KLH Model 6 Question

[woogit]

Hi all,

I recently purchased a pair of KLH Model 6 speakers. I hooked them up and it seems the tweeters (or the x-overs/caps) are fried. My first problem is, I cannot get the original covers off to access the speakers so I can start diagnosing them. These speakers appear to be all original and solid wood from what I can see. The back is sealed and I know the covers MUST come off. I unscrewed the little KLH logo and still the cover will not budge. The cloth is really nice and original (as is the wood), so I am trying to be as gentle as possible. Any suggestions? I need to get these off and I don't want to break anything.

All help is greatly appreciated!! Once I get these covers off, I will probably be asking other dumb questions about diagnosing the tweeter situation. First things first though

Thanks!

-Ed

 

[Jstas]

Get a thin flat head screw driver and slide it carefully between the edge o the grille cloth and the wood trim and gently pry them up. They should only be held on with Velcro unless some heathen glued them on. If so, just break the masonite form, pull teh grille cloth, cut new stuff and staple the old grille cloth onto the new masonite form and then Velcro it on and be done with it.

The enclosures however, they are permanently sealed from the factory. Only way to get at the crossovers is to pull the drivers and the fiberglas matting inside the enclosure through the woofer hole.

 

[woogit]

Well that didn't work...

I tried using a screwdriver and I heard (and saw) the wood chip... thinking that maybe this was the masonite inside piece I tried another area.. nothing would budge. After chipping it a few times, I decided the cloth was doomed so I pulled it off (tore). There is no masonite cover, in fact there appears to be NO cover at all, the cloth was pressed into a groove around the edge of the speaker and everything looks factory. I cannot remove the woofer, there are no visible screws and the pressboard face looks to be bound somehow or maybe even a solid piece. The story behind these speakers would lead me to believe they have never been tampered with since purchased new. In fact, I received the original brochure and owners manual. I was able to unscrew the tweeter but the woofer has no visible way to get it out. There are 4 darker (maybe fiberglass plugs around the woofer and I was able to crack one open and look inside, I do not see a screw. Has anyone ever seen this particular model Six KLH? If so, does anyone know how to work on them?

Thanks again!

-Ed

 

[GordonW]

Don't take the plugs out! That woofer, is MADE to the backside of the baffle! I mean, literally, the baffle IS the driver frame! If you try to remove the driver from the front, you'll DESTROY it.

The back of those speakers was made to come off, IIRC, somehow. Only way to get in there...

 

[bookasan]

I have a pair of 6's and the grills are held on with velcro. I guess the ones you have could be an earlier or later version, or were "fixed" by someone.
By the way, I got mine grouped together with a Sansui 5000X for $40.00 at a thrift store. Both speakers and the receiver looked like they were never touched and I bought them mainly for the receiver. After my son begged and begged for the receiver, I gave in and gave it to him. The speakers had sat in my pile of speakers in the garage for months without ever being tested. The other day I decided to hook them up and I was impressed. They are some fine sounding speakers.

 

[Nat]

I think that you are up a creek. There is no way to get into those original 6s. There are good acoustical reasons for their construction, but if there is a problem with the drivers or crossover, thats it for the whole thing. I think that's why after a while they got tired of replacing defective speakers and went to replaceable drivers.

 

[GordonW]

The only thing I can think of doing, is carefully, taking a router with an edge-trimming bit (the type with a bearing at the BOTTOM of the bit, made for laminate trimming), and cut out the rear panel of the box, around the PERIMETER of the rear. Drill a hole, like 1" inside of an edge on the rear panel, place the router in the hole, and work outward, following the inside of the side, top, and bottom panels, until you go all the way around. Then, you can fix whatever's wrong, and cut out a new panel for the rear, out of MDF or particle board. Glue/screw some 1x2 cleats inside the box, to form a lip for the new rear panel to go onto, and install the new rear panel, using rope caulk to seal it in, attaching the rear panel with screws...

It's involved, but it WILL give future access into the cabinet, if it should be necessary.

Regards,
Gordon.

 

[Jstas]

Yeah, those sound like super old Model 6's and I don't know of any way to get into them. They are getting very rare for obvious reasons.

 

[andy]

I have a pair of those early 6's and it's not that hard to replace the tweeter caps. The caps in mine were just below the tweeter holes and there was just enough slack in the wires to get to everything. You might need some help if you have big hands. The crossover caps are DEFINTELY bad on that age of KLH.

 

[woogit]

Thanks for all of the feedback...

Andy,

I can reach into the hole and I feel a rather large cylindrical object right below the tweeter hole it is attached with a screw from what I can feel. I would say the diameter is a little larger than a AA battery and it is about 1.25 in long. Is this the cap? one of the wires does connect directly to it. I will need to wait until tomorrow before I can pull it out and see, I think I can get a small screwdriver in there to take the screw out.

Thanks again!

-Ed