Wavecor Ardent Journal - the first Builds

[JonMarsh]

Here are the solidworks files: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/34v232q80...Mt1OeEiIa?dl=0

The main Assembly is in the baffle folder (Assembly 1) is what I used for everything.

I snagged all the stuff in one download, before the stinker net went down again. I won't have time to look at this for a few days, until Wednesday, but I'm looking forward to it. I think I downloaded some of the stuff previously but couldn't find it recently. (typical!)

I'm still working on this training, under the gun so to speak, but hopefully should be able to review the BOM lists this evening. I'll be very happy when today and tomorrow are done!

[bigjohn]

It's kind of rough and disorganized since I kept updating it as we went though instead of doing a fresh as-built but that's what I used to program the CNC. Some of the clearance for the dados could be closed in a bit but this will go together mostly hassle free.

Is any of the hardware loading for you? Most was turned off in the tree but some of the fasteners are missing. The inserts and screws have the mcmaster part number in the file name incase you wanted to order from them.

One thing I would change was the sides and back were made from laminating 3/8" MDF onto the 18mm Baltic (hence the odd dimensions if you measure tool them in the model). I would CNC the two materials individually then glue/clamp them to form the panels. We found that gluing the large panels even with a ton of weight tended to pull quite a bit.

No worries it wasn't that bad, i was able to wade through it pretty easily. It some 1032, and 832 screws that are missing, not too worried about it. Good to know about the panel build up, I'm still trying to find some local BB ply that isn't too expensive.

[dar47]

John, I would check clearances as i am not sure if his first model is in there but I would change from our build,

1. Back, sides and top would be 18mm BB laminated to 1/2" mdf. I miss ordered and got 3/8" mdf, we had to adjust during assembly. If you get imperial dimensioned BB adjust accordingly.

2. We used 1/16" play for dadoes and 1/16" play for half laps on the side to back. If I would do it again I would use 1/32" on the half laps and 1/16" for dadoes.

3. Bracing dadoes should be 1/16" play, front baffles have 1/16" play to except bracing.

4. Note the front baffle should be slightly larger on the sides so you can trim to fit the assembled cabinet, (easier getting smaller then filling later).

Assemble is tricky we needed 4 hands and lots of clamps. We kind of did it in 1 shot by shooting brad nails for alinement then clamping square while using scrap spacer pieces to hold the bracing square. Just note that if you do partial assemble you need to keep everything perpendicular and very square in clamps. When you get all your parts cut and do a dry fit you will see how this cab locks tight and we can go over assemble process again if needed.

Got all my electrical moved, framing and hole cut as well as 18" drivers mounted in the manifold for the IB sub install. Just waiting for the strong son to get home to mount the manifold. Pics later. I have to install a sub box for 3 new circuits in the the storage room, put shelving back and then I can order the rest of the parts for the ardent.

[dar47]

I'm thankful for getting my IB manifold installed. :W

This is the front wall layout I'm trying for.

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Back storage room framing.

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Hole through the wall to the front room.

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Manifold in place.

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A look in the manifold form the front room.



Sorry for the sh%% cell phone shots, I'm tired but happy. I'll take some better shots when the Ardents and all is in place.

[JonMarsh]

Okay, here is an updated one. This has the C3A1 (or could be called C6c) changed and I added your MR caps in the tweet. Jon still has to call this the final production model though.

I'd downloaded PNG snaps of the web pages for most of the parts, but hadn't had time to go through them. I'm at Starbucks, and found you did a good job except for PE par numbers for two caps in the woofer crossover:






Other than than it looks real clean! :T

[JonMarsh]

I'm thankful for getting my IB manifold installed. :W

This is the front wall layout I'm trying for.

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Back storage room framing.

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Hole through the wall to the front room.

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Manifold in place.

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A look in the manifold form the front room.



Sorry for the sh%% cell phone shots, I'm tired but happy. I'll take some better shots when the Ardents and all is in place.

