maxsdad Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 I have been trading, saving and begging for four years, but i finally got my lascala's. I got them from a serious purist who had four of them in his house and these two in the finished garage. They were dj speakers when he got them, and he went thru all of the components and changed to Crites AA crossovers. Midrange horn is metal and original. The tweeter is stamped K-77. There are no tags indicating serial #'s, and the scuffed up exterior has been professionally coated with Kevlar impregnated pickup truck bedliner material. True assault speakers! I am currently using a Harman Kardon AVR520 (85x2) for amplification. The previous owner used vintage Mac 60 watt mono tube amps. I am not a tube amp guy, and have no idea what to seek, if anything, to replace the AVR 520. I use a 980 watt Crown ComTech 800 to power my sub( a Polk Audio LSiW that I bought new sans recalled amp) and have considered getting a new XLS 402(300x2) and using the AVR 520 as a preamp. Keeping in mind that I'm a monetarily challenged geezer - any suggestions? Also - does anybody have any wisdom as to the worth of these speakers? All new knowledge will be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Congrats on the LaScalas and welcome to the forum. It is very cool to have fresh crossovers, too. On the K77s, do they have round or square magnets on the back? Well, in terms of amps, what you've got may be just fine. Your own ears can be the judge. Lascalas don't require much power to sound fabulous. Having a good sub to use with them will round out the bottom end extension nicely, and it won't even have to work hard to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seti Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Run what you have through them but keep your ears open. If you have friends or meet people with different amps see if they want to hear them on your horns. If they haven't heard La Scalas they could be just as curious. I've always liked tubes and horns but there is more than one way to skin a cat. Congrats and welcome to the forum.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxsdad Posted June 23, 2009 Author Share Posted June 23, 2009 Thanks for your help! Magnets are square. Is that good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Congrats on your "assault" La Scalas and welcome to the forum. As was mentioned, clean power is more important than big power. If you like the sound of what you've got, continue to enjoy it. A popular upgrade is Bob Crites' CT125 tweeters, but you don't need to rush out and jump on the upgrade merry-go-round until you're ready. Let's see some pictures of your new babies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 There are no tags indicating serial #'s You may be able to spot the serial numbers stamped into the upper edge of the rear panel, near the crossovers, unless that part's covered with bedliner as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Thanks for your help! Magnets are square. Is that good? I'd say yes. The square magnet K77 would be my preference. Some folks are real fans of the old round alinco magnet K77's, but they are notorious, and in my own observation, for the magnets losing their strength and then having a very low output for sound. Never heard of a K77 with a square magnet that went bad in that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 As DD mentioned, La Scalas can use the help of a sub, but for music you don't need a really powerful one. I learned this last month when my 10" 400-watt sub was in for repairs. While it was away, I used one of my 8" 100-watt subs from the bedroom and it was almost as good as the bigger sub when playing music, even music with lots of bass. When playing movies, the small sub couldn't shake the room like the big one, and for that reason I was glad to get it back, but if you're mostly listening to music, you don't need to sink a lot of money into a powerful sub. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenderbender Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 Congrats and welcome!!! as other have said what you have is very nice, but keep your eyes peeled for a Mcintosh Mc250 or 2505 ($400-600) vintage S.S. mac that was designed to emulate their tube amps of the era. If you have a CD player with volume control, you don't even need a preamp... lots of folk here swear by these amps and they sound excellent with all heritage line speakers..... The vintage Sansui Au-11000/ Au-9900 ($300-600) are awesome S.S. amps from the same golden hifi era... I have/have had all the above mentioned and could easily live with any if my $$$$ were to the point that I could not afford my all Tube system. just some thoughts....and remember that even though SS vintage were generally well made and last a long time....a 35-40 year old amp can just quit on you....so a $200 steel, may turn into a money pit if it needs to be rebuilt....so make sure if you buy vintage, do your due diligence ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trapper9 Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 Look for a recent Antique Sound Labs AQ1003 integrated amp. Best amp for the La Scalas out there for the money. I just picked up a used one for a friemd for $425.00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxsdad Posted June 24, 2009 Author Share Posted June 24, 2009 Please allow me use this opportunity to thank all who have helped - very helpful!! The key to wisdom is to know what you don't know, and I'm getting wiser by the minute! I have searched for the recommended stuff, and it has been way out of my price range, but I was wondering what you all think of Carver stuff. I've had a couple (MXR130 & the 705 5 channel - should have kept it!) and am seeing several models that supposedly have a "tube" sound - M400t, M500t - and also see some TFM 35's taht are interesting, but I am realizing how little I actually know. Any input you have would be invaluable to me. Thanks again for all your help!