npt3
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Posts posted by npt3
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7 hours ago, RoyC said:
I recently worked on a KLH 21. The driver's suspension was quite worn and very porous, and there was some distortion at moderate volume levels. Normally I would not suggest using it, but in this case it seemed beneficial. If you have some available, it will not hurt its performance to brush some on the surround.
Roy
Thanks Roy. I inspected the driver surround on this unit, and it looked as perfect as a 55 year old speaker could - and I couldn’t detect any sonic defects, so I left it as is. This one’s become my office radio, so I can keep an ear out for trouble if it ever develops. Saving the goo for future imminent projects.
I remain pleasantly astonished at how robustly built and cleverly engineered the KLH and AR products were, to last so long and be so easy to fix/maintain. (I remember spending lots of time listening to music with some girls on my floor in college who had a KLH 24 system. Good times. :))
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🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
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So, I'm having a pause before treating my driver surrounds with Roy C's sealant. Is there any downside to NOT doing it? (I only ask because the driver I want to treat has a really nice, clean and translucent surround that does not appear to be degraded or damaged in any way.)
(I know that sealing KLH surrounds is a popular topic, so my apologies in advance for possibly flogging a dead horse a little more.)
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Just now, npt3 said:
I always liked the Braun-like styling of the Model One. I had a Model Two (with the subwoofer) in my office for many years, and I just loved it to death. When I stopped having an office office, I sadly parted with it, but I got to spend almost twenty years with it. A great relationship!
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On 2/5/2022 at 11:35 AM, JKent said:
Here are Henry's radios and their progeny. The 21/II, 21 FM, 21 AM/FM and the 21 CL are Singer era products. Late in his career Kloss designed the Tivoli One, with obvious KLH roots.
The AM/FM wasn't in the collage, so the 2nd pic shows that model. Looks just like the 21-FM.
I always liked the Braun-like styling of the Model One. I had a Model Two (with the subwoofer) in my office for many years, and I just loved it to death. When I stopped having an office office, I sadly parted with it, but I got to spend almost twenty years with it. A great relationship!
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On 2/5/2022 at 12:03 PM, JKent said:
FWIW my tech always uses Panasonic caps for their quality and reliability. That blue cap is some cheapy I bought before learning better. 2200uF 35V is a good replacement and use a cap rated for at least 105°C
I ordered a couple of the higher quality Panasonics and a couple of the higher quality Nichicons to those specs. 👍
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6 minutes ago, npt3 said:
Eek! My filter caps don't look THAT bad, lol. I'm all about less hum, and the filter cap's easy enough to replace, so: off to Mouser
PS I've got a copy of the Service Manual, Kent, thanks!
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42 minutes ago, JKent said:
If it ain’t broke don’t fix it 😉
otoh the 2000uF power supply cap is easily accessible and a cause of hum so I always replace those.
ere are pics of a bad 2k cap, much smaller 2200uF replacement and a labeled pic of the audio board (just because I hd it). If you want a pdf copy of the Service Manual PM me with your email address.
Eek! My filter caps don't look THAT bad, lol. I'm all about less hum, and the filter cap's easy enough to replace, so: off to Mouser
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On 2/2/2022 at 7:23 PM, npt3 said:
I'm really enjoying my journey of discovery in the Land Of The Twenty-One! Over the past couple of years I've tackled much larger projects (e.g., my Citation Receiver resto), so it's refreshing to work on something more modest and...discrete. It also helps that Henry K. must have cranked out at least as many of these gems as AR did XAs.
Anyway, I've got a couple of units now to work with, so I can work towards restoring my 'best' with the cleanest parts, and I'm taking my time with it. I want to first do no harm, but I'm also thinking that while I have access to the insides, I should get my radio ready for the next 50 years by recapping at least the amplifier board.
The other thing I want to get in shape is the speaker. I've got a bottle of sealant (thanks Roy!) to treat the surround, and again here, the speaker is working well and the surround seems in great shape (in all of my units) but I'm going to do it and get it over with.
I'm having second thoughts on recapping. 😂 Honestly, the electrolytics look really, really good, not leaky at all like I've seen in some receiver disasters. I know that after 50 or so years they'll "go", but am I just putting off the inevitable by leaving them where they are?
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I'm really enjoying my journey of discovery in the Land Of The Twenty-One! Over the past couple of years I've tackled much larger projects (e.g., my Citation Receiver resto), so it's refreshing to work on something more modest and...discrete. It also helps that Henry K. must have cranked out at least as many of these gems as AR did XAs.
Anyway, I've got a couple of units now to work with, so I can work towards restoring my 'best' with the cleanest parts, and I'm taking my time with it. I want to first do no harm, but I'm also thinking that while I have access to the insides, I should get my radio ready for the next 50 years by recapping at least the amplifier board.
The other thing I want to get in shape is the speaker. I've got a bottle of sealant (thanks Roy!) to treat the surround, and again here, the speaker is working well and the surround seems in great shape (in all of my units) but I'm going to do it and get it over with.
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1 hour ago, JKent said:
That original plastic grille was 2-tone white and sort of cream. It shrinks and I've tried stretching it without success. What I have done is a cut & paste job that works OK or I found some vinyl placemats that looked pretty close. 1st pic below shows the placemat on top, original on the bottom.
The 2nd and 3rd photos show the jigsaw puzzle I did with the original grille material. btw, looking through some old photos I see I did replace the scrim on the back of the masonite (3rd pic).
