Tweeter recess too deep

[jimangie1973]

I just received Madisound enclosures with the precut baffles for the Seas drivers. The tweeter recess is the perfect diameter, but cut quite a bit too deep for the TDFC. Any ideas on a good spacer material, besides multiple layers of foam sealer tape, to get the tweeter flush with the baffle? Thanks.

FYI, the enclosures are very nice. The veneer is good quality. The only gripe I have is the lack of a brace in the 0.5 cu/ft size. I will add one myself.

Jim

[Brian Bunge]

Jim,

How deep is "too deep"? You might be able to use some thin ABS plastic if you can find some. Or maybe some thin balsa (sp?) wood? Maybe check out the craft stores.

[---k---]

Maybe a thick piece of EPDM peel-and-stick roofing or waterproofing membrane. Not sure how easy you can get this in low quantities. I got 4 or 5 sq-ft left over from when I got my roof done. Great for misc. projects around the house - like adding weight and killing resonance in floor registers.

[jimangie1973]

Jim,

How deep is "too deep"? You might be able to use some thin ABS plastic if you can find some. Or maybe some thin balsa (sp?) wood? Maybe check out the craft stores.

Hey Brian,

I'd say about 1/8th inch too deep. The thin plastic is a good idea. I may be able to find some around the house.

Would you mind cutting me a couple MDF squares for braces. I'll get the dimensions to you later if it's not a problem. Weren't you wanting me to measure some Microbes or something?

-------

Thanks for the info 'k'. I will look into that too.

Jim

[cjd]

I can't find the page where he talks about it, but Zaph uses that thin, dense "hobby foam" available in 8x10 sheets in multiple colors at craft stores - it's about 1/16" thick and is extremely easy to work with.

C

[Brian Bunge]

Jim,

Here's another idea. The last speakers I built I used some rubber weather stripping that worked really well. My tweeter recesses (and woofers with thin mounting flanges) are always a little too deep thanks to the thickness added by the veneer. So I got some rubber weather stripping from Ace Hardware that did the trick. It doesn't compress as easily as the foam stuff so it might be just the trick.

Yeah, let me know what size you need and I should have enough scrap MDF to cut you some braces. It might be best to bring the boxes over so we can test fit them.

I'm going to play with using some red dye on the birds eye maple veneer on the little Microbe cabinets but the front and back will be painted black. So I won't be attaching them to the cabinets until the finishing work is complete. I may throw together a slim tower version that I want to build for my wife's boss so that I can go ahead with measurements and xo design. She's got a killer condo up in Cape Canaveral and I want to build her some nice speakers as a gift. She's also a good friend of ours so we aren't just sucking up to the boss lady!

[jimangie1973]

Jim,

Here's another idea. The last speakers I built I used some rubber weather stripping that worked really well. My tweeter recesses (and woofers with thin mounting flanges) are always a little too deep thanks to the thickness added by the veneer. So I got some rubber weather stripping from Ace Hardware that did the trick. It doesn't compress as easily as the foam stuff so it might be just the trick.

Yeah, let me know what size you need and I should have enough scrap MDF to cut you some braces. It might be best to bring the boxes over so we can test fit them.

I'm going to play with using some red dye on the birds eye maple veneer on the little Microbe cabinets but the front and back will be painted black. So I won't be attaching them to the cabinets until the finishing work is complete. I may throw together a slim tower version that I want to build for my wife's boss so that I can go ahead with measurements and xo design. She's got a killer condo up in Cape Canaveral and I want to build her some nice speakers as a gift. She's also a good friend of ours so we aren't just sucking up to the boss lady!

Yea right!! There's nothing wrong with sucking up. You just need to do it better than the next guy.

I'll make a trip to the HW store today. Thanks for all the suggestions, it's appreciated.

[Brian Bunge]

Yea right!! There's nothing wrong with sucking up. You just need to do it better than the next guy.

I'll make a trip to the HW store today. Thanks for all the suggestions, it's appreciated.

Plus, she's hot, single, and my wife doesn't care if I flirt with her!

[Biff]

Gasket material

Most auto parts stores and some big box places have a cork gasket material that would work really well for that - it comes in sheets and makes a nice cut with a boxcutter or xacto blade. It compacts almost not at all and would be a vibration damper as well. If you have a friend in an independent auto repair shop they probably have scraps around they would turn you on to.

[jkrutke]

I can't find the page where he talks about it, but Zaph uses that thin, dense "hobby foam" available in 8x10 sheets in multiple colors at craft stores - it's about 1/16" thick and is extremely easy to work with.

Old blog entry. Here's some pictures of a circle cutting jig. When I did this, I made a whole bunch. 2 layers might be needed for a deep recess, but I just like them for the sealing and anti-vibration properties.

[cjd]

Dang, that was one of the useful tip blog entries! So simple, yet so very effective.

Thanks for reposting it here.

C

[ThomasW]

Cool.... :T

Unfortunately I'm not allowed to handle 'sharps'..... :B

[jimangie1973]

I went to 'Michael's' craft store and found the foam and with a sticky back. Two layers of it works perfectly. I didn't cut them out as nicely as Zaph but they work all the same.

Thanks a lot for all the great responses.

[Brian Bunge]

Jim,

Sounds good! And the great thing is, I know exactly which Michaels you went to in case I ever need the same stuff!

BTW, does it compress pretty well without warping the tweeter mounting flange? I remember you and I discussing not being very fond of the plastic flanges on the Seas tweeters. I know we can't be too picky considering the performance you get for $30 though!

[jimangie1973]

Jim,

Sounds good! And the great thing is, I know exactly which Michaels you went to in case I ever need the same stuff!

BTW, does it compress pretty well without warping the tweeter mounting flange? I remember you and I discussing not being very fond of the plastic flanges on the Seas tweeters. I know we can't be too picky considering the performance you get for $30 though!

Yes, it has just about the perfect compression resistance. The flange doesn't seem to warp at all.

I'm using the CA18RNX woofer instead of the ER18 of the Zaph design. I know it's not quite as good of a performer distortion wise but I wanted to a new design and didn't want to wait for the ER18s to get back into stock. Also, I think the crossover can be really simple.