Hey, that's HUGE progress, literally! I bet these are going to seriously kick some butt! (oops, I hope that's OK for a moderator to say... :W )

Did you do this yesterday, or are you just giving Thanks on Canadian Thanksgiving yesterday? :W

[benthe8track]

Just a little update. The rebates were close but not close enough for me and that caused the drivers to sit a little too low.



So I had a friend laser cut me some stainless shims:





And the result was a runout of under .010" which will have to do

[JonMarsh]

Talk about OCD! 8O But they look nice! :T

[dar47]

found you did a good job except for PE par numbers for two caps in the woofer crossover:

Nice find so maybe this is the final?

[dar47]

Nice, did you order for all? haha.

Ben whats with the yellow pics, I think your worse then me. :roll:

Well I had a productive night, managed to get the 8awg 3 wire conductor from the panel in the garage through the wall and into the storage room down stairs so now I just have to wire up the sub panel and I have got all the power I need for my room.:W

[benthe8track]

Nice, did you order for all? haha.

Ben whats with the yellow pics, I think your worse then me. :roll:

Well I had a productive night, managed to get the 8awg 3 wire conductor from the panel in the garage through the wall and into the storage room down stairs so now I just have to wire up the sub panel and I have got all the power I need for my room.:W

Bad light in the basement and a cellphone.
I have a few extras but I measured the gaps and sized the shims for each driver. If you want the OCD treatment let me know when you get all your drivers.

[JonMarsh]

Nice find so maybe this is the final?

:T

I do like Ben's walnut burl, but then you know, I like my Maple, too! And your Cherry! I've got some nice Cherry for GF's sub build, I need to get back to working on that, as well as the other speaker projects, as I SHOULD have a free weekend finally (training the stormtroopers went fine yesterday... )

I also want to spend some times with the files Ben linked to on his DropBox account, and start to consider preparing a build document for the Wavecor Ardent similar to the one I did for the Modula MT XE. That will be shared with you guys for review and critique of course, before any "general release".

And I need to load and finish my second WA! Stereo would be nice... then it's updating the Isiris, with the crossovers moved internal. A lot to do this Autumn. On the 25th, though, we're leaving for a few days on the Channel Islands, and when I get back, I'm driving up to Seattle to pick up that Yamaha on the 1st. So those two weekends are already committed. Then it will be November already!

[---k---]

I just spent most of today reading this whole thread. Not sure why I had been skipping it before, I think I had it confused with something else. But wow. I must say amazing work. Really makes me want to take on another speaker project. I wish I could hear them.

[dar47]

I just spent most of today reading this whole thread. Not sure why I had been skipping it before, I think I had it confused with something else. But wow. I must say amazing work. Really makes me want to take on another speaker project. I wish I could hear them.

You Know Ryan, it's only a little over an hour flight to Winnipeg. If you ever find an accuse to come to Canada your welcome.:W
I have flown through Chicago probably 5 time, wife been there lots. I got take a bike trip there sometime.

[JonMarsh]

He's certainly closer than Danville CA! :W

And thanks for the kind words- it really HAS been quite an experience, and I haven't even heard them in stereo yet- but soon- before Thanksgiving (American version) I think. Next two weekends are already booked for other extracurricular activities, though. It's been a really fascinating collaboration, in my opinion! :T

[JonMarsh]

I'm hoping to find time this weekend for stuffing and mounting drivers in the second cabinet.

But Sunday at 7AM I have an appointment for getting a hitch put on the Element (for trailering the GTS1000 back from Seattle) and we're in the midst of packing for the Channel Islands next weekend, and there are some sub test boxes in construction, too. I certainly don't lack for things to do- Oh, and I PROMISED myself I would change the oil and filter in the VFR today! That's next! :T

[benthe8track]

Sounds like a myriad of awesome hobbies. Sub boxes though? That's like going for hamburger when you have steak at home. Or something haha.
I'm going to throw in an order from one of the sites today and get the other half in November. I was hoping the dollar would be a little stronger for this order but oil is going the wrong way unfortunately (probably fortunately for most people).

[JonMarsh]

Sounds like a myriad of awesome hobbies. Sub boxes though? That's like going for hamburger when you have steak at home. Or something haha.
I'm going to throw in an order from one of the sites today and get the other half in November. I was hoping the dollar would be a little stronger for this order but oil is going the wrong way unfortunately (probably fortunately for most people).

