rplace Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 Before I stumbled upon this forum I thought my speakers were just a magic box that played music. Now I understand that a given model (khorn, heresy, forte) is not the same from year to year as different parts change. It seems the crossover is on of the more likely to change parts. I understand in a very basic sense that a crossover directs the various high/mid/lows to the correct driver and that is about it. In reading here I gather that a capacitor either wears out over time or new ones are just made better and that crossovers have several capacitors in them. Can someone point me to crossover 101 or give me some basic info so I understand better what is going on. I recently purchased a set of 87 Khorns with AK-2 crossovers. I am wondering what I might to do make them sound betterthough it is hard for me to believe they could actually sound better ;-) Thanks, Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 Richard, the AK-2 network was considered a dog by many, my '88's came equipped with AK-2's. I certainly did not think that they sounded bad at all. I got both schematics for the AK-2 and AK-3 and saw that they were similar and only three parts on each one needed to be changed to bring them to AK-3 functionality. The parts you need to change are: 4mh coil in midrange circuit to 5mh coil 140uf (2 x 70uf) capacitors in bass bin to 100uf (2 x 50uf) I used a single 100uf Solen thinking it made more sense to use a single cap vs. two but then Dean stated the two caps would have less loss. Lastly, the T5A autoformer needs to be replaced with the T4A or equivalent. These changes WILL make a difference, it seems the bass was tighter/smoother and the midrange detail/output increased. I wanted to replace the 13uf Aerovox caps in the midrange circuit as well but Dean talked me out of it since some people that he knew had replaced those caps and not noticed any difference or improvement so I left them alone. You can take this route or replace the network entirely with one of DeanG, BobC, or ALK designs whatever floats your boat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rplace Posted March 17, 2005 Author Share Posted March 17, 2005 Is this the sort of thing the average Joe can do or do I run the risk of making things worse or breaking them completely. I am not much of an electrical guy. Do I need to understand what a capacitor does or is it something basic like heat this up till it is unsoldered then solder the new one in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 You just need to know how to unsolder and solder and use a glue gun (secure new parts in place), it is not a tough job. It does take a little time and patience but not to bad at all. A good learning experience if you have never done this sort of thing before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rplace Posted March 17, 2005 Author Share Posted March 17, 2005 Where does one buy such parts? I it practical to get a 2nd set of crossovers to mod that way you have your current ones to listen to while making changes to the others, or is that cost prohibitive? Do people like Dean and Bob make new ones or just "fix up" existing ones? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 "I am not much of an electrical guy. Do I need to understand what a capacitor does or is it something basic like heat this up till it is unsoldered then solder the new one in?" Rich, gotta tell ya, I got a pretty good chuckle out of what you wrote above! O.K. you don't really need to know what a capacitor does, and it IS something "like heat this up till it is unsoldered, then solder the new one in" -- but you kind of need to know what you're doing. Not enough heat and you sit on the joint too long and risk damaging the part. Too much heat and you risk damaging the part. Jiggle the joint while you're removing the soldering iron and you can end up a cold solder joint. Stay on the solder too long and it turns into a dry joint. You should also remove as much of the old solder as possible before making a new solder joint, and that isn't always as easy as it sounds. It's all easy enough to do if you get some practice, and get all of your mistakes out of the way on something else -- but I sure wouldn't do it with your Klipschorn networks. You should definitely at the very least upgrade to the AK-3 with some good parts -- but don't tackle it unless you are pretty confident you can do it. Where does one buy such parts? www.partsexpress.com www.percyaudio.com www.madisound.com www.partsconnexion.com Is it practical to get a 2nd set of crossovers to mod that way you have your current ones to listen to while making changes to the others, or is that cost prohibitive? It's a great idea -- if you can afford to do it. It also gives you the opportunity to try and hear some of the different networks on your Klipschorns. Do people like Dean and Bob make new ones or just "fix up" existing ones? Bob and myself do both. Bob works for free, and I require your firstborn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rplace Posted March 18, 2005 Author Share Posted March 18, 2005 Thanks for the info Dean. I dont think this is the place to learn how to solder. I do have an iron. The type that looks like a pencil with a lamp cord sticking out the back. Not even an on/off switch. That probably give you a good laugh too, thinking of me dissecting the innards of my nice speaker with that. Probably along the lines of a civil war surgeons bone saw used for brain surgery today. I do have a couple of 70s pinball machines that I have to solder something back together on once in a whilebut that is a totally different animal. So how do I go about employing your services? No kids to offer up, wife is 42 and I am 39 so not looking good. You send me the X-overs and I will send you an I.O.U for my first born. You will only have to wait till my next life. Seriously, I would like to do something in the not so distant future, but probably not tomorrow. What order of magnitude are we talking (5, 50, 500 bucks) for both bringing an AK-2 to AK-3 standards or getting a totally new set? What sort of turn around time if we went the fixing up route? I would think if it is at all practical I would want a 2nd set so I dont have to go with out the use of the speakers. Also is there something else I should consider all together like a totally different crossover then the AK line? Any quick and dirty info you want to share as to what some of these parts do and why changing them makes a difference? I am sort of curios to know more. Is it just the old adage you get what you pay for? I have seen some talk on other sites about Modding a DVD player with different electronic parts to give better sound. Is it just the case that in order to save a buck or companies use an inferior generic gizmo in place of a better, more expensive piece? Thanks again, Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnA Posted March 18, 2005 Share Posted March 18, 2005 Actually the AK-2 is not really a bad crossover. It is the AK that is the dog. The AK-3 may well be better, but the differences are not big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverSport Posted March 19, 2005 Share Posted March 19, 2005 rplace: I am in the same boat as you...I "know" how to heat this up till the solder melts but fear I will mess it up in the application...not bad when testing things with low power and with all the meters and a working knowledge of electricity and all but not good when hooking up some multi thousand dollar speakers and equipment to hear a loud "POP" and see burned parts and blown components... John Albright: if the AK is the dog, would you think the AK-4 is a dog as well??? This is the first I have heard that the current KHorn designed crossover is the dog? Thanks for any help, Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted March 20, 2005 Share Posted March 20, 2005 When John says AK he is not referring to the series, but the initial incarnation which was named the AK, later came the AK-2, AK-3 and currently the AK-4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted March 20, 2005 Share Posted March 20, 2005 Most importantly, know which end of the soldering iron to hold! Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverSport Posted March 20, 2005 Share Posted March 20, 2005 ---------------- On 3/20/2005 3:30:38 PM Frzninvt wrote: When John says AK he is not referring to the series, but the initial incarnation which was named the AK, later came the AK-2, AK-3 and currently the AK-4. ---------------- Ahhhhhhhhhhh....Bach! Thanks Bill (poor attempt at M*A*S*H/Radar humor) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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