Klipsch La Scala history - Let's go back in time!

[@naturalverities]

Love the down-to-earth glimpse behind the curtain. No audiophile magic wands, just the time honored process of specify-design-build-test-reiterate within real world constraints, in other words engineering. Thanks and cheers!

[@TopShelfAudio]

thanks man.

[@johnhodgson5313]

Well done. I was involved with La Scala in the early 70's and after 1978 my wife bought a pair with her inheritance for me. I corresponded with the factory a couple of times a month for the next 20 years, so most of what you said confirmed what I knew, the rest, on the newer revisions, was an update for me. My La Scala pair have been in numerous halls and gyms, but they keep coming back to me. They are in awful cosmetic shape. When they last came home, I wasn't sure if they should be in our living room/home theater, so my wife suggested we put them in and see how they sounded. She insisted that they stay there, much to my delight. Cat story Our first cat loved to sit in front of the LF section when music was playing loudly. Her skin would ripple from the vibration, but she would sit there until the music stopped.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thats awesome! Thanks for the story. :) -Jason

[@johnolson4977]

That was an amazing presentation

[@TopShelfAudio]

Glad you think so! Thanks for watching!

[@331jeff]

Amazing info, thank you Paducah HT.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!

[@lobatomeee1]

Dude, this was very informative. I would love to find a pair of rebuildable La Scalas. For now I will live with my KG-4s. Thank you

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching! If you end up finding any and rebuilding, let us know. Would love to hear more/check out your build! -Jason

[@AlisoBob]

Nice history lesson on my beloved La Scala's......

[@TopShelfAudio]

Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching!

[@royvossen4707]

Here: second hand black La Scala's from 1998 with Alkeng crossovers. Never gonna part from them: even if i buy other speakers.

[@buddyjenkins7188]

I love my 70th Anniversary La Scalla II's (4/70). They not only sound amazing, but look like a beautiful piece of furniture.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Couldn't agree more. They are amazing in so many ways!

[@j.j.hunsecker3009]

This dude is AWESOME.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching! Trey is full of knowledge on these things and love ta share it with the community! -Jason

[@jeffreymcconnell2727]

Outstanding, thank you

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@sammymiami8601]

Great stuff. Appreciate the expertise!

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching and for your input! Happy to help! -Jason

[@likesnoozn]

Great vide. Love the history. I was so tuned into Trey that I didn’t notice the background music till it was commented on. On the other hand, I didn’t hear a word Trey said when Jethro showed up😂

[@TopShelfAudio]

Glad you enjoyed it. We've been messing with the audio mixes in later videos. Let us know what you think on these. Also, as a side note when in editing *I never cut the cat!!* everyone loves a cat outtake :)

[@chrishooper8466]

Enjoyable video!

[@TopShelfAudio]

thanks man

[@seanathair432]

Excellent! I love my LSiis. So do my neighbors

[@TopShelfAudio]

It's always nice when listening can become a community event :)

[@Mr.XYZ6775]

My oldest brother had a top 40 band back in1984. They used 2 LaScala, 4 satelite Heresy monitors along 2 guitar amps and base. Sometimes they would break the band down to 3 or 2 piece band for small gigs. So my bro asked me if he could store one of the LaScalas in my living room apartment. I had a nice stereo system amp preamp EQ the works. So I thought I'm going to hookup the LaScala and wow the sound was powerful the tweeters were crisp good solid base. My neighbors and I had a small party dancing and singing.🎤🎸💃🥂🍺. So Trey those LaScalas my bro had I'm assuming they were the Pro LaScalas because it was made of one piece speaker.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching and for the story! Could have been. The earlier designs were like that. -Jason

[@crunchman12002]

Another great video guys. One issue though is the theme music is very distracting while the host speaks.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching! We have been making adjustments to background audio based on the feedback we have received. Let us know what you think of other/future videos :)

[@tedsouter]

Hey Trey, I got tickled watching this, when you posted up that pix of Winthrop Rockefeller, it triggered and old memory of mine. When I was a small child, he and some aides came down to Taylor and walked the streets of our small town with a throng of adults and kids tagging along. I actually held on to his hand a one point, and an aide snapped a Polaroid photo of both of us. He popped it out of the camera, shook it, wiped some goo acrossed it and gave it to me. I held on to that photo for years, but it finally faded out. The memory - - not so much. My dad told me that Winthrop would be the richest man that I ever met, dad is probably still right about that! Good memories!