I was actually surprised this Friday at how low the price to fill up my Element was.

Let's just say I owe GF a new HT sub, and I'm looking at hands on evaluations of some LF configurations for the new project.

Also, let me know if you and your dad would like some assistance planning out the crossover build depending on how you want to package it. Can do some things like the Modula MT documentation.

[benthe8track]

Also, let me know if you and your dad would like some assistance planning out the crossover build depending on how you want to package it. Can do some things like the Modula MT documentation.

I might take you up on that. I ordered everything from Madisound this afternoon. Was planning on ordering from PartsExpress too but they are out of the Jantzen 47uF 400V Crosscap and don't split orders internationaly apparently.

Edit: Just swapped it for a Solen. Hopefully everything is in for my days off on Thursday!

[JonMarsh]

Today I found a bit of time to work on the second crossover. If you and your Dad have some idea of what form factors you want for the crossover layouts, let me know- I will likely have some free time during the day, as development activities have been wrapped up for the current build, but we have to be in the facility on hand in case something happens... twiddling our fingers merrily! I'm helping one of the other guys with an app note, and have some other stuff to work on, but can find some free time.

More progress assembling the 3rd LF test enclosure- just one panel at a time, but two panels today.



I've found a vendor online for 12" by 48" LBL boards, similar to the 96" ones I got from the local Rockler Store. Woodworkers Source is having a sale until then end of October. Gotta make up my mind if I want to take advantage....

And the hitch is installed, they did a good job- and I started a thread in "Speed" which I'll update with stuff from the trip as it unfolds the end of next week.

Oh, and I did laundry and a bunch of other boring stuff I had to catch up with! But no posts for that! :W

[benthe8track]

Today I found a bit of time to work on the second crossover. If you and your Dad have some idea of what form factors you want for the crossover layouts, let me know- I will likely have some free time during the day, as development activities have been wrapped up for the current build, but we have to be in the facility on hand in case something happens... twiddling our fingers merrily! I'm helping one of the other guys with an app note, and have some other stuff to work on, but can find some free time.

More progress assembling the 3rd LF test enclosure- just one panel at a time, but two panels today.



I've found a vendor online for 12" by 48" LBL boards, similar to the 96" ones I got from the local Rockler Store. Woodworkers Source is having a sale until then end of October. Gotta make up my mind if I want to take advantage....

And the hitch is installed, they did a good job- and I started a thread in "Speed" which I'll update with stuff from the trip as it unfolds the end of next week.

Oh, and I did laundry and a bunch of other boring stuff I had to catch up with! But no posts for that! :W

Got to get that LBL when you can, I wish we bought an extra sheet.

We haven't discussed it to far but probably split between two boards. One on the base and one attached to the inside wall? Open to suggestions though, if everything shows up I'll be soldering by next weekend.

[JonMarsh]

I'll see what I can find time to work on. Space wise, the midrange crossover is about as big as the tweeter and woofer combined (hardly surprising, as it is both LP and HP), so I'll look at some ideas for putting the bass and tweeter together in the baseplate, and the midrange in a skinny module to fit in the base of the main cabinet. Good thing I have one not assembled, I can take picks and assess the available room.

It will give me a chance to learn one of the newer illustration programs I have, perhaps- though I suspect sticking with EazyDraw would be faster.

[dar47]

Subs coming along, it's nice to have at least a little time for these side projects. :T

Ya I think we can go say 1/4" smaller then the bottom opening for one large board and if the other board is to long to go on a side or back we could do 2 smaller boards, I'm easy.

Made some progress on my storage and front wall, things are turning out well.

IB all tucked in and wall is now dry-walled.



New cart for gear inside the storage area, added some pass through holes for wiring between the rooms. I just used abs plumbing fixtures seamed to work well and you won't see them. After the cable is passed through I can stuff the holes to keep the storage some what sealed for the IB. You can see the new electrical sockets on my 3 new dedicated circuits at the bottom.

