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Help Teens Rebuild LaScala Speakers


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To answer a few inquires:

We are located in San Francisco.

We have a well equipped wood shop, belt, orbital and detail sanders, and some experience with laminating veneers...

some electronic test equipment (a retired engineer ran a program here some time ago and left us an assortment of tech gear), I'll look to see if our handheld meter can check DC resistance...we have power sources and oscilloscopes...but not the know how to put them to use...

soldering equipment and ventilation (from former robotics & stained glass programs)...

I pretty sure we'll be able run with your suggestions and really looking forward to giving our teens the (hands-on) experience of bringing these speakers back to life and the experience of High Fidelity sound.

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Hello,

That paint covering the speakers, makes me wonder what finish may lie underneath the 2 pairs.

Sounds like you have enough resources there and the Klipsch members, as evident, are poised

to help.

Good fortune!

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Use masking tape to label every part and which speaker.

 

All of the internal wiring may be dry rotted.

 

Take lots of pics every step of the way for reference later.

 

If the screws are rotted, match them up with new stainless at the hardware store.

 

Crites sells all of the crossover parts and does repairs, and sells replacement crossovers that are equal or better than the factory.

 

You will need all new gaskets for the mid range drivers, crites sells these too.

 

http://www.critesspeakers.com/

 

Take Ohm readings for each driver and write them down in a log book and on the masking tape. The battery test doesn't hurt.

 

If you are going to be making a lot of dust, you may want to carefully remove the 15 in woofers and store them in a clean and safe place.

 

The cabinets should be birch plywood, I would look at the bottoms of the speakers to see what you have and maybe take a pic and post it.

 

Chemical strippers give me pause with plywood, I am always worried about de-lamination and making a project grow dramatically.

 

Someone who has refinished them before might be able to suggest a good sequence of sanding paper and grits to minimize the damage.

 

Some of the posters have done brilliant jobs of putting veneer on old speakers after they are cleaned up and patched.

 

Some people keep the inside of the bass bin all black, some part black and part veneer, and a few all veneer.

 

You can also add grill cloth, just over the top two speakers, or over the entire front of the unit. Crites sells the cloths, frames & HW I'm not sure about.

 

You can do google image searches for "LaScala Veneer" and see every look.

 

I put together a tread with links to lots of LaScala threads that may give you some ideas.

 

https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/159419-lascala-update-upgrade/?hl=%2Blascala+%2Bupdate

 

Keep posting pics as you go!

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PS It's unlikely you can remove the paper labels on the rear, if that is your question.

 

I would leave them on, and work around them.

 

IMHO removed, it reduces the value of the speakers substantially.

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PS It's unlikely you can remove the paper labels on the rear, if that is your question.

 

I would leave them on, and work around them.

 

IMHO removed, it reduces the value of the speakers substantially.

 

I think the OP was referring to the badges. The labels look fairly intact, even if the signature (possibly red) ink has faded.

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Thanks for all the support and great suggestions...I too, had the notion to veneer the exterior surfaces and paint the bass bins black...on board with clear labeling and photos...I've seen crossover kits that would give the kids some circuit board assembly experience but really don't know if this will be the route we take just yet. I was hoping to save the badges (removing paint and detaching unharmed if possible...can you get replacements?)  Right now in the Shop we have an old (early 70's) Sansui 9090 running some classic (same period) AR-11 speakers that I've had since High School. Still sounding pretty good and should be OK for the LaScalas.  

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I've seen crossover kits

 

I would suggest going with crossovers designed/engineered just for these speakers. You could certainly build Klipsch Type A or Type AA crossovers though.

 

 

Agree, I would keep the speakers stock with new parts as needed. They are already a 9 or a 10 when in spec.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hello Folks,

 

Well, we had our first meeting of the "HiFi Carpenters" (name chosen by our members) and did some research on PWK and the history of the LaScala speaker. The kids were pretty impressed with the history and longevity of the brand and the passion exhibited by the Klipsch Community.

 

We started with cleaning the upper compartments with compressed air and brushes...almost blew apart a paper label...so we are fabricating 1/4" plexi covers that we'll attach with flat head screws and cover with painters tape for the duration of the project.

 

We've hit a snag in trying to locate just how the AA crossovers are attached to the cabinets.

Thanks for any pointers in this regard,

-Mark

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Crossovers.... Mine were just screwed down. Of course you first have to undo the connections to the three speakers and any input wires. A previous owner could have had them out and put some glue down when they reinstalled but that's a longshot.

 As far as 'refreshing the capacitors' in the crossovers (Klipsch calls 'em 'balancing networks') I would contact Bob Crites at Crites Speakers. He'll treat you right.

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Hello Folks, (Bubo)

I was hoping someone might tell us how to use this meter to check the ohms of the drivers (and what we should be looking for)...

Thanks,

-Mark

 

The speaker voice coil is exactly as the name suggests, it's a round spool of wire frequently wrapped around a cardboard tube, so what you are testing for is shorts in the wire by measuring the resistance in Ohms. Each speaker has a resistance spec you can compare to, once you have the numbers someone who knows them by heart can check the values for you.

 

3 Vids for the Kids

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTIjFJWh0_E

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpdKpnz8h64

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bF3OyQ3HwfU

Edited by Bubo
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For the relatively low ohms reading you are checking for select the 200 ohm scale. That is at the 6 o'clock position on the meter in your picture. First check the continuity of your test leads by shorting the tips of the red and black leads together. This will tell you the residual resistance of your test leads. Theoretically this should give a zero reading but it does not because the test leads themselves have some resistance. You can subtract this residual resistance from the readings you obtain on the speakers.

 Bubo has pointed you to some good tutorials on meter usage, the young folks should soak this up like a sponge if they're really interested. :)

  BTW -- did you get the crossovers out?

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