Well, after putting my back out moving them, I'd probably defensively overlooked Demetri, but I'd totally forgot Scott's ML-TL. As will all his work, a gorgeous build, but with all due respect to Mr Dunn, not a memorably great performer.
meh, preaching to the choir on that point, but at the risk of being inflamatory, my money's on the basic math of the design ( remember, I have heard both - I suspect Bob hasn't)
Hi all,
A couple of weeks ago I finally glued the sides on mine after spending three months listening to them with the sides held on with Blu Tack. I have them right into a corner in my little room 7 Ft x 8Ft at the back of the garage. I changed the stuffing many times and what you see below is what I liked best and kept returning to.
Glued up they did sound different, either the sides were bouncing a bit on the BT or was it because they were slightly oversize, dunno maybe both. I'm pleased to say that they sound better glued and now I can look forward to many years of wonderful music.
My little web page has brought lots of PM's and emails I'm glad to say, I hope that some of it will result in sales for Dave, Colin and Ben
Jim
[edit] Ohhhh it's three picture hooks and some wire to hold up the stuffing at the front in the pic
A couple of weeks ago I finally glued the sides on mine after spending three months listening to them with the sides held on with Blu Tack. I have them right into a corner in my little room 7 Ft x 8Ft at the back of the garage. I changed the stuffing many times and what you see below is what I liked best and kept returning to.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Glued up they did sound different, either the sides were bouncing a bit on the BT or was it because they were slightly oversize, dunno maybe both. I'm pleased to say that they sound better glued and now I can look forward to many years of wonderful music.
My little web page has brought lots of PM's and emails I'm glad to say, I hope that some of it will result in sales for Dave, Colin and Ben
Jim
[edit] Ohhhh it's three picture hooks and some wire to hold up the stuffing at the front in the pic
Hi leeoh,
Yep, I bought CD structural ply from Bunnings. I'm not sure what the quality of their marine ply is like because I didn't even look at it as it was out of my budget.
If I had my time again, I think I would have gone for MDF because the CD ply quality is pretty poor. It required a fair bit of sanding / bog to get a suitable surface for the high gloss enamel finish.
Go with marine ply if you can. I used 2 pieces of marine ply for the front baffle. (my brother in law had a few off cuts lying around
. The quality of marine ply v CD ply is dramatic.Cheers,
Paul
Paul. Thanks for the reply. Bunnings are selling 18mm marine ply, 1220 X 610mm for $39.94, which makes it an expensive build, especially so as that size is an awkward one. "Mr. Ply and Wood have 15mm marine at $282 for 2400 X 1200. Even worse ! If I thought for a moment that i was going to build enclosures for the next 5 years or so listening, then I would use the ply, but where's the fun in that? I've been using 2 thicknesses of 12mm particle board glued together face to face which seems to work well and Dave gives it grudging approval. I don't feel so bad then when I throw it out for the council cleanup- there is one pair awaiting the dump right now. MDF seems to be a big no no. Leeoh.
Leeoh Don't be put off using MDF for your build just go with 18mm. Using 18mm Baltic birch Ply can have benefits in some builds BUT to be honest I have built FH3's using both 18mm MDF and 18mm BBPly and both using the same Mark Audio CHP70 drivers. Both I and my mate for whom one pair were built couldn't hear any real sonic difference in the sound. From the description of the ply that is affordable to you then it is a no brainer as far as I'm concerned and especially if you are going for a painted finish MDF is definitely what I would recommed for these very well braced speakers. Check out the build by Jemraid above. That is made from 18mm MDF. Ask him his thoughts. I'm sure he will agree. I'm sure others on this forum will vehemently argue this point, and for some designs and builds I would agree fully with them that BB Ply is best BUT again I think in this design being so well braced it makes little difference (if any) to my ears. So go with MDF and enjoy the end results. You won't be disappointed.
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Hullo Toppsy. I have used MDF to build all kinds of things - mostly furniture which i have veneered with timber veneer. I have also used it for speaker enclosures and at the moment have Jordan 4' wide rangers in the Jordan recommended enclosures, but they just don't seem to have the liveliness and clarity that Scott / Dave's weird looking Windermeres have, which I built from two layers of 12mm particle board. Even "She who must be obeyed" agrees. Quite adamantly. Interesting that you were able to compare the two materials side by side and couldn't detect any sonic difference. Hm. Generally, I prefer using MDF as its edges don't crumble as easily as particle board and it seems to cut more cleanly. Gives me more room for thought.
