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Need Center Channel for 1966 Khorn


Davecv41

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I got into HT 20yrs ago when I had 4 Bose 901s. When I realized they were toys, I got a pair of LSBs with HWOs as surrounds and a HBR as center. A letter to Klipsch said "not compatible". I upgraded the LSBs to a pair of K.C.WRs in 1991 I got from the wife of the original owner who was on her way to a nursing home. I bought an Academy as center, but wasn't too thrilled with it all. I remember an interview in Speaker Builder with PWK who described a center speaker for the Khorns, but unfortunately didn't keep the article. Recently I picked up a pair of K-400 squaker horns attached to older Peavey 22 drivers, and while searching for that interview online I found and joined this forum. (Lots of good info here. I rebuild old radios, but hadn't considered recapping the Khorn's crossovers before.) I've searched this forum but haven't found any reference to that old interview yet. So...

After being into 2 channels for the last 15 yrs, I'd like to get back into HT using the Khorns. I'd like to build a center for them, but I haven't seen anything here mentioning compatability between older gear and newer, better components. IIRC the manual said these are 16 ohm. I'd appreciate input from anyone who could tell me which issue that PWK interview was in, or better yet, suggestions from those who have done this type of thing before. Thanks,

Dave

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A La Scala with the same crossover will have the best sonic match and a Belle will have the best aesthetic match plus be close in sound. A Cornwall has many advantages in low bass and size with a pretty good sonic match.

I use a modified Heresy between my La Scalas. Its crossover is an analog to the modified Type AAs in my La Scalas and the sonic match is good, but not great.

For a last ringer, several people here have built a "Corn-Scala", or a Cornwall bass section with a La Scala squawker and tweeter and a crossover similar to a La Scala crossover.

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It seems to me that the Heresy, Cornwall, and LS and Belle have all been used as a center speaker for K-Horns with some drifting endorsement by PWK. But he eventually recommended only the LS or Belle.

You can see the current thread (brought back from the dead) on Dope From Hope. I put up a link to my early thread called "Free The Dope From Hope."

You will see that in DfH Vol 12 No.3 PWK describes how the Heresy was originally used as a center speaker. The crossover was set so that (if I interpret correctly) the mid and tweeter were set on the same autotransformer taps as the K-Horn. This means the tweeter was fed wide open, the mid was fed -3 dB. The direct radiator woofer was run wide open but because it was less efficent, it was delivering (output) -6 from the mid and tweeter (output). I expect this was a bit optimistic on the woofer. But at least we see the Heresy not balanced as a full range as an "official" center for K-Horns.

The Cornwall does not show up in a Klipsch publication as a center (or I missed it). But you can go to the main website and search for Cornwall and find a magazine review of what was then called the Cornwall II. The reviewer comments very favorably on the results of using a CW as a center with K-Horns. While this is not "official" I can only believe that someone from Hope aided with the set-up.

But then PWK went to recommending the LS or Belle as a center in DfH Vol 15 No. 6 to the exclusion of the CW or H. It is worth reading otherwise in that there is a brief mention of how much of the program is an important part and shows up in the center -- if only as a result of the center channel mixing. The mixing mini-box is also in the DfH.

A few years ago forum member HornEd claimed that 80% (or like that) of the program in movies shows up in the center. I wonder about the number and perhaps it is more applicable to multi-channel HT operations.

Reading the DfH closely, the H or CW was a permitted center for other H or CW. This makes sense, of course.

I don't have it here but there is an early Klipsch paper which showed a three way array with a Shorthorn, Heresy, and K-Horn IIRC. Perhaps this was to make the implication that all of those models had good performance despite cost differences . . . somehow. It was published at at time when two speakers and amps for stereo was running up the budget. "What, now you want three?" Perhaps just one K-Horn would serve as a "sub".

It is interesting that the center channel may improve bass even if the specs show the center is a smaller speaker. Some years ago I built some K-Horns and a bigger Belle. The center seemed to me to fill some mid bass. There could be some foundation in physics due to mutual coupling of bass units. Others, IIRC have commented similarly on results.

Wm McD

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