StevenZ
Texas or nothin'
Hey guys,
Just thought I should start a quick little build log here for my newest speakers. As some of you know, I've picked up a pair of Mark Audio Alpair 12P full range drivers. These are Mark Fenlon's newest top of the line (as well as largest)drivers which use a Japanese paper cone, as well as Japanese suspension parts, non-resonant plastic frame, reversed roll rubber surround, etc. They are made in small batches and are hand assembled in China with Mark Fenlon carefully watching over quality control to make sure that each pair comes out perfect.
On to the build.
I drew up the cabinet in AutoCAD and ported it over to our CNC router. Here is a quick video of the CNC router cutting the parts out. *Volume warning, it may be loud*.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXe8WVix4zA&feature=plcp
This original enclosures were supposed to be out of Domestic hardwood core plywood but it seemed my machine wasn't calibrated properly as well as the material being under 3/4" so I threw away the entire sheet and started over. This time around I got some true 3/4" MDF and triple checked the machine parameters to make sure everything would be perfect before wasting another sheet. The parts came out absolutely perfect, accurate to .0001".
Moving forward, I had a little time this morning to throw the enclosures together. Here are a few photos of the build. As you can see I opted for window bracing instead of the original "holey" bracing called for in the plans. As of right now they are waiting in the finish room and have a couple coats of sealer already thrown on. Monday they will get an off-white paint sprayed onto them and should be fully mounted by Wednesday. I rounded over the front edges to give it a "softer" look and reduce diffraction.
Also, as you guys can see I added more material to the inside of the cutout due to the flush mounting rebate being so deep, only leaving 1/4" material to screw into. I added 1/2" more which gives 3/4" material to screw to. I did a small round-over on the inside edge of the cut-out but I don't think it's adequate as I believe that the driver will need more room to breathe. Soo.. with the enclosures already sealed up I'll just take a small sanding wheel from a dremel and chamfer the inside edge a bit. Shouldn't be a problem, just a little time consuming.
Anyways, I'm excited that I've made progress on the enclosures and can't wait to listen to them next week. Hope you guys enjoy!
Cheers,
Steven
Just thought I should start a quick little build log here for my newest speakers. As some of you know, I've picked up a pair of Mark Audio Alpair 12P full range drivers. These are Mark Fenlon's newest top of the line (as well as largest)drivers which use a Japanese paper cone, as well as Japanese suspension parts, non-resonant plastic frame, reversed roll rubber surround, etc. They are made in small batches and are hand assembled in China with Mark Fenlon carefully watching over quality control to make sure that each pair comes out perfect.
On to the build.
I drew up the cabinet in AutoCAD and ported it over to our CNC router. Here is a quick video of the CNC router cutting the parts out. *Volume warning, it may be loud*.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXe8WVix4zA&feature=plcp
This original enclosures were supposed to be out of Domestic hardwood core plywood but it seemed my machine wasn't calibrated properly as well as the material being under 3/4" so I threw away the entire sheet and started over. This time around I got some true 3/4" MDF and triple checked the machine parameters to make sure everything would be perfect before wasting another sheet. The parts came out absolutely perfect, accurate to .0001".
Moving forward, I had a little time this morning to throw the enclosures together. Here are a few photos of the build. As you can see I opted for window bracing instead of the original "holey" bracing called for in the plans. As of right now they are waiting in the finish room and have a couple coats of sealer already thrown on. Monday they will get an off-white paint sprayed onto them and should be fully mounted by Wednesday. I rounded over the front edges to give it a "softer" look and reduce diffraction.
Also, as you guys can see I added more material to the inside of the cutout due to the flush mounting rebate being so deep, only leaving 1/4" material to screw into. I added 1/2" more which gives 3/4" material to screw to. I did a small round-over on the inside edge of the cut-out but I don't think it's adequate as I believe that the driver will need more room to breathe. Soo.. with the enclosures already sealed up I'll just take a small sanding wheel from a dremel and chamfer the inside edge a bit. Shouldn't be a problem, just a little time consuming.
Anyways, I'm excited that I've made progress on the enclosures and can't wait to listen to them next week. Hope you guys enjoy!
Cheers,
Steven
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