[Lebo]

I am building a pair of left and right X-CS speakers and have a some basic questions I hope someone can answer.  A few may seem like duh questions but I am new to this and want to do it right.

1)Is it OK to mount the crossover vertically?   I assume the crossover should be mounted horizontally but is it OK to mount the crossover vertically if I decide to change the orientation of the speaker?  I am not sure if I am going to stand these up or lay them down as originally designed.    Right now I plan to lay the speakers down but I may move them to another room later where I will need to stand them up.  If I move them the crossover will be in a vertical position.  Hope that makes sense.

2) Is the crossover for the X-CS just like the X-LS?  I watched Danny's videos and they look the same to me.  My plan is to basically copy what Danny did.

3) What is the best way to run the wires from the crossover to the second woofer?  There are 2 woofers on the X-CS.  Do I run both woofer wires from the crossover assembly or is there another preferred method?

4) Do the "A" braces run the full depth of the speaker cabinet?  The "A" braces are the ones that brace the bottom and top to the sides.  I am asking because I noticed an X-CS build thread (if I am not mistaken) where they did not run the full length.  It looked like they were just about 3 inch wide braces.  Just want to clarify before I glue the cabinet together.  From what I can tell from the plans it looks like they are a full 14 or so  inches long.

5). Any problem finishing the inside of the cabinet?  These will be shop speakers in a non air conditioned space where humidity my get high certain times of the year.  My plan is to give the inside of the cabinets a light coat of shellac to seal the MDF.

6) Is it OK to screw on a side panel instead of glue.  Every build thread I have seen glues on all the panels.  I am asking in case I need to make repairs in the future.  It would be nice to have better access to the inside of the cabinet.

7) Final question just out of curiosity.  If you made it this far thanks.  Why do the woofers just slightly cover the edge of the tweeter on the X-LS.  It may be the same on the X-CS but I have not noticed.  There is plenty of room to move the woofer down a 1/4 inch.  Just wondering.

Thank you for hanging in there.  A few more questions than I originally intended.  Thanks again.  Lebo

[Digi-G]

I think I can answer at least some of these questions.  I recently started a build of the NX-Studio Monitors, so have some of the same basic questions.

5.  I've read that you don't have to seal the MDF, but I decided I would with paint/primer.  For your application I think it would be a good idea.

6.  This is something I keep debating with myself.  To seal the cabinet or make it accessible by using screws.  I haven't quite decided what I'll do yet, but I don't think using screws would be an issue.  As long as it's airtight it should sound fine.  Just remember it's MDF and won't take screws really well - you might consider using a threaded insert (I know, that's more work).

7.  I think that distance, from center to center of each driver, is the optimum spacing for best cohesive sound... I assume for a certain distance away from the speaker.  It's definitely by design and I wouldn't change the spacing.

Hope this helps.

[Hobbsmeerkat]

I can answer #1 & #7!

#1: orientation really only matters for center of gravity, and how you intend to attach the crossover board. If its not well secured, it may come loose and cause a connection to break, but if its screwed in and well secured, it likely wont ever be a risk to worry about.

#7 It's to keep the centers of each driver as close as possible.
The closer they are, they better they're going to blend at they're crossover point. If they're too far apart, it becomes noticable when the signal shifts between woofer and tweeter. So the closer you can get them, the more seemlees that transition will be, especially the higher in frequency it transitions, where wavelengths get shorter and shorter, the drivers need to be closer and closer together.
Its less of an issue with MTM configs since the middle point for the woofers is centered over the tweeter. (Unless its used as a horizontal center channel, then phase shifts will become an issue as you get further off axis)

[Lebo]

Thanks Digi-G and Hobbs.  I think I found the answer to number 4, the "A" brace.  I was thinking the brace ran the full depth of the cabinet.  However, the plans say it is just like the X-LS so I looked up those plans and that cleared it up.  I was thinking the picture on the plans was a front view of the brace but it is actually a side view. 

