opinions please
I need some opinions, i realy like the focal grande utopia black and red finish, and the inspiration for these speakers came from them, so instead of black cabinets with walnut side cheeks i may go for red side cheeks like the untopias, heres a quick pic i did to give an idea what they would look like, what do you guys think?
wood or red??
I need some opinions, i realy like the focal grande utopia black and red finish, and the inspiration for these speakers came from them, so instead of black cabinets with walnut side cheeks i may go for red side cheeks like the untopias, heres a quick pic i did to give an idea what they would look like, what do you guys think?
wood or red??
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I never really understood why builders here, or on other sites, have this thing with spray painting everything. Unless it has to do with youthful impatience. After all, applying a wood veneer requires more work, and we just have to enjoy the fruits of our labour, before the world implodes.
Having worded with plastic laminate quite a bit, there is always wood grained PL that is easier to do, simple to trim, and gives an almost instant look that beats the hell out of paint.
But that's just my opinion.
Having worded with plastic laminate quite a bit, there is always wood grained PL that is easier to do, simple to trim, and gives an almost instant look that beats the hell out of paint.
But that's just my opinion.
On the contrary, the red piano gloss finish will take several days longer to do then the just the one day veneering all the panels in walnut, im not looking for an easy way out, i just loved the red and black finish of the utopias.
Hey, no problem. I just prefer wood finish, and most people really do use paint because that is pretty much all they know fairly well. And even if you wanted to, its almost too late to start veneering.
But I would consider plastic laminate. My guess is that if you have a colour you really like, odds are they have it somewhere in PL. And there are several different companies, Wilson Art being the largest. If you have a router and a trim bit, you can get it on quickly and have a nice finish. All you would have to worry about would be having to work with contact cement.
I have one set of tower speakers I covered in Lacewood finish. Can't remember who made it, but I think it was Wilson Art. They look superb and with the latest PLs it is almost impossible to see the underlayment at the trimmed edges.
As for trim bits I'm partial to these little fellows, because there are no moving parts that can freeze up on you in the middle of a job. They are solid carbide and won't dull up on you.
You just make sure the perpendicular surface under the trim is lubricated well, and zip along the edge. With PL I just use WD-40 or silicone spray.
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Hi Audiofreek, when I saw your thumbnail, the first thing I thought of was focal. I heard some last year at Whittlebury Hall. I have to say, I think yours look better and I do like a wood finish rather than a plastic finish. I think your design could get away with either, but me personally I prefer wood. Good look with them and I can wait to see the finished item.
Cheers
Natalie
Cheers
Natalie
I'm not sure, since I live in the US. But you can look around on the internet, and find distributors.
Here's something else: if you have a building supply distributer, then you can go there and ask around. My guess is that they will have samples of their plastic laminate from all the companies they represent.
Usually they will have smaller sample chips that you can use for reference and take them home for comparison. And if that is not available, you can go to some of the maker's sites and they should have a place where you can find out who sells their products. Here is what a Google search turned up.
Personally I really like plastic laminate, especially on the top of speakers, because people tend to set things on them that shouldn't be there. Its easy to screw up wood, but not PL.
Oh, and if you do go that route, make sure you prepare your contact cement properly. Take Acetone and mix it 50:50, or 1:3, with the contact cement, in order to make it thin. Then apply three thin coats. Each coat will dry quickly and evenly because the cement is thin. Most people just paint the thick cement on the surface, and this is a mistake. It coats irregular, and doesn't offer an even contact. This is important!
Just thought you ought to know this. It will make you want to use PL more often.
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Some great advice thanks, ive had a look on the web today and cannot find any uk supplier, well not localy anyway and seing as i need these finished for the owston meet on the 26th and 27th may i realy need to get these finished, so my choice is my original choice, satin black finish for the main speaker cabinets and baffles with walnut for the side panels yes im sure.
I have to tell you that I am not one who likes walnut all that much. It's just so..................expected of everything. And its dark and dreary,....and bland. There's just so much nicer stuff out there.
Here is the Lacewood PL I believe I used several years ago. It really finished out nicely. And there are a lot of nice burl patters that are real neat too. Some are dark, and some are lighter.
If you search for under 'Plastic Laminate' you can find almost all of the manufacturers. Wilsonart, Formica, and Nevamar, are just three of the biggies. But there are more. And even if you can't get what you want locally, you can have it shipped. I'm sure England also has distributors and maybe have a one or more makers there too. Its always worth a look-see.
Here is the Lacewood PL I believe I used several years ago. It really finished out nicely. And there are a lot of nice burl patters that are real neat too. Some are dark, and some are lighter.
If you search for under 'Plastic Laminate' you can find almost all of the manufacturers. Wilsonart, Formica, and Nevamar, are just three of the biggies. But there are more. And even if you can't get what you want locally, you can have it shipped. I'm sure England also has distributors and maybe have a one or more makers there too. Its always worth a look-see.
This will be the final pics i think before the owston meet next week, they are all primed ready for top coat now, wow this has been so hard to do, im on the third coat of primer and when i sand the final coat on monday it should be like glass before the top coat, looking forward to seing the final results.
I cant believe it took me an entire week of spraying and sanding the 2 final layers of primer but all will be worth the effort, my arms felt as though they would drop off lol
I cant believe it took me an entire week of spraying and sanding the 2 final layers of primer but all will be worth the effort, my arms felt as though they would drop off lol
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Isn't that right, yes I've had yet another wasted day sanding back down the wood again, trying to get the thickness just right, I've been mixing 3-1 paint to thinners but I think it's too thick I'm going to try 3-2 paint to thinners tomorrow, it's looking like il be bringing them in primer finish.
I've decided to bring my mint vintage jvc AX-9 amplifier instead of lumping about a 40kg M3 with separate PSU but still bringing my 3D cd player and iPod dock lol.
Depends on your 2pac primer but the type l use is high solid so 4-1 would be filler, 4-2 would be surfacer. If l wanted to do thick coat which would be the first onto the wood l would put down 3 coats with primer mixed as surfacer in a row with 15 minutes between each coat to let flash off then let set for 24 hours. l have found this better than running filler for 1 coat.
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lovely paint job, i always think matt black looks best for speaker boxes. very smooth looking paint job though! im sure you didnt do that with a paintbrush
did you use a proper paint spray setup? or did you just use cans of spray paint? just curious because im finishing my speakers in black. is that matt black?
did you use a proper paint spray setup? or did you just use cans of spray paint? just curious because im finishing my speakers in black. is that matt black?
Yes I use gravity fed guns, I used satin red and satin black.
Thanks for the comments
Yes I use gravity fed guns, I used satin red and satin black.
Thanks for the comments
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