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Enclosures for my TD15Ms Build thread (aka build this years AKfest MDF monstrosity)

dnewma04 said:
Since you are down under, have you ever had the opportunity to hear Cowan's unity implementation? (I realize you could live on the other side of the continent, I was just curious)
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Yes, I have. William lives about 3hrs south of here and invited me down for a listen about a year ago. I'm not very good at describing things sonically, but I have heard many systems over the years, and this is one of the two best* I have ever heard. It was very clean and clear at both low levels and very loud, the imaging was solid and stable, and what amazed me the most, was how little the sound changed no matter where you were in the room; the pics on his site really don't convey how open it is, or how large.

I was very pleased to hear how good it did sound, as I bought the Unity's blind before then and was concerned I wouldn't like them. So undoubtedly there was a lot of expectation bias. It sounded a bit better (4 year in between hearing that one) than my large horn system I had built in my previous home, but was much more coherent.

William also commented that he thought my pair of 15X/side would ultimately be better in the midbass up to xover than his Peerless, though his go a bit deeper (I planned subs from day 1), maybe less so if he went push/pull rather than push/push, but he appears more than content with it as it stood. As he should.

Since then I have moved to an apartment with a narrower room, so mine will be near corner mounted, so I'll probably go with the faceted shape I linked earlier and so in room response should be uniform 'like' William's.

* The other system is my friend Terry's 'Franks' (link, pics post 68), a more conventional 3 way using PHL and Morel drivers. I have heard this system more and it uses a DEQX instead of a DCX which I believe gives it a step up. Once mine are complete and I'm happy with them, Terry is going to bring the DEQX down for a w/e to see how it performs with the Unity's and to compare the two different systems (FIR vs IIR filtering). The switcher I have should allow close matched A/B switching.

The interesting thing to note with both of these systems is that neither uses any fancy audiophile approved componentry, but generic amplification and cabling and absolutely walk all over many other systems including one I have heard recently >>$A100k. I doubt there is much more than $A10-15k in either of them.

Dunno if I mentioned it earlier, but Nick's last pair of Unity's went to Melbourne Oz, so there will soon be three systems here.

There's also a new set of small Synergy's coming out, that are about the same size as our Unity's. SM60 thread.

Cheers
 
Got the port setup mostly worked out. On the inside of the cabinet, there will be a couple of extra layers of material cut to the port's outside diameter and provide bracing. The last one containing an internal 1/2" radius round over.

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Here is a look at the recessed area where the ports sit.
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And a look at one of the seams. Not bad for just resting in place.
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Those look outstanding Dave, I think that when you get those mated with the Unity horns you will have something truly special on your hands. I really, really wish I lived several hundred miles closer. :yes:
 
dnewma04 said:
Got the port setup mostly worked out. On the inside of the cabinet, there will be a couple of extra layers of material cut to the port's outside diameter and provide bracing. The last one containing an internal 1/2" radius round over.
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Dave, great looking project and some excellent craftsmanship.

I'm finally going to properly brace my Barzilay cabinets so I'm looking at what you are doing with great interest. So the last piece will support the port ends and be rounded over? Are you going to radius the outside end? Did you consider using flared ports? Also did you consider birch plywood for the internal braces? Would plywood be more rigid? Thanks.
 
Somehow, I missed this reply.

Duffinator said:
Dave, great looking project and some excellent craftsmanship.
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Thanks! :)

I'm finally going to properly brace my Barzilay cabinets so I'm looking at what you are doing with great interest. So the last piece will support the port ends and be rounded over?
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Yes, basically, I think you've described the plan. On the inside of the cabinet, there will be a piece that will provide support for the inside end of the ports as well as providing me with material that can be radiused to give me a bit of a flared port. I'd prefer a larger flare but have enough port area that I don't expect noise issues from a small roundover.
Are you going to radius the outside end? Did you consider using flared ports? Also did you consider birch plywood for the internal braces? Would plywood be more rigid? Thanks.
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Yes, the outside will have a similar roundover (1/2") and there will be a larger panel that will allow me to install various premade panels to give me 3 different tuning options (1, 2, or 3 ports being used) or run it as a sealed box.

Birch plywood would more than likely be a superior bracing material but I suspect with the level of bracing I am using, any additional stiffness I am missing out on will be so far past the point of diminishing returns that it will be completely inconsequential.
 
As you can see, the driver is closer to the top of the cabinet, so the offset in the driver recess in the bracing it intentional. And again, it's all just resting in place, the braces need to be pulled and hollowed out to allow air to pass through the enclosure to the ports with as little impedance as possible.
 
Thanks for keeping up with this build description. This is going to be invaluable to me in a little bit when I embark on a similar bracing design. Does the vertical brace support the back of the driver magnet?
 
Yes, the driver is very sturdy, but I figured it couldn't hurt to provide a little support as it's nearly 8.5" deep from the back of the mounting flange to the back of the magnet.
 
Hey Dave, I am working on the subs for you and was testing to see if I needed to add any boost to the plate amp before I put them together for real, and I am measuring to flat 18hz. Not bad ah?
 
Took a few new pics with the inlaws digicam and made a little more progress today.

I tend to avoid screws in most of my builds for various reasons, primarily because I have a lot of clamps. However, I don't have a good way to clamp sheet stock together when gluing it, so I was forced to use a few screws in this build.

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