BigBusa Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I know, you're probably thinking ..."just buy the damn things already D0N!" It's a big purchase for me so I want to make sure that I've covered all my bases. I sold the car yesterday. I called the owner of the khorns that I had looked at about 6 months ago. He still has them and they're still sitting there being used as corner shelves by his wife. My questions are ... 1. They're 1983 walnuts which have not been used in roughly 10 years. Is the nonusage anything to be concerned with? 2. He said that one crossover might need work. If it does is there anyone here willing to do the work for me? 3. Is $1200 a reasonable price for these beasts? Thanks for being patient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 1. They're 1983 walnuts which have not been used in roughly 10 years. Is the nonusage anything to be concerned with? NOPE. Not at all. Unless one of those mutants went berserk with it. Might take some playing to open up but I dont see this as an issue in your case. 2. He said that one crossover might need work. If it does is there anyone here willing to do the work for me? Crossovers are VERY simple, and the simple the better in the Khorn to me. The "Type A" is a very easy one to make and the parts readily available. Then again, if you are running HUGE watts into it, you need some protection (read: I wouldnt). IF you completely mend your ways, I imagine someone would be glad to help solder these. 3. Is $1200 a reasonable price for these beasts? Judging by looking at those from here, this is VERY reasonable. I dont know why you didnt buy them months ago. You buy every other thing in the world! Remove three of your more questionable purchases and you have bought your Khorns AND the parts to fix/modify them! kh ps- If you sell these in two weeks, your name might be mud.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 1. No, non-usage should not be an issue as they were stored indoors in a climate controlled environment and the drivers are protected by the cabinet. My center channel La Scala sat upstairs in a barn for three years, it dealt with heat and extreme cold. I dusted it off and it worked perfectly. 2. Crossover problem if it does exist should be easy to troubleshoot. 3. Yes, $1200 is a more than fair asking price, they seem to be in excellent condition with minimal wear. Especially since you will be picking them up and won't have to deal with shipping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 What are you waiting for, JUMP ON THEM! You love big ole horns already, since you have been on this forum for a few years now. There are NOT going to be any huge surprises except perhaps for the shallowness of the soundstage. 1. Because the Khorns sit in the corner, their soundstage is unusually shallow. This may not be important to most people, since their loudspeakers are almost always up against the front wall. But to me, where every loudspeaker I seriously audition, in my own home, with the same music and equipment, for EnjoyTheMusic.com, is placed three to four feet away from the front and side walls. This placement helps create a sonic 3D holograph of the singer, and sometimes the musicians, which can suspend disbelief and transport the relaxed listener to audio nirvana the illusion that the band is right there. Somehow magically in the room, right by the front wall. 2. Another surprise for me was that my Dynaco tube pre-amplifier now sounds too noisy at low volumes or quite passages. Its noise floor, or that of my flea-powered tube Bottlehead 2A3 Paramour amplifiers, is NOT low enough for the sensitivity of the big ole corner horns. 3. This incredible ultra-sensitivity was another surprise. Oh, yes, after more than a decade with super-sensitive walnut-oiled Cornwall 1, with B2 crossovers, I was still surprised at how reveling the big ole corner horns were with front-end details. The result is that, many of the components I used are slowly being changed. Medium class subs, like the 60Hz boomy KSW-200, for example, are of little use with the Khorns, since the big ole horns cover 30Hz with a flat frequency response. 4. Of course, with this incredible ultra-sensitivity comes superb and amazing dynamics. A quick and wide dynamic range is the heart and soul of wonderful music reproduction. It is the place where tweaking audiophiles live. All too often I review some wonderful sounding conventional loudspeaker system, only to be left feeling bland, mediocre and dull. The emotion of music is embodied in the dynamics of the notes. The attack, the peak, the decay and the delicate interplay of sonic voices. Big ole horns get this. They get it in a way that no other conventional system can, unless a small electricity generating plant drives it. 5. This awesome musical ability comes at a price point where modest loudspeakers in retail shops are just beginning to sound good. Since you will never part with these big ole horns, consider that investment as spread over the next ten, twenty years. Finally, you will be able to sell them for more than you paid for them! So what are you waiting for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 yup colin, you got it...good! nice description of living with k-horns...great isn't it? tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KhornKerry Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Walnut Khorns sell on Ebay anywhere from $1600 to $2500. Even twice the price of $2400 is not unreasonable. I bought one pair walnut oil for $2000 and another pair walnut lacquer $2200. Also you can buy complete crossovers on Ebay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnalOg Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 The emotion of music is embodied in the dynamics of the notes. The attack, the peak, the decay and the delicate interplay of sonic voices. Big ole horns get this. They get it in a way that no other conventional system can, unless a small electricity generating plant drives it. You hit it right on the nose Colin!! Amen Brother! Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhawk92 Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 As other folks said above, that is a great price. Run, don't walk, and get them. If you don't buy them, I bet there are a number of folks here on the board who would be very interested in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dflip Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Buy then!!! The inductors can be replaced easily if you can use a soldering iron. I bought a decent one a year ago with adjustable temperature settings and rewired the crossover on my Cornwalls. Before attempting this I had never soldered electrical equipment at all and had only completed five solder joints on water pipes around the house. It is definitely not rocket science. All you have to do is nicely ask questions of members of this forum and you will give you all the help you need. Al K. will respond to questions and help you with the parts you need to order. Depending on the inductor and capacitor choices, you can do it for under $200. The Khorns will sound a lot better with the "litte" Fisher than 600W of heavy duty power. Just plop down the credit card and be done with your early Christmas present. Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricktate Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Hey Don if your not going to buy them at least tell us where they are so we can buy them,,,,,if i was close you wouldnt have this problem,,,they would be sold,,,sold the day i found them.....watchout,,,,,i do have a truck,,,lol,,,rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnA Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Buy those booger, Don! $1200 is a good price even if they look bad. Where are you/they? Any number of us would be willing to help with the crossovers, esp. Al Klappenberger, but you need to be in reasonable driving distance. There are several excellent crossover design floating around the Forum and pictures, too. Those should have Type AK networks, surely the worst sounding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBusa Posted October 13, 2003 Author Share Posted October 13, 2003 The Khorns are in Mechanicville NY. North of Albany. The original owner is very laid back and in no hurry to sell them. I offered him a deposit this morning but he said to just to make the drive to his house once with the entire amount. He also has a Yamaha CR 2040 that I may buy. That thing is BIG! The kid wanted to be in all the pics. I'm waiting for the car sale transaction to be completed sometime this week. The buyer left me a $500 deposit yesterday and said he'd return with the rest tues or wed. I'm dying with anticipation! I have wanted Khorns for eons. I'm like a giddy school girl waiting for prom night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Keep us posted, I am only 3 hrs from Albany, NY in Burlington, VT which is right across the pond (Lake Champlain) from Plattsburgh, NY. I don't need another set of Khorns, but if you don't like them I have a pair of La Scala's I could offer as trade towards them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBusa Posted October 13, 2003 Author Share Posted October 13, 2003 Will do frz. I am pretty fickle so if I don't like them they'll be replaced with something. I have a feeling these may be what I have been after for so long. Anticipation ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsmyforte Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 buy them, buy them, buy them, buy them, buy them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Bey Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Dollars to donuts, the crossover problem will turn out to be a blown tweeter, as they go quickly in order to protect fuses from popping. Even so, $1200 is somewhere around highway robbery. Don't buy the Yam. It's what probably did the tweeter in. Mend your high-power ways or blow another tweeter sometime. If you're handy, you can fix the diaphragm, if not there's a place in FLA that will repair the tweeters for a very reasonable charge (so I hear). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBusa Posted October 13, 2003 Author Share Posted October 13, 2003 Hmmmm, I replaced a tweeter diaphragm in my cornwall. I got the presoldered one from someone on this forum for about $30 as I remember. Same exact tweeter, replacement part and procedure right? I picked this beauty up today at S/A. It was headed to the dump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 There could easily be a broken connection on a wire on the crossover, so that's another possibility. Sometimes all it takes is a little solder. It may be something else, but since the owner mentioned the crossover specifically, he may know there is a wire broken on it or that it got damaged somehow. That TEAC model is one of the most popular open reel machines of all time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfz28 Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Buy them that is a good deal, they most likly have the AK2 crossovers in them that is what my 84 k-horns have.I am not for sure if the midrange and tweeter on the k-horns are fused are not, I know the woofer has a fuse thow. Maybe it could be a blown fuse and a real simple fix. The fuses will be on the back of the k-horns in and around were you hook up the speaker wire. Maybe check this out first, just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyKubicki Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 Get 'em Don! It will be your last speaker! Colin is absolutely correct about the dynamic abilities of the KHorn and how the soul of music resides within. I would recommend thet ALK x-overs...made a huge difference in my KHorns. Colin mentioned a limitation of the soundstage. It's strange, I find that playing Chicago records fills the room like no other records I've played. OTOH, there are many times while watching a movie on DVD, I find myself turning around because I could swear that a sound was coming from beyond the speaker and even sounded like it was behind me! This happens frequently. No need for extra channels here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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