My FaitalPRO 4FE32 speakers arrived today. I was surprised just how small the 4” speakers were. It looks like the actual speaker cone is 3” in diameter if you don’t include the rubber mount to the frame.
I measured the speakers and surrounds and it’s 5”
I am wondering if I make the front baffle 6” wide so that there is space either side the driver.
I am planning on a 15mm birch ply build but now wondering if I use 18 mm for the front baffle or stick with 15mm.
Am I right in thinking that the main thing is that the internal dimension is the same?
Would having a slightly wider baffle on affect the sound?
Also I don’t want to be, or sound stupid, but what dimensions would I need for the rest of the box to ensure the internal volume is the same.
Is there any effect, positive or negative on placing some bracing in the speaker or using sound deadening pads on the internal walls?
Thanks
Lee
I measured the speakers and surrounds and it’s 5”
I am wondering if I make the front baffle 6” wide so that there is space either side the driver.
I am planning on a 15mm birch ply build but now wondering if I use 18 mm for the front baffle or stick with 15mm.
Am I right in thinking that the main thing is that the internal dimension is the same?
Would having a slightly wider baffle on affect the sound?
Also I don’t want to be, or sound stupid, but what dimensions would I need for the rest of the box to ensure the internal volume is the same.
Is there any effect, positive or negative on placing some bracing in the speaker or using sound deadening pads on the internal walls?
Thanks
Lee
The important thing here is internal CSA and line length.
As long as the area along the line is the same, it's all good... without going to extreme, of course.
The internal dimensions are 10cm x 12.8cm. That gives us a csa of 128. You can use other numbers as long as it stays at 128. But, having built a few, those numbers are easy to deal with, and give some room for the drivers to breathe.
Stay at 15mm. Once assembled and glued, making sure there is absolutely no pin holes because any little leak will kill the bass. I often apply a small seal of silicone after I glued there sides, making sure no air would escape from any corner joint.
18mm for the baffle would be overkill for a small 4" driver. Do chamfer the sides of the hole to let the driver breathe even more.
No need for bracing, the TABAQ is quite compact.
No need for sound deadening pads. Keep it simple.
Just the 60-70g of fluffy stuff (I had thinsulate which worked well) on the top 3/4 of the line.
As long as the area along the line is the same, it's all good... without going to extreme, of course.
The internal dimensions are 10cm x 12.8cm. That gives us a csa of 128. You can use other numbers as long as it stays at 128. But, having built a few, those numbers are easy to deal with, and give some room for the drivers to breathe.
Stay at 15mm. Once assembled and glued, making sure there is absolutely no pin holes because any little leak will kill the bass. I often apply a small seal of silicone after I glued there sides, making sure no air would escape from any corner joint.
18mm for the baffle would be overkill for a small 4" driver. Do chamfer the sides of the hole to let the driver breathe even more.
No need for bracing, the TABAQ is quite compact.
No need for sound deadening pads. Keep it simple.
Just the 60-70g of fluffy stuff (I had thinsulate which worked well) on the top 3/4 of the line.
I am working my way slowly through the long thread, and one question I have is can you put two 4” drivers in each TABAQ? Would they work in this design, would you wire them in parallel or series and would you still need a bsc? Is there any advantages or disadvantages to using two 4” drivers per box.
Lots of questions and sorry if it’s already been asked.
Thanks
Lots of questions and sorry if it’s already been asked.
Thanks
eldarvanyar,
If you were to use two 4" drivers instead of single one, you would have to make the (internal) volume of the cabinet 2X. The port area might need to be recalculated also.
For two 8 ohm drivers, you would probably do parallel, as putting them in parallel would give you 4 ohms (assuming your amp is good for 4 ohms). For two 4 ohm drivers, series in more practical as that would give you 8 ohms, and parallel would give you 2 ohms (difficult for most amplifiers to drive).
Two drivers per box will result in a bigger box. You should be able to play louder, and it is possible that the bass will be felt more, as two drivers will move more air vs a single driver. The two drivers will have to be placed as close as possible, and it is possible there will be some comb filtering, but for 4", it might be less audible. It is also possible to run the bottom driver as 0.5 driver (for low frequencies only), but that would add some filter components. I have seen a couple of designs where the second wide-band (aka full range) driver was placed on one of the sidewalls at a height just lower to that of the front firing driver; that is supposed to work as a 0.5 driver too. But that will change how the speaker is interacting with the room.
You can experiment if you have the time and means.
If you were to use two 4" drivers instead of single one, you would have to make the (internal) volume of the cabinet 2X. The port area might need to be recalculated also.
