SMJ Audio TTC style Ardent D Build

[technodanvan]

That's quite a lot of work you have in front of you. It should pay off once you get to the painting step though!

[Steve Manning]

Man that's a pile of parts ...... making some nice progress Sven.

[JonMarsh]

I have been making slow progress, but some is better than none!

To get an idea of how many ribs I need to sand, it's almost 8' tall



There are 5 different ribs that require sanding. The solid rib is the divider where the woofer and mid crossover will mount.



A look at what the sanded at 320 grit vs not sanded looks like



When it is to hot outside and I can't sand due to sweating and making the wood wet I'm work on the spacers putting the seal tape on





I had to add some more paint to these spacers that go between the ribs where the terminals are mounted. They expose a little more and I wanted to maker sure I had them painted for no white to show




I will continue sanding and doing the seals on the spacer. The plan is to paint end of August at this point when I get back from traveling. I'm hoping it will be cooler and less humid too.

Project work this time of year is tough without climate control unless you can do things like work from 5AM to 8 or 9 AM. But usually that's the day job!

[JonMarsh]

Mirka is expensive, but they should have up to 800 grit discs readily available at Rockler. I can get 400 grit in a 50 pack for Freud SandNet from my local HD. I have found that the red pigment in the SandNet discs can stain if you press too hard. Because of JonMarsh, I went straight to mesh discs, and I've never really used standard sheets with my random orbital sander. I got really frustrated with how quickly I used up discs with the Freud stuff, so I bought a pack of traditional paper discs. That resulted in an, "Oh! So that's how bad this could be!" moment. I still don't like how quickly they screen-out or lose grit, but I do now have a "the grass is even browner on the other side" perspective.

I probably go beyond being a Mirka fan, to being a Mirka fanatic. With my so-so skills, I have to use the best tools and materials possible, and Mirka is all I use for sanding disks. Highly recommended.

[svenarajala]

That's quite a lot of work you have in front of you. It should pay off once you get to the painting step though!

It's a lot of sweat labor at this point :P But I'm really looking forward to spending time with them in the cold basement with temperatures that I far more enjoy then the crazy hot and humid weather that is on the outside.

[svenarajala]

Project work this time of year is tough without climate control unless you can do things like work from 5AM to 8 or 9 AM. But usually that's the day job!

I am up at those hours, and could make that work on the weekend. The weekdays are booked with gym time at that hour. Otherwise it's 100 times harder to go to the gym at the end of the day.

[Steve Manning]

Sven ..... I don't know for sure, but you might not want to go too crazy on the grits. I want to say the manufacturer has specific recommendations on that, otherwise you might not get good adhesion. Generally it's in the 220 to 320 range, I believe. Touch base with Emtech, they are rather helpful.

[JonMarsh]

Sven ..... I don't know for sure, but you might not want to go too crazy on the grits. I want to say the manufacturer has specific recommendations on that, otherwise you might not get good adhesion. Generally it's in the 220 to 320 range, I believe. Touch base with Emtech, they are rather helpful.

I'm with Steve for painting. For finishing wood, it's a different story.

But in all cases, go with Steve's advice. He's the one that researches this stuff diligently. I'm just a wires and sparks guy.

[JonMarsh]

I am up at those hours, and could make that work on the weekend. The weekdays are booked with gym time at that hour. Otherwise it's 100 times harder to go to the gym at the end of the day.

I can only imagine going to the gym in the late afternoon or evening is essentially impossible!

When I belonged to the Y in Boulder CO, racquet ball was always an early morning activity.

[svenarajala]

Saturday - Sanding

I spent Saturday sanding the remaining ribs, and I had them organized by the type. More for a countdown to get it done.





All ribs for both cabinets sanded:



After the cabinet ribs were sanded I touched up some areas I missed on the baffles, Before/After:





To move the cabinets inside on the dolly I tried to insert 2 rods, but only got 3/4 the way down. It worked to get them inside on the dolly though:



In the evening I began what seems like an endless evening of taping. I find that unrolling it and having it hang over the other end of the table let me work faster to get the twists out.

