Sachiko Builld Thread

[jrn77478]

"Light Weight
In spite of solid hardwood inner ply construction, ApplePly weighs only 10% more than conventional softwood plywood of the same thickness. A 3/4" 4’ X 8’ Panel weighs 68 pounds."
My 18 or 19mm(i forget), 5'x5' Baltic Birch weighs ~63lbs. I'd call that heavier.
I have found some very void free looking 4'x8' 3/4" Birch ply at Lowes which fits the description of what you got.

FWIW, the birch ply at Lowes (around Houston, at least) is the best choice of the plywood they stock, but it is still a far cry from the Russian (Baltic) birch ply that is available from the specialty lumber yards. Having sawed through my share of it, I can tell you that it does indeed have voids. They are typically quite small, however. Some stacks of it are "paint grade", meaning that the face veneer will have repairs. What they have on the rack on a given day is inconsistent. Most importantly, the face veneer is paper thin, making it very easy to deface a panel simply by bumping it against something moderately sharp. And go easy with the sander, or you will find out just how thin it is.

 

[lae2]

Hi Loren,
(Snip)
I will pay for half of the speaker cost tomorrow to get the project going, and I will ask who makes this plywood is and the cost and let you know.
Karl

Congratulations! That is great that you are underway. So far I am sticking with my decision to use the Cali Bamboo. The accident in the Gulf, Greece, and the SEC/GS debacle have challenged my financial resources for the moment. Please keep us apprised of your work. Loren

 

[Granat]

Are People Happy With The Sachiko's? (for those who have built them)

Hi-

Many on this thread have already built their Sachiko's. How do they sound? Are you happy with them?

Has anyone tried drivers other than the Fostex FE206E? Has anyone tries Decware's version of the FE206E, or the Fostex FE206ES-R?

Thanks-

Karl

 

[planet10]

FE206e, FE206eN (mine not Fostex)m FE206eSR, FE208S, FE208eSR have all come out with positive response.

dave

 

[Granat]

Loren: Bamboo Sachiko

So far I am sticking with my decision to use the Cali Bamboo. ... Loren

Hi Loren,

You are aware that Bamboo is much sturdier than even hardwood plywood? It seems the ideal, that is for sure.

It does seem harder to work with though- have you actually started? I was wondering how it glues up?

I will take photos of the whole process as I build mine. To say I am charged up about all this is an understatement!

Karl

 

[lae2]

Hi Loren,

You are aware that Bamboo is much sturdier than even hardwood plywood? It seems the ideal, that is for sure.

It does seem harder to work with though- have you actually started? I was wondering how it glues up?

I will take photos of the whole process as I build mine. To say I am charged up about all this is an understatement!

Karl

In addition to being more sturdy, the folks at Cali told me be that their 3/4" ply is 19mm. Thus, I should be able to follow Scott's plans without compromise. Chris cautioned me that an inexperienced builder may have difficulty working with bamboo.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/full-range/155196-sachiko-builld-thread-19.html#post2151453
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/full-range/155196-sachiko-builld-thread-20.html#post2151625
For now I am on hold until the stock market stabilizes. I have a rule about toys. They must be purchased with market proceeds. I took a hit just as I was about to buy the bamboo ply. In the meantime I am building a couple of Pass B1 preamplifiers; one with capacitive coupling and one with DC coupling. Loren

 

[Granat]

Putting Rollers On the Base of Sachiko Speakers?

Hi Everyone!

My Sachiko's are under construction-

Has anyone put their Sachiko's on rollers or casters in order to move them around easier?

I think I would like to do that- I am interested in that quite a bit. If there are any suggestions or ideas, I would love to hear them.

Thanks in advance!

Karl

 

[Pit Hinder]

Karl,

with a subwoofer this would be a lousy idea - lots of Mms have a recoil you wouldn´d believe. With the Sachikos I can´t imagine any problems. It would be a shame NOT to move them around until you got it just right - after all, an 8" fullranger is like a sniper´s rifle - make use of what you have.

 

[mp9]

an 8" fullranger is like a sniper´s rifle - make use of what you have.

I'm quite sure I'm liking that analogy a little too much! lol.