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New sub-panel in the storage area as my main panel is in our attached garage. Wasn't fun fishing wire into the garage and running 36' along the trusses to the other end of the garage where the main panel was though.



And a sneak peak of what the main front wall is going to look like :B, I like the center channel on the new stand and I don't think it looks that big next to the Ardents. Hope I have cleaned it up enough and have spacing for good sound?

[JonMarsh]

Great progress, there, and I really like seeing the pic of the cabinets where you're going to setup! :T

Between the Ardents and your IB sub, I definitely think you're going to have enough low end there! :B

I'll take a look at the other cab tonight and jot down some dimensions for the possible crossover boards and locations. Last night I didn't get home until about 8:30, so was a bit short of time- it may be similar tonight. But tomorrow I'll be riding one of the scooters and should get home sooner (carpool lanes OK for motorcycles).

[---k---]

Looks great. :T
I'm really jealous of the space you have and the ability to pull new wiring and sub panel.
Hopefully the next photo of your room has your feet up and enjoying some music.

[JonMarsh]

Got to get that LBL when you can, I wish we bought an extra sheet.

Took advantage of WoodworkersSource sale and ordered 20 boards today, got the base sale price discount plus a quantity discount that brought things down to about $900 including $172 shipping (ground UPS). It still hurt a bit, but I remember paying something like $240 for one 96" x 12" board LBL board at Rockler locally, so this was WAY WAY less! This will provide the material for front panels for both the midrange/tweeter cabinets and LF arrays; the latter will 3 boards per 42" tall cabinet, the mid-tweeter cabs just two per cabinet (4 of each total). And I have a nice climate controlled storage unit to put these in... and I'm also kicking myself, because I intended to get a few more pieces for some small cabinet speakers, and forgot! well, later... next month I guess!

[BobEllis]

Darn you guys! I was going to do a poor man's version of this, but this puts LBL baffles within reach, even shipped to the east coast. 8) Now, if I'm going to spend that much on the cabinets, why cheap out on drivers? Still can't afford to go quite as expensive as these drivers, but not the RS225s on the bottom end. Inspired by some of Jon's other threads, I'm now leaning towards N26CX-T (I own them), ZA14 or ES140Ti-8 and UM10-22 in an at least partially active system (I've already built too many amps). The upgrade itch has taken over.

Jon, the sale ends 10/31.

It's been fun watching these come together.

[JonMarsh]

That sounds like an interesting combination, Bob.... I've got all the solid works models, but it will take a bit of time to make piece part PDF's like I did for the Gen1 Ardent and Isis... but it will get done! The N26CX-T is a real high value proposition, IMO, as are your other driver ideas. Going active should make some things a lot easier!

[JonMarsh]

The WoodWorkersSource guys shipped today, and sent me a shipping notice- guess it must have been a pretty nice order for them! :W

Funny story, too, Mark. Every one of our 6,207 hard working (and quite good looking) employees who put your order together is absolutely wiped out - I really think you'd have enjoyed watching the action erupt when your order came through. When I handed it to Jake, our master packager, he looked at the order, smiled, pulled out a pair of his favorite Italian leather gloves and slid them onto his hands. "Nothing but the best," he said. And off he went! As he selected your order, he placed it all on a satin-lined chariot to transport it to the packaging center. And there's more . . .

All other 6,206 crew members stopped. Every last one of them. They gathered around, lit incense and candles, and watched with hushed awe as he wrapped the entire order in the finest gold-laced cardboard and stretch wrap that money can buy. You could have heard a pin drop.

In the end, the guys were so thrilled that they wanted to throw a party just for your order. We're talking about a big fiesta with live music, a roasted pig, and a dessert spread of homemade chocolate ganache, Ukranian prune tortes, and cinnamon madeleines. You should have seen the look on the UPS driver's face when he showed up. He thought he was going to pick up the packages as usual, but instead we picked *him* up and sent him crowd surfing through the warehouse while the band played. You can imagine what happened next, right? Our neighbors came outside to see what the fuss was all about, and when they saw your beautiful order they joined in, and toasted ol' Jake who then delivered a rather moving speech on the joys of working with wood as a means to self improvement.

