Yep... another guy named Jim building a pair of Statements

[JimAckley]

That's right ladies and gentlemen, another set of Statements are coming together.

I've already bought all of the drivers and crossover components. The only thing left to do is build my enclosures. This set is using the RS225-8s since the shielded model is obviously not available. I don't want to change the cabinet's overall appearance, so I'm going to add a baffle above the top woofer, and another below the port, which I'm rear-firing, to knock the volume down to where I need it to be.

I haven't finished perfecting the port or binding posts in my SketchUp model, but I think I've gotten almost everything else down pretty well. I put a copy of my model thus far on Game Front (click me). I wanna do the front and back panels painted black, and the sides with a cherry veneer.

I've also attached pics below for you guys. Let me know what you think so far.

[Jim Holtz]

Hi Jim,

The drawings look great! Careful to not get the top panel too close to the top woofer. They like to breathe.

Welcome to the club! :T

Jim

[---k---]

That empty space beneath the bottom woofer would make a great place to stash the crossover. Either put an access panel in the bottom or back.

I agree with Jim. The bracing looks like a great design. And plan for the 1" or whatever of foam on the woofer walls. No reason you can't subtract all the volume from the bottom. I've also found that having space to stick my hand inside and work to add/remove stuffing, or a place to put the crossover or whatever is more important.

[JimAckley]

Thanks Jim. That means a lot coming from you. I'll give it more space up top. Right now I've got 13/16" from the hole to the top panel. Think I should double it?

And ---k---, great idea on the access panel. I had just planned on putting the crossover components inside the enclosure, but I'll get something hashed out soon.

I forgot to mention a few minor deviations, if you will, in my build from the rest. First, I'm going for a silver-faced tweeter instead of the black that I've seen in all of the other builds (except Trompie's). I initially had hoped it would match the W4s, but it turns out that the W4s are almost more of a light grey/darker silver and the tweeters are a bright silver. You can see the differences below in my pic.



Second, I took the liberty of shooting for nicer crossover components. I used ClarityCap ESA 250v capacitors and Duelund standard resistors in all of the in-line positions. I didn't do anything different for the shunts. I substituted in the 7.0 mH inductor from Meniscus that you recommended to BigJim_in_FLA since the Erse was still out of stock. If I should've used something other than that one, please let me know asap. I'm glad I've pretty much got everything though. As you can see, I'm kinda running out of space, haha.



Also, Jim, in addition to the enclosure volume decreasing, does the port need to be shortened at all? and if so, by how much?

Thanks again for you guys' support.

[Coconutout]

i got a question about the bracing, and jim's application isn't the first time i'm seeing this.

is it ok to do away with vertical bracing that runs down the middle of the transmission tunnels in the original plan?

also, Jim, duelund resistors? way to go! the design definitely deserves it.

[Jim Holtz]

Here are some thoughts regarding the questions posed:

The 7.0 Menicus inductor is fine.

Total cabinet volume of the original Statements was about 120 liters before deducting for drivers, tunnels bracing etc. The new RS225's require about 20% less so a gross volume of about 95 liters would be about right with a net of around 75 - 80. That's the goal you should shoot for.

Sorry, Curt is the box tuning wizard. He'll need to chime in for port length. Shoot him an email and share with us. I'd like to know too.

I like Clarity caps and used them on a build for a good friend of mine. He has an uber expensive front end driving his Statements. In VERY critical listening, the Clarity version "might" have been a touch crisper on the highs. It's a nice touch but not where the significant improvements come from. If you want significant and noticeable improvements, clean up the source components with a well designed solid state amp and tube source components on up the chain.

Jim's bracing on the mid tunnels is superior to mine just a lot more work than the vertical braces.

Regarding the top brace, I'd suggest you leave that as originally designed and adjust the bottom brace to achieve the correct volume. As Ryan suggested, it's a great place to put your crossovers.

HTH

Jim

[JimAckley]

Will having the port that high up off the floor and practically directly behind the driver, especially in comparison to the original design, have a negative impact on the sound?

