Clearwave RBR curved cabinet build

[pop4richard]

Hi, I would like to share my first build with you, the Clearwave RBR. First many thanks to Jed for the design.

I have already purchased drivers for my next build but I thought it best to start with something not too difficult.

The components were purchased from Madisound with the crossover upgrade option.

I wanted to depart from the square box design and was inspired by the Theophany speakers I had seen in the local hifi shop which have curved sides. I designed the cabinets in AutoCAD ensuring the same internal volume as the original design, printed off the curved shape onto paper that I used as a template. I decided not to mitre the front baffle, as I will always use them with the front covers (kids and cats) and I liked the sharper lines.

I cut out the top, bottom and two middle curved partitions with a jig saw and joined them on top of each other with a couple of long screws. I then sanded them while they were joined together to obtain a consistent curved profile.

The frame of the cabinets were assembled with wooden dowels, screws and PVA. A fair amount of thought went into the order of the assembly, screwing the frame together to drill the dowel holes, then taking apart to screw and glue some of the parts and finally gluing the dowels in place and the frame as 3 parts. I was really concerned that the frame would not be square and true after assembly, which was important to allow the layers to join without being racked and the smallest chance of a gap developing between the layers.

There are 6 layers of 3mm MDF (pre-bent with a little water and a few very light kerfs cut with a knife). Each layer was then strapped and glued one, then two at a time to the frame with HEAPS of PVA. The first layer is also doweled to the frame.
Each of the layers were made oversize then routed to their final dimensions.

Inside each speaker has Intertechnik acoustic foam and a little Acousta Stuf fiber.
Wood veneer is locally sourced Rimu joined in 300mm wide strips with about 5 coats of low sheen polyurethane.

The stands are from 60mm O/D diameter 6mm thick walled steel pipe welded to 6mm thick MS plate. Holes have been tapped for steel spikes that I haven’t yet installed. Only one coat of paint with a couple more to go.

I'm not sure that this construction will scale up to a larger pair of floor standing speakers but I'm looking forward to starting the next pair.

Thanks for checking out my pictures. I think I have the “DIY bug”.

[blue934]

i am stunned! did you say this was your first build? please tell me you are not new to woodworking also.

great job hope it sounds as good as it looks!

david

[Dr.EM]

Fantastic build, beautifully finished too! I bet it's extremely solid.

How does it sound?

[thomasjefferson]

Very nice work! How did you make the driver rebates?

[hot grits]

Great build

How did you flush trim the sides/

I got a similar design planned, and cant figure out how to have my router base ride the curved side and still have the bit parallel with the baffle.

[pop4richard]

Thanks for you kind comments. I am not new to woodwork as I have completed a lot of DIY on my home; fences, retaining walls, decks, etc. and a couple of cabinets for the kitchen.

The driver rebates were routed manually by eye. Popped the drivers in the hole, traced around the outside of them, then carefully routed the rebates. I think I'll use a router circle guide next time!

They have turned out quite solid, a relatively high pitched sound when you knock you knuckles against them.

I flush trimmed the sides with a timber guide about the same size as the baffle which you can see on the photo with the straps (though I cut the mitres off the one you see in the photo). Then I ran the router along the length of the timber guide and bit by bit plunged the router untill it was flush. The same process was used on the top (see photo).

They sound great, very smooth and open sound in the mids which is the strength of this speaker. The bass is full and warm (quite a bit of gain in my room I think). The tops are good but a little bit harsh at times when driven hard.

[a.wayne]

Great job , fantastic looking speakers , cheers.............

[doug20]

I flush trimmed the sides with a timber guide about the same size as the baffle which you can see on the photo with the straps (though I cut the mitres off the one you see in the photo). Then I ran the router along the length of the timber guide and bit by bit plunged the router untill it was flush. The same process was used on the top (see photo).

That is a cool idea, I will have to save that one!

[giralfino]

How did you apply the veneer on the curved surfaces?
Thanks, Ralf

[pop4richard]

Hi, I used ADOS F2 contact adhesive. Probably not the most stable glue for attaching veneer but has held together so far with no slippage.

I started with a vertical seam on the very back and wrapped the veneer around using a softish rubber roller and rolled using vertical strokes. I placed a thin plastic strip under the join and overlapped the veneer. Then I cut through both layers of the veneer (at the overlap), removed the cut section and the plastic, then rolled the veneer down. A little sanding vertically on the seam fills any join with wood dust which leaves the join almost invisible. Matching the grain colour at the seam helps.