DK - Isiris (V2) - Build

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  • Efalegalo
    Senior Member
    • Jan 2007
    • 139

    DK - Isiris (V2) - Build

    Hi All,

    I figured I've made enough progress that I can start to share build pictures. I've made a ton of cosmetic mistakes so far - but I've learned not to go out the way to point them out (lol).

    It's been a challenge so far. Some comments for others that may consider this build:
    • Modeling the plans into 3D was a huge help - it helped me visualize how I need to lay the pieces on the table saw to make compound cuts
    • The front and back of the top cabinet assembly have different angles (the tilt forward angle) - but, I think, if you make them the same (as the front baffle angle) - the top becomes a little easier to build. Once you start the build, you'll understand why. It has to do with how one makes cuts using a track-saw - and being able to use the front or the back to make cut lines.
    • For compound cuts on the table saw - make a sliding jig - that way you can make identical cuts for the two cabinets.
    • A track saw was a must! I don't have a good miter saw, so I resorted to using that track-saw to make angle cuts. I only wished I had a larger track-saw - mine can only cut a max of 2" deep - and you lose some of that depth when you start cutting at angles. The baffles here are 3" thick.
    • I cut the facets using an electric planer. It's an absolute nightmare to sand plywood edges, so one may be tempted to get as close to the cut line with the planer as possible - DON"T!!!! Get close, but still sand down with a hand sander. There is no way to add material if you cut too much.
    • Do NOT rush with the build. I think I can become a better woodworker by simply slowing down - there is no timeline for when the project needs to be completed - so why the rush? It's not like we all don't have 10 million other pairs of speakers we can't listen to in the meantime. Lacking patience is just a personality flaw of mine. This results in a lot of unnecessary mistakes along the way. Haste makes waste. If you follow some of the best builds on this website (e.g. various Ardents build) - and if you pay attention to their build timeline, you will notice that no matter how skilled of a woodworker they are, they took their time with the build. I've made this much progress in 2-months. Most skilled woodworkers stretch this progress over a much longer period - and be really methodical with their build.
    Lastly, to say Jon was supportive is a huge understatement. If it wasn't for his encouragement, no way in hell would I have taken on such a challenge. He patiently answered the endless questions I had. I'll be surprised if we are still on talking terms by the time I complete this build (lol). He is awfully patient.

    Progress going forward might be a bit slower. I was previously moving fast just because I was curious if I can even build such a speaker. At this point, I don't expect significant further build challenges (fingers crossed)- so I might just take my time.

    In regards to finish - I think I might just go with the natural plywood finish. I don't have the skills to paint it, nor do I have the skills to veneer them. I also think the mistakes I made will be best hidden in a plywood look. The veneer and paint will definitely draw more attention to the multiple less-than-perfect cuts.

    Okay - some pictures:

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    Last edited by theSven; 07 April 2023, 16:38 Friday. Reason: Update image location
  • theSven
    Master of None
    • Jan 2014
    • 855

    #2
    This is some promising progress to share Efalegalo! Iā€™m looking forward to stopping over to hear these when they are done. What is your plan for finishing? Will you coat in epoxy and then paint, or something else?
    Painter in training

    Comment

    • technodanvan
      Senior Member
      • Nov 2009
      • 998

      #3
      Wonderful work!
      - Danny

      Comment

      • JonMarsh
        Mad Max Moderator
        • Aug 2000
        • 15261

        #4
        A lot of hard work and careful effort on your part, and it's carried you past the biggest challenges! Hat's off to your effort!


        And I'm pretty sure we'll be on good speaking terms, as long as I get some of this house work behind me and can get the crossover updates checked out here, finalized, and a 2nd build with proposed components completed in a reasonable time!

        A good development today- the missing Gazebo parts arrived from China via Fedex today, a day early, so I can get back to that tomorrow morning once there's a little light- with the heat and the sun in one's eyes directly overhead, working on it this time of day isn't feasible.

        This is one of only two follow up builds that has gotten to this stage- the other was, of all things, a build done in the Ukraine a few years back- I have pictures from that one, yours remind me of them. I hope they're doing well, given all that has happened and is happening in that country. We've been helping out a refugee family brought over by our realtor the last couple of months that has come over here for safety- dearly wants to go home of course, but there is no telling when that will be possible.

        ā€‹ā€‹ā€‹ā€‹ā€‹ā€‹ā€‹ET drafted me for some more test and measurement work for his evolving project- seems like he's getting a handle on some things, given the results.

