N3-S (sealed) speaker build

mlbrand · « **on:** 6 Apr 2010, 04:26 am »

I've finished my N3 speaker build, and thought I would share a few photos. This is my first speaker build, but I have some prior woodworking experience. I built these out of 3/4" oak veneered plywood, with oak 1/4 round trim glued on all corners. Stained with Min-Wax Red Mahogany stain, and finished with 5-6 coats of Min-Wax satin polyurethane. These speakers are in the side surround position in my HT/Audio room, as I wanted a speaker that would sonically and visually match my LS-6 mains and X-Voce center, and perform well placed right against the sidewalls where I am forced to put them. They sound incredibly good, and I actually feel a little guilty putting such a great speaker in the side surround position, but we watch a lot of Blu-Ray hi-rez audio movies (on my 120" 2.35 CIH projection screen) and I listen to a fair amount of hi-rez multi-channel music as well. My speakers are driven by an Anthem D2 processor and a Sunfire Cinema Seven Signature amp (400 watts x 7 channels). Here are some pics, and feel free to post any questions.

TrungT · « **Reply #1 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 04:39 am »

That's look awesome.

Thanks for sharing.

grubyhalo · « **Reply #2 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 05:00 am »

They look fantastic, congrats!

hmen · « **Reply #3 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 05:09 am »

Great job. Enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Danny Richie · « **Reply #4 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 01:28 pm »

Those look exceptionally good.

Nick77 · « **Reply #5 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 03:01 pm »

Congrats! Bet they sound great.

Ron · « **Reply #6 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 03:27 pm »

Your Neo 3 - S speakers look great! Very nice work. Thanks for posting the pictures for everyone to see.

Ron

skeeter99 · « **Reply #7 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 11:04 pm »

Man those look fantastic and I'm sure they sound excellent as well. Really a fantastic speaker and you did an very nice job finishing them. I like that stain and was looking for something about that color to refinish by Boston A-150's with. Maybe I'll give that a try ...

Scott

mlbrand · « **Reply #8 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 11:36 pm »

Thanks for the kind words everyone. I really had a great time building these, as I love both woodworking and audio gear! I really had fun using a plunge router for the first time, and my driver cutouts turned out real well. Milwaukee makes a great router if you are looking for one, picked mine up new for $200.

This hobby could be addictive, but I'm running out of places to put speakers in my current room. Let's see, what about a dedicated two channel setup with a tube amp and turntable in a spare room?.....

Skeeter, are you still going to build some N3's?

NeilT · « **Reply #9 on:** 6 Apr 2010, 11:48 pm »

Those came out really nice. Thanks for posting the pics.
What type of circle jig / template did you use?
Thanks,
Neil

mlbrand · « **Reply #10 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 12:48 am »

NeilT,

I bought the Jasper model 200 circle jig. This model will cut circles from 2 1/4" to over 18", so it could cut holes for subwoofer drivers, etc.. The only drawback I can see is it extends out from the router more than a smaller version (model 400), so you have to give it some room when cutting a circle. It's not really an issue on a normal sized workbench, and worked great for me.

NeilT · « **Reply #11 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 12:59 am »

Thank you
Neil

dvenardos · « **Reply #12 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 02:29 am »

I hadn't thought of doing the trim that way, that really turned out nice.

chip · « **Reply #13 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 04:04 am »

Those look great!

Quick question what is the main difference between the N3s vs the floor standing N3?

persisting1 · « **Reply #14 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 07:49 am »

Impressive

Nick77 · « **Reply #15 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 12:41 pm »

Quote from: chip on 7 Apr 2010, 04:04 am

Those look great!

Quick question what is the main difference between the N3s vs the floor standing N3?

Bass.

The transmission line will play lower.

mlbrand · « **Reply #16 on:** 7 Apr 2010, 12:48 pm »

Quote from: Nick77 on 7 Apr 2010, 12:41 pm

Bass. The transmission line will play lower.

Yep, I believe N3 towers will go down to 40 hz, where the sealed version I built goes down to 80 with a slow roll off.

Sparky14 · « **Reply #17 on:** 8 Apr 2010, 11:03 pm »

How tall did they end up being?

I've got sealed N2Xs in a TV Console, and I'd considered putting N3Ss in there. But I have a hair under 20" in height to work with.

mlbrand · « **Reply #18 on:** 8 Apr 2010, 11:32 pm »

Quote from: Sparky14 on 8 Apr 2010, 11:03 pm

How tall did they end up being?

I've got sealed N2Xs in a TV Console, and I'd considered putting N3Ss in there. But I have a hair under 20" in height to work with.

I stuck to the plans and they are 18 3/4" tall, so these should work for you. Here is a link to the plans. http://www.gr-research.com/pdf/Neo3S.pdf

Ron · « **Reply #19 on:** 9 Apr 2010, 12:31 am »

Question - Looking at your construction pictures it appears that you used 1/2" x 3/4" quarter round moulding along the edges. When the quarter round was secured in place, did you use a 3/4" roundover bit along the edges to finish them off? Did you use any small finishing nails to secure the quarter round or just wood glue and clamps? You did a really nice job constructing and finishing your cabinets.

Ron