KLH Model 5 assistance

[GD70]

Update: I bought a set of KLH 5's from fellow AK member:
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Look and sound great. Then yesterday a friend gave me these:

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Early, sealed cabinet 6's. No sound from tweeters, but hoping a recap will solve that!

I prefer the early sealed, epoxy mounted woofer version to the later screw mounted woofer version. Early goes a tad deeper due to a slightly longer woofer excursion. Superb once restored. Almost always, a recap brings the tweeters back to life.
You did well! Both are great speakers when restored, woofer surrounds resealed etc...

Cheers, Glenn

 

[KeithD]

I prefer the early sealed, epoxy mounted woofer version to the later screw mounted woofer version. Early goes a tad deeper due to a slightly longer woofer excursion. Superb once restored. Almost always, a recap brings the tweeters back to life.
You did well! Both are great speakers when restored, woofer surrounds resealed etc...

Cheers, Glenn

Yeah, I already have a pair of 6's, but they are later, and are vinyl covered rather than wood veneer, so I'm looking forward to comparing those to these sealed cabinet 6's. I will be following the process of the threads posted here to get inside and recap. If the tweeters come back to life, I may then try @simplynuts method in this thread to get the front baffle board out and reseal the woofers. The cloth is in good enough shape to save, if possible. One cabinet needs veneer repair on the top of the face trim. So, that would be another thing to do once these are working. Fortuitously, I already have a pair of screw on KLH badges that I bought some time ago. I guess they were just waiting for the right speakers!

 

[KeithD]

By the way, is there a way to ball park the year of the speakers from the serial number? The numbers on the 6's are 74911 and 75013.

 

[GD70]

Yeah, I already have a pair of 6's, but they are later, and are vinyl covered rather than wood veneer, so I'm looking forward to comparing those to these sealed cabinet 6's. I will be following the process of the threads posted here to get inside and recap. If the tweeters come back to life, I may then try @simplynuts method in this thread to get the front baffle board out and reseal the woofers. The cloth is in good enough shape to save, if possible. One cabinet needs veneer repair on the top of the face trim. So, that would be another thing to do once these are working. Fortuitously, I already have a pair of screw on KLH badges that I bought some time ago. I guess they were just waiting for the right speakers!

I was lucky enough that mine were in terrible shape, grills removed. Made it easy to reseal the woofers. Had to also re-veneer them. Got them from the original 1963 owner. My favorite vintage two-ways hooked up to the Scott LK-72, sublime!

 

[RxDx]

By the way, is there a way to ball park the year of the speakers from the serial number? The numbers on the 6's are 74911 and 75013.

WAG - - '65-'66

 

[KeithD]

Started work on one of the 6's. The wire from the tweeter to the 8 µF cap is very short, so I needed to put an extension on that. It's done one and and blind. I first put a piece of tape on the wire I was pulling in, near the end. Then with one hand grab the tweeter wire and get the two wires with the ends roughly lined up and tape them together. This was a big help in getting the twist terminal on. I tried doing this without the wires taped together, but I could not get the terminal on.



The blue wire for the other end of the cap is longer, but still in the cabinet. I was able to solder on an additional length of wire and then get shrink wrap over the connection.

Last connected the two 2 µF caps by the switch.



At this point, connected to a receiver and the tweeter came to life & the speaker sounds good!

Now the conundrum: do I try to push out the front board that the speakers are mounted to in order to re-seal the woofer, or do I just leave it alone and put things back together? Any advice/thoughts? I'm leaning toward just putting things back together and see how it sounds....

 

[RxDx]

Chances are high the sealer will extend bass response.
Chances are low you'll get the baffle out.

 

[KeithD]

Chances are high the sealer will extend bass response.
Chances are low you'll get the baffle out.

