Dylanl Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Just finished my ALK kit from AL K. I have to say for my 1st electronic project it was fun and I would do it again. Although not every solder was perfect they were up and running in 2 nights of work. If any of you have an the thoughts about getting new crossovers look into Al's kit. Al's directions & pictures are excellent the step by step instructions make the project workable for anyone. I think the best part of these is the ability to adjust the squawkers to whatever level you like. Now that I am finished I am looking forward installing and testing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Mobley Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 cool deal. I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised. I've been very pleased with the ALK's I built for my homemade LS. I see people talking about harshness and listener fatigue, but I don't get that at all. Since I got the Khorns the LS have been hooked up to a 100 watt Nakamichi HT receiver, it will drive them to ridiculous volumes with ease, still don't get the hash. it did cause the CD player to skip though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Congrats! I think it is really cool that Al K is offering the crossovers in kit form. Will be looking forward to hearing your take on what they sound like. I have a pair that Al built for me and have been pleased with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Congrats! I think it is really cool that Al K is offering the crossovers in kit form. Will be looking forward to hearing your take on what they sound like. I have a pair that Al built for me and have been pleased with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerwoodKhorns Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 ---------------- On 1/12/2005 1:21:40 PM Daddy Dee wrote: Congrats! I think it is really cool that Al K is offering the crossovers in kit form. Will be looking forward to hearing your take on what they sound like. I have a pair that Al built for me and have been pleased with them. ---------------- How much are the kits for K-Horns and Belles? Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylanl Posted January 12, 2005 Author Share Posted January 12, 2005 I paid 330.00 for the kit. I probably could have saved a little money ordering the parts on my own but AL's kit is great. The direction and placement of parts etc. To me well worth less hassel for a few more bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwc Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 I give you guys credit. I to ordered the Alk from Al. However, I paid him to do it. I am an electronic geek but I wanted the pro to make these for resale purposes. I currently am disapointed in the harshness I get at times with my factory AL networks. Some would argue that I should be using tubes to rectify this. I hope this isn't the case. I have spent a ton on my Mcintosh equipment. My wife refused the look of the tubes. I will send you some pics of the new networks when they arrive. jc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Klappenberger Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 JC, Believe me, the harshness isn't your Mac equipment! Al K. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.4knee Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 I too have ALK kits in my La Scala's, 3 of em. I could not get over how much cleaner and more detailed they sounded over my old AL's. I enjoyed building the kits and instructions were excellent. I also like the "Personalized by decals/labels Al includes, it give you a Yeah I did that feeling JC you will be astounded at the difference in the sound of the ALK's vs the AL's. I am 20 years older listening to the same stuff I did when I got my La Scala's and I now hear more detail and depth than I ever did. Give it time you will hear more and more as you listen to them. I believe it is a factor of your ears adjusting to them. But I am sure you will love them. I agree with Al the harshness is not your Mac stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlb945 Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Decided to try ALK design with 100% DIY. Result ... breathtaking 3D image floating in space completely disconnected from K-horns. Don't just wish, buy either completed or kit and install in your speakers. PS ... I used 20 ga silver plated high-purity copper w/teflon for both x-over and runs to tweeter, squawker and woofer (multiple strands). No, it is not a hot sound, just faster on transients. Wow! File attached shows mirrored left/right under construction. Enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Q-Man Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 JC wrote. I currently am disapointed in the harshness I get at times with my factory AL networks. Some would argue that I should be using tubes to rectify this. I hope this isn't the case. I have spent a ton on my Mcintosh equipment. My wife refused the look of the tubes. You first make the speakers be all that they can be. Once your pleased with the sound of your speakers, then you go for the amps. If you are using McIntosh SS amps, you don't have to look any farther. Too many people mess with amps, pre-amps, and up stream equipment when they should be finding a speaker that they like first. Then maybe modify that speaker so they even like it better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 I too run McIntosh SS gear through ALK's with 100% satisfaction. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwc Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 J.4knee, Q-man, D-man Let me just say, I have read your past comments in threads. I recognized you satisfaction with the Heritage line and SS McIntosh equipment. This is the reason I bought the McIntosh MC250. I already had a SS McIntosh preamp and I didn't want to start over and buy a tube amp and tube preamp. I will let you know my opinion once the ALK comes in. Q-Man, aren't you the one with the AL-3's? I should probably ask this in a new thread but....what do you think about using a tube CD/SACD player in combo with my SS amp/preamp combo? Do you think my scalas will like this set up. The McIntosh MVP851 is pretty nice right now. Have silver Tributaries XLR cables. I wonder if a Tube source (such as jolida, shanling, decware or consonance) would be more satisfying? jc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylanl Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 dlb945 in AL's instruction he specifically points out that better gauge and higher quality wire types are not needed. I was thinking the same thing you were. Are you saying that you ran better cable to the horns themselves? Or did you use this in the network itself> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 I found that silver interconnects are far better with SS gear. Not so noticable with tubes, IMO. The ALK has a xformer to attenuate the midrange driver, and features several selections that Al K. has determined. The internal wiring in the speaker can also benefit from an upgrade IMO. I have experimented with this technique quite a bit, and it is a pretty cheap tweak, as far as tweaks go. I left the crossover wiring stock, and run resonably high quality copper cables to the speakers. The harshness often reported by horn users is probably the midrange component being "shouty". Experiment with different brands, types and diameters of wires to it from the crossover. Also room treatments can help tame an unruly horn. In combination, all of these factors can give you some adjustments to the output of a particular horn. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwc Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 I too think a component speaker wire upgrade would be in order. Although, I'm not sure Al K. would agree. How do you run a new spkr cable into the dog house? Will I have to disassemble anything? jc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylanl Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 I ran new wire from the crossovers to the dog house door then to the woofer itself. It is not hard but takes a little time. The hardest part was removing the woofer and then realigning it. I think in the newer models of Khorns part of the crossover is inside the bass bin door. This will make it a little more difficult but not to the point that you could not do it. When all of you talk about an upgrade in wire to and from the drivers what types are you referring to? I may give this a try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwc Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Dyli, Well if the change out of the wire was easy, I would try several different types. I don't know how I would get my arm inside the dog house of a la scala to change the wire to the woofer. IOf is is too much of a hassle, i'll leave it alone. Al K. suggested leaving them alone if they are not "green". I would love to run a simple 12 gauge wire to the woofer. I have tons of radio shack 12 gauge laying around. I also have lots of Monster 14 gauge as well. I will biwire to the ALK network with Tributaries 12 gauge silver. jc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Just remembered this one. I HIGHLY recommend that you jumper around the fuse on the ALK. Just a 2" piece of 12 gauge speaker wire should tell you of whether to proceed with the complete mod or not. I ended up jumpering from the screw down to the first coil, skipping the fuze holder and at least 2 solder joints in the process. Give it a shot. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylanl Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 DM, as far as sound what did you hear that was different. You are also loosing any protection that you have to the tweters right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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