The Defiants - InDIYana 2019 Build

[tomzarbo]

I love this attention to detail. Oh, and the cabinets look great!
I missed it, what size dowels are those, 1/4"? Good work Keith.
TomZ

[KEtheredge87]

Holy attention to detail!

I'm going to use you as an example when my wife thinks I'm being to anal retentive about a project.

Haha... Happy to be of service

[KEtheredge87]

I love this attention to detail. Oh, and the cabinets look great!
I missed it, what size dowels are those, 1/4"? Good work Keith.
TomZ

Thanks Tom Yeah, the little dowels going across the post are 1/4", I think the larger dowels that I used to hold the caps were 3/8" and I needed to sand it down a bit to clear the ID of the threads on the cap.

[Kevin K.]

Looking good Keith! Love the Black binding post! Sure would be nice if PE carried their post in black (hint, hint, Parts Express).

Cant remember what you had planned for the veneer? Natural or dyed? Keep up the awesome work man!

[KEtheredge87]

Looking good Keith! Love the Black binding post! Sure would be nice if PE carried their post in black (hint, hint, Parts Express).

Cant remember what you had planned for the veneer? Natural or dyed? Keep up the awesome work man!

Thanks Kevin! I plan on going natural on this veneer. Some part of every project I've done to this point has been dyed with Behlen Solar-Lux, and boy do I love the results.... but this time I want to see what I can do with a gentle amber from General Finishes Arm-R-Seal alone. I had considered using the water based GF "High Performance" product since I was mistakenly sent a can back during the Jedi Mind Trick subwoofer project, but I think the stark white / clear finish look might be just a bit too "cold" in comparison to the rest of the cabinet.

[KEtheredge87]

Time for another update! There's been lots going on lately as I begin my mad dash to the finish line. I completed the last bits of router work required on these by cutting the holes for the ports as well as the through-holes for the drivers into the main cabinet. I used a downcut spiral bit to make a crisp cut through the maple veneer on these holes. These cabinets are still fairly heavy, but every little bit of material taken out helps!

After the router work was done, I pulled out my flexible sanding block and PSA sandpaper to prep the cabinets for finish. I hit the cabinets with 120, 180, and 220 grit before moving on. Despite what I said earlier about using Arm-r-seal, I did some test finish pieces after watching some youtube videos from Woodworkers Source, and was amazed and how well the curls popped out with just a coat of Zinsser dewaxed shellac. I ended up using 3 coats of dewaxed shellac to create the slightest amber color with gorgeous grain definition, then moved on to 3 coats of General Finishes High Performance Semi-Gloss water based polyurethane. The HP did a great job and was pretty easy to apply with just a foam brush. Dries quick and doesn't smell awful in the process. Win!

Tonight I will use tomzarbo 's method for baffle adhesion from his Encores to glue everything together. I have some 1/16" thick x 3/8" wide neoprene rubber gasket tape that I will run around the perimeter of the cabinet's front face, as well as the driver holes, then use some dabs of PL Premium on the dowels and flats to secure the front baffles to the cabinets. The neoprene gasket layer will help keep these things sealed off from air leaks as well as any possible PL premium squeezeout. I'll still be applying a layer of delicate surface masking tape to cover the cabinets in case I get squeeze out anyway! That PL Premium stuff stains everything!

After 24 hours of clamping time I will be able to start doing some measurements for port tuning, frequency response, cabinet impedance, and ultimately XO building! Man this point has been a long time coming! I can't wait

Photos from Left to right:
1) Port tube cutout (exterior)
2) Port tube placement (interior)
3) Sanding schedule
4) Curls / grain pop from Zinsser dewaxed shellac,
5) Three coats of General Finishes High Performance semi-gloss polyurethane and buffing with fine synthetic abrasive pad.

[skatz]

Those are shaping up to be beautiful! Well done!

Steve

[KEtheredge87]

Those are shaping up to be beautiful! Well done!

Steve

Thanks Steve I'm excited... I expect to be taking some port tuning impedance sweeps later tonight. Lots of little detail work to push these over the goal line!

[chocolate_soymilk]

Really enjoying your updates, and thanks for posting your process on youtube as well! I love the look of the cabinet and what you've chosen to do with the facets.I’ve been inspired by the look and plan to implement a similar style (i.e. rip it off) on my next build.

[KEtheredge87]

Really enjoying your updates, and thanks for posting your process on youtube as well! I love the look of the cabinet and what you've chosen to do with the facets.I’m going to rip off I’ve been inspired by the look and plan to implement a similar style on my next build.

Thanks! Feel free to use any ideas you like. That's half the fun of posting to this forum in my opinion. Either you're sharing a new process that worked... or steering others clear of something that did NOT work! We all learn by sharing and discussing. I got my start on these forums just the same as many others. Gotta keep the community thriving!

[Kevin K.]

Nice looking finish! Looking forward to the next round of pics, finished cabinets I presume. Good luck!

[KEtheredge87]

Hello Everyone,

Lots of progress to report, but not a lot of time to type it out in detail so I'll be kinda quick today.

1) Cabinets are DONE!!!!! I've got a little bit of bling to add before the show, but for now I'm focused on XO design and measurements.
2) Grilles are started. First time I've ever made a grille for anything, but that RST28 fabric dome is sitting in the waveguide like the Eye of Sauron. It's just BEGGING for a little kid to poke it in!
3) Port tuning was almost spot-on vs. BassBox Pro: Model said 38.97 Hz... DATS measurements said 37.68 Hz for both cabinets. Modeled within 1.5 Hz... I'll take it!

This next one really bummed me when I figured it out...
4) One of my RST28F-4 tweeters was broken straight from the factory. Fs measurements / impedance sweep is all wrong. Check out that screenshot below. I've contacted PE's customer service line, but the website says they're out of stock until June.

I already have one alternate means of replacing this one in time for InDIYana (Thanks xmax !) Just in-case something doesn't work out there... does anyone else have a spare RST28F-4 that they're willing to sell?

5) I pressed-on after dealing with #4, and I have my XO measurements taken from my one good tweeter and cabinet assembly. Prototype XO attempt #1 has been established, and should be easy to assemble tomorrow or Tuesday once some parts arrive.

[Billet]

Do the two tweeters actually sound different if you connect your crossover? The impedance curve reminds me of a ported woofer, maybe there is an air leak behind the dome?

[KEtheredge87]

Do the two tweeters actually sound different if you connect your crossover? The impedance curve reminds me of a ported woofer, maybe there is an air leak behind the dome?

Hey Billet, That's a good question., I haven't actually built the crossover yet, so I may need to try it anyway once that's available.

I did take some OmniMic FRD measurements just to make sure my assembly of the tweeter into the waveguide was consistent. I even used a 1/16" thick EPDM rubber gasket to make sure I sealed off the area between the tweeter's dome carrier and the waveguide. The measurements show a big difference between 500 Hz and 1200 Hz, and some small discrepancies across the higher ranges that I could have otherwise dismissed as normal part-to-part variation. I would prefer these drivers measuring nearly identical across the whole frequency range, just to make sure I don't get any strange cancellations or other oddities showing up in my crossover results from cabinet to cabinet.

[PWR RYD]

I bought a pair thats' impedance sweep measured exactly like that Keith. So PE let me return them and they sent me a replacement pair. Awesoeme customer service department! Unfortunately the second pair measured just as defective I sent them an email with the .zma files attached. They kindly replied that they investigated and found more in their stock like that and they refunded my credit card, again great customer service from PE The next day I noticed that the RST28F-4 "in stock" changed to "due in 6-14-19". Maybe the entire last batch from their new supplier was defective?