[DigIndig]

My build has been going on for several months now, but there hasn’t been much to share until recently. Now that there is finally enough progress I figured it was time. I started back in December with the planning, got the flat packs in January/February, and began work in earnest in March. I expect the overall build is going to still take several more months, hopefully completed by the end of the year.

My original plan was to build a pair of NX-Oticas, but then I threw in a pair of triple OB subs because why not? The NX-Otica flatpack arrived in January, and the sub flatpacks in February. Unfortunately, we then had the big freeze here in Texas, and I had to put any progress on hold to take care of other things.

Planning

I had already decided that I was going to veneer the side panels on both the Oticas and the subs, and paint the bases and baffles piano black. The amp boxes would get a similar treatment. On Jay’s recommendation, I likewise decided to veneer the inside frames within the subs, even though it will generally be covered by grills.  Perfectionist me decided to veneer the insides of Otica side panels so the parts not covered by No-Rez will have the same finish as the outside (even though it may only be a 1/2” reveal). To pull this off, it would require that I finish the various components before finally assembly, as I didn’t relish trying to veneer inside the cabinet with the braces installed. I also decided I wanted the edges veneered as well. This meant that I’d be doing a lot of masking and dry fitting until the pieces were finished and assembled in the final build.

Finishes:

For the outer panels, I opted for an Italian palmwood veneer from Oakwood Veneer with a rather distinctive grain pattern. I also decided that I wanted the grain to run horizontal instead of vertical. This doesn’t seem like much, but when you realize the veneer comes in 50” tall sheets, the outside panels on the Oticas are approx. 54” long, and the grain runs up and down, you quickly realize you’ll be jointing veneer to make this work.  Also, there is no available edge banding, so if I wanted the edge grain to be consistent, I would be making my own edge banding. Oh, and again the edges are longer than 50”, so more jointing on those. For the best possible look from the outside, the edge banding would be done first, then the large panels would be veneered. With panels this size, I opted to use a vacuum press for better results.

For the baffle and the bases, I wanted a simple black automotive paint that I could buff to a high-gloss shine. I considered peals and metallic flake, but decided I wasn’t sure about the look nor my skills since I am also a novice painter. Just laying down the various layers of an automotive finish with an HVLP sprayer would be challenge enough, followed by more sanding than I probably want to do.

Supplies:

In addition to the flatpack, I ended up getting:

3 4x8 sheets of the palmwood veneer. I thought two would be enough initially, but after laying everything out, I realized I was going to be at least 12”.  Turns out I needed most of the three sheets once I decided to veneer the insides of the panels as well.
1/2 gallon of black automotive paint, plus primers, catalysts, etc.
2 4x8 sheets of 3/4” melamine. One would serve as a work surface for the various stages of the build; the other would be used for all the cutting, then trimmed down as a platten for the vacuum press.
A vacuum press with a 2x6 vacuum bag large enough to fit each panel.
A HVLP paint gun to spray the paint
A small paint tent and tarps to make a small paint booth
Various sanding/finishing/prep materials including Bondo, sanding pads, mixing cups, cotton rags, masking tape and films, razor blades, and stirring sticks
Veneer tools including rollers, different glues for heat and vacuum application, and trimmers
Various stains and tints to finish the veneer
A trim router with a down-cutting trim bit

And probably a lot of other stuff I forgot. In some cases, I had many of the tools available; in other cases, I decided to supplement what I already had.

[DigIndig]

Step 1 - Touch up the side panels

When I finally had some free time to start working on the speakers, I set out to get started on the veneer and prepping the panels. Somewhere between fabrication, shipping, and moving around the garage, there were two spots with small dings, so I used Bondo to clean them up.

[DigIndig]

Step 2 - Cut the veneer

The veneer comes in 4x8 sheets, and I originally bought two sheets. As I said before, since I wanted horizontal grain, the sheet is approximately 6-8 inches too short to go top to bottom, meaning I would have to joint the veneer on the outside panels. Similarly, since there is no edge banding that matches this veneer, I needed to make my own, and once again, the side panel edges are longer than 48”, so jointing will be required.

