[realtight]

Awhile back I had this crazy idea to build an elegant curved SEOs tower starting with a curved skeleton. I chose the Tempest as my guinea pig and I'm happy to show off some of the work I've been doing little by little here in the cold winter months.


Here is the original idea thread: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1505240/future-curved-seos-build-cnc-brace-skeleton-idea#post_24068435



Here are some initial pictures of the skeleton being glued and after they were done being glued. The front baffle is 1" mdf, each curved piece is 3/4" plywood as well as the 3 back strips.






I decided to use 1" mdf for the curved panel and kerf it instead of using multiple layers of 1/8" mdf. I had to use a blade that was 3/16" so the kerfs are a little bit larger then what I would have liked but filling the gaps was much easier this way. Test piece:




I built a curved "bed" for the panels to sit in while I was clamping them. Used a lot of glue to fill the kerfs!






Here is a test fitting after the curved back was dry. I had Erich send me non rounded front baffles with no port holes and created a nice curved front piece out of 1-1/2" mdf to give it a bit more curvy-ness!





As weather permitted finally I was able to make more progress this weekend, cutting holes on the bottoms for ports and terminals as well as glue top and bottom end caps. Sanding down those kerfed ridges is going to be a pain!

 

[sooly1]

Very very nice!

 

[chalugadp]

Top quality work .

 

[dtsdig]

Looking great! Very inspirational!

 

[realtight]

Thanks everyone! Honestly I've put more planning into these towers then the time its taken to build thus far. Its almost an obsession.


Dts, your curved sub build is what inspired me to start working on a curved build of some kind so that means a lot!

 

[kevings]

Awesome Awesome awesome work.


I love builds like this ( new. Innovative, risk taking).


With skills like yours...The Marty subs I built, are something you could've tackled in elementary school

 

[Martycool007]

These are looking fantastic! Very impressive! I am curious, how do you guys make these elaborate bracing panels? How do you ensure that all of these intricate bracing panels are the exact same size? What do you use to cut them & how do you make sure that they all line up properly?

 

[ChopShop1]

Very nice looking build realtight! I've been contemplating something similar for the tux1099 for the living room. What method did you use on the front baffles??

 

[kgveteran]

Pretty slick build. What will you be powering them with ? Will this be for HT or two channel ? Wts, passive XO or active ?


KG

 

[mrevo2u]

Very nice, what 's the finish going to be?

 

[blah450]

Freakin' outstanding! Speaker-building art. Love the front baffle/faces!!

 

[realtight]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Martycool007  /t/1527379/curved-seos-tempest-build#post_24608289


These are looking fantastic! Very impressive! I am curious, how do you guys make these elaborate bracing panels? How do you ensure that all of these intricate bracing panels are the exact same size? What do you use to cut them & how do you make sure that they all line up properly?

Honestly, I found a local cnc guy that cut all of those curved pieces so they are all exact, I started cutting them with a jig and my router and was taking way too long. The red clamps you see in the photos clamp wood at perfect 90 degree angles and the long strips help keep everything in place while they dried.

 

[realtight]



Quote:
Originally Posted by ChopShop1  /t/1527379/curved-seos-tempest-build#post_24608296


Very nice looking build realtight! I've been contemplating something similar for the tux1099 for the living room. What method did you use on the front baffles??

The front baffles were going to be large 45 degree angles until I found this thread on another forum:
http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/diy-speakers/48848-trompie-s-curved-statement-family-building-thread.html#post453651


On the 7th post you can see the jig this guy created, I did the exact same thing. It took a lot of passes with my router but I think they ended up nice

After they were done I decided to keep the baffles Erich sent me and just cut a window into the curved front with my router, and shaved the edges until the two pieces fit perfectly.

 

[realtight]



Quote:
Originally Posted by mrevo2u  /t/1527379/curved-seos-tempest-build#post_24608352


Very nice, what 's the finish going to be?

It's not set in stone yet, and I'm a little worried about screwing them up but I bought some really nice glossy Madagascar Laminate from cabinetparts.com


The inside flat baffle I'm going to use some leftover zebrawood veneer and stain it gray to give a little contrast to the glossy black laminate.

 

[realtight]



Quote:
Originally Posted by kgveteran  /t/1527379/curved-seos-tempest-build#post_24608333


Pretty slick build. What will you be powering them with ? Will this be for HT or two channel ? Wts, passive XO or active ?


KG

Passive crossover. I have a Yamaha z11. I also have an Adcom gfa-555-II that I might connect to them and let the Yamaha push the other 9 speakers.

 

[blah450]

You know, realtight, it's not everyone that can say they have some left-over zebrawood veneer...

The closest I could come to something exotic like that would be left-over extra garlic brats.

 

[realtight]

Haha, it does sound a little ridiculous doesn't it?


The company that I ordered the veneer from screwed up and sent me two different types. They sent more to make up for it and let me keep the type that didnt match

 

[mjaudio]

Outstanding build!


With the ports on the bottom how high off the floor do they need to be so they don't affect tuning?


How much bigger is the cabinet volume compared the recommended 2cuft tempest and does it require a different crossover?


One last thing, you have crazy skills

 

[cessna1466u]

Beautiful, can't wait to see the finish product. Definitely something that a nice veneer could benefit from. Subscribed. Bring on the nice weather so you can this one finished up.

 

[tuxedocivic]

Very very nice. Thanks for sharing.


I've considered a curved build on a much smaller scale. Let me know if I'm on the right track to making the ribs... I'd make a template and trace it onto my sheet goods. Then I'd bandsaw them out within an 1/8" of the line. Then affix the template to the roughly cut out rib. Flush route it out on the router. Repeat for each one.


It seems you were doing something like that, but gave up and went with a CNC. Was that because it was too much work, or you weren't getting a reliable repeatable result??