Ben Baad Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Long story short my father In law passed a couple years ago and my wife and I kept a few things that she wanted from his belongings. One of those items are some great klipsch speakers. I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to speakers. These speakers have been in storage for a very long while and need some serious work cosmetically before I bring them in the house. My first issue is spiderwebs. Cleaning what I can see is easy but cleaning what I can't see is becoming a problem. Any tips on cleaning these? Also if I am posting in the wrong area please let me know. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Baad Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 My plan is to clean these up so I can sand and stain them as a gift for my wife's birthday. Any information would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moray james Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 those birch LaScala look beautiful as they are They have decades of gorgeous patina on them don't sand that off. Clean them up and give them a few coats of urethane. They ;look stunning as they are. Woods which are stained another color almost never look as good as the natural color of the wood and these are lovely. They should clean up easily and be a wonderful reminder for your wife of her dad. Welcome to the forum. I am sure others here will chime in on what options you have for your raw birch LaScala. Best regards Moray James. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Welcome to the forums! Those are from 1989... Awesome speakers! I had the same year but a walnut lacquer finish. The crossover probably could use some newer capacitors, but... just vacuum out where you can reach, take a rag with some lemon oil cleaner/polish on it and go to town. They don't look bad at all. You can obviously do more to them. They are LS BR (La Scala Birch Raw). Birch plywood can be difficult to stain, but can look very, very good. You won't need a very powerful amp/receiver for these as they are very, very efficient. They have a 15 inch woofer in the enclosed bottom part (usually called the 'doghouse', as it looks like a doghouse on end). They are great speakers, and all I would say is listen to them for a while before everyone tells you to spend a lot of money on them, You could also loosen and re-tighten all the screws on the crossover in the back. Below is one of mine with a different tweeter placed on top. Bruce 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted June 28, 2014 Moderators Share Posted June 28, 2014 (edited) Good advice Bruce, I would do the same, clean them up and keep them the way your father in law had them. But there yours and do whatever you think your wife would want . You could always add grills if you want to make them fancier. I think you will be surprised after cleaning, whatever you do keep them either way. Your father in law had good taste, both of you will probably think of him every time you use them. Almost forgot Welcome Edited June 28, 2014 by dtel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minermark Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Ah yes, the screws on the crossovers, Marvel pinned that one. Welcome, if your La Scalas are anything like mine, AC/DC at high wattage seems to work well for keeping the dust off. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Baad Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 Very friendly group. Thanks for the welcome. I have set these up and the sound quality is top notch. I say if it isn't broke don't fix it. With the wood there are noticeable stains, scuffs and a few minor dings so that's the reason I'm interested in staining them. I do love the natural wood look but honestly it will kind of stick out in the room I'd like to have them in. should I not worry about possible spiderwebs in the dog house area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Baad Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 And looking at the pictures again, the speakers look a lot better in the photos than they do in person. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 should I not worry about possible spiderwebs in the dog house area? To clean the doghouse area, you have to remove the bottom panel on the LS. I wouldn't worry much about it. I have an exploded view of the LS I made some time ago,,, if I can find it, I'll post it so you can see the basic construction.Just clean them up first and enjoy. Later, you could add trim to cover the plywood edges, and make a grill for the top section to make them more aesthetically pleasing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minermark Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Very friendly group. Thanks for the welcome. I have set these up and the sound quality is top notch. I say if it isn't broke don't fix it. With the wood there are noticeable stains, scuffs and a few minor dings so that's the reason I'm interested in staining them. I do love the natural wood look but honestly it will kind of stick out in the room I'd like to have them in. should I not worry about possible spiderwebs in the dog house area? Well now hold on there, Spiders eh ? then I recommend OZZY, if there is any living, they wont be for long. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Baad Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 What do you mean by adding trim? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricktate Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Since they are birch raw would be easy to stain ,,,,,, I stained the dog house on mine with Watco cherry cause veneering the dog house is pretty hard and it looks just like the veneer. Trim ....you can add veneer trim to the front edge of the [plywood makes it look better. I would look around the forum see the members pics of theirs cause you may see something you would like to do. There are pics of mine on here but i can not find them now ??? Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Rick, I think these are yours... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schu Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 (edited) Stain? NOOOOOO!! that grain is beautiful in raw form. congrates on the new speakers and enjoy. Edited June 28, 2014 by Schu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Steven1963 Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 (edited) Hello! Firstly, sorry about your Father-in-law. Let your wife know she has our condolences. Second, welcome to the Klipsch community. My two cents on your speakers (I have a pair of 1982 Lascalas that are raw birch also, just like yours), is to do something like this: http://www.klipschupgrades.com/lascalabraces.shtml (scroll to the bottom). This is my plan down the road. I have no clue what it would cost but to me that look would add grace to any decor. Whatever you plan to do with them, you've got a couple very nice speakers there. They aren't much in the low end and you may find yourself wanting a subwoofer. When you do, just come back here and ask for some pairing advice. EDIT: A little background on those speakers, if you are interested: they were first designed and made in 1963. Rumor has it as a PA speaker to be used for speeches or conventions....that sort of thing. They are part of the Klipsch 'Heritage' line of speakers, and are what I would consider the crowning jewels of the Klipsch 2 channel lineup (not to be confused with Home Theatre, for which they have another remarkable line of speakers) of which there are 4: the smallest of the line is the Heresy - now in its 3rd iteration and sells new for approximately $1700 a set. then comes the Cornwall - a beastly speaker that puts out lots of sound and bass - now in its 3rd iteration and sells new for approximately $4000 a set. Then the speaker you have - the Lascala - some consider this speaker a little rough in the mids and lacking in the bass department - now in its 2nd iteration and sells new for about $7000 a set. Lastly, the king of the bunch: the Klipschorn. A speaker designed to fit into the corners of your home they provide the full frequency range (pretty much) and sound simply stunning when paired with appropriate equipment. They are still making this speaker as it was made back in the 1950's. Some cosmetic changes but still using the original design - they're that good. They sell new for about $9000 a pair. 2nd EDIT: one last thing. these are all horn loaded speakers and you will either like their sound or you will not. Some people just don't like horns and some people don't like anything but horn speakers. But what most cannot dispute is that they are among some of the best speakers ever made anywhere. Edited June 28, 2014 by Steven1963 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricktate Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Thanks marvel I could not figure it out at all. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Ben welcome to the forum, I think you have plenty of advice from the gang. Regardless what you decide to do I bet they are going to sound and look amazing. Enjoy these wonderful speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Baad Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 So much information =). You people are very cool. I will post pictures of them once I'm done. A lot to think about and now I'm more undecided on which way to go with these =) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxx Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Welcome to the "forum." Come often, post often... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarheel Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Welcome Ben.... Those should clean up well. Here is my variation.... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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