Zaph ZA5.2 build thread

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  • Ntruder
    Member
    • Jan 2010
    • 70

    Zaph ZA5.2 build thread

    Since I got so much information from this site before choosing which speaker project to build, I thought I'd post pictures of the process for anyone else who might be looking to do the same.

    After months and months of research without making a decision, I decided to go with the Zaph ZA5.2 kit(s) from Madisound. I really wanted to build something using a HiVi driver, but I got kinda burned out on looking for completed projects, and couldn't make a decision. So for the sake of ease, time, and guaranteed success, I went with the Zaph kit. Besides, I'm from Madison so I'd be supporting a local business, and so on. The cabinets are all custom made from 3/4" MDF, with a Walnut Veneer. All cutting was done with a circular saw and a sliding compound miter saw, and all holes were cut with a cheap Craftsman router and some really cheap (now broken) router bits. And a big thanks to Adam at Madisound for letting me borrow his Jasper circle guide! He was a big help, and spent plenty of time answering all my questions. Really good guy; knowledgeable and friendly.

    By the way, the fit and finish of the kit was very good. The crossovers are very nice; very well made, and the kit came with plenty of everything. These kits are a very good value, and I highly recommend them. The only thing I'd recommend doing that I didn't do was to print out a cut-sheet for the drivers. I made some mis-measurements or something, and ended up with holes that are about 1/16th too big on 2 of the speakers, and that annoyed me for a while because its somewhat noticeable with the dark veneer. But not a huge deal. Anyway, here are the pictures!


    I need to buy some more drills... (FYI, an impact driver is a must have tool)
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    Poor man's table saw.... Requires two clamps, a 4' drywall T-square, and a circular saw. You have to flip the T-square half-way through the cut, so I'd recommend buying one of those flat clamp on-guides instead of using the T-square. **also a note; Harbor Freight clamps are NOT sufficient for clamping speaker boxes; they exert less pressure than my thumb and forefinger**

    This actually worked great, provided you have a square piece of wood. FYI, Home Depot sells nice 2' x 4' MDF panels that are perfectly square, as opposed to Menards' cut down 2' x 4' panels that are not square and will result in poorly cut, non-square panels that will require a lot of sanding.
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    Here is the wood for the front 2 bookshelf speakers. Note; the wood isn't stacked straight; there was virtually no variation in the panel sizes, which means my circular saw guide idea worked!
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    Routed the front panel for the drivers
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    Test fitting drivers... So far so good
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    Gluing and screwing cabinet Home
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    Mounting the drivers and crossovers in cabinet Home
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    Its time for a new router... Old and busted
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    New hotness. Not a bad deal; $119 for a variable speed router with plunge base AND fixed bases, soft start, etc. Really a great router for the money
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    A much easier routed center channel front baffle
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    Gluing...
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    Veneering the center channel in a beautiful walnut veneer from Woodcraft. I used a contact cement that was applied to both sides, then rolled flat. I find this method to be much easier than any other methods.
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    Layer 1 of varnish/poly/whatever it is. Starting to look a little better
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    Viola!
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    God I love walnut
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    Removable back panel for easy access to the crossovers, should a wire ever come loose
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    And now, time to make the stands. A few pieces of MDF + this:
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    And you get these:
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    Which you can glue together with some dowels like this
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    and glue on some other panels like this:
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    And end up with speaker stands that cost almost nothing!
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    I know its hard to believe, but this actually isn't real stone.
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    All together now, in the room. (Yes, the subwoofers are OBVIOUSLY out of place, I know, just be patient)
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    Last, but DEFINITELY not least, the subwoofer cabinets are complete! (somehow I managed to not take any photos of the subwoofer cabinets being built)
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    And there's little Bailey saying hello
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    Overall, I'm VERY happy with the result. It took about 5x longer than I expected, but it really made me appreciate the speakers. Knowing that the drivers/crossovers alone cost the same as the set of Klipsch speakers I was ready to buy kind of bumps the perceived value through the roof, now that I see how much work is actually involved in putting them together.

    These speakers sound better than any speakers I've ever heard in my life. Granted, I haven't heard all that many different speakers, but they still sound awesome. The subs are still my old car audio subs, which ends up sounding better than most off the shelf HT subwoofers, but not quite up to snuff with some of the long throw home audio subwoofers from Peerless, SEAS, TC, etc. But that's why I have two of them. There is a 240 watt Dayton amplifier mounted in a "backpack" on the right hand subwoofer enclosure, so it doesn't shrink the cabinet space, and the two woofers are both DVC, running a series/parallel configuration for a 4 ohm load. And those things rumble! The last thing I need in that room is more bass; its already just ridiculous. And again, cost me very little.