I think I'm going to try the jigsaw technique, Kent. My grille cloth is in really good shape, so it should look pretty great.
Where did you get your scrim material?
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On 1/20/2022 at 2:51 PM, RoyC said:
The AR 12 inch woofer seldom, if ever, requires additional sealant.
Roy
Roy, is your store still up on eBay? I was looking to buy some sealant to do some KLH drivers.
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I had the CL once. I thought it was a far cry in build quality from the 'real' (i.e., pre-Singer) radios (I mean, "receiving systems.") And the clock was indeed crap.
My copy of the Twenty-One manual shows the grille cloth to be pretty much all white, i.e., no contrasting accent threads. I have yet to see one where the grille cloth hasn't yellowed, which isn't surprising given that these little guys are pushing 60.
Since mine is not working, (I have a working one, also) I think I'm going to use it for some experimentation. Knowing that the cloth has yellowed and somehow shrunk (horizontally) over the years, I'm going to try to very gently remove it from the masonite, whiten it, and see if I can't stretch it another couple of millimeters. I'm going to re-cover it with new fabric (again, as a learning exercise), but it's worth a shot.
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I'm thinking of re-doing the grille. I've got some nice Guilford acoustic fabric choices, but the back of the grille (which I think is an earlier manufacture) has a dark, thin, pretty transparent fabric over the speaker opening.
Does anyone know what this fabric is called? (in case I need to have some on hand for, you know, emergencies)
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Longtime Allison guy here (Threes and CD6s.) 8” Allison woofers are pretty plentiful on That Auction Site, but your better bet may be to find a pair of beater CD7s to cannibalize. That’s what I did a couple of years ago when I had to fix my CD6s. The CD7s are (somehow!) less desirable than the CD6s, and you could probably find a pair for less than a pair of woofers on the Bay. Keep trying!
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Just a little Saturday night post. Since around the end of the Before Times, I’ve really expanded my audio avocation. I restored a Citation Receiver! And for my home office (the one I had to set up of necessity) I came into an absolutely mint Citation 17/18/19, which more than capably drove my Allison Threes until I inherited a stunning pair of KEF 105/3s (with the Kube), at which point I retired the Threes.
Anyway. I was lucky to come upon a simply beautiful Fisher 500-C with the original walnut case, and was looking for some good speakers to pair it with in a separate room, along with an AR XA. At first I was using some found EPI 150s, which were easy to drive, but <something> was missing. As it happened, a pair of CD6s that I’d restored a couple of years ago came back to me, and I decided today was the day to replace the EPIs.
So I hooked them up to the Fisher, put ‘em up on some stands, fired up those tubes, and oh my god, everything that I fondly remembered about the Allisons came rushing back, with the added bonus of that warm Fisher sound and rendering. ❤️
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Thanks for the clarification! 😎
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So, I was at Brimfield yesterday and found a Twenty One in not-bad-at-all condition (excellent cosmetics on the front panel, grille cloth, dial and knobs, veneer quite restorable), so for $40 I thought it was a good pickup. I was told it doesn't power up, and by gum it doesn't (the fuse doesn't look blown, though), so I'll get to work on it for my late summer project!
I think JKent is quite experienced with the 21, but if anyone has some tips of the "low-hanging fruit" variety, feel free to share.
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Howdy all, it's been a while, but I found a nice pair of KLH 32s for very little coin. They will, of course, need new grille cloth, and I can't seem to find which of the Wichelt fabrics is correct/closest. Can anyone help out? Thanks!
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I’m looking for a copy of the L1090 manual. I’d anyone has a paper or PDF copy, please let me know! :)
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11 hours ago, batchman said:
Congrats on a great find!
Step one, check for a blown fuse. Not having 1090s myself I'm not sure there is one, but the models above had separate fuses for low and mid/high, with fractional values that are hard to find (and easy to blow). In "series 2" they replaced at least the mid/high with a polyswitch (self-resetting circuit breaker).
If that is not the problem, nose around a bit and you'll find Richard So performing just the service you'd need. He was on eBay when I used him, not sure about now.
Best,
- Jeff
You are a life saver! I was not curious enough to slide the door on the bottom of the speaker to discover the HF level switch and the two fuses (Buss 1.6A and 2.5A fuses.) The HF fuse was blown. I'll order up some replacements for both speakers. Thanks Jeff!
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Just found a BEAUTIFUL pair of black L1090s for very little money. On initial listening though, one of the tweeters seems in need of repair.
I’m new to the ADS world, but are L1090 tweeters the same as used in other models? Or, are there other (e.g., Peerless) tweeters that would work, too? -
I’ve just come into a restored ADS A2 integrated amplifier and a T2 tuner, both of which are missing the hinged rear panel that completes the amazing Dieter Rams industrial design. WTB one or both.
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4 hours ago, newandold said:
With social distancing in play, probably sending them out is still your best bet.
MillerSound had said recently no more Allison repairs, but perhaps he would still do woofers, since that is the most generic service of those 3 driver types.
I had also used Simply Speakers for an Allison. Sorry I’m taking you even farther away. They’re in Florida but similarly priced to Legall.
Bill
Thanks Bill
Teledyne 1980 Q2 Report - "Hi-Fi: The Art of Music Reproduction Goes Hi-Tech"
in Library Additions and Corrections
Posted
Thanks so much for posting, this is so great! I especially love the salesguy dude-ing it up on page 5. 😂