[Silver1omo]

I made the same type of bracing for the mid tunnel in my monitors.

Image not available

I found it easier to do rabets than bu77 joints, at least to square things.

[AdelaaR]

Looks very solid already
Good luck with your build.

[Jim Holtz]

Will having the port that high up off the floor and practically directly behind the driver, especially in comparison to the original design, have a negative impact on the sound?

The port should not be in direct line with the driver. It should be positioned so you can't look in the port and see the driver.

Jim

[JimAckley]

I can't tell if I'm making this more complicated on myself than need be...

What if I bring the bottom up some, but also add wood to the inside of the enclosure, e.g. double up most of the back wall and some of the front? That's the best I can figure out while keeping the port away from the driver.

I've spend the better part of today digging through SketchUp trying to find a way to make it work, and without bringing the top down, it's hard to reduce the volume down to 80L easily. I've got it down to 81.1L right now after the bracing, drivers, lower baffle brought upward, etc. It's 97.4L before all of that.

Is it a possibility whatsoever to reduce the depth of the speaker altogether, or will that mess up the t-lines? While I'm on the subject of the t-lines, is it acceptable to roundover their edges like in my picture in the first post (it's probably a little hard to tell, but I have a 3/4" roundover on them), or do they have to stay squared?

Geez I wish I could still buy shielded drivers. My life would be so much easier right now... haha

BTW, I heard back from Curt this afternoon, and he confirmed that the port doesn't change at all.

[Jim Holtz]

Hi Jim,

If adding the false panel in the top makes it work out, go for it. I like more breathing room but it's not a show stopper.

There is a "little" flexibility on cabinet depth and width. No more than 10% deviation (less is better) from the original design for either dimension should not impact things too much. Curt, jump in if I misstate anything.

The front vertical edges were designed to be rounded over with a 3/4" roundover. More is fine as is less. I think you'd be hard pressed to hear square corners on the front of the cabinet.

These are all pretty minor design considerations that will have very minimal impact, if any on sound quality. Your room and source components will have a much greater impact on the sound.

Jim

[BeerParty]

While I'm on the subject of the t-lines, is it acceptable to roundover their edges like in my picture in the first post (it's probably a little hard to tell, but I have a 3/4" roundover on them), or do they have to stay squared?

You are talking about rounding over the edge of the opening at rear of the transmission line, correct? You can round them over without impacting the sound. I beveled the rear of the transmission line on my Statement Monitors (see pictures here) and it didn't impact the sound as far as I can tell. Just make sure you put the foam in the mid tunnels as per the instructions; I understand that the foam has a noticeable impact on the sound.

[JimAckley]

You are talking about rounding over the edge of the opening at rear of the transmission line, correct? You can round them over without impacting the sound. I beveled the rear of the transmission line on my Statement Monitors (see pictures here) and it didn't impact the sound as far as I can tell. Just make sure you put the foam in the mid tunnels as per the instructions; I understand that the foam has a noticeable impact on the sound.

Sorry for going MIA for a bit. School does that to me at times.

Yes I was referring to the rear of the transmission lines. I like what you did, but I'm shooting for a roundover for a smoother look. Like you said, I think that takes laminate out of the question for the back. I suppose you could laminate right up to your bevel, then paint the bevel and tunnel. I debated that myself, but I think I like the front and back black and the sides cherry.

I'm attaching a pic of my t-line exit, with the roundover accentuated with dashed lines so you can see it easier. When I go through and make it, the corners of the roundover will be curved like yours. I just didn't feel like putting in the effort in my model to make that happen yet. I'm also including a pic to show you how my model will look with the back panel painted. I've given a touch of red to the wood for a warmer look. Tell me what you think.

Also, I'm emailing Curt to see if the enclosure can be made narrower by a minor amount (e.g. 1/4" or 1/2") and/or shallower to help reduce the volume. I'll let you know what I hear back.