    Hell of a project; I'm glad its done. Sometime in the near future, I'm going to be doing some rear speakers... I'm strongly considering Paul's Overnight Sensation in a small sealed enclosure for the rears, because I think it will be cheap and easy, but I'm still kinda hung up on a bipole/dipole rear speaker configuration. Or maybe I'll just do another ZA5.2. I dunno. For now, my old Pioneer satellite speakers will have to do, because I need some rest

    Speaking of which, if anybody knows of any cool rear speakers to make, please speak up. Like I said, I've always been interested in bipole/dipole, even though the experts like Zaph don't like them. Any input is appreciated. Thanks!
    Last edited by theSven; 05 April 2023, 21:34 Wednesday. Reason: Update image location
  • dar47
    Senior Member
    • Nov 2008
    • 873

    #2
    Job well done I like the veneer and those drivers are so pretty. I have the same circ saw and with a good blade and a plow sled you can get vary good results.
    I think that little guy is going to enjoy the set up to, he gets to spend more time on your lap.
    You got 2 nice options there, build another set of monitors for surrounds or build matching towers and move the monitors to surround duty it would be vary balanced for 5.1. There is vary few 7.1 movies so you can use anything for that.

    Comment

    • Ntruder
      Member
      • Jan 2010
      • 70

      #3
      Originally posted by dar47
      Job well done I like the veneer and those drivers are so pretty. I have the same circ saw and with a good blade and a plow sled you can get vary good results.
      I think that little guy is going to enjoy the set up to, he gets to spend more time on your lap.
      You got 2 nice options there, build another set of monitors for surrounds or build matching towers and move the monitors to surround duty it would be vary balanced for 5.1. There is vary few 7.1 movies so you can use anything for that.
      Thank you! Towers would be an option, but its a small room (12 x 14) and these speakers fill the room on their own, so I'll probably stick with monitors

      Comment

      • PhyrraM
        Junior Member
        • Dec 2009
        • 26

        #4
        VERY good looking setup. I like how everything just seems to "float" in the alcove, with the dark stands against the darkish wall. The shade of the veneer seems 'just right'. ;x(

        I'm not quite done with my ZA5.3iw pair, but I have been able to audition them and they are a really great sounding speaker. I wish the wife would have accepted floor standers...I would have saved the time I spent building a crossover if I could have bought the full kits.

        Comment

        • Ntruder
          Member
          • Jan 2010
          • 70

          #5
          Originally posted by PhyrraM
          VERY good looking setup. I like how everything just seems to "float" in the alcove, with the dark stands against the darkish wall. The shade of the veneer seems 'just right'. ;x(

          I'm not quite done with my ZA5.3iw pair, but I have been able to audition them and they are a really great sounding speaker. I wish the wife would have accepted floor standers...I would have saved the time I spent building a crossover if I could have bought the full kits.
          They do sound pretty awesome. I don't have much to compare them to, but they're easily the best sounding speakers I've ever heard.

          Comment

          • ---k---
            Ultra Senior Member
            • Nov 2005
            • 5202

            #6
            Looks great. The speakers turned out beautifully. And your setup is very clean. I like the gear being somewhere else.
            - Ryan

            CJD Ochocinco! ND140/BC25SC06 MTM & TM
            CJD Khanspires - A Dayton RS28/RS150/RS225 WMTMW
            CJD Khancenter - A Dayton RS28/RS150/RS180 WTMW Center

            Comment

            • stangbat
              Senior Member
              • Jan 2008
              • 171

              #7
              Impressive. Job well done and you should be proud. Thanks for sharing.

              Comment

              • oneplustwo
                Senior Member
                • Jan 2010
                • 666

                #8
                Great job! Do you think you need another screw on the bottom and top of the rear? Probably sealed off just fine, just seemed like it might guarantee it.
                Zaph SR-71
                Zaph ZDT 3.5
                Sunflower Redux
                12" Dayton HF sub
                CJD RS 150 MT
                Revelator bookshelf
                2x12 Guitar cab
                Corner loaded line array

                Comment

                • Ntruder
                  Member
                  • Jan 2010
                  • 70

                  #9
                  Originally posted by oneplustwo
                  Great job! Do you think you need another screw on the bottom and top of the rear? Probably sealed off just fine, just seemed like it might guarantee it.
                  Probably not. #1, its a ported box, so the air is going to escape through the path of least resistance, which is the port. And #2, I used some automotive gasket maker material to form a gasket so it probably is air tight, even if it doesn't need to be

                  Comment

                  • Ntruder
                    Member
                    • Jan 2010
                    • 70

                    #10
                    Thanks to everyone for the compliments!