        All in all, a pretty curious summer...








        the AudioWorx
        Natalie P
        M8ta
        Modula Neo DCC
        Modula MT XE
        Modula Xtreme
        Isiris
        Wavecor Ardent

        SMJ
        Minerva Monitor
        Calliope
        Ardent D

        In Development...
        Isiris Mk II updates- in final test stage!
        Obi-Wan
        Saint-Saƫns Symphonique/AKA SMJ-40
        Modula PWB
        Calliope CC Supreme
        Natalie P Ultra
        Natalie P Supreme
        Janus BP1 Sub


        Resistance is not futile, it is Volts divided by Amperes...
        Just ask Mr. Ohm....

        Comment

        • Heli-Tim
          Senior Member
          • Nov 2015
          • 159

          #5
          Looking really good!

          Comment

          • Efalegalo
            Senior Member
            • Jan 2007
            • 139

            #6
            Some progress:

            1) Epoxed black plastic-type material underneath the top cabinet, and added a 1/8" rubber for isolation + prevent slipping. This worked out really well (thanks, Jon!)
            2) Installed speakOn connectors and wired and installed top cabinet drivers
            3) Sanded and finished cabinet first with dewaxed shellac, and then with two coats of Odie's Oil.

            Remaining items:
            1) Painting/Installing base
            2) Install bass cabinet drivers
            3) On-to-building crossover

            Believe it or not - I think the plywood finish looks a lot better in-person than it does in the pictures.

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            Comment

            • JonMarsh
              Mad Max Moderator
              • Aug 2000
              • 15261

              #7
              Originally posted by Efalegalo

              Believe it or not - I think the plywood finish looks a lot better in-person than it does in the pictures.

              Very nice looking pictures- I especially like the black and white treatment and how it looks... but it all makes me wonder how they will look in person!

              OTOH, my feelings about the bamboo are quite similar.

              the AudioWorx
              Natalie P
              M8ta
              Modula Neo DCC
              Modula MT XE
              Modula Xtreme
              Isiris
              Wavecor Ardent

              SMJ
              Minerva Monitor
              Calliope
              Ardent D

              In Development...
              Isiris Mk II updates- in final test stage!
              Obi-Wan
              Saint-Saƫns Symphonique/AKA SMJ-40
              Modula PWB
              Calliope CC Supreme
              Natalie P Ultra
              Natalie P Supreme
              Janus BP1 Sub


              Resistance is not futile, it is Volts divided by Amperes...
              Just ask Mr. Ohm....

              Comment

              • theSven
                Master of None
                • Jan 2014
                • 855

                #8
                Do you plan on using a black paint like I used or going for a fancy black piano finish?
                Painter in training

                Comment

                • Efalegalo
                  Senior Member
                  • Jan 2007
                  • 139

                  #9
                  Sven,

                  I plan on keeping the plywood look. I think it would be a nightmare to prep the cabinets for paint. I would have pursued it if I had a garage.

                  Comment

                  • Efalegalo
                    Senior Member
                    • Jan 2007
                    • 139

                    #10
                    Some progress :-)

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                    Comment

                    • theSven
                      Master of None
                      • Jan 2014
                      • 855

                      #11
                      Originally posted by Efalegalo
                      Sven,

                      I plan on keeping the plywood look. I think it would be a nightmare to prep the cabinets for paint. I would have pursued it if I had a garage.
                      Did you want to spray a clear coat on? I got plenty of that left of you want to spray a few coats on.
                      Painter in training

                      Comment

                      • theSven
                        Master of None
                        • Jan 2014
                        • 855

                        #12
                        Efalegalo Have you made any progress on the crossover for your Isiris? You've been quiet over here on this thread...
                        Painter in training

                        Comment

                        • Evil Twin
                          Super Senior Member
                          • Nov 2004
                          • 1531

                          #13
                          Reviewing your assembly pictures, it is quite clear that more clamps are needed in the Imperial Workshop!
                          DFAL
                          Dark Force Acoustic Labs

                          A wholly owned subsidiary of Palpatine Heavy Industries

                          Comment

                          • Efalegalo
                            Senior Member
                            • Jan 2007
                            • 139

                            #14
                            So I finally wrapped up my Isiris build. I went with a slightly different crossover than the one provided by Jon. Tweaking the crossover took longer than building and finishing the cabinets. It is included below if it's of any value. I included jumpers on the outside of my crossover box in the event I wanted to tweak tweeter/mid-level (e.g., see the 4.3ohm in the tweeter circuit and 7.5ohm resistor in the mid circuit below).

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                            ā€‹ā€‹
                            Last edited by theSven; 24 March 2024, 18:06 Sunday. Reason: Remove duplicate image

                            Comment

                            • 1Michael
                              Senior Member
                              • Sep 2006
                              • 293

                              #15
                              Nice build! How do they sound?
                              Michael
                              Chesapeake Va.

