Some Model Eight speaker cloth options

[JKent]

First--thank you John for your offer of some Model 22 cloth. I wonder how it would compare to these.

Here are a couple of things I've been working with.

Photo 1 shows a piece of KLH cloth from a Model 703 [aka M21 ext spkr] (top), some cross-stitch "Aida cloth" (left) and a piece of original KLH Eight cloth (right). The Aida cloth was tea-dyed.

Photo 2 shows some burlap installed on the KLH Eight speaker, with a piece of original cloth on top.

Photo 3 shows a KLH speaker with burlap (top) and an original (bottom)

Photo 4 is a close-up.

None of these is perfect. The M703 cloth is, I guess, a boucle. It is a bit more open and irregular than the original. The Aida cloth is less open and "flatter." The burlap was tea-dyed, starched and ironed. Pretty close from a distance but it is more irregular and fuzzy than the original. Also a little shiny. The original was quite stiff and the individual strands were sort of like jute.

Attaching the cloth is a challenge--it has to be very precisely cut because it fits into a groove or slot behaind the front frame. Too big and it will pucker. Too small and it will slip out.

I used a little Alene's Tacky Glue, thinned with water, to hold it down.

All comments welcome.

Kent

[Carlspeak]

>First--thank you John for your offer of some Model 22 cloth.

>I wonder how it would compare to these.

>Here are a couple of things I've been working with.

>Photo 1 shows a piece of KLH cloth from a Model 703 [aka M21

>ext spkr] (top), some cross-stitch "Aida cloth"

>(left) and a piece of original KLH Eight cloth (right). The

>Aida cloth was tea-dyed.

>Photo 2 shows some burlap installed on the KLH Eight speaker,

>with a piece of original cloth on top.

>Photo 3 shows a KLH speaker with burlap (top) and an original

>(bottom)

>Photo 4 is a close-up.

>

>None of these is perfect. The M703 cloth is, I guess, a

>boucle. It is a bit more open and irregular than the original.

>The Aida cloth is less open and "flatter." The

>burlap was tea-dyed, starched and ironed. Pretty close from a

>distance but it is more irregular and fuzzy than the original.

>Also a little shiny. The original was quite stiff and the

>individual strands were sort of like jute.

>Attaching the cloth is a challenge--it has to be very

>precisely cut because it fits into a groove or slot behaind

>the front frame. Too big and it will pucker. Too small and it

>will slip out.

>I used a little Alene's Tacky Glue, thinned with water, to

>hold it down.

>All comments welcome.

>Kent

>

My frequency response and listening studies done with similar type cloths for Acoustic Research speakers showed 2 significant effects. The less open area and the more fuzzy the fibrous structure = less high frequency response.

Linen is less fuzzy than burlap and the preferred fabric for AR's.

Have you noticed any differences with the grills on or off?

Of Course, if matching the look of the original KLH is the priority, then the response performance will not be as important.

It's all about the music

Carl

Carl's Custom Loudspeakers

[JKent]

Thanks Carl

I did not listen with the cloth off, but I think I'll go with linen instead of burlap. As Roy pointed out, the burlap is a little "rustic" looking ;-)

I'm trying some linen now, dyed with coffee. Still have to work on the color. The thread count (18) is a little finer than the original KLH (?) but looks pretty authentic unless you really compare side-by-side. I'll post a pic when it's ready.

Kent

[boreas]

>My frequency response and listening studies done with similar

>type cloths for Acoustic Research speakers showed 2

>significant effects. The less open area and the more fuzzy the

>fibrous structure = less high frequency response.

>Linen is less fuzzy than burlap and the preferred fabric for

>AR's.

That's what my intuition told me as well. It was what I considered when looking for a suitable cloth to recover my Model Twenty-Twos.

That being said, I was surprised to see that the original cloth appeared to be wool and with a fairly heavy thread. It was a pretty open weave so it met one of your requirements but, being wool, is was a little on the fuzzy side.

The cloth I ended up using goes in the opposite direction. The individual threads are very small & hard, some sort of nylon, I think, but the weave is a little closer than seems ideal to me.

>Have you noticed any differences with the grills on or off?

>Of Course, if matching the look of the original KLH is the

>priority, then the response performance will not be as

>important.

I know this question is for Kent but I'll answer it with reaspect to my recent project.

I can't decide. I've stood in front of the speakers and "opened and closed" the grille panels like doors while listening. I *think* I hear a difference but in all honesty I can't really tell whether the slight difference I suspect is due to the cloth or to my arms moving toward and away from the fronts of the speakers. Anyway, I'm living with the cloth at least for the time being. It looks great. If I were to come across something more suitable, however, I'd probably replace the current fabric.

jb

[JKent]

Thanks John (jb) for sending that 22 cloth. It is about the right weight and the texture or weave is close. The color is more "taupe", while I would describe the original as "camel" or "butterscotch" but it looks pretty good--not "rustic" like the burlap. Of course, in a side-by-side comparison you can see the differences. But otherwise, this is a good replacement. Thanks again John!

Kent

[JKent]

Still trying to find the "perfect" cloth for the KLH Eight speaker. The previously posted photos have been removed, but nothing really matched. Add to that the fact that the Model Eight cloth was very precisely cut, about 1/4" larger than the opening, and tucked into a groove around the perimeter. A real pain The original fabric was very stiff.

I finally gave up on trying to find a perfest duplicate and instead made a 1/8" Masonite board and covered it with Irish Linen, like the kind used on vintage AR speakers. It's not authentic, but I think it looks "right" and gluing linen to a board is easier than starching and ironing substitutes.

The attached pics show one Model Eight with the linen (on the left), and another with original cloth that I cleaned (on the right). You can see how the Masonite brings the linen grille closer to the front of the "frame."

Comments and suggestions are welcome!

Kent