A moisture meter is a useful tool when working with solid wood.
One way to use solid wood and not have to worry about movement is to make the sides, top and bottom from solid and the front and back from plywood.
Have the grain of the solid wood run continuously around the box (up and down, left and right). Wood movement is negligible along its grain, so you can solidly glue the front and back in place.
This is a little off topic but some have mentioned veneering here. I have done this several times now with some aircraft grade ply veneer. I was able to buy some of this stuff from a lawyer who settled a bankruptcy for an aircraft interior customizing company. I bought what I thought would last forever, I was wrong. Now I am trying to find some high grade veneers and have had little luck in finding a good source that ships within the US at reasonable prices.
Anybody have any good sources they want to share? I prefer ply veneer b/c that is what I learned with, single sheet veneer sense very difficult to work with, I could be wrong though.
Thanks for the input in advance...
Anybody have any good sources they want to share? I prefer ply veneer b/c that is what I learned with, single sheet veneer sense very difficult to work with, I could be wrong though.
Thanks for the input in advance...
Losing energy is your friend, odd numbers are even better!
You lose energy every time when it transfers from one medium to another - wood to glue to wood to glue soaks resonances.
And panels that aren´t 2:1 or suchlike...design odd, it´s better.
Perhaps this thread should be "What is the best MATERIAL for speaker enclosures?" I've heard of concrete and aluminum being used.
I recall an article from back in Audio Amateur describing a cabinet with double walls and the space in between filled with sand.
I have a semi-whimsical idea of a cabinet-in-a-cabinet with air in between (vacuum would of course be better, but much less practical), similar to how isolation rooms in recording studios are built. The air-to-wall interface appears to be the "loss leader" as far as reducing sound transmission, and having two of them would double it. I wonder how this would compare to sand-filled.
A good paperbacked veneer is very nice to work with, is very flexible, and providing the substrate is properly prepared, foolproof.
Our supplier here in Western Canada wouldn't be much use to you though.
Best, Don
I say a fantasic pair of solid oak speaker cabnets at a diy event. It was too bad there was a 18" split in the speaker front! As several people have pointed out baltic birtch is about as good as it gets but rember we are talking about void free baltic birch. By the way the birch plywood you find at say Home Depo is not baltic birch. Baltic birch usualy has more plys, better glue,about twice as expensive and usualy comes in 5'x5' sheet.
Hello,
Cabinet grade ply (pun intended) like Baltic birch is strong and resilient. In terms of vibration isolation and dampening resilient is the other end of the spectrum from what we want, I think. For vibration isolation you can not beat layers of differing density materials. For dampening, materials that have internal friction when they move are preferred. Toss in high density materials into the mix for greater vibration isolation. In the early days, Linkwitz used tar like mastic mixed with sand to coat the inside of his enclosures. Concrete eats vibration.
Here is a idea or recommendation; Try Wounderboard (1/2 inch concrete backing board used in the bath under the tile walls) with a layer of Henery’s roof mastic, do this inside the good looking wood box.
What does Carl Weldon The roofing consultant speaker guy think of this?
DT
All just for fun!
Cabinet grade ply (pun intended) like Baltic birch is strong and resilient. In terms of vibration isolation and dampening resilient is the other end of the spectrum from what we want, I think. For vibration isolation you can not beat layers of differing density materials. For dampening, materials that have internal friction when they move are preferred. Toss in high density materials into the mix for greater vibration isolation. In the early days, Linkwitz used tar like mastic mixed with sand to coat the inside of his enclosures. Concrete eats vibration.
Here is a idea or recommendation; Try Wounderboard (1/2 inch concrete backing board used in the bath under the tile walls) with a layer of Henery’s roof mastic, do this inside the good looking wood box.
What does Carl Weldon The roofing consultant speaker guy think of this?
DT
All just for fun!
The few guys i know who are doing solid are using stuff that has air dried for 50-100 years... and one of the builds by the "local" who uses solid still cracked despite him knowing very well how to work it.
These aren't them but are built from the same (drying since 1908) solid Douglas Fir (a pine species)
dave
So far i had the best results with MDF combined with ceramic tiles and self adhesive asphalt sheets (on the tiles). The enclosures are very dead and VERY heavy
Next i am willing to try self-adhesive lead plates on the MDF, i´v read that Harbeth was/is using this. Anyway, i am almost sure that we should focus much more on the room treatment...
Cal thinks that certain peel and stick type roofing membranes will help with panel damping but Cal is more interested in decreasing panel size to force the resonances higher making them harder to excite so he uses bracing. He thinks the peel and stick idea might work but he also thinks you will also get some gassing off which may interact adversely with some of the driver adhesives or materials. If you are convinced panel damping is the way to go he recommends you look at some of the peel and stick type linoleum floor tiles as a place to start.
Tony thinks
that thickness ,damping and material should follow some natural rules .
Tony thinks
That a 3" driver needs something a little bit stronger than cardboard ,and depending on the force of the driver (may be with you )
the cabinet should be treated consequently.
Tony thinks of aluminium baffle bur they are too expensive and common steel is too heavy ...
PLywood
that thickness ,damping and material should follow some natural rules .
Tony thinks
That a 3" driver needs something a little bit stronger than cardboard ,and depending on the force of the driver (may be with you )the cabinet should be treated consequently.
Tony thinks of aluminium baffle bur they are too expensive and common steel is too heavy ...
PLywood
Aluminum is not all that expensive... steel is magnetic. I avoid even steel screws to fix the driver in place.
dave
Cal thinks that certain peel and stick type roofing membranes will help with panel damping but Cal is more interested in decreasing panel size to force the resonances higher making them harder to excite so he uses bracing. He thinks the peel and stick idea might work but he also thinks you will also get some gassing off which may interact adversely with some of the driver adhesives or materials. If you are convinced panel damping is the way to go he recommends you look at some of the peel and stick type linoleum floor tiles as a place to start.
Hello Cal,
I will not call you Carl any more.
I have used vinyl floor tile even lead backed gypsum wall board but not single ply HPG roofing.
TX DT
All just for Fun!
Strong in this one the force is. Yes!
Who the ***k is Tony BTW?
Aren't most of those speakers you use stamped steel frame?
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There is a lot I don't know about, but wood is something I do know about. Use Baltic birch or apple ply(same thing made in America). you could laminate this to mdf if you want to combine the properties. unibond from vacuum pressing systems is very good glue for laminating. For backed veneer try veneer supplies.com or formwood. Both sell the same 2ply wood veneer which is great. I would not laminate panels without a vacuum bag...Talk to a local cabinet shop. have fun....Evan
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