[svenarajala]

Sunday - Test Assembly

I met up with Efalegalo for brunch at the Silver Diner today and talked DIY audio. It was great to meet up with someone in the local! After I got home I continued with applying the seal tape to the remaining spacers. One casualty that I have encountered is that the spray paint slightly changed the color even though the numbers matched from what I bought last year to spray the Calliope spacers:



The newer paint is a slightly lighter grey than the previous can. In the end it worked out. I have a two tone grey spacer thing going :P

After I got the spacers completed It was time to start the rough assembly to get the threaded rods cut to the proper length. I'm following the Calliope guide that Steve gave me last year. It's pretty much the same routine, but 4x the work





I got an idea this year, and I decided to try putting the spacers in place with a rib. Boy was that a great idea!! It got the cabinet assembled much faster!



Trying to get the last couple of inches was very difficult. I had to get some scrap wood and a rubber mallet to gently nudge it into place:





Then it was time for dinner, and I had to take a mandatory 30 min break.

[svenarajala]

Sunday - Test Assembly Post Dinner

After dinner the assembly continued!

By the time I got the third rib installed they started sliding down a lot easier. I left all the rods on because I was nervous I may not be able to get a rod in if I didn't... It all worked out in the end.



The Upper chamber falling into place:



A side view, can you see the lighter spacers here? They are after the first two darker ones from the bottom up:



The woofer chamber after the first cabinet brace rib is installed:





The second cabinet brace rib installed:





The tower is almost there!











I need to trim the threaded rods for the bottom plate to sit flush :-)



The lock washer I'm using, which is from McMaster





I put two nuts on to leave space for when the rods are cut:

[svenarajala]

Sunday - Trim

After the cabinets were assembled it was time to trim the rods.



I decided to use the reciprocating saw with a metal bit to trim the rods:



Once the rods are cut I can take a file to smooth out the ends later.





A comparison of one cabinet trimmed:



Both cabinets trimmed and upside down:



I flipped the cabinets over, and spun the other one around to show the back:



Front view:



Test baffle fit with a tweeter in to tease myself and give some more motivation



The only thing left to do tonight is order some more Emtech primer and black paint. It has been a very good SMJ Ardent D build progress weekend!

[Steve Manning]

Nice progress Sven.

A few things I discovered on stacking ....... I started out with 4 out of the 6 rods, for about the first foot. I also left the rods a little loose rather than tighten them all the way. Once things got aligned I added the last two rods. As I recall I tightened the rods once all the ribs were in place.

[technodanvan]

Are you sure you're going to be okay with the two-tone gray spacers? I can definitely see myself saying it'll look alright during the build, only to find that it bugs me later.

[svenarajala]

Are you sure you're going to be okay with the two-tone gray spacers? I can definitely see myself saying it'll look alright during the build, only to find that it bugs me later.

Yes, after I got an even number of spacers I was fine. I had to repaint one of the spacers to have an even number. I lined them up so it matches on each side. It's like a mini accent for me that is so subtle you probably wouldn't notice unless you have bright lighting around. There are 2 in the upper cabinet:



The other 4 are in the bottom section below/above the terminal section:



Now what was bad was when I forgot to use the right color and had to remove some of the spacers and ribs to fix it.

[svenarajala]

I ordered 2 gallons each of the following last night to have enough for painting the cabinets:

- Grey primer
- Black Laquer

I had a 25% off coupon to use, but what was irritating is that the amount of money I saved with the 25% coupon was an additional cost added for shipping :x . They only use Fedex too, so there was no other option to see what UPS or DHL would cost.

I have 9/10th of a gallon left of the clear coat, and will not need more of that to finish the bamboo pieces for the SMJ Ardent D's.

[svenarajala]

Nice progress Sven.

A few things I discovered on stacking ....... I started out with 4 out of the 6 rods, for about the first foot. I also left the rods a little loose rather than tighten them all the way. Once things got aligned I added the last two rods. As I recall I tightened the rods once all the ribs were in place.

I remember you sharing that and I didn't remember that till I just read your post 8O .

[technodanvan]

Now what was bad was when I forgot to use the right color and had to remove some of the spacers and ribs to fix it.

Ouch, don't do that on the final assembly!

