Carmody's Classix II help

[f_crunk]

Hey guys. Total amateur here. I'm building a pair of Paul Carmody's Classix II. Just wanted some help.

I just wanted confirmation that my crossover is put together correctly. If so, I'll go ahead and put together the second one. I used a diagram that I found on another thread here on PE (which apparently is given out in Classix kits in other retailers). How's my soldering?

While I'm here, I also have a few other questions. I just finished putting the first color coat of spray paint on the cabinets, and it looks pretty bad. There are scuffs and parts of MDF that ate the painting. Could I just wet sand this coat of paint and vinyl wrap the cabinets over the paint job instead? I would be much happier with that. If not, is there any way to fix the MDF parts that ate the paint?

Also, lastly, what do you guys recommend I mount the crossover on? I'd like to screw it on the bottom on a piece of cardboard in case I need to service it in the future, but I'm not sure how safe that is (resistors get hot right?).

Also thanks to Mr. Carmody for making such a speaker that fits into my music taste (loud, poorly-recorded punk and blues).

Thanks so much!

[Chris Roemer]

That looks OK to me. Most guys mount 1st, then solder.
When you attach your stuff (an old hunk of paneling or ANYthing would be preferable to corrugated), I would say not to get your coils any closer to ea. other, and KEEP them oriented like they are; the 2 on the ends "upright", and the middle one like it's ready to roll between them.

[a4eaudio]

Since you have it soldered up, you can hook it up to the speaker terminals and play some songs and make sure it sounds right.

For boards, people do use cardboard or scraps of wood. You can use these (come in 2 sizes and multiple colors) if you want something that looks nice, even though it ends up inside the speaker.

I would not wet sand, as water can really mess up MDF. And the vinyl wrap will show any defects, so you need to have the cabinets in as good shape whether you paint or vinyl wrap. It seems like different vinyl wraps adhere differently to different base coats. 3M makes a primer which is supposed to be great for the 3M vinyl, but not necessarily other brands. One solution to the MDF eating paint (if you mean it soaked it up on the ends) is to apply a thin coat or two of 50/50 wood glue water mix. What primer did you use before painting? I like to use this...

[djg]

MDF cut edges need sealed. Sand it all down, apply BIN primer or shellac. Do you have a DA disc sander? Very helpful. Stone texture paint could rescue your cabs looks fairly easily. Covers your booboos.

[f_crunk]

Since you have it soldered up, you can hook it up to the speaker terminals and play some songs and make sure it sounds right.

For boards, people do use cardboard or scraps of wood. You can use these (come in 2 sizes and multiple colors) if you want something that looks nice, even though it ends up inside the speaker.

I would not wet sand, as water can really mess up MDF. And the vinyl wrap will show any defects, so you need to have the cabinets in as good shape whether you paint or vinyl wrap. It seems like different vinyl wraps adhere differently to different base coats. 3M makes a primer which is supposed to be great for the 3M vinyl, but not necessarily other brands. One solution to the MDF eating paint (if you mean it soaked it up on the ends) is to apply a thin coat or two of 50/50 wood glue water mix. What primer did you use before painting? I like to use this...

I sanded down the MDF after gluing. Then I applied vinyl spackling to all cut edges. Then I sanded down the spackling. Then I put on two coats of primer and sanded down each (the second coat did not sand well). I used Zinsser 1-2-3 from a can and Zinsser B-I-N in spray paint form.

I did end up sanding down the primer until the MDF was showing, and that's where the spots mostly show. So could I perhaps spray on some primer to the spotted paint parts, sand the entire thing down smooth, and then put on a second coat of paint?

[Geoff Millar]

You're going to love the Classix II, just make sure when you wire it all up that the tweeters are connected with reverse polarity.

I find they sound best on stands, about a foot or so from a wall.

Geoff

[f_crunk]

You're going to love the Classix II, just make sure when you wire it all up that the tweeters are connected with reverse polarity.

I find they sound best on stands, about a foot or so from a wall.

Geoff

Yes. I've heard this before. What does this mean? According to Chris, the crossover is connected correctly. But does that mean I should attach the negative tweeter wire to the positive terminal of the tweeter and vice versa?

[Chris Roemer]

Xactly

(i DID see a layout that was "different" than what's on Paul's "undefinition" site)

Ultimately, it means that the woofer's "-" term. and the tweeter's "+" go to the same side of your amp.

[Geoff Millar]

Yes. I've heard this before. What does this mean? According to Chris, the crossover is connected correctly. But does that mean I should attach the negative tweeter wire to the positive terminal of the tweeter and vice versa?

Yes.

