GRB Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 I have seen sets of plans for LaScalas for sale on e-bay and audiogon. I have a father-in-law who is a master cabinet maker and is asking if he can build something for my wife and I. He does truly amazing work and I am sure he could build some of these that would knock your eyes out. I have a couple of questions: 1) Can you buy new Klipsch speakers and crossovers to build these or would e-bay used parts be the only option available? 2) My F-I-L feels that if he builds these for me he should use soild hardwood such as cherry, maple, walnut or mahogany. Would this affect sonic quality of speakers since oem Klipsch use marine grade plywood with veneers? Thanks in advance for advice / direction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkBK Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 ---------------- On 3/8/2004 9:37:56 PM GRB wrote: I have seen sets of plans for LaScalas for sale on e-bay and audiogon. I have a father-in-law who is a master cabinet maker and is asking if he can build something for my wife and I. He does truly amazing work and I am sure he could build some of these that would knock your eyes out. I have a couple of questions: 1) Can you buy new Klipsch speakers and crossovers to build these or would e-bay used parts be the only option available? 2) My F-I-L feels that if he builds these for me he should use soild hardwood such as cherry, maple, walnut or mahogany. Would this affect sonic quality of speakers since oem Klipsch use marine grade plywood with veneers?Thanks in advance for advice / direction. ---------------- While hardwoods are a beauty to look at, they are a poor choice for speaker cabinets - it would be better to use Baltic Birch multiply plywood with a veneer of your choice - MDF as in current cabinets with your choice of veneer. As to parts, I would think "parts is parts" to Klipsch as long as your willing to pay the cost of replacement parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy Landau Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 Second hand LaScalas can be found at $600-$1k. Second hand parts will cost you more than $600. Midrange horns and drivers http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3083007010&category=50597 Crossovers http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3083400634&category=14993 tweeters http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3083007868&category=50597 woofers will probably cost $150-250 extra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg928gts Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 The La Scalas I'm working on right now have a 9 ply plywood, including the top veneers. I think you'll find plywood is the way to go, solid wood will be too unstable over time, and it's just not necessary. One way to do it is to buy a cheap used pair of La Scalas and copy the cabinets. It's fairly easy to see and measure all the pieces needed. I would find that easier than a set of plans. You can use the components out of them to fill the new ones and then sell the old cabinets. Just a thought. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GRB Posted March 8, 2004 Author Share Posted March 8, 2004 Guy, your point is well taken. I may end up paying more for parts than I could buy a fully functional set for. I think my objective here was to end up with a beautiful set of LaScalas hanmade by my father-in-law. Sort of an heirloom thing. I guess I should have said he has offered to build the cabinets for free (including materials). Just seems like a real opportunity. I appreciate the point about the plywood, that is what I was thinking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 That is a gracious offer to build your La Scala Cabs for you. IMO, it would take someone of master carpenter skill to do them well. HDBRBuilder, who is a member of this forum and a former cabinet maker for Klipsch, mentioned once that he could turn out a pair of Klipschorns more quickly than a pair of LaScala cabs that are built right. I've also heard him mention that plywood or mdf yields a more sonically satisfactory speaker cab than solid wood. Resonances or some such problem there. I built up a pair of Oak LaScalas after HDBRBuilder built some lovely oak cabs. My take on prices of parts is that most can be found reasonably on Ebay, and surprisingly enough you might be able to buy a pair of LaScalas and harvest all your parts out of one set cheaper than buying the parts piecemeal. In my observation, and subjective sense of bang for the buck, I thought Ebay prices were a little high for the woofer, so I purchased them new from Klipsch parts dept. I think they were $129 each. The Buy It Now price for the K400 horns and K55V drivers that Guy posted above is a fair price for those sets. "BEC" who is also a member of this forum builds Klipsch replacement crossovers at what I think is a reasonable price. I've got a pair of his type A replacements in a pair of Klipschorns right now and they sound fabulous. You can find his items on Ebay, which also include replacement diaphragms in case you pick up a bad tweeter or mid driver. When you FIL gets those big rascals built for you, hope you will post some pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 As stated previously, DO NOT make speaker cabinets from hardwoods. They can be veneered in hardwood of course, but they are NOT furniture (although they might look like it) and must be constructed in such a way as to prevent structural vibration. Virtually all speaker cabinets are made of thick multi-ply or MDF board due to the non-regular grain structure. Also the thicknesses involved of at least 1/2 inch would be better served with a veneered ply of some sort. The joints must be air tight, solidly glued, preferably screwed, and the structure must be free of vibration. The use of solid hardwood is to be avoided as it has a single grain and is subject therefore to sympathetic vibrations at specific frequencies somewhat like a guitar. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Mobley Posted March 8, 2004 Share Posted March 8, 2004 The LaScala plans commonly available have at least one dimension completely wrong. The location of the K-400 midrange hole is too low by about 7/8". It doesn't keep you from putting it together but you would have to do something horrible to get the K-400 in. Built the way they have it there's no place for the bottom of the flange around the mouth of the horn. Bummer. That's the main issue I know of, guess how I found out? Andy, also known as HDBRbuilder on this forum, has taken the time to correct the plans, find an old post of his here and shoot him an email. Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GRB Posted March 8, 2004 Author Share Posted March 8, 2004 Daddydee, The main reason I am considering this is the fact that he is so good with wood. He has been doing this his whole life and at 65 is semi-retired. For several years he did a lot of work for Bass Pro Shops. He built display cases, store interiors, etc. He now only does special projects for friends and family. He just finished a desk and credenza for my bro-in-law out of solid cherry and they are goregeous. Dove tail joints in the drawers, hand turned legs and a tung oil finish that looks amazing. I like the idea of buying some fixer-uppers and using the components to put in the new cabs. I am thinking walnut with the hand rubbed tung oil finish. Think I need to have some conversation with him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GRB Posted March 8, 2004 Author Share Posted March 8, 2004 Tom, good info. I have seen HD's posts on here. I will drop him a note. Thanks for the input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy Landau Posted March 9, 2004 Share Posted March 9, 2004 Maybe you can buy a pair of poor looking LS's and ask him to refinish them for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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