I’ve always appreciated good audio but these are my first DIY speaker build, which I finished a few months ago and really couldn’t be happier. That laid back sound was really what I was looking for and the bass is phenomenal for the speaker size. A big shout out to Meniscus Audio, the diyaudio community and of course Paul Carmody for designing such a terrific speaker.
Sadly I purchased the kit before realizing that WAF, (wife appreciation/approval factor), was going to derail speaker placement. As such I had to shrink the cabinet height by 1” as one speaker had to fit in a bookshelf. And they are a little close to a wall so I currently have the rear ports stuffed with acoustastuff - not optimal but neither is my wife’s nagging.
I used some B&W 50mm port tubes and then 3d printed a spacer to get the correct tuning down to 42-43hz.
I used 3/4” baltic birch, which was great to work with but not very forgiving when it came to staining - the finish came out kind of blotchy. I also chose to use solid birch edge banding which was a bit of a challenge for my wood working skills. I’ll probably veneer my next project. I also had some leftover Noico butyl rubber which I lined the inside of the cabinet with. I don’t know if the sound deadening mat really made a difference but it certainly wasn’t being put to use sitting in the garage.
Sadly I purchased the kit before realizing that WAF, (wife appreciation/approval factor), was going to derail speaker placement. As such I had to shrink the cabinet height by 1” as one speaker had to fit in a bookshelf. And they are a little close to a wall so I currently have the rear ports stuffed with acoustastuff - not optimal but neither is my wife’s nagging.
I used some B&W 50mm port tubes and then 3d printed a spacer to get the correct tuning down to 42-43hz.
I used 3/4” baltic birch, which was great to work with but not very forgiving when it came to staining - the finish came out kind of blotchy. I also chose to use solid birch edge banding which was a bit of a challenge for my wood working skills. I’ll probably veneer my next project. I also had some leftover Noico butyl rubber which I lined the inside of the cabinet with. I don’t know if the sound deadening mat really made a difference but it certainly wasn’t being put to use sitting in the garage.
Congratulations on a great build.
And the best part of your post was ”…they are a little close to a wall so I currently have the rear ports stuffed with acoustastuff - not optimal but neither is my wife’s nagging.”
That should go into the forum’s posts hall of fame.
You certainly can try veneering next time, although that is a skill like others that needs to be learned and developed. Another suggestion would be to use a pre-stain wood conditioner before apply8ng the stain itself. Makes a big difference in the appearance. Not sure if you did it that way for these speakers. And even if you apply a veneer you still may need to pre-condition it first before staining to get an even finish.
Those are outstanding drivers and once again prove the tremendous value of a DIY speaker build compared to commercially manufactured speakers. Enjoy them.
And the best part of your post was ”…they are a little close to a wall so I currently have the rear ports stuffed with acoustastuff - not optimal but neither is my wife’s nagging.”
That should go into the forum’s posts hall of fame.
You certainly can try veneering next time, although that is a skill like others that needs to be learned and developed. Another suggestion would be to use a pre-stain wood conditioner before apply8ng the stain itself. Makes a big difference in the appearance. Not sure if you did it that way for these speakers. And even if you apply a veneer you still may need to pre-condition it first before staining to get an even finish.
Those are outstanding drivers and once again prove the tremendous value of a DIY speaker build compared to commercially manufactured speakers. Enjoy them.
Lovely small speakers...
Paul Carmody's DIY Speaker Pages - Carrera
That Scanspeak 15W/8530K00 is a great small midbass.
Troels has done it too:
Ellam-FLEX
Secret sauce seems to be the LCR notch around 800Hz to get it flat.
Paul Carmody's DIY Speaker Pages - Carrera
That Scanspeak 15W/8530K00 is a great small midbass.
Troels has done it too:
Ellam-FLEX
Secret sauce seems to be the LCR notch around 800Hz to get it flat.
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Yeah, I actually did use a prestain, which made a big difference but the end result was still a little blotchy. I've also read that using a spray toner can help reduce the blotchy effect although I didn't try it. Maybe next time I'll try the toner fas I really like working with Baltic Birch.
The brand of stain you use will also have a major effect. The hardware store stains I have tried on BB ply (Minwax, Olympic) were useless. I have used a General Finishes stain over BB ply with much better results. I was looking for a dark "Bombay mahogany" color to work with other furniture in the living room, which probably helps, but the GF stain uses a combination of pigment color and aniline dye which I think helps even out the color. I think I used three applications, wiping off excess in between, to get even coloring.
Bill
Bill
Thanks - I'll try it. Is there a particular brand that you've used or can suggest?
Thank you. Yeah, what initially drew me to this design, at least from what I'd read as I'd never listened to a finished pair, was the Hiquphon OW1 and laid back voicing of the design. But once the speakers were together it was the 15W/8530K00 that really surprised me. And the DIY bug has it's claws in my pretty good now...I've actually been looking at building the Ergo E-IX mini monitor.
Building the Ergo E-IX mini-monitor loudspeaker system | pink fish media
I know this design uses a different 15w speaker - I believe the Scan-speak 15W8530-K01 - and in a sealed design. My current speaker placement lends itself better to near wall and these look pretty interesting. They are a little smaller than my Carreras yet still get down to about 50hz. I'd like to see a more detailed review on them but haven't found anything?
As lousymusician suggested try using the better quality stain products from General Finishes instead of the stuff sold in DIY centers.
Here is a link to their website if you are not familiar with GF:
Manufacturer of the country's finest Water Base & Solvent Base Wood Finishing, Coatings & Flooring Products | General Finishes
You can probably also get some good advice on your particular project by contacting them directly.
hifijim,
The bookshelf speakers you did with the Satori Textreme drivers came out pretty nice.
FWIW, I built the ERGO-IX speakers. I finished them three weeks ago. The more I listen to them, the more I like them. Possibly the best speakers I've ever owned. And.. the bass is remarkable for their size. A sub to get the very bottom octave would be nice, but also risks messing up the naturally well balanced and detailed sound that the ERGO IXs have.
Thanks. General Finishes appear to be the go to. I've also been told a using a toner would help minimize a blotchy finish.
Thanks for the reply. Those Scanspeak drivers do impress don't they. I've always been a Morel fan as well. Did you build your own cabinets?
Yes, The Scanspeaks are incredibly fine speakers. The ERGO-IX uses the higher Q variant in a sealed enclosure. F3 is around 64 Hz for remarkably good bass for speakers their size. And, being sealed, they roll off at half the rate a ported box would. I built subwoofers for them that are sized as integrated stands. I am still debating whether to use them. I have not activated the subs yet. Thay are just acting as nice stands for now.
And yes, I built my own cabinets with the same front baffle and volume as the designer used but he had a bolt on front and removable back that was overly complicated and unnecessary. Mine were much simpler to build but work just as well. Thy are finished in black stained ash veneer.
If I can ever figure out how to post pictures I will. But my pictures have no URL. I'm not sure how to fix that.