KHorn (any heritage speaker) AK-5 Upgrade Feedback

[delta88343]

Has anyone purchased and installed the the factory AK-5 upgrade which includes the K-55-X driver & K-77-D tweeter?

In 2006 there was a tremendously positive La Scala review in Stereophile Magazine.

Sam Telig's comments about the La Scala were "the sound was warm and rich," "midrange and highs were exceptionally smooth," "no listening fatigure."

Now we all know that these comments are not a general concensus regarding Heritage loudspeaks.

I have heard Khorns (1980+ versions of which I own) in environments where they did sound smooth as butter. Both of these were large well damped environments.

Generally speaking we all know about the issues the midrange driver/horn combo have about sounding harsh with some material.

This unit did have the did it have the AK-5 network with the K-55-X mid driver and K-77-D tweeter. Would this upgrade resolve all these issues in my KHorns? This La Scala had to have had the K-400 horn. Did it not?

Could the K-55-X driver really make all that differecne in the sound of the La Scala assuming it was still mated to the K-400 mid horn?

Crossover alone could not fix the commonly known problems of the K-400 horn.

I know there are horn mods out on the market of which I am considering. But when one reads this type of review from someone at Stereophile Magazine, one has to wonder; "what La Scala was he listening to?" Certainly none of the ones I have ever heard.

Does anyone know how the K-55-X may differ from the V model? But then how could the driver alone resolve all the issues the K-400 apparently has?

I would like my K-Horns to be able to be reviewed with such enthusiasm regarding the highend performance but unfortunately they fall into the category of the harsh sounding midrange category.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

[Marvel]

Can't answer directly, but I have '86 La Scalas. Uses the K400 (metal) mid horn. I made changes to a different network (DHA2, a constant impedance network) and changed the tweeter to an Eminence APT150. With my crossover I dropped the mid/tweeter levels, which made the overall balance seem much better. Very smooth!

I would suggest changing the crossover settings to pull the mids down just a bit or try a different crossover entirely.

Have you changed anything on your crossovers? Your caps on them are 33 years old, and could require a refreshing, if you will.

Oh, welcome to the forums.

Bruce

Edited March 1, 2014 by Marvel

[garyrc]

No, La Scala II has the K401 horn, not the K 400. The K401 is just like the K 400, except it is not made of metal. The material looks like fiberglass to me, but Klipsch has another name for it. ... I don't remember what that name is, but it may be in the specs.

I have the AK4 Klipschorn upgrade, which differs from the AK5 only in that the AK5 made a minor change in bass EQ because of the K-horn wall seals being changed. The AK4 sounds fine to me. I never get harshness with movies, and very rarely with music disks. We added some nearby absorbers, following the advice of Cask [EDIT: now Chris A] in his thread on corner horns in this forum. It seemed to help.

The new non-metalic horn did not come with the AK4, and probably doesn't come with the AK5. I had to buy it from Klipsch Parts.

[absolve2525]

I don't get the derision toward K-400. If you upgrade with Crites crossovers and tweeters, you won't be fatigued. I started with AK-2 crossovers, my Khorns are from 86. Add some tube amps and it's magic.

Edited March 2, 2014 by absolve2525

[WMcD]

I expect that the most of change is in the crossover circuit. The horns and the drivers have not changed that much.

WMcD

[Dr Morbius]

I second the tube amps! You don't need a lot of power for them.

Edited March 7, 2014 by Dr Morbius