false corners for kHorns

[steve]

BTW QMan and Johnny..

GREAT PICS! I have a good idea how to take care of matters now! Thanx again!

Steve

[StuDog]

Ill add my thanks to Steves for all of the input on the false corners. Im sure the project will be the better for it. The pictures were a big help.

Thanks again.

[Colin]

My problem was two-fold, and my solution was simple. My narrow townhouse does not have one, let alone two, good corners for the mighty Klipsch horn loudspeakers. Bass is excellent, but only by virtue of the 48-pound amplifier running the bass bin. In the largest room in the humble abode, the living room, the Khorns sit only 4 apart! The left one has no corner and the right one abuts a sliding glass door. The affect is less than their magical best.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

My solution was to cut two 36 by 80 solid-core interior doors, found at the hardware store with the orange aprons, in half with a small jig saw. This made four wall sections, each 40 tall. I taped up their rough bottoms and painted them the same color as the living room walls (orange-ish Dessert Yellow). I covered them with clear lacquer, which tinted them more yellow than the walls but I like it! At an actual 1 ¾, each wall is thicker than two ¾ plywood walls in thickness and does not need sheet-rock or wall tape to finish the exterior or the edges. Each wall stands up by itself, but just to be sure, I steadied each one with a small brass latch and hasp. With this arrangement, each wall can be un-hinged from its partner in the corner. Because of their manageable size, moving them is not a problem.

No criticisms please the project is done. What was supposed to a quick four-hour solution actually consumed the better part of two days (mainly waiting for coats to dry) and trips to the hardware store for more paint and lacquer. I should have used a primer coat to soak into the wood before the more-expensive custom blended color. And I may upgrade the small latches to something more substantial someday. The back edges, where the Khorn meets the corner, are covered with thick, but soft, plumbers tubing insulation. This could give the Khorns a tighter fit into the corners, but angled the way they are, the seating is pretty loose.

Yet their affect is immediate. The single biggest benefit so far is pointing the classic Khorns directly towards my ears widening the soundstage and giving the singer and instruments room to play. Therefore, I would have to say the imaging is also improved. Instruments that were crowded behind the singer now appear beside her. Of the complaints about the Khorn monster, one is their size (a necessary evil for their lean and accurate bass). Another is about the shockingly shallow, but usually incredibly wide, soundstage. This solution resolves this major audiophile faux pas.

Plus, the deep bass might a shade better. I did not measure it before and after, since this was not why I built the walls. I did not even think of it until I noticed a little more rumble than I remembered. No pictures yet, but some should be coming. []

[Guest " "]

Here is a shot showing both corners when I was comparing a Jensen Imperial replica on the right that I built. I was told that the Imperial was a better sounding bass horn so I had to give it a try. The jury is still out on that one. Above the TV is a University Classic , I put it there while I'm rebuilding this unit. I used to use a LaScala for the center, but the LaScala doesn't so low enought for me. Those two cabinets on each side of the University are placed the right distance apart for a false corner for a Klipschorn. Now that my Altec and JBL top mods are done I'm back to working on my Klipschorn center channel that is going above the TV.

My lower false corners have tops and are about 4' deep. This was done to hold the LaScala front effect speakers that you see in the upper corners.

What type of upper horn arrangement do you have on the right?

[Cut-Throat]

I found this picture while I was looking for the false corners. I couldn't resist showing you the difference in size of the Altec driver and horn that I'm now using compared to the Klipsch.

Agreed. The Altec 1005B horn I am using with 288-16K drivers is bigger than the entire Khorn Top-Hat.

What Altec drivers are those in the picture?

[tigerwoodKhorns]

Here'a a shot of my "falsie". As you can see in the pic it extends out quite a bit farther than 8"s. The false walls pictured in the Dope from Hope must be really short. My wall is 43" not 48, so tack on another 5" if you're going 4 foot.

Apologies in advance, it seemed to take a while to upload so the photo is probably huge.

Johnny,

That is one of the best that I have seen. Great solution to the problem. It looks like it is part of the house and not part of the speaker. Very very nice!

Chris