RayCanales Posted July 1, 2002 Share Posted July 1, 2002 I just bought a 20 yr old pair of Klipsch Belles and the cabinets are kind of beat up the usual scratches what can I do to make them look like the beauties that they are supposed to be and what kind of upgrades can I do to them to make them sound great. or should I just leave them alone. also I have heard that I need tube amp to drive them I have a BK REF 3220 that is going to drive them is that too much of an amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killer58 Posted July 1, 2002 Share Posted July 1, 2002 Ray, Welcome to the club! You're going to love them. Let HDBRbuilder give you a graduate education in wood. He'll have the best advice based on a thorough description of the veneer. As far as amps, no you do not NEED a tube amp. There is no question that they sound different than solid state ones. As to which is better, that's a matter of personal preference. Tube amps are typically described as 'warmer' than ss. Disclaimer: I have three setups; K-horns with a Marantz 8, K-horns with a self designed 300B SET amp, and Belles with Marantz 5's. So my own bias is obvious. Your Belles will have tremendous clarity. As such, they will highlight any imperfection in the source. If you can, audition several tube amps, preferably in a side-by-side test with your own amp. See which you prefer. Keep in mind that 'spec' sheets won't tell you the whole story, especially in the area of harmonic distortion. The type and way it's measured is different between the two. Apples and oranges. Long story but ss can have a lower Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) rating than tubes without sounding any better. My advice is to side with preference, quality, and price. In that order. Good luck and enjoy! Killer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Garrison Posted July 2, 2002 Share Posted July 2, 2002 Ray, My first rule of upgrading is "Do *NOTHING* to change the sound until you're sure you know what it sounds like *NOW*". You just got the Belles. There are a LOT of various upgrades / tweeks you can do to "improve" (?or just change?) the sound of the Belles. You can (1) upgrade the crossovers to Al's versions, or one of the other custom built Heritage series crossovers folks on this board have offered; (2) apply damping material (Dynamat, rope caulk, other stuff) to the midrange horn; (3) same for the tweeter horn; (4) rewire the internal connections with different / better / more expensive / rip off ( ) wire; (5) change amps; (6) change speaker wire; (7) uh, you get the idea... And, before you start messing with the speakers themselves, there's always room treatments (bass traps, diffusers, echo busters, etc.) and the critically important speaker placement isues (in the corners, out of the corners, along the long wall, along the side wall, against the front wall , pulled away from the front wall, etc.). Speaker placement will make a HUGE difference in soundstage depth or lack thereof, imaging, bass extension, midrange tonality and other factors. ***** HOWEVER ***** If you don't establish some reference point by SITTING DOWN AND LISTENING TO THE DAMN SPEAKERS before you start fiddling around, you won't know whether the changes you're making are a good thing or a bad thing. I know the urge to try and improve things just a bit by frabellizing the snazzelizers (uh, web-head technical jargon) is overwhelming, but try to resist for a while at least. If you don't taste the food first, and just start adding salt, how do you know whether you made it better? Ray ------------------ Music is art Audio is engineering Ray's Music System Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpgwagon Posted July 2, 2002 Share Posted July 2, 2002 Ray is right on! I can completely change the way my Scala's sound by moving them, or myself,only a few inches!! So rather than tweek I simply move them! ------------------ http://gallery.consumerreview.com/webcrossing/images/MYSTUFF.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdm56 Posted July 2, 2002 Share Posted July 2, 2002 Uh-huh, what Ray said. Get to know them first, with all your favorite music. Then you may decide you're thrilled as is. But if there is a fly in the gravy, it should be obvious after a while. Don't go lookin' for problems! Oh yeah, enjoy! ------------------ JDM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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