By the way, did you see the video, attached to one of the posts showing how to avoid splintering when ripping ply? The guy raised the blade slightly above table level so that when he put it thro', the blade scored a very shallow cut, then he put the blade to the proper height to cut right thro' the sheet. Makes sense.
By the way, did you see the video, attached to one of the posts showing how to avoid splintering when ripping ply? The guy raised the blade slightly above table level so that when he put it thro', the blade scored a very shallow cut, then he put the blade to the proper height to cut right thro' the sheet. Makes sense.
leeoh wrote
I generally have all my 2440mm x 1220mm sheet MDF and Baltic Birch Ply cut on a CNC controlled flat bed circular saw and have no issues with rip out of the grain. Perhaps I'm fortunate. But if one is using a home DIY circular saw table that has a much slower cutting speed then yes this method may help. I think the secret is as fast a cutting speed as you can achieve and a sharp blade. Particle board will blunt a new blade very quickly and is why I don't use the stuff, cheap as it is.
I generally have all my 2440mm x 1220mm sheet MDF and Baltic Birch Ply cut on a CNC controlled flat bed circular saw and have no issues with rip out of the grain. Perhaps I'm fortunate. But if one is using a home DIY circular saw table that has a much slower cutting speed then yes this method may help. I think the secret is as fast a cutting speed as you can achieve and a sharp blade. Particle board will blunt a new blade very quickly and is why I don't use the stuff, cheap as it is.
Colin, most CNC panel or beam saws and even many larger commercial table saws will have a counter-rotating pre-scoring saw to prevents the type of chip-out on bottom edge. If the scoring blade is disabled, there's no guarantee on eliminating chipping across veneer grain patterns or on double sided melamine, plastic laminate layups - indeed the latter two can chip in any direction of cut .
The double cutting that leeoh mentioned achieves essentially the same results, albeit in a more time consuming manner, and unless material is feed with pressurized feed rollers, there's the risk of not perfect edges on the second cut..
I've found high density plywood can be t least as hard on tooling tooling edges as MDF - certainly router bits and hole saws get dull and burn much faster on Baltic Birch than on MDF or particle board / melamine .
The double cutting that leeoh mentioned achieves essentially the same results, albeit in a more time consuming manner, and unless material is feed with pressurized feed rollers, there's the risk of not perfect edges on the second cut..
I've found high density plywood can be t least as hard on tooling tooling edges as MDF - certainly router bits and hole saws get dull and burn much faster on Baltic Birch than on MDF or particle board / melamine .
No Rez for FH3 & others?
OK, it looks like the most are using polyfill and some type of thick cotton or wool felt for damping. Are those better or as good as the No Rez stuff that I've been reading about that is supposedly designed specifically for damping speakers? The claims sure look impressive.
Thanks for any help.
No Rez 24"x27" Sheet - NR-24x27
UL
OK, it looks like the most are using polyfill and some type of thick cotton or wool felt for damping. Are those better or as good as the No Rez stuff that I've been reading about that is supposedly designed specifically for damping speakers? The claims sure look impressive.
Thanks for any help.
No Rez 24"x27" Sheet - NR-24x27
UL
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It looks to be a very expensive way to kill your speakers. I wouldn't bother with it, cotton, wool and polyfill all work well and don't take the life out of the music.
However, to be fair, there are those that believe that if a little damping is good, too much is even better.
Best Regards,
TerryO
Dave,
I turned down a bunch of that stuff at one of the last meets in Surrey, BC.
One of a very limited number of smart moves I've ever made.
Best Regards,
Terry
The 1/2" Ultratouch (recycled denim) is very ] easy to work with, and quite adequate for internal panels on the FH3.
For the additonal loose fill, Acoustastuff or generic BAF from sewing supply houses works very well. In the case of the FH, the front fold below the driver expands downwards, so some type of mesh is advisable to hold in place.
For the additonal loose fill, Acoustastuff or generic BAF from sewing supply houses works very well. In the case of the FH, the front fold below the driver expands downwards, so some type of mesh is advisable to hold in place.