[svenarajala]

Making the cut

Today I was able to get the aluminum bars cut that will hold the baffle in place on the cabinet. There are 3 bars per baffle 8" long:



I also got a surprise today, the binding posts came in early. These are some pretty beefy posts. I dropped one on my toe and it hurt! The posts are as long as a cloths pin





Once I get the holes drilled in the aluminum bars, I have to get the binding post holes drilled. After that i think it's painting time. I will have to tear down the cabinets and clean them down, and figure out what the painting setup will look like. Between Danny and CADman_ks paint setup I should be somewhere inbetween there.

[svenarajala]

While I was away in Michigan the speaker feet arrived. These things are heavy! Note to self, do not drop on toes, it hurts.

[svenarajala]

Over the weekend I managed to make a little progress after getting back from Michigan. The humidity was 86% on Saturday and 72% on Wednesday. I did not spend a lot of time out in the garage. I got the holes drilled in the aluminum bars that will secure the baffles to the cabinets and made sure they all fit on the baffle mounts.









Next step is to get the holes drilled for the binding posts. I'm also still deciding the best path for painting. I'm in-between the tent idea that Cadman shared or a system Steve shared for creating walls with plastic sheeting that could also be useful for demo work around the house. I'm hoping to start painting in the next 2 weeks. A big consideration is humidity though, I will have to wait and see or look at trying odd times of the day to paint 8O

[svenarajala]

Yesterday and today before work I got the front baffle in place for the dry fit. Things are looking pretty good thus far!



Today was a very busy day with work and clients, but I managed to get a little time this evening to get the binding post holes drilled.









The weather and me were not getting along today. I drilled the holes inside and cleaned up before my wife got home :P . Anyhow at this point it looks like the next step is to take it all apart and let the painting games begin.

Oh another note to mention is that to get the top aluminum bar connected to the baffle is more difficult than I thought. The biggest problem is the size of my hands. Once the crossovers are inside and it's the final assembly I'm more than likely going to have to ask my wife to help. I can get my hand through the tweeter hole, but the mid woofer hole is small enough that it is a challenge for me to get my hand through.

[Steve Manning]

Looking good Sven ..... don't worry it's supposed to be hotter over the next 4 days:hb Of course with all the sweat you should be able to slip your hands right in those driver holes.

Just had a thought on the top bar. Notch one of the holes out to the outside of the bar (kind of like a door latch) and then attach the bar on the other end prior to installing the baffle. Also install the bolt on the notched end. You should then be able to swing the bar into place and tighten things up. It all works in my head, but that's a scary place.

[svenarajala]

Looking good Sven ..... don't worry it's supposed to be hotter over the next 4 days:hb Of course with all the sweat you should be able to slip your hands right in those driver holes.

Just had a thought on the top bar. Notch one of the holes out to the outside of the bar (kind of like a door latch) and then attach the bar on the other end prior to installing the baffle. Also install the bolt on the notched end. You should then be able to swing the bar into place and tighten things up. It all works in my head, but that's a scary place.

On the second baffle attachment I actually used that idea, because I thought there has to be an easier way. If I angled the baffle in from the side I was able to get the metal bar in. The bottom two were much easier to install thanks to the port hole and the nice size of the woofers.

As for the humidity, it was 98% when I went to the gym this morning, and dropped down to 91% an hour later. Needless to say I doubt I will be painting this week with this crazy hot and humid weather.

[svenarajala]

Short update...

I had a call with Steve to look at how my assembly is going to make sure I get it right (measure twice, cut once methodology). After that call I invested in a used drill press that I will use to increase the size of the hole on the ribs to 7/16" so there is a little more play to line up the cabinet. That work will begin when I get back to the USA in another week. The holes will be increased, and then I will build the cabinets again for a fit test. If it is still snug Steve has recommended shaving a tiny bit off the baltic burch side of the baffles to give a tiny bit more play. Anyhow painting is definitely going to be pushed to October at this point. If I can finish by the end of October that would make for one very awesome birthday present.

Due to the hot weather in VA I started my AV cabinet overhaul project early. I have some mud work to get done before the rib work. It will be a teeter totter of bouncing back between the two projects. However they go hand in hand because the AV cabinet setup was way over due for some TLC.