                              Comment

                              • Efalegalo
                                Senior Member
                                • Jan 2007
                                • 139

                                #16
                                Hi Michael,

                                I'm happy with where I finally landed. It took me a long time to finish the xovers because I struggled to match my measurements with JonMarsh's measurements. Jon was able to get a perfectly flat response using his crossover - my results on the other hand were drastically different - and I measured my speakers 100+ times by now. So ultimately, I ended up voicing the x-over for my preference (as encouraged by Jon). The comparison of the power response below should give some insight into how I chose to voice my crossover (RED) vs the results I was getting with Jon's crossover (BLUE). (you can ignore the slight hump at 800hz - it's not really there, it was artifact in my measurements) .Overall, I had far less attenuation of the mid/tweeter + I moved the crossover point between the tweeter+mid from approximately 2.0hz in Jon's crossover to approximately 2.8hz in mine. The T34A has incredibly wide dispersion for a tweeter of that size - I was getting massive directivity mismatch at 2.0hz vs 2.8hz --- now, at 2.8hz, you are far closer to the midrange brake up than at 2.0khz, but in every song I tried, I enjoyed the higher crossover more.

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                                Comment

                                • theSven
                                  Master of None
                                  • Jan 2014
                                  • 855

                                  #17
                                  Great to see this project is completed now! On to the next project now... You should attend some of the DIY shows to show off these monsters!
                                  Painter in training

                                  Comment

                                  • duvixan
                                    Member
                                    • Sep 2012
                                    • 54

                                    #18
                                    What was the reason for such divergence in measurements? Couldn't have been just the room?

                                    Comment

                                    • Efalegalo
                                      Senior Member
                                      • Jan 2007
                                      • 139

                                      #19
                                      Originally posted by duvixan
                                      What was the reason for such divergence in measurements? Couldn't have been just the room?
                                      Its really hard to say what is causing the difference. When I used manufacturer provided measurements (in lieu of my actual measurements), and adjusted them for baffle loss/diffraction, my measurements match very closely to manufacturer's measurements.

                                      Comment

                                      • JonMarsh
                                        Mad Max Moderator
                                        • Aug 2000
                                        • 15261

                                        #20
                                        And you know, that's why we call it DIY!

                                        Some day I will get back to mine, but it always seems to be an issue about priorities and other distractions- like doing a complete re-org of the Den room I use as one of my computer rooms and workshops (started Sunday, almost finished, a few more tasks today...)

                                        And interleaving this with domestic issues, like a lawn care specialist to deal with underground grubs and other lawn problems (common in this area) and starting a re-org of the garage workshop and getting new batteries installed in two motorcycles, and of course getting ready to help the wife host East European women friends for Easter!

                                        (Psst: don't tell anyone, but I'm signed up for an all day wide band gap technology conference for which I'm doing research and preparing questions ahead of time- ties in with stuff I do with former colleagues) (and my plans a while ago for a SMPS development for Class D amp power supply using boundary mode multi-channel PFC and LLC isolation conversion, building on stuff I figured out at work over the years...) (Many a slip twixt the cup and the lip, but certainly more interesting than sitting around watching TV or playing canasta with the local friends in a senior center that I don't have....)
                                        the AudioWorx
                                        Natalie P
                                        M8ta
                                        Modula Neo DCC
                                        Modula MT XE
                                        Modula Xtreme
                                        Isiris
                                        Wavecor Ardent

                                        SMJ
                                        Minerva Monitor
                                        Calliope
                                        Ardent D

                                        In Development...
                                        Isiris Mk II updates- in final test stage!
                                        Obi-Wan
                                        Saint-Saƫns Symphonique/AKA SMJ-40
                                        Modula PWB
                                        Calliope CC Supreme
                                        Natalie P Ultra
                                        Natalie P Supreme
                                        Janus BP1 Sub


                                        Resistance is not futile, it is Volts divided by Amperes...
                                        Just ask Mr. Ohm....

                                        Comment

                                        • theSven
                                          Master of None
                                          • Jan 2014
                                          • 855

                                          #21
                                          I've heard the setup and it was difficult for me to even tell on some songs a difference in the voicing between the two crossovers. It was simulated in Software at that time when I had a listening session. The one thing remained true, that the voicing Jon does between all these different designs is very similar. I really like how Efalegalo experiments and lets me partake in the listening to see. Plus seeing these monster cabinets is intimidating! They come up to my shoulder and weigh maybe 10 pounds more than me. I'm hoping Efalegalo will take these on the road to some of the DIY shows.

                                          I'm looking forward to another listening session to hear the final crossover.
                                          Painter in training

                                          Comment

                                          • Efalegalo
                                            Senior Member
                                            • Jan 2007
                                            • 139

                                            #22
                                            theSven - I ended up changing the crossover a bit from when you first heard it. I'm happy with where I've landed - though I've had to repurpose the listening room and the new placement of the speakers is nowhere near as good as it used to be.

                                            Comment

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