The first step with the veneer was to make the edge banding. My rough calculation said I would need about 22 1-inch strips, so I set about cutting the veneer into one inch strips using a straight edge, a couple clamps, a carpenter’s square, and a sharp utility knife.  set the carpenter’s square to give me a consistent one inch measurement, laid the veneer out square on the melamine, clamped down the straight edge, and proceeded to make the cuts.







After cutting out all the strips of veneer, I cut out rough panels for each of the side panels with a little extra just in case I made a mistake. I also cut out a few lengthwise strips for the horizontal braces in the subs and the amp boxes. At this point, I realized I would be short about 12 inches to having enough veneer, so I cut what I could and ordered another sheet. Once it arrived, I cut it down the same way.

[DigIndig]

Step 3 - Prepare the edge banding

To apply the glue to the back of the edge banding, I came up with a technique using painters tape. For my first attempt, I butted the strips together, taped the ends securely, and used a roller to apply the glue. Unfortunately, it became apparent that the glue seeped under the strips and contaminated the veneer surface, which made those strips unusable. Instead, I opted for an approach where I put a strip of delicate surface tape on the table, then firmly laid each strip on the tape. Using a one inch foam brush, I was able to keep bleeding to a minimum. After letting it dry, I peeled the tape off the veneer, and then used a razor blade to trim any glue that dried along the edges. Here I also learned not to try and let the strips dry vertical, and the paint fell down and the strips glued themselves together. Ultimately, I had to go back and cut 11 more 1” strips from my remaining veneer to make up for my mistakes.

[DigIndig]

Step 4 - Apply edge veneers inside the sub panels

Next up was to attempt to apply the veneer to the edges of the sub side panels. Again, it was trial and error. I knew I wanted to veneer all visible edges. For appearance, the inside edges needed to be done first, then the outside edges so that if my seam wasn’t perfect, it wouldn’t show as much. Initially I assumed that since everything was going to be glued, I didn’t need to do as much masking, but I found that I’m not as neat as I thought. You can see this in the pictures below where the glue on the inside edge is bleeding onto the outside edge, even after the veneer is applied. After this experiment, everything gets a thorough masking job before I apply any glue. Also, I go back and do touchups if it looks like there are any inconsistencies in the glue - the first veneer I applied had issues staying glued, so I had to do lots of touchups with glue and lots of pressure. I am working on the remaining veneer strips as I have time between other steps.

[DigIndig]

Step 5 - Apply edge banding to Otica sides

In that vein, I masked the side panels before I applied glue to the edges.














My research revealed that while most people do the large panels first and then apply edge banding (because it’s easier), the consensus is that if you do the edge banding first, you can move the edge seams from the outside to the edges. It’s more risky because you have to be more careful with glue overrun and such. Never one to take the easy approach, we’re doing edges first. And again, since the edges are more than 48” long (closer to 56-58” in total), I had to joint the strips and use veneer tape to hold together. Jointing involves lining up the two pieces where you want the seam, cutting through them with a sharp knife, then using stretchable blue tape to hold the pieces together while you apply veneer tape to the front. On the pictures, you can see the small piece of tape that shows where I placed the seams - I purposely kept them away from the brace slots because I thought it would be too fragile to put the seam close to them. Later I’ll remove or sand off the tape.

[DigIndig]

Step 6 - Trimming the edge banding

After the veneer cooled and I made sure the edges were well secured, I tried various methods too trim the edges. First I used a standard edgebanding trimmer, but the results were mixed. Sometimes it worked fine, but other times I had a hard time getting through the veneer or had a small amount of rip-out. I finally settled on a razor blade as the most consistent though slow method. With the razor, I can more readily control the direction of cutting since it seems that the veneer wants to lift sometimes more than cut. I finished the edges with a sanding pad if needed to get the edgbanding perfectly flush with the panel surfaces.

