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Klipsch La Scala Crossovers


Scott marek

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I just acquired a pair of 1982 La Scala's with with a Yamaha CR-2020 receiver for $1250.00 The Scala's have AA type Crossovers, Want to upgrade. what type should i go with, I am new on this Forum

and There is a lot lot I don't Know. I owned Klipsch all my life. starting with the Quartet witch sounded absolutely amazing. Now I have a pair of chorus II fully upgraded from Bob Crites. also have  a pair of RF-7 III

The Scala's are a Different level and I just want to do the best for them, any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Scott

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Welcome OP... I say listen for a little while and get used to the nature of the la scala sound signature. Then, when you feel ready to upgrade, get hold of deang and choose a price point you're comfortable with. Dean's work is excellent and provide you a mild to wild selection.

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If you are going to stay with a K-77 tweeter, you can't beat the Crites Type AA's.

 

If you are going to upgrade the tweets to something more robust then the Crites A/4500 is a good one.  It lowers the crossover point from 6000 Hz to 4500 Hz.

 

I had Khorns modded with the A/4500 and a more substantial tweeter.  The sound was outstanding and a clear improvement over stock.  I also had La Scala's w/ AA's and the sound improvement is directly applicable to both models.

 

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There are lots of possibilities for changes that may or may not be a true upgrade.  At 38 years old, they are probably in need of new capacitors.  The sound should be big, clear and out in the room, in front of the speakers.  La Scalas are never polite and recessed sounding.  If they are, you need caps.  If not, keep the ones you have.  Use good film and foil caps, they will be worth the price.  While you don't need to spend $200 each, they will be expensive. 

 

After that, research the forum for ideas and ONLY make changes that address an issue you can detect and can prove solved that issue. 

 

What are your serial numbers?  I have an X code 1982 originally with Type AL xover and K-55-M squawker. 

 

I think the receiver you scored is at least as great a find as your La Scalas. 

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I'm sooo happy w/my networks Deang made for my 81 La Scala's.  Told him to make 'em sing and I've got a choir here!  Outstanding work from start to finish.  Write the check and foget abouuut it!  Hit him up here or check out Deang Crossovers on fb.   Welcome to the Forum Scott!    :)

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On 1/21/2020 at 11:18 PM, Randyh said:

I guess cheaper PE capacitors are out of the question or would that not be advisable

 

PE has a house brand, Dayton Audio, and once carried a nice selection of values in that brand in film and foil.  Now, all they have are small, fractional values.  The others are $40 to $80 each.  They should be fine.  Not $200, but not cheap. 

 

I rebuilt my AAs with Hovlands for about $140, ......... 20 years ago!!!

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On 1/21/2020 at 9:25 AM, JohnA said:

There are lots of possibilities for changes that may or may not be a true upgrade.  At 38 years old, they are probably in need of new capacitors.  The sound should be big, clear and out in the room, in front of the speakers.  La Scalas are never polite and recessed sounding.  If they are, you need caps.  If not, keep the ones you have.  Use good film and foil caps, they will be worth the price.  While you don't need to spend $200 each, they will be expensive. 

 

After that, research the forum for ideas and ONLY make changes that address an issue you can detect and can prove solved that issue. 

 

What are your serial numbers?  I have an X code 1982 originally with Type AL xover and K-55-M squawker. 

 

I think the receiver you scored is at least as great a find as your La Scalas. 

They have the AA cross overs Serial # 23U049

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On 1/20/2020 at 8:51 AM, Scott marek said:

I just acquired a pair of 1982 La Scala's with with a Yamaha CR-2020 receiver for $1250.00 The Scala's have AA type Crossovers, Want to upgrade. what type should i go with, I am new on this Forum

and There is a lot lot I don't Know. I owned Klipsch all my life. starting with the Quartet witch sounded absolutely amazing. Now I have a pair of chorus II fully upgraded from Bob Crites. also have  a pair of RF-7 III

The Scala's are a Different level and I just want to do the best for them, any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Scott

 

On 1/20/2020 at 8:51 AM, Scott marek said:

I just acquired a pair of 1982 La Scala's with with a Yamaha CR-2020 receiver for $1250.00 The Scala's have AA type Crossovers, Want to upgrade. what type should i go with, I am new on this Forum

and There is a lot lot I don't Know. I owned Klipsch all my life. starting with the Quartet witch sounded absolutely amazing. Now I have a pair of chorus II fully upgraded from Bob Crites. also have  a pair of RF-7 III

The Scala's are a Different level and I just want to do the best for them, any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Scott

I would like to say Thank you for the advice. How do i get a hold of this deang Guy so I can contact him

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On 1/21/2020 at 11:18 PM, Randyh said:

I guess cheaper PE capacitors are out of the question or would that not be advisable

They’re okay, but film and foils sound smoother and richer than metallized. 
 

They do sell the PPT Thetas, which is a very good part. 

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  • 1 year later...

I have a pair of 1990 la scala's with Al-3 crossovers. Are these good crossovers? I have had them for a decade and run a pair of 10in subs with them because they really lack bass. They do sound great but not without subs. Are there recommendations for updates to the al-3 crossovers? I have used many many different amps with these to try to get the sound I want surprisingly my favorite sounding amp is my sansui au717. 

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You’re right, La Scalas do need the help of a sub or two.  I’m using a pair of Paradigm Seismic 110s with my 402 JubScala IIs (2-way bi-amped La Scala IIs with the large K402 Jubilee tweeter horn).  I had a single 400-watt 10” sub, which sounded good, but the current setup, with two 850-watt 10” subs, is much better.  2021 is the first year in 16 years that I haven’t felt the need to spend anything on the system.

 

As far as I know, the AL-3 is a pretty good crossover, but I’m sure you’ll get lots of advice, since crossovers are a popular subject for discussion here.

 

Actually, if your speakers are fine maybe an amplifier upgrade is a better place to put your money.  The better the signal, the better the sound.  I went from a midrange DVD player to a top-of-the-line Panasonic Blu-ray, and CDs sound much better now, just for one example.

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