Klipsch Chorus + JBL L200 =

Lots has happened in the past couple months.

Before the dust settled,

it felt best to kick it up and whip out a quickee project.

Car, bike, amp, speaker...

Let's pick the least important on the list!

Years ago we scored some Klipsch Chorus speakers.

I tried to like them.

They had no bass.

Specs quoted 45 hz,

and cranking to get low notes

made the mids and highs too blaring.

I studied up,

and found that the drivers needed a bigger cabinet.

The lack of space choked the big 15" woofer.

It felt meant to be to find some pirated

JBL L200 cabinets,

a volume roughly 1200 cubic inches higher.

Sadly the JBL drivers were worth more in higher end models.

Likewise,

the same Chorus drivers are used in the bigger Cornwall box,

creating a much more balanced sound.

You're not a hot rodder if ya can't tear up

a perfect stock item and make it better.

The Chorus k-48-k woofer is a monster.

A commercial grade 15" woofer with a huge magnet,

that basically needed a bigger carburetor.

We mocked up the woofer in the cab

and noticed an immediate difference.

Time to cut and paste.

The change was so easy,

it seemed the engineers planned for a future swap.

They learned from the ford and chevy guys.

Side by side there was no going back.

The wife liked the slanted front,

and they breathed bass in the room.

It was tougher to cut up the JBL's,

but not really.

The 2-way L200's have a splintered following,

and are commonly modified with a tweeter,

and a 3-way crossover.

This makes them comparable to the L300 summit,

which are triple the going price,

although they'll never be real L300's.

Measure, cut, file, clean.

My wood handiwork was rushed and sloppy,

only you readers will ever know!

The JBL recipe was exactly the opposite of Klipsch.

JBL uses veneered sawdust wood-mdf,

and really high quality drivers.

Klipsch used real birch plywood,

and borderline sufficient drivers.

There's a huge cult following for both,

it's borderline ridiculous to read forum know it alls.

Funny enough the swap is usually the exact opposite,

JBL drivers in Klipsch boxes!

I rushed the project a few hours after work for about a week,

and wow it was so worth it.

The bass goes down easily to the mid-30hz range,

necessary for the grateful dead Phil bombs.

Next will be some grills

 and maybe those trippy lens shade covers,

and a front paint would be nice.

They sound so good it will be hard to take them apart again!

TP

PIR Rose Cup - Ed Charnock

Working at a Portland International Raceway

 has been very surreal.

Many tasks are menial,

interspersed with some "wow! I work here..." moments.

The Rose Cup race was held in July,

one of the big 3 summertime races.

That's when I get overtime to be a pion.

The V8 classes require us to be on emergency watch,

as they're more apt to crash.

Then we rush out and fix the tire bumpers

and make sure the track is safe and ready.

Two racers have died this year 

and many injured so it's a serious duty.

While watching the GASS race,

(Great American Stock Series),

one car/driver really stood out.

He'd take the last turn so hard,

his car would sporadically drift.

One of the older models in the open class,

typically dominated by the series owner, Chris Evans,

who has multiple cars and drivers

with a loaded pit operation.

Ed was getting 3rd with his home built 450hp,

against newer cars with 550-600hp.

Only a 0.8-1.3 second difference!

And surprisingly this was with no pit crew!

His wife helped as she could,

but Ed was the driver/mechanic/grunt,

definitely the underdog.

During my rounds I had to meet him,

just for him to know I was rootin for #6.

When I found out his operation was so bare bones,

and he wasn't a stuck up ass like some other drivers,

it was that much better.

If it was possible I'da helped crew!

Even offered to have Jaxon/Jakob help out 

if he returns to race.

Ed is a so-cal firefighter from Murrieta,

and purchased his bosses race car,

after progressing up from an S-10 class.

He actually won the 2016 western states championship

at Buttonwillow.

So whay happens to an underpowered racer 

that aims to beat faster cars?

He tried to pass on turn 12 in 3rd place,

which drivers don't usually do,

and does a massive spin out in the grass.

After that the car wasn't right,

and what do you do...

Hope he brings his car next year!!

Thanks Ed for the show...

TP

Weekend Update

What the...

Yes!

We're still here!!

Got some stories to tell...

More soon!

TP