The KLH Model Twenty-Four Story

[ballenschultz]

First off, I'd like to thank everybody involved with this site for an excellent resource. I spent most of my morning and half of my afternoon browsing around. It's been a great help to me. 

Anyway, I picked up a pair of KLH model Twenty-Fours at a thrift store for $12 a while back. They were labelled as "not working" but after one beer and a peak under the non-functioning driver, the problem seemed to be that it was disconnected. The cabinets are rough but OK. They have that ubiquitous water ring from being used as a plant stand. I hate that soooo much. Driver surrounds are good and all drivers work although, I think the highs would benefit immensely from a re-cap. The Twenty-Fours sat in the back of my truck for a while (there's a camper shell) and one day I was at a shindig at a co-workers house. He had no stereo. I found that kinda odd so I pulled the Twenty-Fours out of the truck along with and old Kenwood 20wpc receiver that I picked up at the swap meet. I drank a beer (I always have a beer before working on electronics) and hooked it up for him. I also had an RCA-Mini cable that I hooked up through the aux input. I handed him the cable and told him to have at it. I'm 43 and was hoping for some Brubeck or something similiar. You know, cocktail music. He's 27 and blasted Zeppelin from his iPhone at what, for me, was an uncomfortable volume. I sighed and walked out to the deck. That was my introduction to vintage KLH. I gave the speakers up for dead and had bought the receiver to give away. Last week he broke up with his girlfriend and it got pretty messy. I got a text saying that I could come get the speakers if I wanted them. So, I strolled by and there on the curb with the rest of his stuff were the Twenty-Fours looking none the worse for wear. I picked them up and threw them in the back of the truck. Today, I decided to have a nice quiet and relaxing stereo day. I decided to treat the Twenty-Fours to a clean-up and a proper audition. Poor little guys. I'm a Henry Kloss fan but haven't heard a lot of his speakers. That's the trouble with being born in '74. I have a pair of masonite ring OLA's in my shop waiting for a refoam. I've never heard them but have heard one non masonite ring pair. Nice sound. I tend to listen to music in smaller rooms so I always have a pair of two-way nearfield monitors nearby, currently JBL 4301's and 4401's. I really like the size (and look) of the Twenty-Four and decided to audition them against the 4401's. East Coast vs West Coast? To be fair, I never liked the 4401's. It's like JBL trying to make an NS-10 or something. So, I'm biased. Driving the speakers is a Technics SU-C03 integraged from their "micro" line. 40wpc. I love these smaller Technics DC amps. A bonus is that it fits on a bookshelf with it's matching tuner and tape deck. So, how did it work out? Well, as I stated earlier, I think the highs on the Twenty-Fours could use some help but the low frequency is amazing for such a small speaker. Yes, I broke the seal on one of them but it seams alright...for now. They more than held their own against the 4401's and seem to be more than the sum of their parts. I kept the volume at 2-2.5 and they filled the room...the bedroom. The living room might be a different story. Source was an iPod mini through a dock. I just moved and haven't hooked up a turntable. That's my rather long winded story. It's not over. I plan to recap and freshen up the appearance of these little guys and then see how they sound. Speakers always sound better after you rub some oil into them and show them some love. 

If you see a pair of these in a thrift store or garage sale giving you the puppy dog eyes I'd recommend taking them home and giving them some attention. You'll be glad you did. Just don't, for the love of God, use them as a plant stand. 

Thanks again for the great site. 

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