I'm down to questions 2 and 3. That was quick.  Thanks
Lebo

[corndog71]

1. Yes.  Also, the tweeter crossover and mid crossover don't have to be close together as long as they're wired properly.

2. No, they are a little different. 

3. It's fine to go from crossover to one woofer and from there to the other woofer.

4. Here's a couple shots of my factory built X-CS.  I had to scrape the guts off to add No Rez.




5. I doubt this is needed as they are sealed speakers.

6. Maybe others can chime in on this but I don't think this would be optimal.  If you do the work properly keeping in mind access to the crossovers via the woofer holes then I think it would be best to seal them with glue. 

7. The woofers overlapping the tweeters is to keep their acoustic centers as close as possible for the best integration.

[mlundy57]

#2 - No, the crossovers are not exactly the same.

#3 - You can either run two sets of wires from the woofer circuit with one pair going to each driver or you can run one pair of wires from the crossover to one woofer then daisy chain that woofer to the other woofer.

[Lebo]

Thanks everyone.  I really appreciate the responses. Corndog, thanks for the pic of that "A" brace.  That really clears it up for me.

[jonsk2514]

I am building a pair of left and right X-CS speakers and have a some basic questions I hope someone can answer.  A few may seem like duh questions but I am new to this and want to do it right.

2) Is the crossover for the X-CS just like the X-LS?  I watched Danny's videos and they look the same to me.  My plan is to basically copy what Danny did.

3) What is the best way to run the wires from the crossover to the second woofer?  There are 2 woofers on the X-CS.  Do I run both woofer wires from the crossover assembly or is there another preferred method?

5). Any problem finishing the inside of the cabinet?  These will be shop speakers in a non air conditioned space where humidity my get high certain times of the year.  My plan is to give the inside of the cabinets a light coat of shellac to seal the MDF.

6) Is it OK to screw on a side panel instead of glue.  Every build thread I have seen glues on all the panels.  I am asking in case I need to make repairs in the future.  It would be nice to have better access to the inside of the cabinet.

Thank you for hanging in there.  A few more questions than I originally intended.  Thanks again.  Lebo

I would add the following:

2) In exact terms, the response above was that the 2 crossovers are different.  That said, Danny’s video (https://youtu.be/rIxig_9i-Iw) is an excellent example of generally how a crossover is to be assembled.  You will get a wiring schematic with the parts Danny sends you and you will need to follow that.  But in following the video you will likely find similarities that you can use.  Lay it out on paper first, then lay it out on the board.  Before soldering anything, send a picture of it cto Danny and he will let you know if it is OK.

3) The woofers are wired in parallel and wiring them each from the crossover or from the crossover to one and then the other will work.  However, the latter will result in a slightly different resistance between the 2 woofers.  This is likely really splitting hairs, but something to consider.  Wiring them each from the crossover with equal length wires will keep the resistance the same for each woofer.  I also think the connection is easier to make down at the crossover.  This wire is quite stiff and having 2 sets of wires at one of the drivers will likely make handling the wires and making the connections a little more difficult to do.  At least that is the conclusion I can make from having just finished with my XL-S Encores (same driver setup).  I did mine as 2 sets of equal length wires.  I did this by starting with one wire set that would reach to the furthest woofer.  I then spliced in the wires for the second woofer down near the crossover at a point where the 2 sets of wires would be the same length.

5) There is a lot of discussion on this board about whether or not to finish the inside of the cabinets.  The only con I have come across is that it needs to be reasonably smooth so the no-Rez will stick to it properly.  I didn’t see anything that said it needed to be “sanded” smooth.  Just no runs or drips that will prevent part of the no-Rez from touching the side and not sticking to it.

6) The XC-S is a sealed speaker; it should be glued.  Access to the interior can be made through the woofer openings if access is ever needed.  One thing to consider is to size the crossover board, with the parts on the board, such that it will  fit through one of those openings.

Hope that helps and enjoy the build.