 

[Pit Hinder]

Matey, I mean it - very good boxes are like a sniper´s scope..."fuzzy" is not on.

 

[Granat]

Subwoofer With Sachiko

Hi Pit and other friends!

Well, I am not going to do anything with the sub-woofers for some time. If I have good bass (ie. 40-45 hz at -3db) the subs will probably go to one of my sons.

BTW- I picked up a Fostex FE206ES-R for the Sachiko's. I am having them treated with a propitiatory driver treatment similar to Planet 10 and Decware speaker treatment- I will let everyone know how it sounds. Probably a month from now I will have my completed speakers and hopefully they will be broken in.

Best wishes,

Karl

 

[mp9]

Karl, that's a nice combination, those 206es-r's are touted as having a pleated fabric surround being built for a lifetime of use. I personally wouldn't entertain driver treatment until after many many hours listening. Enjoy them!

 

[Granat]

Chang vs Sachiko Double Horns?

Hi all,

My Sachiko speakers will be ready to go the week after next.

I have been reading about the Chang on the Frugal-Horn website and on the DIY forum. How can they work? How do they sound when compared with the Sachiko's?

Just curious- It seems to me like the Chang's can't work that well, but I see that they were designed in part by Steve Lindgren. That alone seems to speak very well for them.

Has anyone heard both speakers, or even the Chang's?

Thanks-

Karl

 

[planet10]

Scott Lindgren.

These w boxes (and brethern) are really optimal for 2 different sets of (mostly) mutually exclusive drivers.

Changs are BVRs for higher Q drivers (ie a bass reflex that tackles the issues inherent in a BR). For instance if you have FE206, it is best in Sachiko. If you have FE207 you put it in G Chang. Some will put 206 in the Chang, but inevitably you end up needing a filter (at least a series R), so in that sense Chang is not as good as Sachiko. But if you have 207 and put it in Sachiko, then Sachiko is not as good as Chang.

dave

 

[Pit Hinder]

Yup. And let´s gang together to shout at Karl "GIVE THEM TIME". Good fullrangers fresh out of the box sound awfully harsh and tired - some 200 hours of break-in time are minimum.

 

[Granat]

Scot, Pit-

Thanks for the feedback- I sent the FE206ES-R drivers out to Mike Rispoli for his treatment. I won't be putting them in the new Sachiko cabinets until the week after next as I am going up to Victoria, BC for my nephews graduation from college.

I am going to be patient, but cannot wait to see how it goes with the Sachiko's as I have heard such great things about them.

Scot- thanks for the note on the Chang's- I will keep that in mind in the future if anyone wants to build a pair.

Thanks for this forum- it is a real blessing for a person who is new to high end hi-fi!

Karl

 

[Scottmoose]

That was Dave, per his signiture. I'm Scott (not Steve).

 

[planet10]

I sent the FE206ES-R drivers out to Mike Rispoli for his treatment. I won't be putting them in the new Sachiko cabinets until the week after next as I am going up to Victoria, BC for my nephews graduation from college.

At some point it would be interesting to compare Mike's treatment to mine...if you are going to be in Victoria, you should make some time to come up to the mountain.

dave

 

[Granat]

<<At some point it would be interesting to compare Mike's treatment to mine...if you are going to be in Victoria, you should make some time to come up to the mountain.>>

Dave,

I would love to see your operation. However, my health makes it tough to commit because I am with my wife and two boys, and I have so little stamina. Later this summer my wife and I have discussed the possibility of getting up to see you at the DIY Vancouver Island fest in August- and if we are able to make it, we will be see each other then.

Thanks so much for your post on the Chang's. From the drawing I could see something dramatic was happening in comparison to the Sachiko's. The relatively weak base in the FE207's is the reason for the BVR box- as a resonator. It is fascinating how engineering can provide the answer to so many questions!

Thanks for the note-

Karl

 

[planet10]

The relatively weak base in the FE207's is the reason for the BVR box- as a resonator. It is fascinating how engineering can provide the answer to so many questions!

Actually it is the other way round. FE206 has weak bass due to the strong motor (low Q) hebce the need for an elaborate horn to increase the bass gain. FE207 can get away with a BR (variant in the cas eof Chang)

dave