KLH Model 20 question

[poweragemk]

Anyone heard this old beast? I'm staying at my grandmother's for awhile, and she has this system. I was thinking of getting a new cart or needle for it and enjoying my records (which I brought in lieu of the much-larger CD collection).
It's even got the matching speakers!

What say y'all?

--MK

[electrode10101]

It's not bad for what it is....an upscale "record player".

The speakers, if model 20's, are pretty good, and last over time because the woofers do not have that foam surround. The fm tuner is pretty good, as well. They were very popular in the late 60's and early 70's. I've got a couple of these floating around the house, as well as the model 11FM, which was the suitcase model, with FM (rare, as well as stunning!).

If you buy a new stylus, make sure it's an original Pickering 0.7mil. This will be kindest to your records with the garard changer. Usually, the tracking force is not correct, so if you have access to a stylus force guage, you can adjust the arm for 3 grams tracking by moving the threaded wheel near the back of the tonearm until you reach this force. These players usually need service. If it plays and rejects at the end of the record, it's probably ok for now.

While on the heavy side, 3 grams is okay with a spherical stylus, and will allow the arm to track properly.

If you have more questions, you can contact me on or off list. If you have trouble finding an original (not radio shack or other non original)


John Diamantis

[poweragemk]

Well, it needs SOMETHING, because as it stands now, the sound is all boomy and indistinct. If I had another tuner to try with the speakers, I would, but I don't right now. Could it be the old needle? Or the crappy speaker cable? Or just the TT needing service? FM sounds better than LP, so I'm guessing it's something to do with the TT itself.

--MK

[Taurus]

It doesn't have a turntable but you can buy this version brand new! :) :

Cambridge SoundWorks Mick Fleetwood Signature™ Model Twelve Transportable Music System (http://www.cambridgesoundworks.com/store/category.cgi?category=port_spkr&item=c1md12ee)

[T]

[poweragemk]

Just an update on the situation with the KLH - I redid the speaker wire just to be sure (it was probably as old as the unit!), but the left channel is pretty much fried. It's not the needle, I tested using the aux with a CD player. So I gave up on the unit and bought a cheapo amp just for the moment. Boy does it sound cruddy, though - I don't know if it's just the speakers or the amp, but boomier and muddier than anything I've ever heard before. Ugh. The amp will be going back from whence it came in a couple weeks, methinks. The KLH will probably just sit where it is and gather dust. Can't wait to get my OWN stereo back...

--MK