Anyone familiar with KLH P12T's ?

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hpm40

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Online searches produced nothing. Does anyone know anything about these KLH Classic Model P12T speakers ? Two 12" woofers, one 5 1/4" Midrange, one 3" Tweeter. Rated 5-200 watts. They were free and I haven't listened to them yet.

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Not familiar with this particular model, but similar styles were sold at Costco and other big box stores in the 1990s (these look a little older based on the woodgrain vinyl veneer). By the time these were manufactured, the original KLH name had been sold, so they don't really bear any relation to earlier models. Don't expect much from them, but you can't complain at the price. Who knows, they may impress you.
 
Thank you swechsler for your reply. I connected them to my NAD 316B @ 40 watts and if they were my only speakers I would say they were pretty decent. But upon closer inspection, neither tweeter is working. Also, the bottom 12" is a passive radiator and no surprise there is no insulation inside. No sign of a proper crossover, instead there is a small capacitor in-line to the Mid and Tweeter with different values to each. I'll post photos. If the tweeter cap is bad, should it work if I jump the cap ?

From left to right: Tweeter, Tweeter Cap, Midrange, Midrange Cap, 12" Woofer

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If you don't have a multimeter to test them, you can jump the cap temporarily to see if the tweeters are good, but do it with the volume low, otherwise you run the risk of burning out the tweeter. A single cap on a mid or tweeter is a minimal first order (6dB/octave) crossover, with no low-pass section, which means the woofers and mids are running open on the high end. This was pretty common on entry level speakers (and some better ones as well, such as the EPI/Epicure models from the 1970s). Regarding the lack of insulation/stuffing, it's not really needed in a vented (a passive radiator acts as a vent) cabinet, although better speakers should have at least minimal padding on the walls to prevent internal reflections. If it turns out the tweeters are bad, if you're willing to experiment, you could probably upgrade these with some inexpensive soft domes, maybe some sound deadening on the walls and some internal braces. But I wouldn't spend too much, as the phrase "silk purse from a sow's ear" comes to mind.
 
Thank you swechsler I appreciate your help. With the cabinets in poor condition, I have come to the same conclusion that these are not worth spending any money on.
 
hpm40 said:
Online searches produced nothing. Does anyone know anything about these KLH Classic Model P12T speakers ? Two 12" woofers, one 5 1/4" Midrange, one 3" Tweeter. Rated 5-200 watts. They were free and I haven't listened to them yet.

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I have a pair of these too that I just picked up from a thrift real cheap. They do sound pretty good. In spite of the fact that one tweeter's not working. I cranked him up on the roaring silence by Manfred Mann and I ended up shredding the foam on one of the woofers too. I expected to have to refoam them anyway because of their age. What did you ever do about your tweeters? I'm probably going to go in and change out the caps in the crossovers as well once I get the cabinet open.
 
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