The edges went on mostly without incident, though I did have a few places where the veneer chipped (from the trimmer - I’ll fix that with filler), and one where the veneer actually split as I was ironing it down. Initially, I thought I had salvaged it, but a week later it was clear it needed to be fixed, so I cut through the veneer, peeled the veneer off in a section, cleaned up and reglued the edge, and then jointed in another strip of veneer. Time will tell if it holds or if I need to redo it yet again. Here you can see the trimmed edge band as well as where I was laying in the patch. I don't have an after picture, but so far it's invisible.

[DigIndig]

Step 7 - Veneer the Subwoofer Braces

Since the outer edges of the braces will be visible when the grills are removed, they needed to be veneered, too. To keep it aligned with the horizontal grain, the veneer grain remains horizontal. Again, everything had to be masked and glued before then using the iron to set the veneer on the braces.

[DigIndig]

Step 8 - Dry Fit and Masking

With the edge banding now applied to the sides, it was time to do a dry fit and start masking for paint. I put painters tape along the future glue seams on the bases, and then dry assembled the cabinets. I used a razor blade to remove any visible tape, so the only parts left taped will be glue surfaces. With tape holding the sides flush to the baffle, I ran a pencil along all of the interior seams. After I pulled it back apart, I masked off all the glue surfaces staying shy of the pencil lines. That way, I shouldn’t have any seams showing after final assembly.

[DigIndig]

tep 9 - Balance Veneer the Inside Panels

I was originally going to vacuum veneer the inside panels as a single unit and then clean up the brace slots, but after all the effort on the edge banding, I decided that treating them as many small panels was going to work better, and then heat veneering was a better choice. I cut the veneer to rough size, glued the backs, and then ironed on each panel, making sure the veneer went right to the pencil line from the dry fit masking. This should eliminate any issues with fitment when I do final assembly, and I should be able to use black paint if needed to make the seams disappear. I decided to do the larger top panels on the inside in the vacuum press.

Here you can see the masked panels first, then the glue applied, then the masking removed before the veneer is finally heat applied. Afterwards, the veneer was trimmed by hand using a razor blade. Note the bare area on the inside of the panel where the front baffle will be attached.

[DigIndig]

Step 10 - Assemble and Veneer the Amp Boxes

Assembly of the amp boxes was textbook: I used strap clamps to hold the boxes together while the Tightbond Extend glue dried.



Once the boxes were cured (a few weeks later), I masked and applied Heat Lock glue to the boxes.



Finally, I veneered all the side panels. You can see here the cotton cloth I've been using to ensure I don't scorch the veneer.



This became a perfect opportunity to use the trim router bit to trim the veneer versus the razor blade I used previously on the narrow edge banding.

[DigIndig]

Step 11 - Joint Veneer and Veneer for the Side Panels

I used the same technique I used on the edge banding to joint the veneer on the sides. I tried to keep the joints low on the outside panels to make it harder to see. I also spent a lot of time trying to line up the grain pattern so that it would not be obvious later.

Then I set up the vacuum press with a melamine platten and breather mesh. The platten goes on the bottom to provide a firm base for the work while the breather mesh goes on top to allow the air to be removed. Since I did the edges first, I had to veneer each side individually with the veneer face down. Here you can see the first panel in the press. The jointed pieces of veneer are visible on the table behind it.




Each side had to stay in the press one hour, then I removed it, trimmed the edges using the trim router, glued up the other side and put it back in the press for one hour. Afterwards, I stood the the panel up so that both sides could fully cure.

Here you can see the outside and inside of the panels veneered. Note that the inside edges haven't been trimmed yet, nor have the edges been cleaned up. They are masked to keep any glue from adhering, and then I need to sand the seams down to remove what the router bit left behind (mostly paper backing).

[Jaytor]

Looking great!  Can't wait to see what they look like when they're together.