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching! Sorry to hear the picture has faded but, glad the memory is still in tact. It's funny what memories some of these pictures will trigger. :)

[@miamiwax5504]

I just got a set of vintage la scala's for free when I bought a record collection. Wondering if they are worth anything.

[@bujin5455]

I would have like someone to talk about about the difference between the older LS speakers and the new AL5s in terms of sound quality. Are the older LS speakers worth the investment?

[@TopShelfAudio]

We actually did a sound/listening side by side of this. Check it out and let me know what you think!

[@mondoenterprises6710]

Excellent overview of a mysterious product. Dang if them Rockefellers don't like to have a hand in everything. I have the La Scala with the black and white Klipsch faceplate. Anyone know what kind and what year that was?? I can't find any info. about it. I was told it was an AL5. It's an older one piece La Scala not the 2 piece.

[@TopShelfAudio]

AL5 is the newest ones so it's not that if it's admittedly older.

[@teashea1]

most excellent

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@2gnospam]

Thanks for the great history lesson. I own a pair of 1980s La Scala's and a pair of 1980's Belles. Could you do a video where you go over the differences between the two. I love both!

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching! Not sure we can get out hands on them but will see what we can do! -Jason

[@bouboisse]

Hi guys, nice work ! I would like to know what are the differences between older model of La Scala and the brand new ? I could get my hands on a Type Ls BB with a AA crossover at a good price. What will I miss with this one compare to the AL-5 ?

[@TopShelfAudio]

There are quite a few differences between the older gens and new gens *but* the older were still awesome and there are several similarities as well. This video is going to give you the timeline of then and now so, watching will give you more info than I can comment. You may also look in the Klipsch Forums. There is a thread dedicated to the timeline of the LaScala somewhere out there. That said, reading will only get you so far. Go hear em. If they sound good, bring em home! :) -Jason

[@suzanmoran5208]

I made some in jr. high shop class after going to local hi fi shop to drool over / measure them. The teacher said they looked like space dog 14:24 houses. I got an a !

[@TopShelfAudio]

the appearance is "iconic" for sure.

[@fattnersgeekfile5478]

In your opinion what is the best solid state integrated amplifier for the La Scala twos thank you

[@TopShelfAudio]

Best. That's a loaded question. I know Trey currently has a couple of rack mounted crowns. Not sure of the exact model. There are tons of options out there though and "the best" is relative to your needs. Give Cory at PHT a call or shoot him a message in the Facebook group and he can help you select exactly what would be best for your system/room. -Jason

[@fattnersgeekfile5478]

@@TopShelfAudio ok thx im looking at musical fidelity M5si -50 wtts/ch 8 ohms

[@mauida7746]

Still have my pair from 79

[@TopShelfAudio]

Nice. Enjoy.

[@mauida7746]

@@TopShelfAudio do you know what ever happened to the pro king klipsch speakers

[@gerrypocha175]

Could you talk about the obvious difference in the size of the vintage LaScala Midrange horn and the modern version? When did they go to a bigger Horn Mouth?

[@TopShelfAudio]

I will see if we can find the horns out of the box to show the differences and compare side by side. Not sure on an exact date for the transition but I'll see if I can dig that up as well. -Jason

[@idolhanz9842]

Back when I was building my stereo, all dreamed of was buying a pair of 1983 La Scala from the BX overseas, but there was no way to bring them back to the States. But I own 2 pairs now, a 1977 and a 1983 pair.

[@TopShelfAudio]

cool.