[svenarajala]

Yesterday I was able to get one cabinet bored out and it went together very nicely. I still need to trim the baltic birch part of the baffle a very tiny bit, but I was able to line the cabinet perfectly loose. When I started to tighten it down the baffle would slide a tiny bit. Today I will get the second cabinet bored. Then fit the baffle to see how that fits.

One issue I have had to deal with this week is that my table saw decided to stop working. I believe it is the thermal reset button because that has no continuity when I was testing it. Everything else had continuity and the motor has no burnt smell and rotates fine. I decided to convert my table saw to 220V now because the 120 line in the garage shorts out when I try to run dust control and the table saw. I also get tired of having to run extension cords inside to another circuit to split the table saw and dust control. When I wired in my air compressor for the Calliope build I used a 30A receptacle which gave me the flexibility to now be able to plug in a table saw. I ordered the thermal reset button and should have that sometime this week.

Worst case if the table saw doesn't work I can see if Steve has some spare cycles and I could drive down with the parts and have the master help me .

Back to the garage to get this other cabinet bored :-)

[Steve Manning]

Yesterday I was able to get one cabinet bored out and it went together very nicely. I still need to trim the baltic birch part of the baffle a very tiny bit, but I was able to line the cabinet perfectly loose. When I started to tighten it down the baffle would slide a tiny bit. Today I will get the second cabinet bored. Then fit the baffle to see how that fits.

One issue I have had to deal with this week is that my table saw decided to stop working. I believe it is the thermal reset button because that has no continuity when I was testing it. Everything else had continuity and the motor has no burnt smell and rotates fine. I decided to convert my table saw to 220V now because the 120 line in the garage shorts out when I try to run dust control and the table saw. I also get tired of having to run extension cords inside to another circuit to split the table saw and dust control. When I wired in my air compressor for the Calliope build I used a 30A receptacle which gave me the flexibility to now be able to plug in a table saw. I ordered the thermal reset button and should have that sometime this week.

Worst case if the table saw doesn't work I can see if Steve has some spare cycles and I could drive down with the parts and have the master help me .

Back to the garage to get this other cabinet bored :-)

Glad to hear making the holes a little bigger worked, I'll update the CAD files to reflect that.

Out of curiosity, did the thermal fuse on your saw go before or after switching to 220V? Just wondering if the saw is designed to run on the higher voltage?

I can relate to the tripping of circuit breakers. I had an electrician come out and add some additional circuits to my garage, both 220V and 110V.

If you need help on trimming the baffles down, sooner than later would be best. We're getting ready to put the house on the market to facilitate moving. The shop will be last on the list of things to get packed though.

[svenarajala]

Glad to hear making the holes a little bigger worked, I'll update the CAD files to reflect that.

Out of curiosity, did the thermal fuse on your saw go before or after switching to 220V? Just wondering if the saw is designed to run on the higher voltage?

I can relate to the tripping of circuit breakers. I had an electrician come out and add some additional circuits to my garage, both 220V and 110V.

If you need help on trimming the baffles down, sooner than later would be best. We're getting ready to put the house on the market to facilitate moving. The shop will be last on the list of things to get packed though.

The thermal fuse was having issues on 120V. After examining it more and pushing very hard the red button released. I was able to get the saw running on 220V and it ran fantastic. The motor is designed for 220:



I updated the wiring per the schematic. The motor sounded the best I have ever heard it running on 220V, and I'm glad I made the conversion. My wife was also happy because it didn't trip the circuit in the house like it used to on 120V :P

It looks like I'm good on trimming the baffles now. I ran them down the table saw and shaved off a tiny bit < 1/16" and that gave almost a perfect line up. The tricky part now is going to be keeping it all lined up when I have to assemble again. To align this time I had the cabinet on the floor and the baffle pointed to the ceiling. Once I had things lined up I slowly tightened until I could tip it right side up. I'm not sure that will work on final assembly though, I may have to try the baffle to the floor and let gravity help? With the crossovers in that is gonna add some weight or I will need the wife to help me lift gently. Details to figure out later in October!

[svenarajala]

Some photos of the work done over Friday/Saturday this week:

I used a step bit per Steve's guidance to increase the bore size on the spacers and the MDF ribs. The ribs then went on the drill press above to complete. The step bit idea was fantastic, I could perfectly line up the holes to increase and not have to worry about slipping or messing it up. Thank you Steve!



