Ah yes! Spare no expense woofer trim ring. I like it.
I gave the front a 16mm roundover on the verticals. This was an aesthetic maneuver per the family—but I'd think it could only help as opposed to hurt? It's actaully pretty subtle.
Also—now that said family has a better visual on the whole project—it looks like there's a fair chance the xover boxes will be tucked away (I still would have built them the same way, might cut off the bevel after lots of listening evaluations) but we'll put the speaks on the floor to start.
Thoughts about feet? Area rugs in the room—but hardwood floor where the speaks will live. I have some nice 1/4 German felt... maybe just a mat? Only asking about feet since it seems there's a lot of theories there related to speakers...
I gave the front a 16mm roundover on the verticals. This was an aesthetic maneuver per the family—but I'd think it could only help as opposed to hurt? It's actaully pretty subtle.
Also—now that said family has a better visual on the whole project—it looks like there's a fair chance the xover boxes will be tucked away (I still would have built them the same way, might cut off the bevel after lots of listening evaluations) but we'll put the speaks on the floor to start.
Thoughts about feet? Area rugs in the room—but hardwood floor where the speaks will live. I have some nice 1/4 German felt... maybe just a mat? Only asking about feet since it seems there's a lot of theories there related to speakers...
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Backs and bracing in! Well, still have some work to do on the backs for screws.
Matthias—I may have asked at some point...didn't make a note if so—What's the story with pyramid foam on the back panel? Yes? No? Cut the pyramids off? I don't mind adjusting later—just curious how you think I should start.
I will do the foam before exterior finishing...
Matthias—I may have asked at some point...didn't make a note if so—What's the story with pyramid foam on the back panel? Yes? No? Cut the pyramids off? I don't mind adjusting later—just curious how you think I should start.
I will do the foam before exterior finishing...
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Actually a couple of additional questions Matthias—Re: the back foam question above—found an earlier post where you stated no foam on the back panel.
- Screw spacing on the back panel? Opinions? Was thinking around 153mm head to head (6" spacing). I have some very nice German 1/8" foam tape for sealing, has the right amount of give. The back panel has zero flex being full thickness material.
- Where does the bass port measurement start? Overall length? Inside cabinet measurement? Was going to start with the longer dimension of 11cm noted in your paper.
Thanks!
- Screw spacing on the back panel? Opinions? Was thinking around 153mm head to head (6" spacing). I have some very nice German 1/8" foam tape for sealing, has the right amount of give. The back panel has zero flex being full thickness material.
- Where does the bass port measurement start? Overall length? Inside cabinet measurement? Was going to start with the longer dimension of 11cm noted in your paper.
Thanks!
Back panel foam: I ended up with a bit of foam on behind the woofer. Just try and see how you like the sound. Too much damping, and the bass is too lean. Too little damping, and the lower mids get affected by the internal resonances.
Screw distance: sounds good to me.
Port length is overall length. Again, try and see how you like it best. Longer port gives deeper bass, shorter port gives more punch.
Screw distance: sounds good to me.
Port length is overall length. Again, try and see how you like it best. Longer port gives deeper bass, shorter port gives more punch.
OMG.
In all likelihood these will be playing music this weekend!
10 coats of finish. Hmmm.... I never take notes, which is terrible—so this is always somewhat of an experiment—but suffice to it to say they are coming out great. The surface has that high-end hand rubbed look—with some depth in person. I wouldn't want glossy cabinets no matter what—personal opinion—and the white was to appease the "designer" family. In hard light you can still see the wood grain and even, thin brush strokes. I didn't try to make the layers of Russian ply go away completely on the rounded corners....
Making the speakOn cables now—other than that—it's a little steel wool after 24hrs, and installation of drivers! Really can't wait. (I didn't make the grills yet—probably should soon or they will never happen—glad I put magnets in place for the future though)
Thanks Matthias!!!!!!!!
In all likelihood these will be playing music this weekend!
10 coats of finish. Hmmm.... I never take notes, which is terrible—so this is always somewhat of an experiment—but suffice to it to say they are coming out great. The surface has that high-end hand rubbed look—with some depth in person. I wouldn't want glossy cabinets no matter what—personal opinion—and the white was to appease the "designer" family. In hard light you can still see the wood grain and even, thin brush strokes. I didn't try to make the layers of Russian ply go away completely on the rounded corners....
Making the speakOn cables now—other than that—it's a little steel wool after 24hrs, and installation of drivers! Really can't wait. (I didn't make the grills yet—probably should soon or they will never happen—glad I put magnets in place for the future though)
Thanks Matthias!!!!!!!!
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Thanks P.A.!
Tweeter teaser! Plus a question—noob style—but you never know. See spade attachment point for the Volt mid. I'm assuming I'll just solder the the neg directly? Prior to install of course, making sure to not mess with the connection that's there? It's been painted red by Volt—red means "stop"—that threw me for a second, haha—or maybe there's something I'm missing?