Someone must have called the local TV stations because the next thing I knew I had six interviews to handle for reporters who asked, "What does Mark Hancock intend to make?" But don't worry, your secret's safe. I told them, "World peace." Man! If only woodworking could do that!

Anyway, the guys hope to see pictures of what you make so we can have another party (I know what you're thinking). I hope you had a great time shopping at Woodworkers Source (and reading this ridiculously long hyperbole of a shipping notification). We enjoyed every minute of it, and we've named you "Customer of the Year." That gets you a pretty good parking spot right out front if you ever come see us. So come see us some time.

Two important things before we go clean up the mess out back:

We want you to be happy with your order. Please let us know if you're not.
And we love to see pictures of what you make. Did you know we have an online gallery where you can share pictures of a project you've made? It's right here: www.woodworkerssource.com/photopost
Robert, and the other 6,206 good looking fellas
Woodworkers Source
orders@woodworkerssource.com
800-423-2450

[JonMarsh]

Today we leave for Santa Barbara and our boat trip to the Channel Islands for some hiking and relaxation. No wifi or even phone service, so I'll be out of touch.

Then I'll be turning around to go pick up the scooter up North of Seattle; should get back from that late Sunday, but should have some time to check in on the evenings while traveling. Should be an interesting week!

Just for fun I checked back on our project schedule as of last March- the milestone we will be at in Mid November is where we were supposed to be in mid August, assuming an October completion. I pointed that out to the local team, who'd sort of lost track of some of those project schedule issues. So, for the obvious reasons, this will run through the end of the year, and I'll win my little wager with the team. Young guys, they should know better than taking bets with an old curmudgeon! :B

Unobtanium scored and shipped to me from Germany- MRA smoke windscreen for Yamaha GTS1000.



I've been scrounging the internet, found a brand new factory shop manual, found a Brit vendor for built to order luggage rack frame made in Germany for the GTS1000 (and luggage to go with it), found a Brit vendor for German made high end reservoir mode shocks for the GTS1000, both front and rear. Without the internet, I'd be dead in the water on these topics... and my Corbin seat should be here next week!

Test cabinets from PE are also on the way for testing the ES140ti's. I almost wish I weren't going on this travel this week- there's so much stuff in progress and hanging in the air- (including a complete subnetwork build for the audio stuff, with two dedicated NAS, and a new build with linear supply from the UK for the another LPFRS Rubidium oscillator)

Do you see a pattern here? Britannia rule the waves! (Internet waves, that is...)

[---k---]

Have fun Jon. It is always good to unplug a little. We'll still be here when you get back.

[wkhanna]

Today we leave for Santa Barbara and our boat trip to the Channel Islands for some hiking and relaxation. No wifi or even phone service, so I'll be out of touch.

Sight Seeing?

Ulterior motives?

Incommunicado?

Curious Coincidence?

:E:E:E :demon::demon::demon: :wink::wink::wink:

http://www.ciaudio.com/

[JonMarsh]

You know, if you've ever been to the Channel Islands, believe me, you know you won't find an audio manufacturer there- at most, you'll find some really old buildings restored for the national park system....

We went on the smallest of the three boats from Truth Aquatics, a 65 ft three level boat (bunks and engines below deck, galley at deck level, bridge above).



More about this later, and pictures- the short story is typical, Day 1 was motion sickness hell for me and many others, but then even without meds I bounced back and Day 2 and Day 3 I was running around doing stuff the crew was doing (climbing over stuff, maneuvering for photographs, eating plenty of food), which on day one I hadn't thought remotely possible. We DID have a particularly rough sea on Day 1, but still a fair amount of bouncing around on 2 an 3- weather was clear, but some rough ocean conditions occurred initially due to wave swells coming from up North where they had some real weather.



What do I mean by rough seas? Well, when at the end of Day 1, the captain needed to drive the boat to our planned overnight anchorage, he had to take three sides of a square to make the passage more navigable, and even then we were bringing up spray from the bow at time flooding over the bridge and washing up on the open rear deck. I was riding there, sitting on the center line over near where the engines were below, because I'd figure out that was pretty much where the polar moment of inertia was, and the minimum movement and tossing when underway.

