduce. Klipschorns aren't shabby at this as I have proved to many visitors! DR BILL

Well, it didn't take long for things to get sCATological, did it?! DR BILL

MICHAEL MURRY BACH THE GREAT ORGAN AT METHUEN TELARC CD-80049 KEN COWAN THE ART OF THE SYMPHONIC ORGANIST ST LUKE'S EC - EVANSTON IL JAV RECORDINGS INC - JAV-141 CHARLES KRIGBAUM AN EVENING AT WOOLSEY HALL ORGAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY OHS-100 (2 CD'S) This last one was the organ mentioned in TECHNOLOGY msgazine. Notable in the Methuen recording is the Passacaglia & Fugue in C minor. The low CCCC at ±16 hz is stunning. It leaves no doubt that K-horns will reporduce that pitch and do not cut off sharply an octave higher as is so often reported. The JAV recording is, perhaps, the best of the three from a technical viewpoint, although not as interesting. Another post mentioned V. Fox. That recording has spectacular 32' reeds. I have the original in vinyl. But keep in mind that they sound sort of like a stick on a picket fence or a jackhammer! There is almost no fundamental under a blaze of harmonics! Jay, you deed to hold on to your notes! DR BILL

WHAT? PADDING IN CORNWALS? Where this this get started? There are four in my local extended family (three in one household and a center for LA SCALAS in another household, a son and a daughter. How much padding? I could send it to you in a 37¢ envelope. What would it do? What would you expect it to achieve? I'm as serious as cancer. What is the science behind this? What are the numbers? DR BILL

I fall in love with each piece of gear that lands on my bench. After nursing them back to health they become like children. Alas, the OTHER Dr. Risinger has a rule: "Off the bench and out the door." She saves me from the poor house. DR BILL

Tony, I'm sure to get a lot of grief from telling you this, but I haven't found anything that worked any better than "Radio Store" Non-Flammable Contact/Control Cleaner & Lubricant (64-4315), for less than $5 as I reall. That, and an assortment of small soft brushes, some q-tips, and perhaps isopropal alcohol for getting soot off of PC boards should do the trick for you. Pipe cleaners are good for cleaning tube sockets. Hope this helps. DR BILL

Well, BCLARK421, I'm glad the kid has a Boston to raise him up and to show him how to do. He'll always know that he is in charge. No one will ever get the better of him. The dog's breed name is, of course, a corruption of "BOSSING TERROR", the original description. As you can see, we have two. God have mercy. DR BILL

David, If your neighbors had puppies I'm callin' the cops! DR BILL

Well, Duh! DR BILL

We are starting to get scruffy and ill-mannered again. So, it is time for dog pictures. This was quite a shouting contest, but Ruffles won. DR BILL

Yep, All that gear needs cleaning. Bring it on over and I'll show you how. The connectors and switches need a cleaning and lube. I have the stuff to do it right --little soft brushes, etc. Call ahead. Glad for you. DR BILL

I had a visit today from David, a 9th grader from Everman, Texas, and an avid reader of the Klipsch Forum. He tracked me down through the Forum by doing a little detective work, contacted me, and asked if he could come hear some Klipschorns. I was glad to oblige and he and his dad spent a couple of hours listening to me lecture and auditioning my three channel vacuum tube setup. David asked all the right questions being a very bright and informed kid. He can't wait to get started on his own Klipsch adventure. Wonderful. But what's wrong with this picture? From the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, the closest Klipsch Dealer that has heritage Klipsch speakers on the floor for auditioning is Hot Springs, Arkansas. That's a day's journey from here. Kids like David are at the mercy of strangers to hear the real thing. Where is this leading? Extinction. It seems that the new Klipsch administration has taken the approach that "if nobody knows about this stuff, in time, we wont have to make any more." Thanks, David. We need at lot more like you. Sorry, Paul. May your soul, and the souls of all the faithfull departed rest in peace. We miss you. Father Bill+

I think it is so important to understand that Paul was an engineer, physicist, mathematician, perfectionist, and dreamer. He thought that "if he built it, they would come." And they did. Father Bill+

Mark is on the dot. I couldn't have said it better. I wonder if I knew his Dad?! Father Bill+

PS: Make absolutely sure that the fuse is a 3 amp slo-blow! BILL+

I am going to guess that it is a loose lamination in your power transformer. You probably had been running it for quite a while and it was pretty hot. If you have the cage installed, you might consider removing it. Another thought is that your filter cap is beginning to break down and is drawing too much current. That, also, can cause transformer buzz. If you start blowing fuses, shut it down until you replace the electrolytic. Also, check your bias setting and also inspect the EL34's for red spots on the plates. Gassy tubes can sometimes draw so much current that the power tranny will hum. Hope this gives you a starting place. FATHER BILL+

RE Mark's observation: "Remastered" is the operative word. The stuff from the '30's and '40's was bloody awful. It is amazing what can be done by running that stuff through "toasters" and rebuilding it bit-by-bit. It is funny, but I had this same conversation with Paul at my dinner table one night. In the early days of the Kipschorn he almost despaired over having no suitable program material available to display his equipment. The first big break was full-track 15ips tape. And he burned many feet of it on live locations in order to have something to show people who visited the lab. Then the LP came along furtively, improving by the day. Look on the top of old photos of the plant and you will see a primitive FM antenna which attempted to pull in live concert broadcasts from WRR in Dallas. Then there was stereo tape and LP's which helped the ledger sheet wonderfully by allowing him to sell TWO of everything (and sometimes THREE). He hated CD's when they first were introduced. And he was right. They were pretty harsh. Some still don't like them. I don't remember the year that he started adding tweeters. It was not until there was something available for them to "tweet". So, the short answer is "Yes". Speaker technology was far advanced as compared to recording technology. I heard it from Mr. Paul's own lips. FATHER BILL+

One might have guessed that they were English! Could they be had in stone? DR BILL+

Try SND TUBES at www.vacuumtubes.com. Michael Marks is a very personable and informed guy, and will go out of his way to make sure you get what you want/need. He has an immense inventory of NOS and used items. His website is always under some degree of construction, so a phonecall or e-mail is often desirable. I appreciate his same-day shipping. Hope this helps. DR BILL

It is in perfect working condition. I put it on the scope and did the usual sweeps. Also ten hours on Klipschorns to make sure. The rectifiers are original EICO. 12AU7's are NOS PHILLIPS JAN . 12AX7's JJ. EL84's white box Russian. All new. I didn't replace caps. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Quiet as night. Try it for a month. Bring it back if not satisfied. No questions asked. I don't promote questionable equipment. This is a hobby. It keeps me out of the pool halls. FATHER BILL+

I have just finished going over a pristine EICO HF-81. This one is in mint condition. I don't like to ship anything this fine so I'm not doing e-bay. I can deliver within 100 miles of Fort Worth or you can pick up. $400 or make an offer. FATHER BILL+

Yo, Eric, I wish I had written that! Thanks. I also wish that I had kept the drawer-full of yellow BS buttons that PWK handed me at the back door of St. Mark's, Hope, after preaching sermons that had been too hastily snapped together the night before! A little humility never hurt anybody. Several of us (although unaware) have a great deal about which to be humble. Father Bill