Upgrading Klipsch La Scala crossovers


Am considering a vintage pair and know that "everybody" goes to custom xovers and/or wire. Where do I want to look for these things? Who's making these xovers? A google turned up little.

I'm hoping there might be somebody in the Chicago area would who would be willing to come up to SE WI to install new xovers & wire if/when I get them. I would be comfortable doing it myself (I can solder), but probably more comfortable with a pro.
paulfolbrecht
Go to klipsch forum website, Dean somebody does them.. DeanG, I think is the screen name, he is in ohio unless he moved..Its not that expensive to ship them, of course pulling the crossovers out of the cabinet. Do not use Hovland Capacitors in the crossover is my only advice!
oh and I think Vman, is the a guy's screen name here that does them, but not sure he does them from scratch or has the schematics for your speaker exactly.

And by the way I think DeanG does them from scratch on his own materials using any parts you decide in the price range you wish, and you will not Have to ship yours to him, he will give you direct plug and play replacements, so I was wrong on you having to ship your originals. Good luck
Undertow,

You are right, I do Klipsch xovers and other brands of speakers xovers. However, I haven't done any heritage Klipsch speakers because as long as DeanG is doing them, that's the cats meow.

Improving your speakers will take your system a LONG way. The internals of most speakers are super cheap since the consumer doesn't see it. Upgrading the parts on the xovers is also a fairly easy upgrade since you don't even have to ship your speakers to do it.

Let us know what you end up doing...

Mike
A word of warning on so called "upgrading" La Scala crossovers.

I've owned my La Scalas for well over 20 years and have tried the upgrades you've mentioned.

First I doubled the side walls and ran two by four pieces of rock maple along the outside edges to re-enforce the cabinets. This made a huge difference with bass output and quality.

I upgrated the tweeters with Bob Crites tweeters. These tweeters are far superior the the stock models and make a huge improvement.

Next, I replaced all the stock wiring with DH Labs hook-up wire. I was really surprised at just how much a difference just replacing the wire made, but it was huge.

Finally, and a word of warning, I tried a set of Dean's crossovers and found I didn't prefer the "Huge" difference these crossovers made.

IMHO, the stock crossover sound the best for these speakers.

I should also mention that I bought my La Scalas new and all their internal wiring and crossovers are/were in "as new" condition.

Assuming your crossovers are in good condition, I would leave them alone. If they need replacing, I would get a new set from Bob Crites, who designs his to sound identical to the stock units.

I also run Walker Audio's "High Definition Links" with these speakers, and find they work as advertised.

Thanks for all the replies. What I've learned is that Dean's 1st-order xover are most likely best for my needs which include the Welborne 45s at around 2W. The 1st-order network provides a very easy, constant-impedance load, and furthermore I tend to prefer 1st-order networks.

I'm picking up the speakers (made in '85) next weekend and will likely order a pair of these xovers before long.

Thanks again.