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My THT build in Piano finish

post #1 of 92
9/30/11 at 8:54pm
Thread Starter 
Hi guys, I want to thank ckone180 a member who motivated me, guided me and helped me understand about horned subwoofers, and everyone else on this forum.

I am happy that i did not go the diy way.. (I am not good at that, i do a pathetic job even putting nails on the wall) Well, this feat is achieved by my cabinet builder Steve Regier, a Bill Fitzmaurice's authorized THT builder based in Chicago. He did a classic job on building this sub for me.

I will try to upload some pics from the beginning of the project till the end.





























































Few more pics to come tomorrow... with the final coating.
I will be spending this weekend calibrating it.. However i am not sure what eq to use. What do you guys recommend for eq'ing the THT?
I have a receiver that does the mcacc calibration, however i would love to go for the real stuff.
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post #2 of 92
9/30/11 at 9:36pm
nice. i find these tubas so intriguing. the builds look so complicated. good luck with it
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post #3 of 92
9/30/11 at 9:41pm
Minidsp

Amazing subwoofer, one of my favorites.
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post #4 of 92
9/30/11 at 9:50pm
Excellent work and finish.What kind of driver did you use?
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post #5 of 92
9/30/11 at 9:54pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks, it is a Dayton Audio DVC385-88 15" DVC Series Subwoofer
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post #6 of 92
9/30/11 at 10:06pm
Oh,cause the one in your picture is not the one you linked to.
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post #7 of 92
9/30/11 at 10:06pm
The woofer in the picture on top of the cabinet earlier in the thread is not the same as the one in the cabinet

Nice pics.
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post #8 of 92
9/30/11 at 10:23pm
I use a Behringer Feedback Destroyer with my THT LP - FBQ2496 - bought on eBay for about $60 - works well. MiniDSP seems to be the rage these days though.
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post #9 of 92
9/30/11 at 10:55pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by notnyt View Post

The woofer in the picture on top of the cabinet earlier in the thread is not the same as the one in the cabinet

Nice pics.

I am confused here.. the cabinet maker told me that he wud be using Dayton DVC woofer.
He has a bunch of woofers at his workhouse, but the main concern for me is.. Is the woofer inside the cabinet a Dayton Audio DVC385-88 15" or not? Now i get worried!!
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post #10 of 92
9/30/11 at 11:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by holyindian View Post

I am confused here.. the cabinet maker told me that he wud be using Dayton DVC woofer.
He has a bunch of woofers at his workhouse, but the main concern for me is.. Is the woofer inside the cabinet a Dayton Audio DVC385-88 15" or not? Now i get worried!!


He must have used the Dayton DVC... the other one looks too tall... if your're still worried unscrew the side cover carefully and have a look see.
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post #11 of 92
9/30/11 at 11:12pm
Thread Starter 
Comparing the sides of the Dayton DVC here at PE.. with the pic.. it looks both the sides and the structure is same... he used.




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post #12 of 92
9/30/11 at 11:18pm
He may have been using a spare speaker just as a weight to hold something down while gluing. Might even be an 18" (looks like it to me).
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post #13 of 92
10/1/11 at 7:40am
I agree. I believe he used the DVC, and the one on top looks like an 18". The finish looks great. Minidsp is popular. There is also the SVS auto setup. That may be the one you really should look at. For simplicity.

How does it sound now, before eq?
BTW, I did get your PM. This is my AVS identity.

I am very pleased that more people are getting into DIY. Even if they do not actually do the build themselves. This is a very good community, and you'll fit right in. Not everyone can do carpentry!
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post #14 of 92
10/1/11 at 8:09am
Is that 3/4" ply?

Also there is a reflected image(towards the end of the images) of some horn loaded speakers on top of what appears to be a dual ported lower enclosure.
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post #15 of 92
10/1/11 at 9:13am
Awesome looking THT... I will hopefully get around to building two this winter (though I've had the plans for 9 months now so I doubt it). That piano finish looks great. I'm curious to hear your impressions when you fire it up and get it calibrated.
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post #16 of 92
10/1/11 at 9:25am
Cyneric, just do it. Trust me, you will not regret it. Once you're done, its all enjoyment from there out. Well, I even enjoyed the building process. It was fun.
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post #17 of 92
10/1/11 at 6:55pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad Horstkotte View Post

He may have been using a spare speaker just as a weight to hold something down while gluing. Might even be an 18" (looks like it to me).

Yea, i asked him, abt that.. and thats what he told me.. that he was using it to weigh down the upper part of the plywood for glue treatment.

Quote:
Originally Posted by 4theLuvofHD View Post

I agree. I believe he used the DVC, and the one on top looks like an 18". The finish looks great. Minidsp is popular. There is also the SVS auto setup. That may be the one you really should look at. For simplicity.

How does it sound now, before eq?
BTW, I did get your PM. This is my AVS identity.

I am very pleased that more people are getting into DIY. Even if they do not actually do the build themselves. This is a very good community, and you'll fit right in. Not everyone can do carpentry!

