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New to La Scala Wow what a sound stage


JMeader

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2 hours ago, Bobby Z said:

I have '73 Vertical Cornwalls and '80 Hereseys (still sound good). After this many years (other than capacitors) is there anything that could wear out or deteriorate where I might need to replace something down the road?

Replacement klipsch Capacitors would be needed due to age for your Networks ,  you can purchase these from the @JEM Performance   , They are the Klipsch Authorized Repair center for the  Genuine klipsch parts ,

JEM Performance Audio

https://jemperformanceaudio.com/

499 Limestone Drive, Bethel Park, Pennsylvania 15102

(412) 401-6915

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2 hours ago, RandyH000 said:

Replacement klipsch Capacitors would be needed due to age for your Networks ,  you can purchase these from the @JEM Performance   , They are the Klipsch Authorized Repair center for the  Genuine klipsch parts ,

JEM Performance Audio

https://jemperformanceaudio.com/

499 Limestone Drive, Bethel Park, Pennsylvania 15102

(412) 401-6915

I just recently heard about Jem Performance through the forum.  I already put a set of Crites crossovers in my Cornwalls a couple years ago.  Been happy with them, but truthfully I couldn"t hear much of a difference between them and the originals.  Replacing the caps in my Heresys is on my to do list. Haven't done any soldering in a while, but maybe I''l give the Gem caps a try.

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5 minutes ago, Bobby Z said:

I just recently heard about Jem Performance through the forum.  I already put a set of Crites crossovers in my Cornwalls a couple years ago.  Been happy with them, but truthfully I couldn"t hear much of a difference between them and the originals.  Replacing the caps in my Heresys is on my to do list. Haven't done any soldering in a while, but maybe I''l give the Gem caps a try.

There you go ,   you can't go wrong with Genuine klipsch Parts -

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I suspect some of the friction in this thread runs deeper than just this topic, but I guess I don't totally understand what's being argued? I've been on this forum for over 20 years and the driver upgrade topic has been here since my first day. It's no secret that PWK incorporated diminishing returns economics into his speaker drivers; after all, it's a business. If it didn't make sense to spend 2x on a particular driver for a minimal measured improvement, the existing driver was used. 

 

I think Roy's point about haphazardly changing drivers, and calling it an improvement without any data, is spot on. Our ears will tell us all sorts of things that aren't necessarily true. Roy is one of the few here who has tested likely hundreds of variations of Klipsch designs over the years. 

 

However, I think people feel particularly moved to upgrade La Scalas and I think there's a reason the upgrade topic comes up over and over and over again with La Scalas: they're a huge cabinet, so folks have expectations for them that are equal to other speakers of similar size. To my untrained, but experienced ears, La Scalas simply don't sound as good as other speakers of similar size, except for with music that lies with a narrow frequency range.  In contrast, few people knock the response from Heresys because for their size, there isn't much out there that sounds better. People will complain about Heresys not digging deeper, but understand their cabinet size  and design doesn't allow for it, and modifications to the cabinet typically negatively alters response in other ways. So, Heresys get left alone...for the most part.  La Scalas, though, take up a bunch of real estate, and require a fair amount of work to sound decent outside a very narrow spectrum of music. So, I've always felt like folks are constantly trying to make La Scalas sound like a speaker they were never designed to be. As an owner of several pairs and incarnations of Klipschorns, La Scalas, Cornwalls, and Heresys over the last 30 years, La Scalas just aren't that good for a wide spectrum of musical tastes. My advice to the OP is to save his money on the La Scala upgrades and put it toward a pair of Klipschorns. Chasing improvement in the La Scala is a losing proposition, IMO.

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3 hours ago, ClaudeJ1 said:

You mean Klipsch APPROVED parts. Klipsch does not make capacitors, inductors, resistors, or autoformers.

Hang on Claude , 

 

The capacitors that are sold by KLIPSCH  to  JEM  are manufactured to  KLIPSCH specs , and so are all the other OEM parts sold by KLIPSCH  that enter their entire products line ,  whether Woofers from Eminence , Tweeters from Celestion ,  and so on   , and the same goes for OEM parts sold by Ford -GM-Chrysler-Lenovo-IBM-HP-JBL-Canon-Ferrari-VW-Porsche-Maytag-Boeing-Airbus-

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31 minutes ago, tidmack said:

 the driver upgrade topic has been here since my first day. It's no secret that PWK incorporated diminishing returns economics into his speaker drivers; after all, it's a business. If it didn't make sense to spend 2x on a particular driver for a minimal measured improvement, the existing driver was used. 

 

 

Totally agree Klipsch understood declining marginal returns

It's the reason the company and designs are still around.

1% improvement at double the cost is a business killer

 

Just out of curiosity

What other large speakers are you referring to

and what types of music

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52 minutes ago, Chief bonehead said:

What’s the difference Claude?  Did you make your woofer for your sub?

No difference functionally via approval, but specifically not branded like K-43-K woofers as an example. Yes we Know EV and Eminence made K-42's, but they still had a "K" brand on it, so they are both approved AND branded. The rest of the parts I mentioned do not and don't need it.

 

I just wanted to get picky about accuracy of descriptive terminology.

 

In the case of K-1132 and K-1133 they are both K branded and built, which the non pro Klipscheads might not know. Peace, Bro!

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36 minutes ago, Bubo said:

Totally agree Klipsch understood declining marginal returns

It's the reason the company and designs are still around.

1% improvement at double the cost is a business killer

 

Just out of curiosity

What other large speakers are you referring to

and what types of music

When I had La Scalas without subwoofers, I often demo'd them with Sarah McLachlan, Fleetwood Mac, or anything with acoustic guitar. The punch of a La Scala is spectacular and they're a BIG soundstage kind of speaker that shines with vocal-heavy songs. Toss on some jazz, something with upright bass, or let's say '80s-'90s rap, and they're awful. If I hadn't owned 5 pair over the years, I would probably think there was something wrong with the speaker. Their bass response trails off pretty darn quickly. As years went on, I picked up a pair of Klipsch THX subs and ended up with speakers that would rival, or even possibly exceed my Klipschorns. The difference in a La Scala when paired with a capable sub is night and day to me.

 

As far as speakers in that size range to compare with La Scalas...Within the Klipsch line, the Klipschorn, even when poorly placed, equals the sound of the La Scala, AND has a smaller footprint. Please keep in mind, I am only talking about the original La Scala, not the La Scala II, which I think is a far improved design. Outside the Klipsch line, I immediately think about the JBL C38 or Altec 19, both of which I owned. I felt like the JBLs and Altecs "sounded like they should" consider the large size of their cabinets. Deep bass, detailed, and big, big volume when needed. The lack of bass with the La Scala has always been its downfall to my ears. It has big sound, but always sounded like it was missing an entire octave. But again, I don't think the criticism is necessarily fair, because the speaker was never really designed to shine outside of the punchy rock, or vocal-heavy acoustic realm.   

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45 minutes ago, tidmack said:

But again, I don't think the criticism is necessarily fair, because the speaker was never really designed to shine outside of the punchy rock, or vocal-heavy acoustic realm.   

As a LaScala owner for many decades (not currently), I read your post as more of an "Ode to Sub Woofers." I have found the LaScala to be more phase coherent than the Khorn, since it's driver differential distance from woofer to midrange means that drivers are within a quarter wave near the crossover points. Not perfect, but way better than the Khorn. It could be why the OP stated they image so well.

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I have been using multiple pairs of La Scalas without subs for years, and don't miss them at all.  With the right driver upgrades, updated networks with excellent quality capacitors, proper placement and room treatments they are the best live sounding speakers in the entire line.

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