The making of: The Two Towers (a 25 driver Full Range line array)

[wesayso]

Do that enough times and you will get to this point:


And even more days will get you to the top! Yeah!

I had sanded the enclosure while being fixed to the roof. More sanding still to be done. The baffle would need to fit all the way down again etc. so even sanding takes days of your time to complete.
Here's a test fit of the baffle:

(This is with 2 layers of mass loaded vinyl in between the aluminum plates)

[lemans23]

My friend, let me just say this: you have a true talent for wood working. This looks like a professional production, not a DIY project made from someone who had never used a router before. Gorgeous cabinetry.

[wesayso]

One down, one more to go:


Same principal, only learned a couple of tricks from the first one. Still a lot of work.

(the straps in action, together with the threaded rods to keep things lined up)

And if you hang in there, you'll get to the top once more:


This is where I am today... of coarse planning ahead the next stages but first more sanding.

One thing on my mind is the final color for the speaker. In some of the pictures you can see some tests I did for staining.
I'm after a dark finish, light won't work in our pre 1930 house.


Something like this maybe? It is my preference so far (click the picture for a better view):

(the material used in this 3D rendering is an actual photo of one of the test pieces,
it's not scaled quite right. just for an impression. Imagine it with a gloss coating)

I think this combination gives it a bit of a classic touch. It would fit in our living room.
We have a dark wooden floor, white walls and lots of black and chrome in between.
Actually, not that much chrome. But a lot of black.

[wesayso]

Originally Posted by lemans23

My friend, let me just say this: you have a true talent for wood working. This looks like a professional production, not a DIY project made from someone who had never used a router before. Gorgeous cabinetry.

Thanks for that! The planning helped to get to that level. I spend a lot of time thinking things trough to be able to make this work.
Knowing before hand from the earlier examples from members opc and koldby made me confident this kind of array can work good enough to be worth the time and trouble.

[zman01]

wesayso,

Sorry to hear about the job.

However, your project looks like it's coming together very impressively. The attention to detail and execution is superb, and great job. Look forward to further updates.

[planet10]

Originally Posted by wesayso

The layers used for the chamber are identical, just stacked in opposite order.

So the side-to-side width remains constant?

dave

[wesayso]

Yes, if you measure down vertically. But never straight opposing walls. (except for the braces, they will be covered with wool felt)
The shapes are random, but the same in each layer. Totally random in each separate layer is better of coarse but a lot more work. As seen here:

The walls will probably be covered with a rubbery coating but even that won't make the difference.
The wall thickness varies from 18 mm minimum to about 30 mm. It's main purpose is to change wall resonance.
I think to properly effect the rear wave the wavy shapes should be a lot taller. But I'd loose a lot of internal volume.

Originally Posted by zman01

wesayso,

Sorry to hear about the job.

However, your project looks like it's coming together very impressively. The attention to detail and execution is superb, and great job. Look forward to further updates.

Thanks!

[xrk971]

Very nice thread you have going here. I am sure this speaker will be awesome once finished and this thread will be frequently referenced by potential line array builders in the future. I like your use of mostly small power tools and it shows what one can do with a lot of elbow grease rather than fancy fully-loaded pro workshops.

Keep up the great work and good luck on job hunting! Wouldn't it be great if we all could just be paid to design and build speakers as a job?

I have a question of how many sheets of plywood have you used to make these speakers?

[wesayso]

I wouldn't mind at all if this kind of work became my job .

On the plywood question: 4 sheets of 18 mm plywood, 152,5 x 152,5cm.
And about 1.5 sheet of 15 mm, also 152,5 x 152,5cm. All of them B/BB grade.
From the other half a sheet of 15 mm ply I made my router table.

Are you looking for those numbers to do it in foam core? (lol)

If I wasn't out of a job I'd use CNC though, or at least some kind of pre cutting the layers. The jig saw job was the least pleasant to do. Routing wasn't too bad. I'd have no problem doing that again.

[KLBIrd]

An interesting project and am curious to see the final results and any measurements that are made of its performance.