Either polyester or epoxy. Polyurethane gets used for casting stuff and many other things but as far as I know it's not used for any fiberglassing.
If I started to lay up glass and resin on these foam core speakers, it's kind of like building a surfboard.🙂
Lightweight yet rigid with a foam core...
Lightweight yet rigid with a foam core...
True. Put some waterproof speakers in them and drop them into a swimming pool. You couldn't use PVA glue for the top piece but that's an easy fix.
Wait...what's the fiberglass for? 😀
Wait...what's the fiberglass for? 😀
I like the foam FH3-inspired (FH3-i) speaker so much, I just ordered more Vifa TC9FD's and I have all the foam core pieces cut out. Just waiting for some time to glue now. I am wondering how to finish these boxes.... possible fabric covered?
On some songs, the deep bass really sounds good - you can really tell it has some deep extension. Can't wait to hear it in stereo. Like I said, I highly recommend this build. It is very cost effective too.
Driver $12, 3.5 sheets of foam core $3.5, binding posts $3, glue $0.50. Less than $20 ea.
On some songs, the deep bass really sounds good - you can really tell it has some deep extension. Can't wait to hear it in stereo. Like I said, I highly recommend this build. It is very cost effective too.
Driver $12, 3.5 sheets of foam core $3.5, binding posts $3, glue $0.50. Less than $20 ea.
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The surf board idea is great! And exactly my line of thinking. There is so much made of foam and then covered. However I can not speak to the nastiness of the chemicals. I imagine they can not be that bad, but I am a father...
In the fullrange pic gallery,last page right now, is a BIB that is covered in burlap with a tree patern on it.
In the fullrange pic gallery,last page right now, is a BIB that is covered in burlap with a tree patern on it.
foam FH3
Have you thought of wallpaper for finish? Could be anything from metallic to bamboo or some pattern. Endless choice.
Have you thought of wallpaper for finish? Could be anything from metallic to bamboo or some pattern. Endless choice.
Jim G,
Good idea about wallpaper. I have used vinyl Contact paper before which looks ok. The bamboo paper looks very nice but would cost $60 to cover one set of speakers not to mention that you have to buy a $180 roll. There are certainly a lot of choices and I bet it would change the sound of the cabinet as the foam probably vibrates quite a bit.
Good idea about wallpaper. I have used vinyl Contact paper before which looks ok. The bamboo paper looks very nice but would cost $60 to cover one set of speakers not to mention that you have to buy a $180 roll. There are certainly a lot of choices and I bet it would change the sound of the cabinet as the foam probably vibrates quite a bit.
Microfiber cloth as damping material?
I have been thinking of what to use for damping the area around driver instead of felt wool which is hard to find and probably not cheap. Microfiber terry texture cleaning cloths (3M style fiber) have a very intricate fiber cross section that looks like a snow flake with lots of surface area. It seems that this may be good for absorbing sound waves. They sell this in sets of three for $1 where else but at the same place we get the foam core boards! 🙂 You can layer this by gluing layers with hot melt, cut to shape and glue it to inside of cabinet near driver or on back of magnet. Has anyone else tried microfiber polishing cloths for damping? It has benefit that moths won't eat it. For more volume, there is also the microfiber floppy strand mop head at the dollar store.
I have been thinking of what to use for damping the area around driver instead of felt wool which is hard to find and probably not cheap. Microfiber terry texture cleaning cloths (3M style fiber) have a very intricate fiber cross section that looks like a snow flake with lots of surface area. It seems that this may be good for absorbing sound waves. They sell this in sets of three for $1 where else but at the same place we get the foam core boards! 🙂 You can layer this by gluing layers with hot melt, cut to shape and glue it to inside of cabinet near driver or on back of magnet. Has anyone else tried microfiber polishing cloths for damping? It has benefit that moths won't eat it. For more volume, there is also the microfiber floppy strand mop head at the dollar store.
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I wonder if this can be used as dampening material? Glue multiple layers together.
Bulk Crafters Square Felt Sheets, 14-ct. Packs at DollarTree.com
Next time I get more foam core...
Bulk Crafters Square Felt Sheets, 14-ct. Packs at DollarTree.com
Next time I get more foam core...
Ok, where is a good place to get inexpensive wool felt then? Is there something magical about wool vs synthetic fibers for damping?
The stuff Planet10 and others are using is the ultratouch denim insulation. The company, bonded logic, has a dealer locator. HD has it online, Lowe's and menards may have in store.
I feel like a billboard...
Green building supply stores are carrying it also.
I feel like a billboard...
Green building supply stores are carrying it also.
Thanks for tip on the material Zayne. The Ultratouch denim is really cotton then. The latest build pics on the FH3 vs DTB appears to be using real thick wool felt. Where do you get that stuff? Is there an advantage of wool vs cotton vs polyester, and what about special microfiber polyester which has a very high surface to area ratio?
inexpensive wool felt is an oxymoron!
Maybe it's the most expensive thing related to audio...
To have effectiveness it should be ...well, some of the most famous
enclosures adopt it ,mostly on the baffle.
Of course, using it to attenuate the back wave of the membrane
in a twisted environment 😱 brings results that cotton and synthetic fibre
don't show; it's related to the density/volume and the properties of wool
to convert pressure to heat.
Nice work Chaz! Glad it worked out for you, congratulations.
This is exactly what is so great about foam core speakers: you were able to determine that a design is worthy of pursuing in real wood quickly and cheaply. And it probably sounds pretty good even if you left it in foam?
What is it about the sound from this vs your cornu's that you like better in sound quality?
LOL. You might as well have said New Zealand, known for its wool. The only time I have seen something like this in the States is sold as footbed liners for foul weather / fisherman boots.
I just saw a post under
Henkjan's TL thread where someone said they used a $1 polyester fleece blanket from dollar store as stuffing with good success.
Is there much foam core "sound"? Honky, rattles or resonances? If your foam core looked better, would you use it?
Thanks!
For the Cornu and FH3-inspired horn (and all of my other foam core speakers), I do not hear any rattles or resonances of the foam cabinet itself. However, you can feel that the foam core is vibrating and thus, there is probably some low level acoustic output - but it doesn't seem to detract from the overall sound. Use of bracing is important, for the Cornu, the spirals act as bracing for the baffle. For other box shaped designs, I add bracing wherever the span feels like it is more than 3 inches. This helps keep the structure more stable and prevents it from resonating too much or collapsing if you push on the wall too hard.