My Sound Dynamics build / rebuild

[Jim Marantz]

I've been using and loving a set of Sound Dynamics R 515 speakers my dad gave me 20 years ago. Always loved the sound of these. Well, the boxes started rattling and my wife couldn't stand them in the living room anymore. I auditioned quite a few speakers and found that to match the sound of these I'd have to spend a considerable amount of money. Being that my ass is broke as the sole provider of a family of four, I decided to make the best I could out of what I had.
The new boxes are built from scratch using MDF material. I added lots of bracing and increased cabinet volume to match. Veneer is ebony wood finished with Tung Oil. Crossovers were also reworked to get along better with the seas tweeters I used and much better components. Overall a very satisfying project that I finished for under $300.
I hope you like them.

The original cabs..


My Solid Works layout for new cabinets.....


And my new cabs all finished..

 

[pauldrewry]

Lovely work!

 

[fredgarvin]

Those look great. I remember Sound Dynamics besting many more expensive speakers when I was comparing back then. I see them go very cheap on the resale market.

 

[sax6]

Wish I had skills like yours.

They probably sound as good as they look.

Enjoy.

 

[Raynald]

Incredible work, well done!

 

[luxmaster]

Amazing. Your better off making your own speakers then buying with your skills. I really like SD speakers myself. I love their old horned tweeter.

 

[Jim Marantz]

Thanks for all the compliments. It was a bit more work than I originally anticipated. They took me about 2 months of weekends and an occasional evening to finish.
The sound from these small towers belies their size. With strong amplification a sub is not needed, nor can one keep up. I tried several. Very tight and fast sounding. I would recommend them if you're on a budget.
Jim

 

[Lavane]

Very nice! That is what they should have looked like new. I love your rebuild threads. Keep up the good work. How's the Dyna gear holding up?

 

[Jim Marantz]

Very nice! That is what they should have looked like new. I love your rebuild threads. Keep up the good work. How's the Dyna gear holding up?

Thanks! The Dyna stuff is great as ever. I like it more and more as I upgrade all the peripherals. Time to start building a new system for the bedroom as I'm starting a remodel in there next month. I have a restored Marantz 2252B receiver I can use. Maybe I'll build a pair of those Overnight Sensations with some fancy cabinets for that project. I have a nice amount of Zebrawood veneer I got for a project I abandoned that I'm looking to use on something else.
Jim

 

[PhilInAudio]

Gorgeous!!! Fantastic!!! Well done!!!

 

[NAD80]

Fantastic rebuilding of the cabs. Really like the Solid Works drawing.

 

[7.62]

Very well done, I like your choice of color. It works nicely!

 

[GD70]

Stunning, excellent craftsmanship! Ebony is a beautiful wood. 1000 times better than the original black.
Did you cut the MDF, or have a shop do it?
I'd also love to see the assembly process if you took any pics.
Cheers!
Glenn

 

[Jim Marantz]

Thanks Glenn. I cut everything myself. All work was done with portable power tools aside from my small router table. I have a few picks on a camera somewhere. I'll try and did them up soon.

 

[lightcapture]

Why did you change out the tweeter? The original soft dome tweeter looks pretty nice.

 

[Jim Marantz]

Why did you change out the tweeter? The original soft dome tweeter looks pretty nice.

The tweeter in the "before" pic is actually a very expensive Scan Speak tweet. The crossover point wound up being a less than ideal match. The Seas tweeter is actually half the price (about $50 ea.) but is a better match. It has a very low crossover point capability.