I certainly agree with the second sentiment. I did some moderate tapping at the 4 corners and in the centers of the side, but did not detect any movement. I was reluctant to go any further. Chances may also be high that I would damage the baffle, so it might not be worth it. No idea if the bass would be better or not. Theoretically, yes. I will re-stuff the insulation and seal this one up and then compare to my later 6.

 

[simplynuts]

The thread I posted on the original KLH six speakers I restored had both tweeters dead. The epoxy that encases the crossover is so brittle that I used a piece of wood and hammer to break it and let it fall inside the cabinet. Using a long piece of wood and a hammer, I hit each corner inside the front baffle to get it out using the hole where the crossover was set. It is nailed and glued into the front with the grill cloth wrapped around the edges and glued on the baffle. Age makes it easier to get it out. (I don't mean my age) as the glue was fairly brittle after so many years. The cloth was in good shape and I didn't want to destroy it trying to reseal the surrounds. I pried it gently off near two edges near the woofer that gave me access to the front of the woofer to reseal it. After resealing it, I glued and stapled the cloth back on. Interesting note is the person and date when the cabinets were made was on the inside of each enclosure. My cabinets were wood with multiple coats. The cabinets were only scratched on the finish, so removing the coating re-stain and oil rub and they look beautiful. I have another set of these with vinyl cabinets and screw on woofers. I concur with Glen that the bass is a tad better. I didn't do anything with those with regards to the crossover caps, so they may sound better if I tackle that job. Enjoy these speakers they are amazing with whatever they play.

 

[simplynuts]

I certainly agree with the second sentiment. I did some moderate tapping at the 4 corners and in the centers of the side, but did not detect any movement. I was reluctant to go any further. Chances may also be high that I would damage the baffle, so it might not be worth it. No idea if the bass would be better or not. Theoretically, yes. I will re-stuff the insulation and seal this one up and then compare to my later 6.

That baffle can take a beating. It isn't particle board. I hit it pretty hard to get it out. Just spread the blows around the sides so you don't push it out unevenly. It will move.

 

[KeithD]

I concur with Glen that the bass is a tad better. I didn't do anything with those with regards to the crossover caps, so they may sound better if I tackle that job. Enjoy these speakers they are amazing with whatever they play.

Well, I don't know that re-sealing the woofers would be worth it to me for the bass to be a "tad better." Since you haven't re-capped yours, as you say maybe it would be better after a re-cap.

I think I will forgo the woofer re-sealing for now and give the speaker a listen, comparing it to my later 6's that have been resealed (but have not been re-capped). I'm going to have to order more caps to do those. Thanks so much for sharing your experience with these!

 

[hornbostel]

I have an early version of the 6's that I got cheaply because the tweets 'didn't work'. Recapped them through the back, as the OP did, which revived the tweets. The grill fabric is pristine so I have not redoped the woofer surrounds. They sound good. However, I also have a pair of KLH 23s and I did redope the surrounds (and of course re-cap). The low end is definitely better on the re-doped 23s than my 6's. Redoping definitely helps KLHs. I also have two pairs of KLH 20's (4 ohm version of the 17s) and also a pair of KLH 22s. All sounded much better after doping.

 

[KeithD]

Well, 2nd speaker has no sound after re-cap. Measured tweeter resistance: 46 MΩ. So, appears shot. I’ll have to figure out if the tweeter is screw mounted or epoxied in. Any advice on replacing the tweeter??? ​

 

[GD70]

Well, I don't know that re-sealing the woofers would be worth it to me for the bass to be a "tad better." Since you haven't re-capped yours, as you say maybe it would be better after a re-cap.

I think I will forgo the woofer re-sealing for now and give the speaker a listen, comparing it to my later 6's that have been resealed (but have not been re-capped). I'm going to have to order more caps to do those. Thanks so much for sharing your experience with these!

My comment about the epoxy mounted vs the basket screw mounted woofer was my observation of having both versions, with the woofer surrounds resealed. The epoxy mounted woofer goes deeper because of its construction.