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Cornscala Type A Upgrade path recommendations


pioneerhip

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Quick background:

 

Had La Scalas with crites tweeters CT120 and the A/4500 crossovers. Loved them but could not get them to work in my room. My room is small 13X12 and made them a rough fit on some music. Sold them and brought new speakers in and love them (Focal Aria 926), but missed the horns. Forte I didn't do it for me. Heresy II didn't do it for me so time to try something else. I was ready to buy from Bob and get a new set but a pair just down the road popped up and I grabbed them. Saved me a long road trip to get them from Bob. 

 

So they are type A and I really like them...but I know they can be changed/improved/modified to fit each listener. First step was the crossover. I know he isn't popular around here but I like the ALK crossover network CSW. A friend has them in his La Scalas and really do it for me. So purchased a set of the networks from him due in a few months to arrive.

Small step in a direction and $ to achieve what I am after. Currently they have :

 

CT125 (dynamated)

JBL Selenium   D405

M2380 horns (dynamated)

CW1526CF

CSS500/5000 Cornscala Crossovers

 

They are a fantastic speaker and could not be happier having them in my music room. I would like to accomplish a few things though: 

 

1. a little tighter bass

2. electric guitars can sound a little bit forward or shrill

 

I am running tube gear on them and have some basic room treatments started. Any ideas on where to go from here?
 

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Cornscala.jpg

IMG_2527.jpg

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a cross brace (on edge) between the woofer and the mid horn will help as will a couple of vertical (on edge) braces one on either side of the terminal cup on the rear baffle as well as one each on the sides and one on the top panel. Use stringers to tie all the braces together. That should tighten up your bass. You can add a layer of damping to the internal cabinet walls but do not stuff the cavity as it must be left free to resonate so that the vent can be set into resonance by the woofer at which point the vent then resonates and loads the woofer at and just below the vent tuning frequency.

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dynamat is not the material you want to be using on a MDF or Baltic ply cabinet like this. Open cell foam can be very reflective at some frequencies remember you are concerned with the upper response of the woofer. HD Fiberglass such as from Owens Corning will exhibit some of the very best absorption that you will find below 100Hz. On the cheap flexie style drop ceiling acoustic tiles are available in 2ft. square and 2x4ft. panels typically 5/8" - 3/4" thick, they can be found inexpensively, you can staple them in place with the perforated plastic layer toward the panel. The material which Klipsch use is I believe either a cotton or a Kapok short fiber material and has been sourced by forum members and is effective and lasts a long time it is safer to breath than Fiberglas. You can search the archives to find info on this.

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I have the same Cornscala Type A's, if you perform the recommended mod's per the forum members, please provide feedback on the improvements.
 
Thanks,
Bernard
Will do! Would love to see pics of yours as I still haven't decided on stain or veneer.

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Mine are not really finished too nice, I wanted to hear how a Cornscala sounded, so I bought from a forum member who had one of the original pair that Bob Crites made in the early days.  The only mod's that have been performed to date is that I purchased Dave A's machined aluminium horn lense with the B&C DE-120 driver.

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Mine are not really finished too nice, I wanted to hear how a Cornscala sounded, so I bought from a forum member who had one of the original pair that Bob Crites made in the early days.  The only mod's that have been performed to date is that I purchased Dave A's machined aluminium horn lense with the B&C DE-120 driver.
How do you like the change from ct125 and original horn?

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@pioneerhip   Maybe you mentioned it and I didn't see it but what are the cabinets made from?  Baltic Birch or something else?  If Baltic Birch, that's a very tough wood to stain if you're not experienced in doing so.  It's a very picky wood that doesn't always look great  and someone else on here stained some speakers they built using BB and, to me, it looks awful.  Me personally, and from experience, I would veneer over the BB with something that's more forgiving for staining.  I built some Belle clones out of BB and veneered them using ribbon Mahogany.  I believe the build link is in my signature.

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Yes unfinished Birch. I'll be honest I have zero experience in veneer or staining. The last thing I want to do is mess them up. I might take them to someone to do the finish. 

 

Talking active crossovers--- Is the Xilica the way to go to tri amp these, or is there a more affordable route you can go?

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On 9/17/2019 at 10:03 AM, avguytx said:

@pioneerhip   Maybe you mentioned it and I didn't see it but what are the cabinets made from?  Baltic Birch or something else?  If Baltic Birch, that's a very tough wood to stain if you're not experienced in doing so.  It's a very picky wood that doesn't always look great  and someone else on here stained some speakers they built using BB and, to me, it looks awful.  Me personally, and from experience, I would veneer over the BB with something that's more forgiving for staining.  I built some Belle clones out of BB and veneered them using ribbon Mahogany.  I believe the build link is in my signature.

 

Would it hurt anything to give the staining a go and then veneer over if it looks horrible?

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On 9/16/2019 at 10:40 AM, moray james said:

dynamat is not the material you want to be using on a MDF or Baltic ply cabinet like this. Open cell foam can be very reflective at some frequencies remember you are concerned with the upper response of the woofer. HD Fiberglass such as from Owens Corning will exhibit some of the very best absorption that you will find below 100Hz. On the cheap flexie style drop ceiling acoustic tiles are available in 2ft. square and 2x4ft. panels typically 5/8" - 3/4" thick, they can be found inexpensively, you can staple them in place with the perforated plastic layer toward the panel. The material which Klipsch use is I believe either a cotton or a Kapok short fiber material and has been sourced by forum members and is effective and lasts a long time it is safer to breath than Fiberglas. You can search the archives to find info on this.

 

 I assume these will work fine? We have some that are discolored and have been replaced at work. If these will work do I just cover the insides of each box completely? 

Ceiling tiles.jpg

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On 9/18/2019 at 9:21 AM, pioneerhip said:

 

Would it hurt anything to give the staining a go and then veneer over if it looks horrible?

no problem with this as a plan. What is it you are attempting to achieve? Personally I like birch without any artificial colour. Multiple diluted coats of boiled linseed oil then once you have achieved the colour you like top coat with a water based urethane. The birch will continue over the years to darken and will develop a fine looking patina. If you choose this method you do not need to use a sealer coat. Make sure the if you want the patina to develop that you use a top coat that does NOT block UV rays if no its like putting sun screen on your wood it won't tan.

Klipsch Cornwall in raw birch.jpg

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On 9/18/2019 at 9:26 AM, pioneerhip said:

 

 I assume these will work fine? We have some that are discolored and have been replaced at work. If these will work do I just cover the insides of each box completely? 

Ceiling tiles.jpg

this will work, you can give it a try and see how you like it. you can cover all the interior including the shelf created by the vent behind and below the woofer. Make sure to not obstruct the vent action where it fires onto the back baffle the air flow needs to be free to bounce and reflect off the baffle there.

Let me ask you the tiles you show are they high density fiberglass or are they a a gray expanded cellulose fiber? You want to be using the fiberglass and either turn the vinyl clad layer to the cabinet wall or peel it off makes no difference but they will be easier to bond in place with the vinyl off using some PL.

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