More more later on- right now I'm finishing getting ready to drive up to Seattle- have picked up the trailer, nearly finished packing, and soon it's time to make dinner and clean up!

[JonMarsh]

Wow- those guys are fast in WoodsWorkersSource!

The LBL shipment was waiting for me when we got back on Wednesday- very nicely packed, 5 boards per package, 4 packages altogether. Got it stashed for now, am packed up for my road trip to pick up the new/old scooter in Burlington Washington. There's got to be something wrong I suppose with being this fascinated with the technology of a 20 year old bike, but I think about it every time I squeeze the brake on any of the motorcycles I own and the front end dives- and wonder what it would be like for that not to happen? It's an engineering curiosity and fascination... so close to successfully introducing a radically different front end concept, but not quite making it. (too expensive, too different to appeal I think, to fundamentally conservative motorcyclists).



well, I'm jazzed.... if nothing else, it should be a real conversation starter, too!

[BobEllis]

Does your bike have the curb feelers like the one in the picture? :W

Just pulled the trigger on my LBL order. Here we go. Can I keep it a poor man's project? Satori and ScanSpeak are calling me...

[JonMarsh]

Nah, that's optional equipment for when you put them in a museum and you have to keep people from walking off with them....

Can you do measurements with the drivers you're considering? If so, I can adapt the crossover, keeping the same topology and target filter function. You REALLY need to keep those Wavecor SW223BD01, though...

[CraigJ]

Gosh darn it Jon, you are so evil! :W Why am I searching on Craigslist for a Yamaha GTS1000 that is just down the road from you;



I had a Yamaha Vision in grad school that was also ahead of its time. Seems like everyone in this neck of the woods rides a Harley, which doesn't interest the mid-life crisis in me one bit. The GTS Looks like a fun bike with a good following.

Hope you have more time to ride in the near future (or get back into building dipoles).

Craig

[BobEllis]

Yes, Jon, I will do measurements. Thank you for the offer. I don't usually bother measuring impedance going active, but obviously you'll need it. My finances will lead me to pick just one midrange and go with it. It will be a while, I have to acquire parts slowly. I will do a build thread. It would be interesting to see if the parts I end up with can be rolled into a variation of the Wavecor Ardent crossover. My girlfriend asked about a stack of amps with an eye roll. Just looking at the data sheets I'm not sure I'd run the UM10s as high as you do the Wavecors, but we shall see. Hopefully I can get some useful measurements by Spring.

Funny, my project idea started out as a way to use the RS-225s that I already own as bass bins to compliment the W15CY001/T25CF001 MT I love but are limited to low SPL. Then this build came along. I can't afford it as designed but my girlfriend likes the look better than stacked boxes or a big standard tower. OK, can I use RS225s on the bottom using the same drivers on the top? Ouch, the Excel prices have gone through the roof. I decide that I can afford a similar shape with ZA14s built in big box store "Birch plywood" with paint. Then Nat P revisited discussion points me to the N26, and I buy them while they're available (Meniscus has a few and Solen only has one pair of each variety). Your bass bin thread looking at UM10s, Ok, that makes more sense with a 5" mid than the RS-225s. Then LBL goes on sale and I'm in for bigger bucks than planned and wow, this is going to be a lot of work, so why not make it a bit closer to state of the art? Then the discussions of Satori vs. 15W/8530 and Zaph's comment that the 15W/8530 outperforms the Excel. My girlfriend looks through this thread, falls in love with the shape in walnut burl and I'm quite a bit above the price range that I originally dismissed as not affordable. Totally bitten with GAS, but at least it is with her approval.

BTW, ordering only 10 LBL boards and 4 packs of Baltic Birch didn't get me an enthusiastic confirmation like you did, Jon. The confirmation was nice, but calmer.

[dar47]

Haha, Bob

That's the worm hole effect, but you do got the WAF going :T My wife would never take the time to look at a build thread, so if she loves it just take your time you may be able to reach higher. They do present a nice clean front stage though,

New grill on the IB manifold.



