DIY Speaker Building, Repairing, & Upgrading

[Istoc]

Well all I finally finished my new speaker cabinets. I used all the components from my last build crossovers and etc, Just reworked the cabinet design and material.

I build these out of 5 layer Oak Ply. The difference in sound is absolutely amazing. The slight amount of fold loading I did by offsetting the interior bracing the way I did increased the bass output by a fair margin, and having all three speakers close together gives increased imaging. Better than the 2 up top 1 below I had before. Which I wasn't sure would happen considering my crossover for the 8" only effectively lets 480-530hz and below through.

http://photobucket.com/IstocsCustomCabinets

The password for the album is "DIYAudio". The photos are all nice and high res. Have fun

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by Istoc

Well all I finally finished my new speaker cabinets. I used all the components from my last build crossovers and etc, Just reworked the cabinet design and material.

I build these out of 5 layer Oak Ply. The difference in sound is absolutely amazing. The slight amount of fold loading I did by offsetting the interior bracing the way I did increased the bass output by a fair margin, and having all three speakers close together gives increased imaging. Better than the 2 up top 1 below I had before. Which I wasn't sure would happen considering my crossover for the 8" only effectively lets 480-530hz and below through.

http://photobucket.com/IstocsCustomCabinets

The password for the album is "DIYAudio". The photos are all nice and high res. Have fun

They look like ultra high-end speakers and very well made. Congratulations.

[Istoc]

Thank you sir

[mangosta]

Originally Posted by Istoc

Well all I finally finished my new speaker cabinets. I used all the components from my last build crossovers and etc, Just reworked the cabinet design and material.

I build these out of 5 layer Oak Ply. The difference in sound is absolutely amazing. The slight amount of fold loading I did by offsetting the interior bracing the way I did increased the bass output by a fair margin, and having all three speakers close together gives increased imaging. Better than the 2 up top 1 below I had before. Which I wasn't sure would happen considering my crossover for the 8" only effectively lets 480-530hz and below through.

http://photobucket.com/IstocsCustomCabinets

The password for the album is "DIYAudio". The photos are all nice and high res. Have fun

They look amazing! gosh, i'm feeling jealous!

[Istoc]

Thank you very much Mangosta

[rpatt]

I've completed my Klipschorn mods. I replaced the tweeter horns with Bob Crites CT125 horns, replaced the AK-2 crossovers with Al Klappenberger Universal crossovers, replaced the squawker horn/driver gasket and added 1/2 inch pipe insulation to seal the woofer section to the crorner walls.


The old & the new.


KHorn sans top hat. The new tweeter is installed.


The AK-2 is a two part crossover. I had to bypass the second section in the woofer compartment. Everything was soldered so this was the most difficult part.


Everything installed.


Back in it's corner and time to do the other one.
The results exceeded my expectations. Since I did all mods at once I'm not sure how much each had to do with the improvement but I'm very happy with the results so it doesn't matter.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by rpatt

I've completed my Klipschorn mods. I replaced the tweeter horns with Bob Crites CT125 horns, replaced the AK-2 crossovers with Al Klappenberger Universal crossovers, replaced the squawker horn/driver gasket and added 1/2 inch pipe insulation to seal the woofer section to the crorner walls.

http://images2.static-bluray.com/htgallery/96876.jpg
The old & the new.

http://images4.static-bluray.com/htgallery/96878.jpg
KHorn sans top hat. The new tweeter is installed.

http://images3.static-bluray.com/htgallery/96879.jpg
The AK-2 is a two part crossover. I had to bypass the second section in the woofer compartment. Everything was soldered so this was the most difficult part.

http://images.static-bluray.com/htgallery/96880.jpg
Everything installed.

http://images2.static-bluray.com/htgallery/96881.jpg
Back in it's corner and time to do the other one.
The results exceeded my expectations. Since I did all mods at once I'm not sure how much each had to do with the improvement but I'm very happy with the results so it doesn't matter.

Congratulations. You have done a very nice job.

Is the improvement mostly in the higher frequencies or has the mod improved the overall sound?

[rpatt]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

Congratulations. You have done a very nice job.

Is the improvement mostly in the higher frequencies or has the mod improved the overall sound?

Thanks BD. The overall sound has improved. I learned the pipe insulation trick on the Klipsch Website forum. The inproved wall seal really tightened up the bass response. As per the experts, it also increases the >400-Hz level.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by rpatt

Thanks BD. The overall sound has improved. I learned the pipe insulation trick on the Klipsch Website forum. The inproved wall seal really tightened up the bass response. As per the experts, it also increases the >400-Hz level.

You may experience some improvement if you move the speakers away from the walls.

[rpatt]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

You may experience some improvement if you move the speakers away from the walls.

Due to their design, they must be in the corners. The lower, larger portion of the speaker is the woofer section. It has a 15" driver which fires into a folded horn which would be about 8-Ft long if it was unfolded. The corner walls become part of the horn. This is why the wall seal is so important. To move them out of the corners would require building false corners and attaching them. I have seen this done but I never liked the looks of it.

[prerich]

That's just raw!!!!! Very nice indeed!!!!! Congrats!

[rpatt]

Originally Posted by prerich

That's just raw!!!!! Very nice indeed!!!!! Congrats!

Thanks Rich. I appreciate the heads up on the Crites CT125 tweeter horns. They play very nicely with the ALK Universal Crossover.

