Give Oskar a Wedgie and Heil Smooth Out and Won't Be Such a Dip!

When will they be available for purchase?
Sounds like a no-brainer to get them!
 
Would be too expensive to make them this way. Needs about 3 hours of laser time, and two trips to/from the workshop (~1/2 hour each way) to cut the pieces (can only reserve the laser for 1-1/2 hours at a time), as well as a trip to the plastic supplier (1/2 hour each way) to get materials. The parts are cheap, but the time factor makes it difficult to be economical unless these were made from a cast resin, or done in China.

Yeah, it's a lot of standing around watching the laser cut the stuff, but its a lot of time standing around watching the laser cut the stuff, and you can't leave it unaccompanied when in use.
 
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Sweet! :beerchug: Wonder how they will measure? :idea:

Initial measurements are about like the 30 degree plate wedgies, with no real improvements on the RTA. But, they are adjustable (fore/aft) and I've not tried any other settings, or even turning them around completely as is possible.
 
A simple 30 degree plate wedgie similar to the pic, but without the extra slots could be done economically and shipped for ~$25 assuming there was demand. These cut much faster and a few sets could be done before one of the stacked sets could be completed. I also have a high reject rate (>50%) for the stacked pieces because as the laser cuts, the top gets more heat and won't give as clean an edge as the bottom of the cut. Probably not an issue with the sound, but... You would think they would all come out the same, but the thickness of the plate can vary by +-10% across the same piece in a very short distance.

BTW, these are ugly because they still have the protective paper on them showing the burn marks from the laser as well as tape on the vanes. The thicker the acrylic (these are 3/8" for the base and 3/32" for the vanes), the slower it cuts and the more differential between the crispness of the top and bottom edges, When the paper is pealed off, they will be crystal clear and the vanes are smoked.

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A oscillating multitool works fine for cutting plexiglass.
Use water/dish soap as a coolant.
 
For those who may want to try this, there is a fairly simple way to get a similar shape in the right size and length. Buy balsa wood "trailing edge" and glue two together in the proper shape and cut it and finish it. It needs to be ~5.45" long. It comes in 1-1/4" length. You can get it at hobby stores and online/ebay.

I believe that these are ~15 degree right angles so you would turn one around when gluing them to get a symetrical centerline. I would do it, but already have the acrylic. But if someone wanted to and let us know what they think, that would be great.

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I would like to try this, but the pictures are not loading well. Only some come up. What shape wedgie would I have to create? The only picture that loads is @dcidave

I did find pictures to load properly on this external site. I did not realize that the wedgie was being placed in the front. http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulle...e-and-Heil-Smooth-Out-and-Won-t-Be-Such-a-Dip!
 
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My own crude attempt at a wedgie. Probably placed too close to the throat of the Heil. Only made one pair. Look closely and you'll see a Kapton diaphragm in this Heil core.

Heil Wedgie 1.JPG Heil Wedgie 2.JPG
 
My own crude attempt at a wedgie. Probably placed too close to the throat of the Heil. Only made one pair. Look closely and you'll see a Kapton diaphragm in this Heil core.

View attachment 2245297 View attachment 2245299

Does look a bit close. If you get too close, you cut off more than you would want too. But even a dip may be preferable to a peak. Do you hear a difference and if so, do you like that difference?

I did mine using an RTA by trimming a bit from the V at the top, then measuring with an RTA, then repeating half a dozen times taking a bit more off each time until I got to where I could get the best pattern by sliding them back and forth.
 
These are true dipoles and I never got them sounding right at the "front" listening position. Wonder if this was the solution. Now its packed away deep in my container - I have 3 of them.
However they are fantastic as the mid in a 7 or 8 speaker system. Especially in a room with 2 listening areas. Mine was living room and dining/Kitchen. My rears were stacked on top of the kitchen cabinets and fronts were 40' away and these were at 20' right behind the couch.
 
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