[Tyson]

Those fabric sides are very cool - I wonder why no one every thought of that before.

[RonP]

Those fabric sides are very cool

+1 and I like the darker wood color as well

[Yellowbus]

I had put some text in the comment section on rack pic but seems it did t make it onto the post.

The cabinets are veneered in walnut, coated with danish oil in dark walnut. The speaker grills are magnetic and I saw somewhere in the past were someone else had placed magnets on the sides of theirs so the grills can store there if wanted.

Thanks for all the positive comments.

[Yellowbus]

Got my Desktop Mini speakers finished. Overall I’m happy with the finish.


Really wanted a mat to satin finish but my finishing skills weren’t up to the task. So out came the 3000, 5000 grit sandpaper and polisher used on the car.


Think I’m going to redo this speaker grill cloth. I can get it to fit cleaner and better corners.


Now for the break in and listening.

[jonsk2514]

Just finished my X-CS







To go along with the X-MTMs I built previously:



And the setup:



And for my daughter, a pair of X-LS:

[rcouch]

There's a lot of beautiful craftsmanship in this thread! Great design ideas, and, I am sure, spectacular sound!

[MarkShields]

First build.  Glad to see my amp did not go up in smoke when I plugged in.  Made of curly maple lumber. 

[Yellowbus]

Love that curly maple, does it have clear on it?

[pierre.ch@outlook.com]

XSLS Encores with all upgrades, myflex cap & no res.

[Kilomiles1]

XSLS cabinets waiting for the goodies.

Long time reader, first time poster. Also first speaker build.

Sorry I don't have many build pics, but I added what I had. I live in a tiny city apartment, built everything in the garage on my smallish workbench and all of the clamps I had. The first 'complete' photo are the speakers unfinished. the boxes are wrapped in Curly Maple Veneer with two coats Pure Rubio Monocoat. Its pretty amazing how the Rubio makes the Maple pop while not adding too much color. I tried like 10 different finishing options on little sample boards, so pumped how they came out.

Fully lined with no-rez and the bottom chambers are filled with sand....these things are super heavy.

I'm currently using the cases to support my Kplisch rp600s which were in sore need of an upgrade.


 

[oskar]

Very very nice. So you used a single sheet of veneer wrapped around those rounded edges?
What adhesive did you use? Are the backs veneered as well.

[Kilomiles1]

Thanks!

They are both wrapped from a single 4x8 sheet. The backs are Veneered also. I used this glue called heatlock(you can get it from veneering supplies.com You apply it to both surfaces with a roller then iron it together.

I used a 1/2in round over bit on the front so that the 'front' three sides are a single sheet of veneer. kinda gives it a more natural look and removes the most visible seam.

Cheers!

[kwhitman]

I might as well add my two builds.  The first set is a pair of XLS Classics built for my daughter.  The stands were made out of MDF and have a hidden channel for speaker wire.  The stands are filled with sand for weight and to ensure they are vibration free.  I used Duratex on both the speaker and stands since it is very easy to apply and very durable.  They sound excellent.












The next set are XLS Encores with all upgraded parts in the crossover.  These are conventional 3/4" MDF boxes covered in self cut 3/16" Tigerwood veneer.  They have a 1/2" roundover on all edges.  The Kanto stands are also filled with sand to add weight and ensure they do not vibrate.  These were made for my lovely wife and sound fantastic!

[RPCon]

nice grills.

[Frank M]

NX-STUDIO speakers completed last Spring and sounding better every day.

The NX-Studios were assembled from Jay's flatpack using the techniques that Peter so painstakingly layed out in his videos.  Hickory veneer was applied to all exterior surfaces.  The finish is hand rubbed shellac, 7 coats of a very light cut.  All interior surfaces have No-Rez applied, with or without the foam layer, as appropriate.  Polyfil was placed in the woofer cavity before buttoning up the enclosures.

My system:
Conrad-Johnson PV-12 preamp
Conrad-Johnson Premier 11A amp
VPI Scout II with Grado Statement Sonata II cartridge
2 - Rythmik F-12G subwoofers (GR Research paper cone driver and 370PEQ amp)
AQ Columbia interconnects, Cardas turntable cable
Steel shot filled speaker stands with Isoacoustics GAIA isolation footers
GR Research speaker cables
GR Research power cable
Dedicated AC power

[jonwb]

Some Alpha LS goodness.  Still sound amazing!

[KTS]

NX-STUDIO speakers completed last Spring and sounding better every day.