[DigIndig]

Looking great!  Can't wait to see what they look like when they're together.

Me, too!  Resurrecting my old post to give an update. It's been a long, hard road. I've had to deal with a number of challenges, both with the project and life, with life usually winning out over making progress on the speakers. Take this summer, for example: I had to wait six months until the Texas heat cooled down enough to resume painting.

Rather than a series of posts, I'm going to summarize the progress and upload the photos in bulk:

• While I was sanding the veneer panels down in preparation for applying the tung oil, there was an imperfection in the grain that resulted in my burning through the veneer in a rather noticeable way. I had to stop to figure out how to repair the damage using a combination of colored pencils and shellac in several layers to make the problem go away. You can see the finished panel in several of the photos with the correction visible, but only if you know where to look.
• I originally wanted the grain in the sub side panels to line up with the side wings of the NX-Oticas, but I found out the veneer didn't have enough flex in that direction, so it broke instead of laying down smoothly along the radiused edges. I had to pull the veneer up, reorder a new sheet of veneer, and then recut and reapply the sheets so that the grain was vertical instead.
• The plan was to paint the NX-Otica parts, then assemble the speaker, then apply clearcoat over the assembly. However, upon reading the data sheets on the paint, it became clear I had a very limited time to make this happen. In my rush to get them assembled to make this a reality, I quickly found out that the veneer (and the paint) was causing clearance issues with the inside of the front baffles (by less than an 1/8th inch). I decided to press forward and deal with the issues later rather than stop and derail my entire assembly by several more months.
• When I bought my paint, I was told I shouldn't need hardener for the base coat since it would be in the clearcoat. Having had to spend countless hours now touching up places where the base coat has flaked off if you look at it funny, I would rather have had the hardener in the base.
• After assembly, I discovered - while polishing - that the palmwood veneer I chose has micro-seams throughout that hold the polish until it dries white, leaving long thin white streaks in the finish. No amount of cleaning, sanding, scrubbing, etc. can effectively get it out. I tried every technique I could find online to get it out, and a few I made up (detailer with a clay bar; lacquer thinner and a toothbrush). The only answer that worked was to carefully sand down the clear coat and then reapply the tung oil.

At this point, the NX-Otica cabinets are nearly done. After touching up everywhere, I am in the finishing stages of applying coats of gloss and satin wipe-on poly for protection. The triple subs are assembled, painted, stained, and coming along. I still need to touch up a few spots along the seams. I also need to apply the colored pencil technique to a few minor spots on the sides where the subs got blemished while waiting for paint. I decided to use wood filler in those spots and now I need to blend it in with the grain before I apply the wipe-on poly to them as well.

Still to go: crossovers, installation of the drivers, fitting and application of No-Rez, clearcoat the amp boxes for the subs, finish the subwoofer grills, install isolation feet on the towers. I'm hoping for a mild winter so I can make more progress.


Pop-up painting booth in the garage


NX-Otica parts post base coat


Side panels with obvious veneer damage


Repaired panel (via colored pencils)


The NX-Otica glue up


The (not quite) finished towers after clear coat


Reverse angle showing the inside veneer (which will mostly be covered by No-Rez)


Triple sub glue up


Subs in the paint booth (popped up two years later)


The triple subs post paint, but before the side panels are stained. You can also see the veneer detail behind the grills.


The current status

[Danny Richie]

Wow, those look nice!

[hawkeyejw]

Really nice work!

[BGA]

Those look great, that veneer is really nice!! I love the fact you did the inside of the Otica's as well that makes it look awesome.

I did something similar but veneered the front and made my subs veneer black.

The picture is dark, my listening room is also my theatre and its dark as heck, ha.




Al

[rinzzlr]

Looking very elegant, nice work.  Despite all the challenges, they are worth the work!

[KTS]

I have always love the natural warmth and beauty of veneer on speakers. Especially when they are executed at this level, nice build!

Kelly,

[celebrat]

WOW nice work. beautiful speakers