OK, so I got one looking.... OK. A lot of work went into this. A lot. More than the driver is worth, to be honest. The other one will not be as nice but I ain't a-fuckin with it any more.
I know what happened though, and why the original rebate was a tad too tight.
I should know better after all these years, but I don't.
If you look at the mid from the side, the faceplate is shaped like this:
The side of the faceplate that goes down is a larger diameter than the side that faces out. I measured in the wrong spot, apparently. Kind of annoying, but it is what it is. I will do some spot filling on the second one, it won't be as shitty as it was before but that one I wrapped the driver in shrink wrap, laid in some Bond-O in the cutout and pressed it in, as if it was being installed. When it cured is when I noticed the bevel on the faceplate. You can imagine how much fun it was to remove said driver after basically gluing it in place. On the other one, I pressed the Bond-O out with the driver facing into the cabinet. It came out easier, but still resulted in a ton of work because of the bevel. I ended up removing 90% of the material I put in there. The very nature of the faceplate precludes a tight fit.
I have had way more negative than positive experiences using HiVi drivers - these better sound good.
I wonder why the designers at HiVi thought an angled profile was a good idea? It was probably someone who has never actually built a speaker from scratch.
Most all of my rebates use a 1/2 inch rebate bit and I focus on the through hole diameter. Small mids and tweeter holes can be done with a hole saw. I went to this method so I could cut the driver rebates after I veneered.
I have used the method Jhollander mentioned many times. I find that the bearings on routerbits gloss over small imperfections leaving a better than original finished cut. The same is true for top templates. If you can use a larger bearing the smoothing effect is even greater. The same is true for bushings.
Keep up the good work JR. And thanks for posting build pics.
@jr@mac said:
OK, so I got one looking.... OK. A lot of work went into this. A lot. More than the driver is worth, to be honest. The other one will not be as nice but I ain't a-fuckin with it any more.
I know what happened though, and why the original rebate was a tad too tight.
I should know better after all these years, but I don't.
If you look at the mid from the side, the faceplate is shaped like this:
The side of the faceplate that goes down is a larger diameter than the side that faces out. I measured in the wrong spot, apparently. Kind of annoying, but it is what it is. I will do some spot filling on the second one, it won't be as shitty as it was before but that one I wrapped the driver in shrink wrap, laid in some Bond-O in the cutout and pressed it in, as if it was being installed. When it cured is when I noticed the bevel on the faceplate. You can imagine how much fun it was to remove said driver after basically gluing it in place. On the other one, I pressed the Bond-O out with the driver facing into the cabinet. It came out easier, but still resulted in a ton of work because of the bevel. I ended up removing 90% of the material I put in there. The very nature of the faceplate precludes a tight fit.
I have had way more negative than positive experiences using HiVi drivers - these better sound good.
It may be a different mid, but I wonder if that is why the mid is not flush mounted in the HiVi 3.1DIY kits.
If this recovery work doesn't end in a satisfactory outcome, you can still use dcibel's method to make a bigger through hole and then John's method for the rebate. Just be sure to put plenty of filler around the resulting lip before you begin your new cuts. That is provided the driver allows mounting with just a 1/2" flange.
It looks like they were trying to keep it as far from the edge as possible, probably a cya for them, because people may not drill a pilot hole, and blow out the side.
I've had pretty good luck sanding and filling the first few coats to minimize the seem bleed through. My process would be to wait 2 weeks to dry out then sand and try not to break through the first layer of paint, repaint, repeat.
If the paint is gummy after two weeks I'd say you would have to live with it or sand back and start over with a different paint.
I just finished a small pair of desktop speakers and I painted them with some leftover, oil based, enamel, concrete porch paint. It rolled on nice and smooth and dried with the perfect amount of stipple. I really liked the light gray color for a change. I'll probably paint my latest MTM project the same way.
Comments
OK, so I got one looking.... OK. A lot of work went into this. A lot. More than the driver is worth, to be honest. The other one will not be as nice but I ain't a-fuckin with it any more.
I know what happened though, and why the original rebate was a tad too tight.
I should know better after all these years, but I don't.