[@alandailey8488]

CIRCA YOU. GREAT INFO

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks and thanks for watching! -Jason

[@Herman-zc7te]

Fab!

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@timmotel5804]

11/2024: Good Day Guys. ? These La Scala speakers/cabinets are known for having a serious shortage of low frequencies, even though they have a 15" woofer in a folded horn cabinet. Wouldn't opening up the "outlet hole" in the cabinet for the 15" woofer increase the lower end bass response? Why is this a rectangular hole and why isn't it round?

[@yamahaSHO]

Hmmm... My dad's original 82 La Scala's have an AL crossover with a K-55-M. He purchased new and has not changed anything.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Some of the generations had some variances in years depending on when in the year they were manufactured. The serial should give you access to not only the year, but the month as well to give more info.

[@の一-h1b]

スカラ、使い易そうなスピーカーですね、 わたしは大凡50年位前に購入したクリプシュコーナーホーン真空管アンプで鳴らしてます、良い音です。

[@TopShelfAudio]

they're nice.

[@mondoenterprises6710]

How much for the cat?

[@LarryBlowers]

All the cool cats love klipsch

[@TopShelfAudio]

All of em for sure!! -Jason

[@mdjak3686]

Very well done. I own Cornwall IV and they transformed my system from very good to being in front of a live performance. Even if they are not the last word in purity, they are a speaker that causes everyone I play them for to sit up, take notice and listen in awe. Been considering upgrading to these but don’t know if it’s a big step up or not. Ty.

[@TopShelfAudio]

Thank you for watching! We did a side by side compare on the LS vs the CW. Check that one out and let us know if it helps you to make your decision. If you decide to demo them or to take the jump, you know who to call. :)

[@mdjak3686]

@@TopShelfAudio I watched that previous to my comment. I like your videos but unfortunately Your method or recording the sounds leaves a lot of room for improvement. Find the channel of the sound sommelier and you will see a huge difference. Ty. Oh, and the CW sounded distorted in comparison. That was scary. Mine does not sound that way at all. I live in NY so not ez to come for audition but Cory took care of getting me a single Heresy center recently. And with Paducah being a quilter’s destination, my wife wants to visit so one of these days we will.

[@TopShelfAudio]

You know, we've actually considered directly micing the speakers in addition to our voices. That said, we almost don't want people to pay attention to the recordings as, there is no way to accurately reproduce the "real sound" through micing and through whatever the end users speakers may be. As such, it almost feels like the better the recording, the more the audience is being fooled into thinking they can actually hear what the speakers sound like. All of that said, we may go a different route in the future based on peoples requests, but these were primarily created for commentary as opposed to giving the ability to hear the speakers themselves.

[@DaveC1983.]

Just curious how the hell do you afford all of them, there priced at $28k aus

[@TopShelfAudio]

Bitcoin I suppose, IDK, I just work here. -- Cory

[@LJRockstar]

I like what you guys are doing, but that rock music needs to tone down or switch out during the talk. Too intense for the chat. Like having video game action music with no enemies. :)

[@TopShelfAudio]

we thought it was cool, got a few very vocal people who think otherwise, may try something else in the future, IDK.

[@klepp19]

I wish we could roll back the price! Out of reach for normal music lovers!😔

[@TopShelfAudio]

Unfortunately not something that's adjustable, especially with the new universal pricing structure. There are always the stair steps to consider though. Heresys, Fortes, and Cornwalls are amazing sounding units as well at fractions of the pricetag. -Jason

[@klepp19]

@@TopShelfAudio Yeah I understand! I still haven't heard a properly set up pair of La Scalas. Maybe one day I wonder if I could fly out to the factory and get a tour and listen. A mini vacation!🙂

[@TopShelfAudio]

Do it. Cory would be happy to show em off. Take a listen to them as well as everything else in the HiFi Bed and breakfast! -Jason

[@klepp19]

@@TopShelfAudio Ok I will hit you guys up when I have an opportunity! Appreciate it!🙂