[Stig1978]

Hey Everybody  (as Danny say in He's youtube videos)

I am an audiophile and have been since I got my first stereo back in the 90s. But it didn't come from strangers, my dad had a nice stereo in the 70s and 80s some Luxman preamp/amp and Technics turntable and tapedeck with Jamo horn speakers. And my uncle had a hifi shop.

The things if owned in the past and present have been electronics Technics, NAD, Cambridge, Yamaha, Marantz, PS Audio and LC Audio. Speakers B&W, Dynaudio, AM, Technics, Klipsch, Yamaha, XTZ, Gallo Acoustics and Vienna Acoustics. And a hole lot of different cables, and yes I believe in cables! And power regenerator!

I've allways had 2ch up till 4 years ago wen I got my first child, then there wasn't all that much time to listen to music, and there still isn't really, because my listen room is our living room, and last year I got my second child. But the kid(s) like to watch Thomas and Friends, and alot of other stuff, many things actually in 5.1 and some in atmos.
So I sold my 2ch setup and for the money I got from it, was able to buy a complet 5.1 setup (Yamaha 3080 and Klipsch RP) It made for a killer setup for movies... and Thomas and Friends, but not so much for music. Had it for about one year, then I missed music so much it had to go.
So I am on the second surround setup 5.1.2 Marantz SR7011 and Yamaha Soavo Series speakers, way way better for music. But still lacking that thing that makes it fun for hours.

So in comes New Record Day feat. Danny Richie and openbaffle speakers! Watched allmost all of the Tuesday tech talks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6zZuMNWt1Y&t=440s
--- DIY HiFi Audiophile Budget KING! ---
That was the video that made me wanna try openbaffle or in this case a hybrid.

So my plan is to build a pair of X-statiks (working progress) Get a Preamp with HT bypass (want to try NAD C658 because of Dirac) and connect that to a Purifi Eval1 kit, waiting for ghentaudio to release a amp kit for it.

This is my first speaker build.

So now for some pictures of my X-statik build:

Cutting the MDF to size









Me trying to freehand the router... pretty awsome! I am now a proud owner of a Jasper Jig
















I want a clean look so I routed a groove for the mids and tweeter. And sealed the MDF with wood finish


Laid the cable before I glued the baffle








And that is were I am at.

I hope to get some more done here in October.

So I have made some progress

Made the crossover


I went with all the upgrades Danny offer. And I also did the No Rez, seem pointless to upgrade the parts, if the cabinet doesn't preform to it's best.


Then it was time to join the front baffle with the woofer box (was great it finally starting to look the part)



The crossover is BIG, or at least the way I did it. So to keep things pretty I made the hole in the buttom. And if I need to get to the crossover again I can.
Wen the speakers are done and have been tested, I am going to seal up the gap with sillicon or something like it.


Like the way I sealed the inside groove, I also sealed the outside and filled some imperfections.




And then I did a hole lot of sanding before they could be primed.

They have been primed the first time and needs to be sanded before I put on the second coat of primer.
My goal is to get a high gloss black finish.




Now I am getting there - I can allmost hear the speakers now 

[cedman1]

Looking great so far, interested in seeing your build completion and thoughts on sound.

[hawkeyejw]

Looking forward to seeing more of your progress and reading your impressions of how they sound when you're finished.

Lol @ the Jasper Jig comment. There's a lot of circles to cut for the Statics, I can't imagine trying to freehand all those circles! Even with the jig it was a time consuming process to set up and cut all those circles.

[corndog71]

I’ve been using my X-Statiks with marantz and denon ht receivers for years.  I’ve had issues with audyssey room calibration which gets confused by the open baffle mid response.  It can work but depending on the room it’s sometimes best not to use room correction.  Room treatment can also make a big difference.  Also remember they need a few feet from the front wall to sound their best.  The more space you give them the better they will fill the room.

Beyond those issues I think you will be very satisfied with them.  I still consider them to be one of the best speakers under $1k and very competitive under $2k.

[infinite1der]

I’ve been using my X-Statiks with marantz and denon ht receivers for years.  I’ve had issues with audyssey room calibration which gets confused by the open baffle mid response.  It can work but depending on the room it’s sometimes best not to use room correction.  Room treatment can also make a big difference.....

Same with MCACC: it's a coin toss whether or not my X-statiks or the X-voce show up as out-of-phase. I just ignore it and let it do its thing.

--JamesT

[Theronbo]

I’ve been using my X-Statiks with marantz and denon ht receivers for years.  I’ve had issues with audyssey room calibration which gets confused by the open baffle mid response.  It can work but depending on the room it’s sometimes best not to use room correction.  Room treatment can also make a big difference.  Also remember they need a few feet from the front wall to sound their best.  The more space you give them the better they will fill the room.

Beyond those issues I think you will be very satisfied with them.  I still consider them to be one of the best speakers under $1k and very competitive under $2k.

Just ran Audussy on my system. Marantz SR5014

1. Large room 20x30’
2. X-Static’s are 4+’ from wall
3. X-Voce center
  JBL 530 for surround LR
  Generic in wall speakers for rears (652W Silver Ticket in-Wall in-Ceiling Speaker with Pivoting Tweeter (6.5 Inch in-Wall) $30) I did make a cabinet of the wall.
  Subs :
    - Bastard Polk PSW505 with SD300-6 amp plate (since the original Polk amp failed)
    - Sony 9” Sony SA-CS9

Found my center speaker was polarity reversed! Wondering why they didn’t sound that good.

Subs @ -12.5dB ! 

Sounded much better. Have some Dolby Atmos recordings that seriously sounded better after.  TV watching in Dolby much better too.

I thought the sub setting was ridiculous, so set it at -8dB... then still noticed the propensity of bass thump... thump... the X-Static’s do much better, more responsive bass... subs are really just for movie sound effects I’ve decided.
   

I seem to learn something about my system every time I run the Audussy setup. & it’s generally right.
   

[Stig1978]

So life hapend.. And my X-statik build has been on hold for quiet some time.

Mostly do to me wanting a really pretty finish (and lag af time) - After all they are going into my living room.
So I got the finish "good enough" and so did the final assembly.

And they have been playning maybe 10-15 hours mostly in my home office.
Funny thing I think they sound better in the office (small room) vs the living room

I will update my impressions as they burn inn.

My current speakers are Yamaha Soavo-1 Black Piano, and they are being driven by my DIY Purifi Eigentakt amp and a NAD C658pre runing Dirac Live with two XTZ 10.17 edge subs

[corndog71]

Congrats!  You’re just getting started breaking the caps in.  Did you get the Sonicaps?  Report back after you have a few hundred hours.  I bet they’ll sound better.

[Stig1978]

Hi Corndog

I got the sonicaps, i went full monty on the build. So got all the upgrades except miflex caps.
But No Rez, sonicaps, bypass caps, tube connectors.

And yes, they need some burn in