Castle Microtower build

[zman01]

Micro Towers - I can't exactly remember which one I came across first - the plans on Planet 10 website http://homepage.mac.com/tlinespeaker...aps-150909.pdf, or this thread by Dave: microTower bipolar ML-TL for CHR-70 or EL70. Either way, I loved the intro... a bit of nostalgia, a bit of reviving a joy of the past... and the build looked simple, the finished speakers cute. Compact dimesions = (usually) Higher WAF , especially given that my first FR build was the BIB (pretty massive); then the plan was to build a Pensil 12 which became a Super Pensil 12 (pretty massive too).

I was also looking for speakers which could produce good bass and became very excited about FAST. After discussing FAST with Dave I had initially planned to order a pair of Alp 7 or CHR70.2En from Dave as FAST FR units. Dave's CHR70.2Ens were on sale at that time, so just decided to pick up 2 pairs... a pair for FAST and a pair for other experiments.

And then it hit me - why don't I do a Micro Tower build? According to Dave and ChrisB the MTs give plenty of bass... also the MT dimensions looked a perfect fit to me for using my left over pieces of ply board.

And so it was decided - let's go and build this! The picture below is not my buidl, but a concept build by Dave and Chrisb taken from the plans. If you take look at the illustration (taken from P10 plans), you will see how compact the speakers are (and the variations that can be made).

-Zia

[zman01]

The drivers for this project are Planet 10 modified CHR70 MK2.

Very happy with shipping and service from Planet 10, thanks Dave.

I have 40 hours of break in done for all the drivers. Will get some more before sounding off big time with the Micro Towers...

[zman01]

If you go through the MT plans, you'll see that there are a good number of variants.

For me the "castle" or sloped design caught my eye... I liked the aesthetic. Initially I was thinking of doing the 45 degree incline build, finally went for the 15 degrees. The attached image is an illustration from the Planet 10 MT plans file showing the standard MT and the 45 degree inclined top model.

Regarding WAF, my wife liked the design the first time I showed it to her and voted for the "castle" look. Good, more power to the towers!

[zman01]

I used 18mm ply, the plans on the site are for 15 mm ply board.

I kept the internal dimensions same as the original and cut the pieces accordingly.

Again there are some holey braces and more to that on the next post.

[zman01]

Adapted Dave's holey brace design for this build.

Since I do not have clamps, the books came in handy while gueing the two pieces together.

[zman01]

At first I had assumed that damping would be like BIB or Pensil 12, where there removable panels at the front or back to adust damping level to room need and personal preference. Then I realized that the MTs do not have a removable panel option in the original design.

Going through the plans again, I discovered that acosutic fibre glass wool is recommended. After asking at the forum I learnt that poly batting will also work.

It took me aday to track down some 1" thick poly batting. Fixed this with glue to the insides of the back and both sides.

[zman01]

Finished cutting the pieces, making the braces, cutting the driver holes, and finaly fixing the damping material - so time to put the cabs together.

Have one side and the top open as of now.

[planet10]

You'll need more damping than that, it will be similar to the pensils

dave

[skeeter99]

Wow you built these up quick! This'll be cool to hear how you feel about these vs. the SuperPensil's you're building.

Scott

[zman01]

Originally Posted by planet10

You'll need more damping than that, it will be similar to the pensils

dave

Dave, thanks for pointing this out.

This is the 1" thick poly batting lining. I have more with me. So basically I should have the fuff placed from under the drivers all the way to the base?

-Zia