KLH Mode; 4 (Model 4) Vintage Speakers. 100% Original

PLEASE, PLEASE READ!!!

 This is a pair of KLH Model 4 Monitors designed by Henry Kloss et,al, in the first and formative years of KLH.

 Kloss in conjunction with one of his ex-teachers started Acoustic Research in 1954 and developed a new novel speaker, the FIRST commercial acoustic suspension speaker which had a sealed air cavity behind the woofer that acted like a spring to dampen the speaker and produce far less distortion. This speaker was called the AR-1.

 In 1957 Kloss co-founded  KLH. He kept developing the acoustic suspension design paradigm.The model Four was KLH’s first full-range loudspeaker, and was on the market in late 1957 or early 1958. In a 1996 interview, Henry Kloss himself said of the Four, "the high frequency speaker is not one that we made. It was a unit made by GE, of all places. The best tweeter I could find happened to be one that came from GE. The Four was more expensive than the AR-1 because it was more substantial and was wildly competitive with it. They were $224.CBS records adopted the model Four as their monitor speaker in about 1960. (kloss - in 1996).

You see very few model Four out there, because production was much lower for them than the models Six, or Seventeen. It seems that  4000 or less pair were built. Compare that against over 300,000 Dynaco ST-70’s. The Model 4 was built over 55 years ago. They were built with sealed cabinets and non-removable grill cloth (remember they are acoustic suspension), regular consumers would not restore them.

Now, I have seen some restored on the internet. However it requires cutting an opening in the back and building new attachable grill as the original cloth will be rendered unusable. I have the tools and have done this type of work before, however they are significantly decreased in value for collecting purposes as they are no longer original. I bought these with the intent of restoring them but decided that they might be more valuable un-restored given their obvious very good condition (they are 55 years old so there are a few minor flaws), the way they sounded to me, and their rarity and importance historically. They were KLH’s first full-range loudspeaker, are a perfect example of the then new acoustic suspension design paradigm, and sound reproduction was so accurate it became a TV studio monitor. It also had fantastic success against its timely competitors, primarily the AR-3. In good condition it seems this speaker has recently sold for $1000 to $1500 per Pair. Please study all of these pictures to understand their condition. I HAVE MORE PICTURES.PLEASE ASK!!!!. Since they are sealed the best one can do is listen to ensure I hear the woofer and the tweeters, and measure the DC resistance. They have the original bridge between the woofer and the tweeters. With it in place I measured 19.0 and 19.2 ohms which seems quite good for a 16 ohm speaker going through a crossover.to me. I think they sound remarkably good. The original owner said he thought the sound was unchanged.Of course those are his words and I cannot verify that. I listened to some jazz CD’s. Really nice staging, presence and beautiful accuracy to me.Again that is my opinion, and you may have another. They are 16 ohm speakers and can be bi-amped if the user wishes. The original bridges between the low and high frequency drivers are included if you wish to use a single amp as most people probably do. The original owner drove them with a Mcintosh MC240. The Serial Numbers are 2008 and 1874, which are only 134 apart.

I bought them from the original owner, or more accurately the original owners son, who is in his middle 60’s and grew up with them. As you look at them it is easy to see the care he took with them. Given the vintage nature of the item there will be no returns because they are sold "as is". Their description is provided in full by the photos. My opinions such as what I heard are just opinions. I will spend a measurable amount of time and money packing them. The cost of the shipping materials are included in the price of the speakers. The actual shipping cost will be the responsibility of the buyer. I bought them from the original owner, or more accurately the original owners son, who is in his middle 60’s and grew up with them. As you look at them it is easy to see the care he took with them. Given the vintage nature of the item there will be no returns because they are sold "as is". Their description is provided in full by the photos. My opinions such as what I heard are just opinions. I will spend a measurable amount of time and money packing them. The cost of the shipping materials are included in the price of the speakers. The actual shipping cost will be the responsibility of the buyer. They will be shipped in separate boxes, thus the amount of shipping. It is for two separate boxes.. The price quoted for shipping in this auction is to be understood as an estimate. I only request the actual cost be paid by the buyer. I will send an invoice with the actual amount. If it costs less than the estimate, which it very well may, I will refund any extra paid.  I first need to know where the buyer lives and how much shipping will be.


I will consider offers from buyers that are serious and recognize the importance of these speakers. They are 100% original.