If you look at the mid from the side, the faceplate is shaped like this:
The side of the faceplate that goes down is a larger diameter than the side that faces out. I measured in the wrong spot, apparently. Kind of annoying, but it is what it is. I will do some spot filling on the second one, it won't be as shitty as it was before but that one I wrapped the driver in shrink wrap, laid in some Bond-O in the cutout and pressed it in, as if it was being installed. When it cured is when I noticed the bevel on the faceplate. You can imagine how much fun it was to remove said driver after basically gluing it in place. On the other one, I pressed the Bond-O out with the driver facing into the cabinet. It came out easier, but still resulted in a ton of work because of the bevel. I ended up removing 90% of the material I put in there. The very nature of the faceplate precludes a tight fit.
I have had way more negative than positive experiences using HiVi drivers - these better sound good.
I wonder why the designers at HiVi thought an angled profile was a good idea? It was probably someone who has never actually built a speaker from scratch.
Cost, I imagine. Quicker and more reliable mold release.
Ahhh - I thought that faceplate was metal.
It is, but likely die cast.
Still tweaking the mids in. I still have high hopes.
Most all of my rebates use a 1/2 inch rebate bit and I focus on the through hole diameter. Small mids and tweeter holes can be done with a hole saw. I went to this method so I could cut the driver rebates after I veneered.
Veneering implies a basic woodworking skillet I lack, unfortunately.
I am re-evaluating things, though.
Yeah but a hole saw is always round. 4 1/8" tweeter gets a 3 1/8" hole saw.
Good point, John.
Hit me up on Thursday JR , Im off . Think of me as shake and bake , I can help , if you need an extra set of hands. Friday too
Sounds good, bud.
I have used the method Jhollander mentioned many times. I find that the bearings on routerbits gloss over small imperfections leaving a better than original finished cut. The same is true for top templates. If you can use a larger bearing the smoothing effect is even greater. The same is true for bushings.
Keep up the good work JR. And thanks for posting build pics.
It may be a different mid, but I wonder if that is why the mid is not flush mounted in the HiVi 3.1DIY kits.
If this recovery work doesn't end in a satisfactory outcome, you can still use dcibel's method to make a bigger through hole and then John's method for the rebate. Just be sure to put plenty of filler around the resulting lip before you begin your new cuts. That is provided the driver allows mounting with just a 1/2" flange.
The DMN-a is a thinner flange than the DMB-a flange is as well.
InDIYana Event Website
A complaint about Dayton outrigger spikes:
They must know that most people will be using 3/4" material - why is the one mounting hole centered at 3/4"? Kind of stupid.
It looks like they were trying to keep it as far from the edge as possible, probably a cya for them, because people may not drill a pilot hole, and blow out the side.
Yeah, I'm sure that is the tradeoff but it also means a high risk of splitting at a seam. Grrr lol.
Quickie finish. No real attempts to hide seams etc.
This is the paint I bought to do the ceiling in my home bar.
Huh, maybe the talked to Bill F who convinced them everyone uses 1/2"?
That's why you predrill the holes.
Ron
Yeah.
Pre-drill or not, you stress the joint. I will be seating the screws with some epoxy.
This interior latex is pretty easy stuff for quickie cabinets.
It dries to a fairly black satin finish. I kind of wish I had taken a few steps to hide seams, now. These might end up being fairly nice looking.
I've had pretty good luck sanding and filling the first few coats to minimize the seem bleed through. My process would be to wait 2 weeks to dry out then sand and try not to break through the first layer of paint, repaint, repeat.
If the paint is gummy after two weeks I'd say you would have to live with it or sand back and start over with a different paint.
I just finished a small pair of desktop speakers and I painted them with some leftover, oil based, enamel, concrete porch paint. It rolled on nice and smooth and dried with the perfect amount of stipple. I really liked the light gray color for a change. I'll probably paint my latest MTM project the same way.
I say break out the sander JR.
I might. I'll see how it goes. Interior latex is not generally k own for sandability, but this is the paint+primer type, so it may surprise me.
Don't fear the sander. You just need some more cow bell.
And more single malt...