Edit:::::!!!!::::
FACE PALM! Haha. I knew something was "wrong"... I looked at the opposite side of the driver! OKAY—def noob moment. Ignore me plz. I'm WAY TOO excited to get these playing. LOL.
Tweeter teaser! Plus a question—noob style—but you never know. See spade attachment point for the Volt mid. I'm assuming I'll just solder the the neg directly? Prior to install of course, making sure to not mess with the connection that's there? It's been painted red by Volt—red means "stop"—that threw me for a second, haha—or maybe there's something I'm missing?
Edit:::::!!!!::::
FACE PALM! Haha. I knew something was "wrong"... I looked at the opposite side of the driver! OKAY—def noob moment. Ignore me plz. I'm WAY TOO excited to get these playing. LOL.
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NO WORDS
What does it mean when a single OSMC speaker—in this case the left channel (had to test it right? even with the right not finished)—sounds BETTER as mono, than your previous pair of dual 2x 4" single driver speakers, that were made with love on the East coast of USA?
Or, my new favorite quote from Jim (6L6)— "Build your last speaker first"? Haha. Since this was the first time I built speakers.
Seriously I think I should just send Matthias a blank check.
My wife has dubbed them "The Stormtroopers". Pretty much all in the family are happy to make room for these—the joy they brought tonight with the windows open, hearing the music outside, then I'd enter the room! Holy F@#!. BIG thanks to Matthias and all those that contributed. Not sure I will sleep much tonight in anticipation of listening tomorrow. Haven't even put the SP-10MK2 to the test—the DAC sounded so seriously good—and it PALES in comparison to the vinyl. More serious listening to come....
On a design note: I will be ripping the tops of my angled crossover "plinths" flat and making 1/4" clear plexi covers for them. One of them I had to move around a bit since it was picking up AC! Everything was powered down and the left sounded like it was "on", only audible in a quiet room, ear to drivers... all of them...
Also—will shoot some "pro" images soon.
Just WOW.
What does it mean when a single OSMC speaker—in this case the left channel (had to test it right? even with the right not finished)—sounds BETTER as mono, than your previous pair of dual 2x 4" single driver speakers, that were made with love on the East coast of USA?
Or, my new favorite quote from Jim (6L6)— "Build your last speaker first"? Haha. Since this was the first time I built speakers.
Seriously I think I should just send Matthias a blank check.
My wife has dubbed them "The Stormtroopers". Pretty much all in the family are happy to make room for these—the joy they brought tonight with the windows open, hearing the music outside, then I'd enter the room! Holy F@#!. BIG thanks to Matthias and all those that contributed. Not sure I will sleep much tonight in anticipation of listening tomorrow. Haven't even put the SP-10MK2 to the test—the DAC sounded so seriously good—and it PALES in comparison to the vinyl. More serious listening to come....
On a design note: I will be ripping the tops of my angled crossover "plinths" flat and making 1/4" clear plexi covers for them. One of them I had to move around a bit since it was picking up AC! Everything was powered down and the left sounded like it was "on", only audible in a quiet room, ear to drivers... all of them...
Also—will shoot some "pro" images soon.
Just WOW.
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Wow! I have never seen such beautiful Stormtroopers!!!
It feels great to see how others put life to the OSMC design, and it's ever better if they like the result. Great work, pfarrell!
The AC pickup in your xover is interesting. I never observed this (with the OSMC or any other speaker). Does it change if you rotate the xovers (and hence the inductors) by 90°? Does it happen with both xovers if they are placed at the same spot? What might cause the strong AC fields in your home?
It feels great to see how others put life to the OSMC design, and it's ever better if they like the result. Great work, pfarrell!
The AC pickup in your xover is interesting. I never observed this (with the OSMC or any other speaker). Does it change if you rotate the xovers (and hence the inductors) by 90°? Does it happen with both xovers if they are placed at the same spot? What might cause the strong AC fields in your home?
Thanks! They are truly spectacular.
AC noise seems maybe logical under the circumstances. All the audio stuff is centered around a 1950s piece of steel office furniture that was stripped to the bare sheet and welds and hipsterfied.
I had some pretty awesome noise issues over this journey—I learned that anything with an AC brick was death inside the cabinet—those bricks I have found are huge sources of noise. Suffice it to say, all that nonsense is now somewhat arranged under the cabinet, as open as possible and signal/AC separated. Made ALL the difference—also, evaluating new amps out in the open before putting them anywhere inside something. The left channel which sounded ON when everything was off (keep in mind this is really low, ear to cones, and a quiet house) went quiet/off when I moved it's Xover box away from all the power strips and out from under the cabinet.
It all works out—it's in a corner—looks beautiful from above—just needs a clear cover.