The NX-Studios were assembled from Jay's flatpack using the techniques that Peter so painstakingly layed out in his videos.  Hickory veneer was applied to all exterior surfaces.  The finish is hand rubbed shellac, 7 coats of a very light cut.  All interior surfaces have No-Rez applied, with or without the foam layer, as appropriate.  Polyfil was placed in the woofer cavity before buttoning up the enclosures.

My system:
Conrad-Johnson PV-12 preamp
Conrad-Johnson Premier 11A amp
VPI Scout II with Grado Statement Sonata II cartridge
2 - Rythmik F-12G subwoofers (GR Research paper cone driver and 370PEQ amp)
AQ Columbia interconnects, Cardas turntable cable
Steel shot filled speaker stands with Isoacoustics GAIA isolation footers
GR Research speaker cables
GR Research power cable
Dedicated AC power

What method did you use to trim the veneer around the wave guide? I love the look of the 1 piece veneer wrapped aren’t the front, I assumed it would get tricky around the wave guide. Great job on the build they look awesome!!

Kelly

[Frank M]

What method did you use to trim the veneer around the wave guide? I love the look of the 1 piece veneer wrapped aren’t the front, I assumed it would get tricky around the wave guide. Great job on the build they look awesome!!

Kelly

Thanks Kelly.

Great question!   Before I started assembly - the one thing I knew was that I wanted one piece of veneer to span the sides and front.  I also knew that opening up the  tweeter holes was going to be the hardest part of this project. Wish I had an amazing secret to share on how to do that.  Truth is it was a painstaking process and took a good bit of time.

NOTE: You need to know exactly where the opening is.  I made precision templates of each of the front baffles BEFORE i began speaker assembly.  I didn't assume that both baffles were identical.  At that time I really had no idea how I was going to cut the tweeter opening but I knew it couldn't be done without a template of some sort.  The front baffle  needs to have registration marks that will be preserved until you are ready to cut out the tweeter opening.  Tricky but can be done.

I started with a small router with a trim bit set just a couple of millimeters below the veneer.  i made a template to remove about 90% of opening with that setup.  I then switched to a Proxxon Rotary Tool - a Dremel-like precision rotary tool the size of a fat pencil.  With the opening taped off I trimmed out all but the last few millimeters of veneer.  At this point it is all hand-work with sandpaper wrapped around various shaped dowels. 

Having steady hands (which I don't) will help. I guess the key to success is TAKE YOUR TIME.  You really only get one chance to do this correctly.  I spent a few weeks making the openings on both speakers.  My technique was:  work for a short time then walk away until tomorrow. I second you feel yourself getting anxious - STOP.

So there it is.  Good luck!

Frank

[KTS]

Thanks Kelly.

Great question!   Before I started assembly - the one thing I knew was that I wanted one piece of veneer to span the sides and front.  I also knew that opening up the  tweeter holes was going to be the hardest part of this project. Wish I had an amazing secret to share on how to do that.  Truth is it was a painstaking process and took a good bit of time.

NOTE: You need to know exactly where the opening is.  I made precision templates of each of the front baffles BEFORE i began speaker assembly.  I didn't assume that both baffles were identical.  At that time I really had no idea how I was going to cut the tweeter opening but I knew it couldn't be done without a template of some sort.  The front baffle  needs to have registration marks that will be preserved until you are ready to cut out the tweeter opening.  Tricky but can be done.

I started with a small router with a trim bit set just a couple of millimeters below the veneer.  i made a template to remove about 90% of opening with that setup.  I then switched to a Proxxon Rotary Tool - a Dremel-like precision rotary tool the size of a fat pencil.  With the opening taped off I trimmed out all but the last few millimeters of veneer.  At this point it is all hand-work with sandpaper wrapped around various shaped dowels. 

Having steady hands (which I don't) will help. I guess the key to success is TAKE YOUR TIME.  You really only get one chance to do this correctly.  I spent a few weeks making the openings on both speakers.  My technique was:  work for a short time then walk away until tomorrow. I second you feel yourself getting anxious - STOP.

So there it is.  Good luck!

Frank

Thank you Frank! I am willing to do the work and with the info you have provided, a plan. Much appreciated!

[Rikard Ekval]

Sealed sub



I didn't like the sealed sub so:  open baffle sub



Sealed N3

Hi. Did you use the same subwoofer from the sealed and made it OB? Does it sound as expected? Good? Better?
//Rikard