"Greetings in the name of His Majesty, Jah!, Rastafari!" We be jammin'
Finally, they have been brought to life!! And there was much, MUCH rejoicing!!
Did a quick polarity check and then hooked up an iPod via a T-Amp to give them a quick sound check using my traditional checkout song (Natural Mystic). They work JUST FINE.
I also closed up and put the lids on the crossover boxes. In hindsight, they did not have to be quite so tall, but, they are what they are. Lot's of room for expansion and experimentation if warrented. The paint job turned out fine. They look a lot better than the anemic gray they started life out as.
As for the sound? So far, I am very much liking what I am hearing, but, it is far, far too early to offer any kind of opinion. Gonna leave them on the iPod/T-Amp for a few hours to let them wake up a bit and then move them into the main listening area and hook them up to a source/amp far more capable. In time, I will measure the port frequency and adjust/tweak as deemed appropriate to finesse the resulting sound. Same holds true for the crossovers.
Man, I have to tell you, this has been a long, LONG time in coming. Thanks to all for for the helpful input and guidance. Thanks for the patience and indulgence of my meandering diatribes and far too many pictures of the project. Most of all, thank you for all the well wishes, kind words and encouragement. That made all the difference to strive to achieve something far greater than I originally envisioned. A happy day for sure.
This has been one HELL of a ride! Time to pour multiple adult beverages and enjoy the fruits of the labor.
Finally, they have been brought to life!! And there was much, MUCH rejoicing!!
Did a quick polarity check and then hooked up an iPod via a T-Amp to give them a quick sound check using my traditional checkout song (Natural Mystic). They work JUST FINE.
I also closed up and put the lids on the crossover boxes. In hindsight, they did not have to be quite so tall, but, they are what they are. Lot's of room for expansion and experimentation if warrented. The paint job turned out fine. They look a lot better than the anemic gray they started life out as.
As for the sound? So far, I am very much liking what I am hearing, but, it is far, far too early to offer any kind of opinion. Gonna leave them on the iPod/T-Amp for a few hours to let them wake up a bit and then move them into the main listening area and hook them up to a source/amp far more capable. In time, I will measure the port frequency and adjust/tweak as deemed appropriate to finesse the resulting sound. Same holds true for the crossovers.
Man, I have to tell you, this has been a long, LONG time in coming. Thanks to all for for the helpful input and guidance. Thanks for the patience and indulgence of my meandering diatribes and far too many pictures of the project. Most of all, thank you for all the well wishes, kind words and encouragement. That made all the difference to strive to achieve something far greater than I originally envisioned. A happy day for sure.
This has been one HELL of a ride! Time to pour multiple adult beverages and enjoy the fruits of the labor.
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Actually, it is probably more attributed to being lazy. Those mothers are heavy! I did not want to have to move them back if they needed some debug/rework.
I moved them into the main listening space last night and spent a few hours getting acquainted. They are very sensitive to placement. Especially toe-in. I have them dialed in pretty good right now. Going to spend the day rocking them out a bit to see what they can do.
Congrats Jake. Really nice build. My speakers didn't seem to take very long to break in, maby 10-20 hours. I found that they sounded best when placed wider than normal apart. Keep moving them apart until the center image gets blurred and then back together until everything fills in. The Elsinores image as well as any speaker I have heard. I just got a set 300b amp and 8 tube watts are plenty to drive them.
I found them to be deceivingly loud. You think you haven,t got them very loud until someone tries to talk over them. You see their mouth moving but can,t hear them! I remember my first impression was the detail and imaging being superior to most speakers I,d heard before. Much superior to my LS3.5a,s in that respect. They are a very relaxed listen. Never tiring. As you have found positioning does make quite a difference. Joe Ras did mention that they need to be toed out 10degrees or so otherwise they can seem over bright. Sounds like a pleasant day ahead for you.
Actually, it is probably more attributed to being lazy. Those mothers are heavy! I did not want to have to move them back if they needed some debug/rework.
I moved them into the main listening space last night and spent a few hours getting acquainted. They are very sensitive to placement. Especially toe-in. I have them dialed in pretty good right now. Going to spend the day rocking them out a bit to see what they can do.
Very well put!!! I've used that as a description of a truly HiFi system to people who have never had the treat. Great success!
New Pair up after much work on finishing techniques..
Crossover on back plate with solid connection..
Sounding great!
Have next pair in the works.. Trying a 18mh air inductor on this one and going up in capacitor selection..
Joel
Beautiful work Joel, as always! What is that veneer? Very deep character.