[Reference_head]

Great job rpatt those look awesome.

[prerich]

Originally Posted by rpatt

Thanks Rich. I appreciate the heads up on the Crites CT125 tweeter horns. They play very nicely with the ALK Universal Crossover.

No problem kind sir I'm contacting Greg next week to give him my down payment for my Heresy Grill mods He's the guy that owns http://www.voltiaudio.com

There are a lot of mods that can apply to Klipsch Reference speakers. I like the work on the ALK's myself -and I'm loving my Crites upgrades. I contacted Bob and he gave me the crossover points for my speakers - I've thought about active crossovers and true active tri amping.

[rpatt]

Originally Posted by prerich

No problem kind sir I'm contacting Greg next week to give him my down payment for my Heresy Grill mods He's the guy that owns http://www.voltiaudio.com

There are a lot of mods that can apply to Klipsch Reference speakers. I like the work on the ALK's myself -and I'm loving my Crites upgrades. I contacted Bob and he gave me the crossover points for my speakers - I've thought about active crossovers and true active tri amping.

That looks great. I would love to replace my squawker horns with Greg's V-Trac horns. That will have to wait until next year.
I hear ya about available Klipsch Reference speaker mods. They're the Harleys of the speaker world. No matter how old the speakers are, you can find many varieties of replacement parts and mods.

[djkest]

Hey guys,
Just getting into the DIY arena. I have a couple projects I want to tackle.

1) I have some Dayton Audio B652 speakers I picked up for $40. I want to improve them. Initial plans on cabinet bracing and copious polyfill. I also may put in a new crossover and possibly replace the tweeter. This will nearly double the cost of the speaker but could be worth it, and good experience to boot.

[Show spoiler]People recommend using a 1/2" dowel as a brace across from one side to the other, 3 braces top to bottom. What is the recommended way to install a dowel as a brace? Drill 1 hole? Drill 2 holes? Insert from inside and wedge it?

2) I have some Paradigm Monitor 9 v3 speakers. I love them to death. I think I could improve them by making a crossover with higher quality components. I might also re-wire them internally with better wire, and add some additional polyfill. In the future I may put a new veneer on them.

3) I want to build some floorstanding speakers for my Grandma. She loves great music, but she has crappy old Sony bookshelf speakers sitting on the floor right now. It's a fairly small room so will need to stay small but have good bass response. I have my eye on the AviaTrix but I can't really commit that much money yet.

I am going to a speaker building workshop this weekend, which I am excited about.

[Show spoiler]Rocky Mountain Audio festival.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by djkest

Hey guys,
Just getting into the DIY arena. I have a couple projects I want to tackle.

1) I have some Dayton Audio B652 speakers I picked up for $40. I want to improve them. Initial plans on cabinet bracing and copious polyfill. I also may put in a new crossover and possibly replace the tweeter. This will nearly double the cost of the speaker but could be worth it, and good experience to boot.

[Show spoiler]People recommend using a 1/2" dowel as a brace across from one side to the other, 3 braces top to bottom. What is the recommended way to install a dowel as a brace? Drill 1 hole? Drill 2 holes? Insert from inside and wedge it?

2) I have some Paradigm Monitor 9 v3 speakers. I love them to death. I think I could improve them by making a crossover with higher quality components. I might also re-wire them internally with better wire, and add some additional polyfill. In the future I may put a new veneer on them.

3) I want to build some floorstanding speakers for my Grandma. She loves great music, but she has crappy old Sony bookshelf speakers sitting on the floor right now. It's a fairly small room so will need to stay small but have good bass response. I have my eye on the AviaTrix but I can't really commit that much money yet.

I am going to a speaker building workshop this weekend, which I am excited about.

[Show spoiler]Rocky Mountain Audio festival.

Upgrading a speaker or a subwoofer usually results in better performance. Is it worth it? That is a question you will have to answer yourself. It depends on your finances, your passion for doing speaker upgrades, and time required to do the upgrade. You will not be able to find a better deal that TriTrix kit from Parts Express. The package used to cost $199. However, they raised their price to $259. Occasionally, they have a sale and sell it for a lower price.

Alternatively, if you want good performing mini tower speakers at a very low price for your Grandma, you can buy the Cadence F19 speakers for $149 a pair. It appears that they are currently out of stock on their black front speakers.

http://www.cadencesound.com/products/F19w.html

For bracing, just cut a piece of MDF or birch plywood, cut it to the appropriate size, and then cut a big circlular or square hole in the middle of it, and glue it (use wood glue) to the inside of the cabinet.

[hometheatergeek]

Nice job rpatt. I think upgrading my old Klipsch speakers was one of my favorite things to do in this hobby. Only downside...I have no urge to buy newer speakers.

[rpatt]

Originally Posted by hometheatergeek

Nice job rpatt. I think upgrading my old Klipsch speakers was one of my favorite things to do in this hobby. Only downside...I have no urge to buy newer speakers.

Thanks. What downside, I don't see a downside.

[frank001]

Hi everyone,

My parents moved to a new home and they found this speaker in their basement. It is an old Stromberg-carlson mono speaker. They were willing to leave it behind in their old house but I asked them to give it to me.

I'm not sure if I should keep it original or use it for my subwoofers. I have two MTX T6124 (12 inches) woofers I want to take them out the storage area and add them to my home theater.

I think I can adapt it to hold both woofers on a vented enclosure tuned at 18 htz. Any ideas?