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Klipsch Licensed Enclosures


Radiotubes

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Besides Electro-Voice, did Klipsch license the Klipschorn bass horn design to any other manufacturers?  I have had several Electro-Voice Georgian speakers over the years.  As far as I can tell, the bass horn is an exact duplicate of the K-horn.  I have seen a variation where the front corners of the horn are squared off making the width across the front a bit narrower and the woofer access panel is located at the front of the enclosure.  Attached are two images of an enclosure I have.  Generally if it were strictly an EV product it would have an EV tag stapled on the rear of the horn.  There is no such tag or holes where staples would have been.  It does not appear to be a kit from the quality of the construction and joinery. From the design it is most certainly a Klipsch enclosure but I believe it was not manufactured by Klipsch.  All the early K-horns I have owned always have serial numbers stamped into the wood in various locations.  Any suggestions as to who could have made this enclosure would be helpful and perhaps identifying some of the companies who were licensed to construct Klipsch enclosures would assist in identification.

 

georgian1.jpg

 

georgian2.jpg

 

 

 

Edited by Radiotubes
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The bass horn could be an EV Patrician IV.  The plans show a front hatch.  OTOH the mid horn shown might be from a later incarnation.  The midhorn comes off the back of the diaphragm and the tweeter horn comes off the front.  FWIW I believe this is the PA horn shown on M*A*S*H television with the tweeter horn missing.

 

Attached is what I have on the Patrician IV. 

 

WMcD

Patrician_IV_Assembly.pdf

Patrician_IV_DIY_Manual.pdf

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Thanks for the info.  What you see in my picture is EXACTLY what the inside of an Electro-Voice Georgian looks like.  The Georgian used the 15Wk woofer, the EV 848 mid (seen on MASH), the T-35 tweeter, and the X336 xover/  I assembled this with parts I had laying around because I've had a number of Georgians over the years.  I bought the bass horn from someone about 10 years ago. It came with University components. I recognized it a being a Klipsch-type enclosure. As I mentioned above, the  difference between and actual Georgoan bass enclosure and this one is the missing tag that is usually stapled on the back. This is why I wondered if Klipsch licensed their design to any other manufacturer.  I do believe that Brociner used a Klipsch licensed bass horn but I don't know of anyone else.  I figured a historian might know.  

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It's my understanding that Brociner was, for at least a brief time, a Kilpsch licensee.  The second attached photo supports that recollection.  The first photo shows Brociner's failed attempt to integrate music reproduction with coffee making.  :-)

 

image.jpeg

image.jpeg

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Great stuff! One of the most interesting things about BOTH the Patrician and the Georgian is the fact that EV specified and used a reversed woofer polarity arrangement. A few years ago, I read an EV manual description of exactly why this was done - to align phasing in a Klipsch-based design where the folded horn travel length created phasing challenges when integrating with the midrange horn. The EV Patrician assembly documents that WMcD has once again so kindly posted, point that out as well, although they don't go into detail. I've posted a thread on the Klipschorn Woofer polarity issue, but this Patrician discussion should be very instructive IMHO.

 

We know that Klipsch didn't observe any polarity specification at all on the Klipschorn until 1958, and then instituted a matched polarity alignment between all drivers. Interestingly, the copyright dates on the EV documents WMcD has provided, demonstrate that EV was well aware of, and specifying the need for phasing alignment through REVERSED woofer polarity with the Klipsch-based design - at least as early as 1955! More still, the documents I read years ago described a very audible difference to EV engineers with particular reference to a real deficiency in a key octave range if the polarity / phasing issue were not addressed properly. I will look through all of my old documents to find that discussion. 

 

Meanwhile I'm pondering a few thoughts/questions:

 

1) Did PWK really not hear a difference or believe that the polarity/phasing issue mattered until 1958? 

 

2) Why, when the Klipschorn driver polarity did become specified in 1958, was the matched polarity chosen as opposed to the EV perspective/testing?

 

3) Is it possible that EV engineers knew something about the Klipschorn that PWK didn't, ( hard to accept ) or that PWK simply didn't want to address it? (EV designed and built the EV 15wk woofer used in the Klipschorn and Georgian, so presumably understood that better) (May reflect school of perfection vs school of "good enough")

 

4)I wonder which way Vitavox, the English Cadillac of Klipschorn copies, went with woofer polarity?

 

My own testing suggests there is a lot going on here, but I'm reserving judgement.

 

Does Jim Hunter or Roy Delgado have some perspective they'd like to share on this?

 

-BeFuddledinMn

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According to Don Davis (Klipsch VP of Sales 1958), Paul did not hear the difference.  It was Don's wife Carolyn that reliably passed blind listening tests and convinced PWK that it mattered.

 

The "phasing" of the woofer to the next band up (squawker) is dependent on many, many factors.  Although the EV designs were licensed by K&A, they did not copy everything exactly, sometimes to PWK's dismay.

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  • 1 month later...
On ‎26‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 4:00 AM, JRH said:

Brociner was an early distributer in NYC and became the first blatant infringer of the patent.  Besides Vitavox and EV, other licensees included Radio Shack and Dominion (Canada).

 

and Lowther too with the TP-1. I actually own a pair.

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  • 3 years later...

I have a Georgian and it definitely has a 15 W woofer which is extremely articulate and doesn't roll off until 40 HZ.

On the evening show on KUSC he played a 1954 symphonic recording, the sound through the ST 70 and Georgian was the most amazing experience. Dijitteral and odd order harmonics were huge steps backwards. 
my Georgian is in as close to perfect condition as you could ever imagine I strongly suspect it was assembled professionally I found that a Brad nailer had been used.

I need to let it go if anybody is interested. 93013 zip.
 

44FE8C37-45E7-40BC-A46B-B9BAEBBC1934.jpeg

Edited by Crazy Racket
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  • 1 month later...

That's a great question hanksjim1, maybe you can help me find the answer when I measure the DC resistance of the woofer the digital meter swings rapidly between about two and six ohms. The meter was stable when measuring  my eight ohm resistors accurately. All the best.....

B5D80726-6D9A-41D8-A448-4C28A93A193E.jpeg

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6 hours ago, Crazy Racket said:

That's a great question hanksjim1, maybe you can help me find the answer when I measure the DC resistance of the woofer the digital meter swings rapidly between about two and six ohms. The meter was stable when measuring  my eight ohm resistors accurately. All the best.....

B5D80726-6D9A-41D8-A448-4C28A93A193E.jpeg

they certainly dont make as they used to ,   and you can imagine  the cost today to manufacture  such a woofer , the plating , stainless , powder coating , and  the Alnico magnet , a work of art -

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2 hours ago, Crazy Racket said:

Ok, i Need an accurate ohm meter , have discovered it does that on every driver that I check, now I have a collection of 3 ohm meters that don't work, 

check the internal battery--

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