How about a pic or two of the back plate mounted crossover?
Did you go with the Jantzen torroid at 18mh?
Beautiful work Joel, as always! What is that veneer? Very deep character.
How about a pic or two of the back plate mounted crossover?
Did you go with the Jantzen torroid at 18mh?
Thank You.. The veneer is walnut but the front is a walnut 4mm thin board.. The 2 front boards were machined from a 1" solid walnut.. Band sawn in half, then planed to 4mm..
Just a picture I took after I had the crossovers built on the plate. the wood that holds the parts is 96mm wide and fits between the stiffening braces.. The larger 1.8mh going to lower woofers is not on the plate but attached to the main brace... Next pair has 2 rear plates.. one for tweeter and one for mid/bass..
Stayed with the choke I had. 18mh parts express I believe..
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Cabs look great. I,m a fan of veneer with character. I did have some difficulty when veneering mine as the iron on veneer only comes in 300mm widths and the cabs are 380 deep. A join in iron on is not an option as it shrinks back and leaves a gap. I ended up using 3mm ply backed Tasmanian blackwood sheets which come in 1200 x 2400 sheets for the top and sides. I used a router to create the mitred joints where the sides meet the top (fiddly). I then used the iron on sheets for the front and back. I was able to get book matched iron on sheets so the two cabs match quite well. Clamping and gluing the side and top sheets was a challenge. I used the other cab as a sort of press arrangement and used ratchet straps to apply pressure. See pic. A lot of fiddling about but quite a reasonable result. Your xovers look very neat. The only thing I might suggest is that the wire wound 10W resistor close to the two Bennic bipolars might reduce their life a bit. Electrolytics hate heat and the 10W resistor gets a bit warm. Great job though. I very much enjoy looking at other peoples take on the finishing.
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I adopted your idea today to use the box as a non flexible platform to clamp up something that needed to be flatened and clamped at the same time... Thanks for that one...
Maybe I could raise the 10w and use more hot melt.
I agree. The imaging is amazing. Not only can you place everything in the left right axis but the front to back axis as well with pin point accuracy. It's quite uncanny. I've just replaced the 1.8mh and .33mh inductors in my crossovers (only the ones in series with the LF and MF pairs) with Jantzen units. They have some serious copper in them and are quite weighty. The original inductors I used had significantly higher series resistance but were still within Joe Ras's specification but I thought I would give these a go just to see what, if any, difference they would make.The jury is still out on what effect this has had. I've not had a chance to have an extended listen yet. It's all good fun.
I can't get enough music. The imaging and organic quality makes it very addictive..
I have a pair of 18mh air. There very large so the bottom of cab is only place for them.. will test these out...
Joel
JDJake, Have you tried the Bolser mods yet, and the gap with the wave guide? Both take the imaging to another level. I know that seems impossible now but I assure you it is true. I think the gap tweek is dependent on how live your room is and the tonal balance of your system as to wheather it will be good for you. I have finally got all the elements right in my system and the Elsinores are capable of pure magic. Wish some of you lived near enough to hear it. If I change anything at all in the chain the "magic" silps away and it merely sounds great. My advice is to try as many different combinations of tubes and equipment as you can and keep a journal as to how any one component affects the overall sound. Good listening.
I have received all of the parts for the bolsert mods. Now I just need the time to install them and try it out. Hopefully, the upcoming USA holiday will provide a good opportunity. Especially with all the rain and such. As far as the gap, as it currently stands, I have the tweeter back mounted to the Joel W. waveguide as close as it can physically get. There is still a gap per se, but, I guess I am still a bit unclear of how big the gap is on your install. Perhaps a pic or two would help.
I also received all of my audio measurement gear, so, I want to measure the port frequency and overall response in my current listening space as well. I will post what I measure.
What I find interesting is how little toe-in these require. Not sure if it is the waveguide or what, but, far less than any other speaker I have used. They are practically straight-forward in my listening space. If toed-in too much, the left right is fine, but the depth suffers greatly. A least in my experience.
I also received all of my audio measurement gear, so, I want to measure the port frequency and overall response in my current listening space as well. I will post what I measure.
What I find interesting is how little toe-in these require. Not sure if it is the waveguide or what, but, far less than any other speaker I have used. They are practically straight-forward in my listening space. If toed-in too much, the left right is fine, but the depth suffers greatly. A least in my experience.
I travel out to your neck of the woods time and again for business. Next time I am out that way, I will shoot you a PM. Perhaps an audition and adult beverage are in order.
