The gripper thing

[HDBRbuilder]

I'm not oblivious to what science is al about and how people want to know what causes this or that, but in this case a real world fix is being debated by those who have not even tried it, go figure!

You also gotta understand just how strong the LaScalas Dee mentions were.

There was not a single bit of joinery that matched the factory joinery in type.

All joinery in the factory builds of that type (original Lascala) consisted of simple butt joinery reinforced with 1-1/4" finish nails, whereas on the LaScalas Dee is referencing, the sides were dadoed for the top panel of the bass bin, the bottom panel of the bass bin was a double rabbet joint, as were the joints on all edges of the speaker backs, with reinforced miterjoints for the tops, and the HF motorboard. This required a complete redesign of the cabinet to allow for the joinery used.

Look closely at the pic of the LaScala back, notice the double rabbet joints? Notice the glue block reinforcement inside the HF section, along the sides AND along the front edge of the HF motorboard??

[tigerwoodKhorns]

OK, Mike, how about this? YOU fork out about five bucks for some grippers, put them on some LaScalas, then on a smooth surfaced floor and then YOU can tell US ALL just WHY (from an engineering perspective) they work, OK? I ain't no engineer, just a poor old speaker builder who tries stuff and uses it when it works. Deal or no deal??

I was told by an engineer at B&W loudspeaker to use spikes (on carpet) to increase bass performance. They also supply rubber feet for wood floors. I am an engineer (or at least was, I don't practice anymore) and I believed him.

[Islander]

You also gotta understand just how strong the LaScalas Dee mentions were.

There was not a single bit of joinery that matched the factory joinery in type.

All joinery in the factory builds of that type (original Lascala) consisted of simple butt joinery reinforced with 1-1/4" finish nails, whereas on the LaScalas Dee is referencing, the sides were dadoed for the top panel of the bass bin, the bottom panel of the bass bin was a double rabbet joint, as were the joints on all edges of the speaker backs, with reinforced miterjoints for the tops, and the HF motorboard. This required a complete redesign of the cabinet to allow for the joinery used.

Look closely at the pic of the LaScala back, notice the double rabbet joints? Notice the glue block reinforcement inside the HF section, along the sides AND along the front edge of the HF motorboard??

First, I definitely agree that metal "button" footers on a hard floor are not the way to go. I've even seen pictures of La Scalas on casters. Good for DJs, not so much for hi-fi. Grippers make total sense on a hard floor. On plush carpet, though, with the cabinet sort of sunk into the carpet, is there a similar improvement? Is it worth getting a set of spikes?

As for the build quality, that custom one does look well-made, compared with my stock LS cabinets. They're 1974 units, with the screwed-on top panels (with top-loading woofers) and no risers on the bottom, just the flat bottom of the cabinet with its button footers and the side panels attached to the bottom with those nailgun nails. So should I discourage any drunk women from dancing on them? To be honest, college was a long time ago and no-one has tried to climb onto them lately. Well, not in the couple of years that I've owned them, anyway.

[SilverSport]

Look for the initials in the wood 'round back...maybe HDBR built them...he built a pair of 1978 Heresys...

Bill

[Jim Cornell]

I remember a few years back when the gripper topic started. It was nothing like it is today. I wonder why?

Jim

[colterphoto1]

Andy, what initials would be looking for to find a pair of HDB-built beauties?

[HDBRbuilder]

Islander:

I wouldn't advise dancing on any speaker top,since few of them are reinfoced enough to withstand a pounding by the feet of a tiny bikini clad college beauty, much less an obese Flamenco artist. My sitting on the LaScalas with the mitered tops was just to reinforce the point that it isn't necessarily a fact that a butt joint is stronger than a mitered joint, especially since it is not the nails or screws of the butt joint which supply the joint's strength, but rather the glue and the size of the glue surface joined.

The 45 degree miter of 3/4" plywood will have just over 1.4 times the glue surface of a 3/4" plywood butt joint, therefore almost half again as strong as that joint, using the same plywood and the same glue...but, of course not acccounting for the fact that the mitered joint ALSO has the advantage of connecting layers of identically fiber-aligned plys to each other (ie., butt fibers to butt fibers, and linear fibers to linear fibers), whereas the butt joint is attaching one smooth surface ply with fibers aligned in one direction to a number of plys, with about only half of those plys' fibers aligned with the othe pieces fibers, which also gives the glued miter the nod for more strength.

Yes, I'd go with spikes on a carpeted floor.

Dr. Who:

I would like to remind that if is is NOT grippers, then it may NOT have the same effect. Grippers are peel and stick 1/4" thick NEOPRENE with a traction enhancing non-stick side, which will "squish" somewhat under weight and give a better stability on SMOOTH-SURFACED floors which are slightly uneven. Without knowing exactly what you are using, I can't say yeah or nay to whether it would get my endorsement.

As for the so-called "floor shock", isn't that how we get the bass bottom end to begin with??...with vibrations being picked up by our body mass, then our brain fooling us into believing it is our ears whch are actually picking up these vibrations? PWK said we live in te midrange for a reason...because that's where our ears work, below upper bass frequencies, it is our body mass, NOT our ears, which pick up the bass.

Please don't throw the "so how do headphones do it with bass bottom end?" at me because it is body mass there, also...with better bass bottom-end generally being perceived by the headphone wearer with the harder head![]

Colter:

"A" or a two-letter combination with an "A" in it (most likely the "A" will be first i that combo) from late 1976 to October 1983. Combinations are used for speaker builder teams, ie., when two builders team up to do a complete cabinet, like Cornwalls, decorater Heresys, or MWMs. Most K-horns, LaScalas, Belles, and mitered Heresys (built after the pneumatic clamping machine was initiated), were single-builder cabinets.