OB-5 Construction by Carlos

Bill Baker · « **Reply #40 on:** 8 Nov 2008, 03:05 pm »

Absolutely stunning

Just goes to show what can be done with some imagination and patience.

ebag4 · « **Reply #41 on:** 8 Nov 2008, 03:06 pm »

You are an artist! I can't wait to see the final product.

Doug · « **Reply #42 on:** 9 Nov 2008, 04:42 am »

Carlos,

What glue are you using with the MDF?

Wonderful work. Beautiful cabinets.

Voncarlos · « **Reply #43 on:** 9 Nov 2008, 03:10 pm »

Quote from: Doug on 9 Nov 2008, 04:42 am

Carlos,
What glue are you using with the MDF?
Wonderful work. Beautiful cabinets.

For MDF to MDF & Maple just using standard Titebond II; for wood-backed veneer to MDF it's gel Contact Cement. I've used this combination for decades.
Thanks to all for your compliments!
Carlos

EARGASM · « **Reply #44 on:** 9 Nov 2008, 03:21 pm »

Removed by member.

Voncarlos · « **Reply #45 on:** 10 Nov 2008, 02:39 pm »

Hey Eargasm, I agree with your comments on glues; however, I have read many of the complaints of contact cement and veneer failure and if memory serves me right there was never any conclusion as to what actually caused the failure. There are also people using it without any problem. I veneered a desk back in 1995 using this technique in the high humidity (65 to 99%) of North coastal California and have since moved it to the Southwest with an average indoor humidity of 25-30% and have had no problems. I would wonder if the failure might be user caused? I should also say that I too have had doubts about using contact cement.
I am a big proponent of properly cleaning a joint before mating a surface. Case in point, when I went to temporarily mount my baffle to the box I rubbed my neck against it to steady it and left a oil stain on it. This was not visible under normal lighting conditions and it wasn't until I saw it in a flash picture that I was aware of it. It required holding a flashlight at a certain angle before it could be seen. See photo:

What I have planned for the box will require an instantaneous bond that will allow me to continue to work on it, so CC seamed like a fair choice.
Right now I'm trying to figure out how to layout all the Crossover components. By the time you add in the NoRes, there isn't much room in the back of the trapezoid shape to put things.
Thanks again for you comments,

Carlos

Bob in St. Louis · « **Reply #46 on:** 10 Nov 2008, 06:35 pm »

Carlos,
You craftsmanship is simply stunning Sir. You are truly an inspiration to all of us.
And the idea of creating the jig that transforms and ordinary router into a milling/planing machine is astounding.
Well done Sir and thank you for the pictures.

Bob

Rob S. · « **Reply #47 on:** 10 Nov 2008, 07:27 pm »

Wow, will the lower box be finished out in maple or cherry? Keep up the fantastic work.

Rob S.

Voncarlos · « **Reply #48 on:** 10 Nov 2008, 07:40 pm »

Quote from: Rob S. on 10 Nov 2008, 07:27 pm

Wow, will the lower box be finished out in maple or cherry? Keep up the fantastic work.

Rob S.

It will be both Maple and stained Cherry, and quite different from anything I've seen so far in speakers.

fcraven · « **Reply #49 on:** 10 Nov 2008, 08:08 pm »

Now that I have my own finished set of speakers, and they look nice I feel somewhat qualified to say...

Wow Carlos, Very Nice.

my only complaint is that too much of that beautiful veneer is covered by speakers

Fred

Hank · « **Reply #50 on:** 11 Nov 2008, 06:14 pm »

Carlos, great, beautiful baffle work. BTW, I tend to agree with you that contact cement problems are probably operator-caused. I've used CC for many years without a failure.

Voncarlos · « **Reply #51 on:** 20 Nov 2008, 07:01 pm »

Well, I've been baffled (ha ha) a bit about how to layout the crossover components. The speaker box gets very narrow in the back and the No-Rez takes away even more space, so there isn't a whole lot of room to work with. I didn't want to mount the X-over on boards that are then mounted to the side walls, as I didn't want to lose the benefit of the No-Rez. I also found that to minimize the Inductors interfering with each other, there was very little leeway in their placement.

So, I decided to build a rack attached to the bottom piece.
This would allow me to keep the inductors away from each other, especially the large ones and give me lots of places to mount the various components.

I did the finger joints with a dado blade on the table saw. Finger joints increased the glue surface area on such small edges and allowed for the slight 5 degree angle.

Unfortunately the rack also interferes with the volume and free flow of air, so I'll have to do some trimming.

I wanted to stain them the same as the speakers but this didn't look very good since the MDF doesn't take well to staining. So I painted them red.

Now there's a little more free flow room.

TomS · « **Reply #52 on:** 20 Nov 2008, 07:44 pm »

Wow, that is truly wild and creative... Any thought to just making them external with Speakon connectors like Bill Bakers (Response Audio)? That would solve the volume change issue.

The Ninja · « **Reply #53 on:** 20 Nov 2008, 07:48 pm »

I love how the crossover rack follows the form of the components. It's a work of are in itself. You must leave those crossovers external.

pbrstreetgang · « **Reply #54 on:** 21 Nov 2008, 02:14 am »

poseidonsvoice · « **Reply #55 on:** 21 Nov 2008, 04:43 am »

No words can explain my delight.

Anand.

Hank · « **Reply #56 on:** 21 Nov 2008, 11:59 am »

Quite an artful touch there, Carlos: air flow impedance decreased, visually pleasing. Even though hidden from view, you'll have the satisfaction of knowing the "rack" design serves its purpose.

Bill A · « **Reply #57 on:** 21 Nov 2008, 02:31 pm »

Is there a tool in your shop that you haven't used yet?

Very nice work, Carlos

Bill

PMAT · « **Reply #58 on:** 21 Nov 2008, 03:37 pm »

Sweet, sweet, sweet. I can't wait to see the finished project. My appreciation of fine speaker building is off the chart now. Keep the pics coming.

fcraven · « **Reply #59 on:** 22 Nov 2008, 01:42 am »

the problem I see with is crossover stand is that it makes for great art, I would rather see it on the outside of the speaker. So, Carlos, to review:

1. covering up beautiful veneer with speakers... bad
2. creating awesome modern sculpture and placing it inside your speakers... even bad-er. That's like putting a fine finish on the back and bottom of your speakers, come on now.

In the recesses of my mind, I have an idea that my next speaker project will be an OB-5, with all the bracing on the outside (an exoskeleton), along with the guts (an external crossover). Your design certainly would look nice on the outside, and that would be bad-er-er.

Fred--who has a real nasty headache right now