I have been doing everything else but making my final xover purchase, just got cable and termination for new interconnects and speaker wire, worked out wireless network in the house (Irule remote) and making plans for HTPC. I still need the sub amp and a new tv which is tugging at me. I started thinking on this way back with the original Ardent speaker camp and it looks like I'm going to be the last of the original 3 to hear the Wavecore Ardents.:roll:

[JonMarsh]

Gosh darn it Jon, you are so evil! :W Why am I searching on Craigslist for a Yamaha GTS1000 that is just down the road from you;



I had a Yamaha Vision in grad school that was also ahead of its time. Seems like everyone in this neck of the woods rides a Harley, which doesn't interest the mid-life crisis in me one bit. The GTS Looks like a fun bike with a good following.

Hope you have more time to ride in the near future (or get back into building dipoles).

Craig

Truthfully Craig, I'm still scratching my head a bit about how this all came about. There was an article in my Motorcyclist online email newsletter that had something to do with bikes ahead of their time, and that linked me to this article, which reminded me of the bike-

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/1993-1994-yamaha-gts1000

I'd been aware of it when it came out 20 years ago, but no money or bandwidth for cycles at that time. Daughter was only 10 years old, and she was taking up a fair bit of my time!

But that article linked above got me thinking, and looking up a few more articles online, and I thought, what the heck, let's see if there are any on eBay! (which I didn't expect to be the case... but I was wrong). After coming across it, I did a lot more research on the bike and availability of things like shop manual (new one ordered and received before I put any money down on the bike), and some other parts and accessories. At the point I bit and put my money down, there were 60 people watching that GTS1000.

Or rather, THIS GTS1000! I took these pictures today with just my iPhone camera, both sides now... (by the way, the original pics looked quite a bit better than what you see here- Photo-bucket does a lot of additional compression and loses detail as well as introducing artifacts, particularly in red areas...)




We did start it up and run it; as promised, the new Michelins I ordered for it were mounted, and they had replaced the battery and all fluids.



And here a pic after getting it loaded in the trailer I towed up from Northern CA. The specialized soft straps and tie downs worked as advertised, and loading up went smoothly.





At this point I wasn't sure whether I was feeling so wired up because of picking up the bike, or the late lunch with a Cinnamon Dolce Latte before going over to the dealer! :W

GF also confirmed this evening that the Corbin seat was delivered today, which surprised me, as I didn't get the shipment notification until yesterday evening! Also, a light smoked gray windscreen has been shipped from Germany- NOS from a dealer there. A luggage rack frame made by a German company is on order from a UK dealer- that will take a few more weeks, then assuming it fit and mounts properly, I'll decide which panniers to get (30L or 40L).

I'm jazzed- some other bits I need to order soon, including different foot pegs, like I have on the VFR1200. And some Kevlar brake pads, and before long, a complete 530 sprocket and chain conversion set.

But fear not, I have other speaker stuff on the way, including test cabs for the new NatP build, and some tweeters.... I'm setting a target for some updates before Xmas. We'll see how that goes! :B

[JonMarsh]

Haha, Bob

That's the worm hole effect, but you do got the WAF going :T My wife would never take the time to look at a build thread, so if she loves it just take your time you may be able to reach higher. They do present a nice clean front stage though,

New grill on the IB manifold.



I have been doing everything else but making my final xover purchase, just got cable and termination for new interconnects and speaker wire, worked out wireless network in the house (Irule remote) and making plans for HTPC. I still need the sub amp and a new tv which is tugging at me. I started thinking on this way back with the original Ardent speaker camp and it looks like I'm going to be the last of the original 3 to hear the Wavecore Ardents.:roll:

If you hustle a little bit you'll likely hear stereo before I do! But then I'm going to work on some layout concepts for you guys starting next week for the crossover boards.