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 1- need pics of your assault LaScala 2- The dual 10” driver sub should be plenty for movies and most music, unless you want the very last octave for musical accuracy 3- I don’t think you need more power, unless you have a large room and like really loud music 4- HK should be clean enough for you to get the feeling of what good solid-state amplifier sounds like on big ole horns 5- So while Fenderbender is right, but I don’t think solid-state Macs are going to sound all that different than the HK when they are not clipping 6- Therefore, I would explore tube amplifiers, tube pre-amplifiers, tube digital sources, bi-amping (with or without tubes), room treatments and EQ if you want to improve the sound Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I have yet to hear a s-s amp that has the tube sound, and certainly not Carver! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 Then you need to hear the Portal Audio Panache. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenderbender Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I have yet to hear a s-s amp that has the tube sound, and certainly not Carver! .....Very glad that you pointed this fact out.... mostly a marketing ploy i guess. SS amps are another beast all together, just because they are designed with a warm fuzzy coloration, does not make them sound like tubes. They sound like SS amps that are skewed toward the warm and fuzzy. Some really like this sound and I won't argue with it....you like what you like! I'm just really glad Colin pointed this out as I too get caught up in semantics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 Then there are Class D amps, which are solid state, but don't sound like typical Class AB amps, and are very musical to some people's ears. I'm pretty happy with the sound of my MX-D1s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blvdre Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I haven't posted a review yet, butI'm very happy with my virtue audio one tripath amp. I've listened to both solid state and tube, am a fan of single-ended tube, and really like the little virtue. My favorite solid state amp to date, and reasonably priced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob1210 Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 It is exciting to become a La Scala owner as I have also recently. I already had some experience with tube amps (100 wpc monoblocks which could use many types of output tubes including KT-88, EL34, 6CA7, 6L6GC, and KT-66, and I tried them all, and a Scott 299 using EL84 output tubes), but had no experience with high efficiency horns. The La Scalas were priced low enough and were available locally, and I was very curious about these classic speakers. I often read about great synergy between Single Ended Triode (SET) amps and horn speakers so when the opportunity to purchase a SET amp using the 845 tubes, it made sense to try the combo. As advocated by another member, switching out the stock K-77s for Crites CT-125 tweeters peeled away a layer of veil and opened up the sound, bringing forth better detail without etch or grain. At the same time, I swapped the AL crossovers for Crites A/4500. As you might know already, high efficiency horn speakers show off every flaw in your upstream equipment. Putting high quality amplifiers and preamps ahead in the chain will really show what the La Scalas are capable of sounding. As wide as their front baffles are, they can still pull a disappearing act and throw a deep and wide soundstage given you take the time to move the speakers inches at a time until you get the result that satisfies you. I am surprised the La Scalas are as picky about their position as they are; at the same time, amazed at the dynamics and smoothness to vocals they create. Do not forego an active preamp. A preamp is the heart and soul of your system. Preamps are more than just a switch box with a volume knob. It is there to extract the most from your records and CDs. As much as "straight wire with gain" sounds pure and almighty, it often leaves music sounding cold and lifeless. Get it wrong here and one spends a long time swapping amps, CD players, and cartridges in and out trying to get music to sound like music. Ok, so you do not have much money and I do not know what your budget is but let's say it's $500 tops. A quick look at used tube integrated amps on Audiogon showed many at that price range and it would be a good place to start. Feel free to email me if you have additional questions. Have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob1210 Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 Check out this Scott 299C integrated amp on Audiogon, just $300! No relation to seller, just thought it would fit what you're looking for and a start you off into tube amp ville without burning a hole in your wallet or in your ears. Bob http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstube&1251102202&/Scott-222C-Vintage-Integrated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob1210 Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 Oops, 222C, but still great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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