So in moving it "away" I did rotate it 90 and added space—we are talking maybe a foot here. Got quiet immediately. I will try with the other Xover later. It is currently under the metal cabinet too—near a Mac mini—but much farther from the power strip than the left. Just listened to a record—SO GOOD. Can't believe that anything could be better than a 3-way setup—I'm hearing WAY more music than previous speaks—and those speakers were critical, at the time, to doing any of this music building journey. What speaker arrangement would be better than a 3-way? Why is the setup considered old-school and I seem to read that in a "things have improved" since then kind of way? Haha.
Next up might be to design and build a dedicated audio centric piece of furniture. Record storage etc. I do have a soft approval on that—provided it has a marble top
AC noise seems maybe logical under the circumstances. All the audio stuff is centered around a 1950s piece of steel office furniture that was stripped to the bare sheet and welds and hipsterfied.
I had some pretty awesome noise issues over this journey—I learned that anything with an AC brick was death inside the cabinet—those bricks I have found are huge sources of noise. Suffice it to say, all that nonsense is now somewhat arranged under the cabinet, as open as possible and signal/AC separated. Made ALL the difference—also, evaluating new amps out in the open before putting them anywhere inside something. The left channel which sounded ON when everything was off (keep in mind this is really low, ear to cones, and a quiet house) went quiet/off when I moved it's Xover box away from all the power strips and out from under the cabinet.
It all works out—it's in a corner—looks beautiful from above—just needs a clear cover.
So in moving it "away" I did rotate it 90 and added space—we are talking maybe a foot here. Got quiet immediately. I will try with the other Xover later. It is currently under the metal cabinet too—near a Mac mini—but much farther from the power strip than the left. Just listened to a record—SO GOOD. Can't believe that anything could be better than a 3-way setup—I'm hearing WAY more music than previous speaks—and those speakers were critical, at the time, to doing any of this music building journey. What speaker arrangement would be better than a 3-way? Why is the setup considered old-school and I seem to read that in a "things have improved" since then kind of way? Haha.
Next up might be to design and build a dedicated audio centric piece of furniture. Record storage etc. I do have a soft approval on that—provided it has a marble top
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Oh Yes! Only in mono for about an hour—just to make sure I didn't have a fatal error. Ha! Quantum leap forward here. MAJOR upgrade. Everything got SO much better it's remarkable. Couldn't be happier—plus the whole "acceptance" factor due to physical "room presence" of the boxes is a total non-issue since the system is completely transformed—and my ladies "get it"—and they look pro. Between the new speaks and the Muses "old Apple remote" volume control I added to the pre-amp they are quiet satisfied—and again, the audio transformation is astounding. I'm still in shock that I own them—and have crazy gratitude to you for your quest that I could be a part of. What's next? Haha.
You may like this. A good friend (he's Hungarian—I mention this to his esteemed credit ;-) just stopped by—he's a fine woodworker, a piano tuner (which is what my dad does for a living—go figure!), and does the acoustic panel building and some speaker cabinet construction for a French led audio partnership here of which he's a partner: Klinger Favre audio -english version
He said of the OSMC "These are topnotch high-end lifetime classically designed speakers that sound as good as they look—and could go toe to toe with any other high-end speaker. Solidly awesome. This is what you want in a good speaker."
He chose Miles—Kind of blue. We ran it Hi-res on the DAC—and also vinyl—yes, vinyl won by a good margin—but with the OSMC that gap certainly closed a bit.
He recommended making them "even better" with a cup and ball design floating foot. You can feel the bass in our wood floors, which he basically pointed out was lost "to the room". I'm going to put some really simple spikes under them—not attached—just hear what I hear as a starting point.
Beyond pleased.
He said of the OSMC "These are topnotch high-end lifetime classically designed speakers that sound as good as they look—and could go toe to toe with any other high-end speaker. Solidly awesome. This is what you want in a good speaker."
He chose Miles—Kind of blue. We ran it Hi-res on the DAC—and also vinyl—yes, vinyl won by a good margin—but with the OSMC that gap certainly closed a bit.
He recommended making them "even better" with a cup and ball design floating foot. You can feel the bass in our wood floors, which he basically pointed out was lost "to the room". I'm going to put some really simple spikes under them—not attached—just hear what I hear as a starting point.
Beyond pleased.
....some quite short spikes made a MASSIVE difference in bass into the room as opposed to into the floor. Nothing permanent in terms of installation, not sure I see the need. Also going to try some sorbothane half rounds—-experimenting with the one box that was just on a felt pad on hardwood floors initially. Incidentally, Matthias, is there a defined “right” and “left” speaker arrangement with the offset drivers? I realized I arbitrarily placed them. Man they sound AWESOME.
Oh, wow, I never believed that feet really make a big difference. Maybe that's just because I mostly lived in places with concrete floors. Or, well, wait a minute... my OSMCs are on wood! Hmmm.
Just use them the way you think they sound better. If you can't hear a difference, use them the way they look better. I use mine with the mid+tweeter closer to each other.