[JonMarsh]

Yes, Jon, I will do measurements. Thank you for the offer. I don't usually bother measuring impedance going active, but obviously you'll need it. My finances will lead me to pick just one midrange and go with it. It will be a while, I have to acquire parts slowly. I will do a build thread. It would be interesting to see if the parts I end up with can be rolled into a variation of the Wavecor Ardent crossover. My girlfriend asked about a stack of amps with an eye roll. Just looking at the data sheets I'm not sure I'd run the UM10s as high as you do the Wavecors, but we shall see. Hopefully I can get some useful measurements by Spring.

Funny, my project idea started out as a way to use the RS-225s that I already own as bass bins to compliment the W15CY001/T25CF001 MT I love but are limited to low SPL. Then this build came along. I can't afford it as designed but my girlfriend likes the look better than stacked boxes or a big standard tower. OK, can I use RS225s on the bottom using the same drivers on the top? Ouch, the Excel prices have gone through the roof. I decide that I can afford a similar shape with ZA14s built in big box store "Birch plywood" with paint. Then Nat P revisited discussion points me to the N26, and I buy them while they're available (Meniscus has a few and Solen only has one pair of each variety). Your bass bin thread looking at UM10s, Ok, that makes more sense with a 5" mid than the RS-225s. Then LBL goes on sale and I'm in for bigger bucks than planned and wow, this is going to be a lot of work, so why not make it a bit closer to state of the art? Then the discussions of Satori vs. 15W/8530 and Zaph's comment that the 15W/8530 outperforms the Excel. My girlfriend looks through this thread, falls in love with the shape in walnut burl and I'm quite a bit above the price range that I originally dismissed as not affordable. Totally bitten with GAS, but at least it is with her approval.

BTW, ordering only 10 LBL boards and 4 packs of Baltic Birch didn't get me an enthusiastic confirmation like you did, Jon. The confirmation was nice, but calmer.

This is how it starts, but in the end I think you'll be pretty happy, hopefully your GF too!

I don't have time this AM to respond in detail (will be leaving from Burlington WA soon), but will mention that I recommend using the ZA14 as a budget midrange- very low distortion from the upper bass area on up- a great value driver.

What I can do to help with your active concept is provide transfer function plots that you'll need to adjust your crossover to, what ever it is... also, I might mention the possibility of going hybrid, that is, mid to tweeter passive, maybe some passive shaping on the lower part of the mid, and woofer to mid active. Think about it- I don't know what you're planning to use for achieving the crossover, so it all depends. Also, which RS225 do you have? 4 ohm or 8 ohm? That affects the effective enclosure alignment, which I can model for you, as well as the EQ that might be needed if you run two of those in a a 40L box.

[BobEllis]

Safe trip home, Jon.

Thanks again for the design help offer. Yes, hybrid would be a good thing. I've got the original shielded 8 ohm RS225s, but I think that I'll go with UM10s on this build. I'm also leaning heavily more toward absolute performance. I recognize that the ZA14 is a great value, but if I take my time I can afford Scans. I'll start a separate design/build thread shortly to keep from cluttering up this thread more than I already have.

[---k---]

Haha, Bob

That's the worm hole effect, but you do got the WAF going :T My wife would never take the time to look at a build thread, so if she loves it just take your time you may be able to reach higher. They do present a nice clean front stage though,

New grill on the IB manifold.



I have been doing everything else but making my final xover purchase, just got cable and termination for new interconnects and speaker wire, worked out wireless network in the house (Irule remote) and making plans for HTPC. I still need the sub amp and a new tv which is tugging at me. I started thinking on this way back with the original Ardent speaker camp and it looks like I'm going to be the last of the original 3 to hear the Wavecore Ardents.:roll:

That looks amazing. I can't believe you are staring at them without the crossovers. 8O I couldn't wait. I would have the crossovers laying unsoldered all over the floor with temporary wiring. Not pretty, but they would be making music.

Do you have plans for a rug or room treatments. That photo looks like a very lively room.

[dar47]

Thanks, Ryan

The room is well treated with acoustic panels and a heavy curtain sectioning off the area to the left. I have a large area rug in front of the listening area which is temperately move for the re-org. I'll post some shots when all is back in place. Hope to have all my parts to finish in place by the end of the month. ops: Ben's stuff is on the way to Cal and he is off next week so he should get Stereo pair first!