For two 8 ohm drivers, you would probably do parallel, as putting them in parallel would give you 4 ohms (assuming your amp is good for 4 ohms). For two 4 ohm drivers, series in more practical as that would give you 8 ohms, and parallel would give you 2 ohms (difficult for most amplifiers to drive).
Two drivers per box will result in a bigger box. You should be able to play louder, and it is possible that the bass will be felt more, as two drivers will move more air vs a single driver. The two drivers will have to be placed as close as possible, and it is possible there will be some comb filtering, but for 4", it might be less audible. It is also possible to run the bottom driver as 0.5 driver (for low frequencies only), but that would add some filter components. I have seen a couple of designs where the second wide-band (aka full range) driver was placed on one of the sidewalls at a height just lower to that of the front firing driver; that is supposed to work as a 0.5 driver too. But that will change how the speaker is interacting with the room.
You can experiment if you have the time and means.
Last edited:
Definitely worth asking. If you want the advantage of "double drivers" you can always build a second pair. Experimenting and trying different things is one thing that makes DIY what it is. You could try stacking them, placing them side by side, or back to back. Back to back should eliminate the need for any BSC filter.
Mike
Hi there! My name is Guille and I'm from Argentina. I've been reading this thread for about a week now. It all started out by trying to find out a good diy project to make with the speakers i've got at hand, namely the FaitalPro line. So, I made up my mind and just ordered a pair of 4fe32 as it seems to be a lot of agreement about its good sound. But now I think my amp (a 1980 Pioneer SA-410, 20 watts per channel) will run out of gas trying to drive the 30 watts Faitals. Should I step back and go for the 20watts 3fe32 or even go for another option? Anyway, thanks to Bjorn and all the people involved in this inspiring and enduring project. Only I wish I had something more interesting to say in my first post! Thanks to all!
Don’t worry about your amp.
I still have an old NAD amp that is 15w and it drives the speakers fine.
Don’t get caught with the watts number game.
Plenty of people have 5w tube amps, and it’s fine as well. You just don’t expect doing a DJ party.
Same goes with 100w amps driving a 30w speaker... you just don’t turn the knob to 11.
I still have an old NAD amp that is 15w and it drives the speakers fine.
Don’t get caught with the watts number game.
Plenty of people have 5w tube amps, and it’s fine as well. You just don’t expect doing a DJ party.
Same goes with 100w amps driving a 30w speaker... you just don’t turn the knob to 11.
Has anyone built the 4" update model yet ( I mean the 171 cm crossection pipe, the 22,8 cm crossection port and the 84g stuffing proposal by Bjorn Johansson?
I am about to start building a cab but am a little confused by the many options and revisions in this thread. The 4" option has had a proposal of 154 cm2 cross section, with standard/old style port and 63g stuffing, As well as the more documented 171 cm2 cross section with the increased 22,8cm2 cross section port and 84g stuffing.
I will be using the TB W4-1320SIF, and lean towards the proposed 171cm2 / 22,8cm2 84 g stuffing side. And yes I am willing to experiment, just want to know where to start.
kind regards
I am about to start building a cab but am a little confused by the many options and revisions in this thread. The 4" option has had a proposal of 154 cm2 cross section, with standard/old style port and 63g stuffing, As well as the more documented 171 cm2 cross section with the increased 22,8cm2 cross section port and 84g stuffing.
I will be using the TB W4-1320SIF, and lean towards the proposed 171cm2 / 22,8cm2 84 g stuffing side. And yes I am willing to experiment, just want to know where to start.
kind regards
Sorry if the answer is in this post elsewhere. If I want to do a folded Tabaq for the W5-1611, how do I convert the dimensions for the tall Tabaq to the folded? Is it half as tall and the center divider shortened to keep the clearance inside the same? And then, how would I place the driver, as far as height?
Thanks,
Mike
Thanks,
Mike
To fold a TL, you have to draw a line in the middle of the CSA and turn it around to your needs.
The drivers stays at the same height "inside" the line. the outside placement matters little.
But... folding a TABAQ large will place the driver quite low to the ground. Unless you plan to put it on a TV shelf or something... then you have to be careful with vent placement.
Myself, I've always had a less than perfect response from a folded line rather than a straight up line. But that maybe due to my poor building skills!
The drivers stays at the same height "inside" the line. the outside placement matters little.
But... folding a TABAQ large will place the driver quite low to the ground. Unless you plan to put it on a TV shelf or something... then you have to be careful with vent placement.
Myself, I've always had a less than perfect response from a folded line rather than a straight up line. But that maybe due to my poor building skills!