                    Comment

                    • stangbat
                      Senior Member
                      • Jan 2008
                      • 171

                      #11
                      Originally posted by Ntruder
                      Probably not. #1, its a ported box, so the air is going to escape through the path of least resistance, which is the port.
                      Sounds like you are okay, and at the risk of being pedantic, I'd like to point out that this isn't true and is a common misconception. It is just as important that a vented enclosure be as air tight as a sealed enclosure. You want the port to do its job and resonate, and it does this against the "springiness" of the air in the enclosure. If you have air leaks elsewhere, it lessens the effectiveness of the port just like a leaky sealed enclosure lessens the damping or "springiness" of the air in the enclosure. Not to mention that leaks can also contribute to unwanted noise.

                      Comment

                      • Ntruder
                        Member
                        • Jan 2010
                        • 70

                        #12
                        Originally posted by stangbat
                        Sounds like you are okay, and at the risk of being pedantic, I'd like to point out that this isn't true and is a common misconception. It is just as important that a vented enclosure be as air tight as a sealed enclosure. You want the port to do its job and resonate, and it does this against the "springiness" of the air in the enclosure. If you have air leaks elsewhere, it lessens the effectiveness of the port just like a leaky sealed enclosure lessens the damping or "springiness" of the air in the enclosure. Not to mention that leaks can also contribute to unwanted noise.
                        Good to know.

                        I did plane the back of the box before putting on the back panel, and used a gasket sealer, so I should be fine

                        Comment

                        • kbower090
                          Junior Member
                          • Jun 2010
                          • 1

                          #13
                          Great work Ntruder.... I hope mine turn out just as nice... What did you use for your subs??? Was it a kit/plan? I am planning on building the same kits, but am not sure on the sub. They look ideal based on size, etc. Also, when you cut out the openings for the woofer/tweeter/port, did you use a router or skil saw? Which is preferred?

                          Comment

                          • numberoneoppa
                            Senior Member
                            • Sep 2009
                            • 535

                            #14
                            Sorry if I just missed it, but I'm building some speakers using a walnut veneer in the coming weeks and I was wondering what the exact finish was that you used because it looks really really nice.

                            Thanks~
                            -Josh

                            That feeling when things are finally going right. Yeah, that one.

                            Comment

                            • Ntruder
                              Member
                              • Jan 2010
                              • 70

                              #15
                              Originally posted by numberoneoppa
                              Sorry if I just missed it, but I'm building some speakers using a walnut veneer in the coming weeks and I was wondering what the exact finish was that you used because it looks really really nice.

                              Thanks~
                              Sorry I missed this post... Haven't been on here in a while

                              Anyway, I used this stuff
                              Image not available

                              You can get it at Woodcraft
                              Whether you're a seasoned artisan or a novice enthusiast, shop Woodcraft for expert advice, unbeatable prices, superior brands, and a woodworking experience like no other. Explore our vast selection of premium wood, tools, and accessories, meticulously curated to fuel your passion for creating timeless pieces.


                              I later put a few coats of polyurethane on them to try and get a little deeper look. I like the way it turned up. Let me see if I have any updated pics...

                              not the greatest quality
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                              Trim all done!
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                              And even crown molding is finally done
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                              Last edited by theSven; 05 April 2023, 21:36 Wednesday. Reason: Update image location

                              Comment

                              • reggydavis
                                Junior Member
                                • Jun 2013
                                • 1

                                #16
                                Hey what amplifier or receiver did you use to power your ZA5's?? I'm currently building the the center channel and my current receiver only supports 6 ohms (Denon AVR-1312).

                                Comment

                                • Finleyville
                                  Senior Member
                                  • Sep 2006
                                  • 350

                                  #17
                                  Very nice. I love walnut too. Zaph's designs are always top notch. Sit back and enjoy!
                                  BE ALERT! The world needs more lerts.

                                  Comment

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