Had a very exciting day.
I spent it touring a factory that handles many kinds of stones. Granite, Onyx, Marble, etc...
Then, sat down with the boss... and started talking.
He can cut me any sized panels, thickness ranging from 10cm down to 0.6cm. Panels can be laminated with fiberglass and epoxy, or plywood and epoxy. They also have honeycomb aluminium to laminate to the panels.
I'm thinking my next speaker will be a little heavier than wood...
I'm thinking 0.6cm stone panels with 0.6 or thicker plywood for a small full range 3' driver.
I have one question though... what would you do? Have a 3-sided stone box, and do an all wood baffle, or have a complete 4-sided stone box?
I already asked him to make me a demo 3-sided box (plus top and bottom), all cut, glued and polished. I will add the baffle myself later, and use it as a test cabinet.
And it will be onyx.... although I had fallen in love with a grey with white veins marble slab he had laying around....
I spent it touring a factory that handles many kinds of stones. Granite, Onyx, Marble, etc...
Then, sat down with the boss... and started talking.
He can cut me any sized panels, thickness ranging from 10cm down to 0.6cm. Panels can be laminated with fiberglass and epoxy, or plywood and epoxy. They also have honeycomb aluminium to laminate to the panels.
I'm thinking my next speaker will be a little heavier than wood...
I'm thinking 0.6cm stone panels with 0.6 or thicker plywood for a small full range 3' driver.
I have one question though... what would you do? Have a 3-sided stone box, and do an all wood baffle, or have a complete 4-sided stone box?
I already asked him to make me a demo 3-sided box (plus top and bottom), all cut, glued and polished. I will add the baffle myself later, and use it as a test cabinet.
And it will be onyx.... although I had fallen in love with a grey with white veins marble slab he had laying around....
They already have plywood or honeycombed aluminium as laminating material. Can look into other types.
Pricewise? not sure yet.
But, be ready to pick your jaw off the floor...
I think I can get a VERY good price. Those $15,000+ speaker sets will get a run for their money!
All materials are local, local factory, local workers, and I have access to cheap transportation if shipping is required.
Just the drivers... but I am working on a contact...
Pricewise? not sure yet.
But, be ready to pick your jaw off the floor...
I think I can get a VERY good price. Those $15,000+ speaker sets will get a run for their money!
All materials are local, local factory, local workers, and I have access to cheap transportation if shipping is required.
Just the drivers... but I am working on a contact...
Unless the materials are highly absorbent, very little 'extra weight' needs to be factored in.
Epoxy, unless loaded with a heavy substance is not that heavy.
You're right.
My experience with epoxy is when applied to a surfboard, where the thickness of the fiberglass and epoxy resin will affect the surfboard greatly....
On a pair of stone built cabinets... probably not so much!
Thanks, my Google searches did not come up with that one.
Sounds promising, but my factory can produce a box where you can't see the seams. Should look even better!
I saw these Status Acoustics Voce Fina Bookshelf Speaker Review | Audioholics
I can also get stainless steel parts cheaply, as they produce a lot of it around here.
Sounds promising, but my factory can produce a box where you can't see the seams. Should look even better!
I saw these Status Acoustics Voce Fina Bookshelf Speaker Review | Audioholics
I can also get stainless steel parts cheaply, as they produce a lot of it around here.
I don't see why you should limit yourself to just one laminate material (other than the stone you are considering).
Using multiple core materials will improve the resonant behaviour of your cabinet (ideally reducing the excitability at lower frequencies and also moving the natural resonances higher in frequency, where it would take more energy than is normal in the program material to excite, therefore resulting in no excitation of said resonance).
Historically in audio there have been better results from artificial stone(s) such as a material like Corian® or similar but if you can get the resonant behaviour you desire with natural stone I say go for it.
60mm in stone is still fairly thick material (which is another way of saying heavy material) but if honeycomb aluminum (Hc-Al) is available to you, that is a very interesting material and extremely light, which would offset some of the natural stone weight penalty. (In fact I might be more interested in playing with the Hc-Al than the stone).
Were it me, I might be inclined to experiment first with the stone, then a cork interlayer, then the Hc-Al, and probably some kind of coating like rubberized undercoating (paint-based, not asphalt based, you can find both kinds) to finish the interior walls. For a start, anyway.
Using multiple core materials will improve the resonant behaviour of your cabinet (ideally reducing the excitability at lower frequencies and also moving the natural resonances higher in frequency, where it would take more energy than is normal in the program material to excite, therefore resulting in no excitation of said resonance).
Historically in audio there have been better results from artificial stone(s) such as a material like Corian® or similar but if you can get the resonant behaviour you desire with natural stone I say go for it.
60mm in stone is still fairly thick material (which is another way of saying heavy material) but if honeycomb aluminum (Hc-Al) is available to you, that is a very interesting material and extremely light, which would offset some of the natural stone weight penalty. (In fact I might be more interested in playing with the Hc-Al than the stone).
Were it me, I might be inclined to experiment first with the stone, then a cork interlayer, then the Hc-Al, and probably some kind of coating like rubberized undercoating (paint-based, not asphalt based, you can find both kinds) to finish the interior walls. For a start, anyway.
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I've toyed with non wood cabinets, and bought a load of granite placemats when they were reduced in a local supermarket.
Since I have limiter access to tooling, and have little idea how they will turn out, I planned a "wood" baffle and rear panel - less than perfect I admit, since the excitation from cone inertia is maximum (I guess) on the baffle.
From the incomplete work I did, using 25mm square Al stock, epoxy and 8mm granite, I concluded that granite rings like a bell!
So a composite would defiantly be an improvement.
Aluminium sheet, FRP sheet, glass loaded nylon 66.... phenol welded joins....
Just my 2 pence
Since I have limiter access to tooling, and have little idea how they will turn out, I planned a "wood" baffle and rear panel - less than perfect I admit, since the excitation from cone inertia is maximum (I guess) on the baffle.
From the incomplete work I did, using 25mm square Al stock, epoxy and 8mm granite, I concluded that granite rings like a bell!
So a composite would defiantly be an improvement.
Aluminium sheet, FRP sheet, glass loaded nylon 66.... phenol welded joins....
Just my 2 pence
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