Of course, the crossover is wired the same. I 'cheated' and put my crossover on two boards, it was my first attempt at soldering a crossover. One board each for the tweeter and woofer.

Looks terrible, sounds fine.

I used speaker grilles and Jimi Hendrix decoupage to hide my alleged woodworking skills and the DC160s drivers, which aren't very snappy-looking.

Geoff

[Carbon13]

I sanded down the MDF after gluing. Then I applied vinyl spackling to all cut edges. Then I sanded down the spackling. Then I put on two coats of primer and sanded down each (the second coat did not sand well). I used Zinsser 1-2-3 from a can and Zinsser B-I-N in spray paint form.

I did end up sanding down the primer until the MDF was showing, and that's where the spots mostly show. So could I perhaps spray on some primer to the spotted paint parts, sand the entire thing down smooth, and then put on a second coat of paint?

The number one rule about finishing is that you need a good base from the start to achieve a good finish. Any flaws will ALWAYS project through. Don't feel bad though, it took me a lot of tries to learn this the hard way even though many people told me as much. I can't tell you the number of times I've been halfway or even 95% done a finish and then ended up stripping it all back down and restart.

For MDF boxes, I find the best thing that's worked for me is automotive body filler. A good layer on endcuts and corners works wonders. Another trick is sealing the MDF with watered down wood glue (1:1) or shellac as someone as already mentioned. As for paint, I hate rustoleum paint. I've had great success with Krylon spray paints. For a nice finish, wet sanding to a high grit and rubbing out with cutting compounds is a good way to go but it takes some practice to not cut through your finish. There's easier ways to go but it all depends on what you want and what you can live with. Remember, you'll see more flaws than anyone else ;)

[a4eaudio]

For MDF boxes, I find the best thing that's worked for me is automotive body filler.

Yes! And to be clear, auto body filler can have a lot of variances in quality and price. I bought a really expensive can of stuff that was supposed to be great. I can appreciate that it may be a lot better for actual auto body filling, but it was more than 3x the cost of Bondo. I found a gallon of Bondo very cheap at Walmart. They have smaller cans, but still about 80% of the cost of the gallon.

[f_crunk]

Alright guys, I'm going to mix some of my leftover wood glue with water and brush it on the parts of the paint that were obviously soaked up by bare MDF. Then maybe I can put some Bondo or glazing putty on any dents, sand that, and then try another coat of primer, and make sure to sand but without MDF showing. THEN try some Krylon Gloss Black spray paint? Does that sound correct?

And I'll make sure to wire the tweeter in reverse polarity (negative wire to positive tweeter terminal and positive wire to negative tweeter terminal). The woofer I will wire in regular polarity.

Here's a pic of the top of the cabinets if this helps anyone figure out how I can make them look better.

[a4eaudio]

I'm one of the more inexperienced members here, so hopefully someone will correct me if I am wrong. But I would:

1. Sand (at least some of) the paint off, paint is not going to be as good a starting base as primer
2. Then apply Bondo. Not just for "dents", but put a "skim-coat" on the MDF seams. You can put 10 coats of primer and 10 coats of paint on and those seams aren't going to go away if you don't take care of them at the beginning. (For more than you probably want to know, read through this thread.) Sand.
3. Apply wood glue water mixture on MDF edges and seams (hopefully the seams are mostly hidden from the Bondo coat above). Sand.
4. Primer. Sand. Primer. Sand.
5. Paint. Sand. Paint. (Sand.Paint.)
6. Any kind of protective clear-coat? (if yes, more sanding )

Sand with a block, otherwise the unavoidable pressure from your fingers may sand unevenly.

[Carbon13]

I'm one of the more inexperienced members here, so hopefully someone will correct me if I am wrong. But I would:

1. Sand (at least some of) the paint off, paint is not going to be as good a starting base as primer
2. Then apply Bondo. Not just for "dents", but put a "skim-coat" on the MDF seams. You can put 10 coats of primer and 10 coats of paint on and those seams aren't going to go away if you don't take care of them at the beginning. (For more than you probably want to know, read through this thread.) Sand.
3. Apply wood glue water mixture on MDF edges and seams (hopefully the seams are mostly hidden from the Bondo coat above). Sand.
4. Primer. Sand. Primer. Sand.
5. Paint. Sand. Paint. (Sand.Paint.)
6. Any kind of protective clear-coat? (if yes, more sanding )

Sand with a block, otherwise the unavoidable pressure from your fingers may sand unevenly.

+1

Also, follow the instructions on the paint. Add additional coats within 1hr. If you miss the window, wait several days.

[Dukk]

The way the crossover schematic is laid out, and the first picture from the OP is wired, the tweeter is already in reverse polarity.