I cannot thank you enough, for giving me the encouragement and going ahead with this build. I am a happy camper today cos of you.
Yea, i and Steve (the tht builder) just did the initial testing, and it was already thundering, but after the MCACC calibration that came with my Pioneer Elite SC-57, the crispness of the bass and the deep punch started showing up.
But we think that this a lot of room for improvement if a proper eq/dsp gear is used. Still going in between.. MiniDSP.. which i think is very complicated... Not sure if there is tutorial for caliberate the THT with a MiniDSP?
I was also looking at AntiMode and SMS-1. Any suggestion guys?

Quote:
Originally Posted by stgdz View Post

Is that 3/4" ply?

Also there is a reflected image(towards the end of the images) of some horn loaded speakers on top of what appears to be a dual ported lower enclosure.

Yes, its a 3/4" ply is Baltic Birch.
He has over two dozen speakers/subs in his workshop... all different kinds and makes. It's a true pleasure to visit his place. Every sub/speaker sounds different.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Cyneric View Post

Awesome looking THT... I will hopefully get around to building two this winter (though I've had the plans for 9 months now so I doubt it). That piano finish looks great. I'm curious to hear your impressions when you fire it up and get it calibrated.


I was reeling in between getting a DTS-10 DIY kit, was in two worlds.. thinking if i cud use both the subs togather. But after witnessing the power of the THT, i have completely dropped my plans, and now plan to get another build THT soon. Trust me the Piano finish looks much better in person. Just jells well with my current Def Tech Mythos ST setup.
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post #18 of 92
10/1/11 at 7:46pm
Nice looking sub. A pair of those would do well in any room. You need to show some room pictures.
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post #19 of 92
10/1/11 at 9:20pm
congratulations.

you will surely get some serious performance.

the finish has not been rubbed out, i.e. it is not done. the effect in the pictures is called orange peel, named after the rough finish of an orange's skin. a completed high gloss black should be smooth and reflect light like a mirror.
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post #20 of 92
10/1/11 at 11:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by LTD02 View Post

congratulations.

you will surely get some serious performance.

the finish has not been rubbed out, i.e. it is not done. the effect in the pictures is called orange peel, named after the rough finish of an orange's skin. a completed high gloss black should be smooth and reflect light like a mirror.


Are saying that because you were involved in the build or just being critical of it?
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post #21 of 92
10/1/11 at 11:31pm
He's being critical, but he's right. That's what blocking/wet sanding is for, get it nice and flat, then polish
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post #22 of 92
10/2/11 at 11:59am
This is Steve, the builder. Let me try to answer some of the questions here:
1. This THT was constructed with 1/2" BB with the exception of the baffle which is 3/4" BB
2. The driver in one of the build pics is an 18" sub from a test cab that is used in that pic for providing weight for glue curing.
3. The cabinets mentioned in one of the posts reflecting in the THT are our own patent pending Manipulated Vortex Waveguide designs. One is a HT top and the other is a HT sub. They have properties of both horns and direct radiators but are neither.
4. The driver used in this and all our THT builds of this size is the Dayton DVC-385-88 made by Eminece.
5. The finish is what it is...It has been wet sanded and polished once but could be done quite a bit more but is not possible given the build constraints.

Here are some photos taken with the THT in place...
LL
LL
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post #23 of 92
10/2/11 at 12:20pm
love the execution. looks great.
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post #24 of 92
10/2/11 at 6:59pm
Hey guys I am Tom and the namesake of Big-E (old Navy nickname I got in Japan on CV-62 hence the Kanji in the logo)

The driver weight I believe was one of the 18" Pyle drivers we welded the voice coil solid on while developing our own cabinet structure. Which as Steve said the Manipulated Vortex Wave Guide. The mate died soon after, and already had a rattle. We had it pushing single Hz stuff hard enough it actually hurt your ribs. What we finalized on just amplifies the driver without force tuning.

Just a weight. The correct driver was used and is visible in the open cab in the one pic and matches your picture.

Fun to build those tubas. I currently have a T24 in my living room. Pretty cool. Although the one going in my couch will be the one in the reflection.
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post #25 of 92
10/2/11 at 11:48pm
what is a "Manipulated Vortex Waveguide"?
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post #26 of 92
10/3/11 at 4:44am
It was my duty to share the value! I believe you made the correct choice, and should be very pleased!

SMS-1 is probably a more simple solution for you. I would try that and see what you think.

Enjoy it though, there are some good Lf effects in Thor, TDK and some others to really showcase the THT!
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post #27 of 92
6/28/12 at 9:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by LTD02 View Post

what is a "Manipulated Vortex Waveguide"?
did you ever find out the answer?
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post #28 of 92
6/28/12 at 2:54pm
no, but it sounds cool. :-)
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post #29 of 92
6/28/12 at 5:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by LTD02 View Post

no, but it sounds cool. :-)

it does, doesn't it?


I am actually trying to find out as much as possible about the guy and this vortex waveguide thing, that's how I stumbled over this old thread. It very well may be that there is more to this than just a cool name. There is a buzz about the company (Big E Loudspeakers) in the pro audio circles. From what I could gather so far, the cabinets they designed are indeed unique though details are sketchy. one thing that is known is that they are not tuned.

I am going there next Friday to listen to their home theater designs. can hardly wait.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pY7ZyyWyih4

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f15/big-e-loudspeakers-arnopol-vid-894455/
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post #30 of 92
6/30/12 at 10:31pm
not tuned? what is the purpose of the big slot ports?
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