The cabinet being assembled again 8O



I was able to get the thermal reset working and could use the table saw to take off a tiny bit on each side of the front baffle.



After getting the cabinets assembled again I am now confident that it will all line up and can begin painting. I plan to spray the clear coat today on all the bamboo. Those pieces need around 7 days to fully cure. The weather is looking promising this week and hopefully I can balance work and get the ribs painted through the week. I plan on spraying the ribs with 3 coats primer per Target coatings recommendation and then 2 to 3 coats of the black.

[Steve Manning]

Nice to hear the plan work out. Now you have the saw working cut yourself that spacer we talked about align all the ribs. It should be ~8.5" wide if memory serves, though you might want to wait until you have finished spraying to get an exact number. Not too tight that you have to force it, but it should push everything into alignment.

I did something similar when I made the Calliope's. It would something like this .... without the holes.

[JonMarsh]

Some photos of the work done over Friday/Saturday this week:

I used a step bit per Steve's guidance to increase the bore size on the spacers and the MDF ribs. The ribs then went on the drill press above to complete. The step bit idea was fantastic, I could perfectly line up the holes to increase and not have to worry about slipping or messing it up. Thank you Steve!



The cabinet being assembled again 8O



I was able to get the thermal reset working and could use the table saw to take off a tiny bit on each side of the front baffle.



After getting the cabinets assembled again I am now confident that it will all line up and can begin painting. I plan to spray the clear coat today on all the bamboo. Those pieces need around 7 days to fully cure. The weather is looking promising this week and hopefully I can balance work and get the ribs painted through the week. I plan on spraying the ribs with 3 coats primer per Target coatings recommendation and then 2 to 3 coats of the black.

Looking good, very good.

Remember what one of my Munich colleagues from the late 80's used to say.... "slow work takes time". No getting around it for this stage!

[svenarajala]

I sprayed some clear coat today on the bamboo, and then went over it with a 400 grit paper. I had a little orange peel on a few of the pieces and the 400 grit got things inline to where they need to be for another spray tomorrow after work.

The bamboo wiped down with denatured alcohol



The first coat on the baffle



All the pieces after one coat. Very hard to tell from the first photo



The clear sprayed really good today, and I'm looking forward to getting some more coats on tomorrow.

[svenarajala]

Nice to hear the plan work out. Now you have the saw working cut yourself that spacer we talked about align all the ribs. It should be ~8.5" wide if memory serves, though you might want to wait until you have finished spraying to get an exact number. Not too tight that you have to force it, but it should push everything into alignment.

I did something similar when I made the Calliope's. It would something like this .... without the holes.

Yes I need to add that to the todo list Thanks for the reminder!

[svenarajala]

It has been a busy last couple of weeks. I was able to get all the Bamboo painted now, both sides and it will dry for the week while I'm on travel again. I think it turned out really good, and I ended up spraying 3 coats on the outside and 2 coats on the inside.

When I get back I will start painting the ribs with primer. I think given the amount of ribs I will have to paint one cabinet at a time. Thus I need to make sure I get them all painted within days so I can assemble them booth at the same time. I also need to build the spacer that Steve has pointed out. That is going to be critical for getting the cabinet lined up. I imagine it is going to be a tight squeeze to attache the baffle with crossovers, and dampening material present.

As long as the weather cooperates when I get back I should be able to paint a little every day after work. The mornings have been in mid to high 90's for humidity, but by the end of the day it drops to less than 70.

Once the painting is done the countdown is on to get them assembled and get the HT gear put back together from the remodeling I have also been working on. I will be sure to take more photos during the primer and paint sessions!

[JonMarsh]

Slow work takes time…

[svenarajala]

Priming has begun on one cabinet. I have just enough paint stands for one cabinet at a time. The first coat of primer went on for lack of better words beautiful! The target coating primer gave a very nice smooth finish and knocking it down with 400 grit and applying 2 more coats should give a great base to spray the paint on. One significant factor is that I invested in a new HVLP and it atomizes the paint a billion times better than my old paint guns from 2005. Perhaps 16 years can really make a difference?

Got the setup ready, I ended up not doing anything different than the last time so far... Results have been promising. All ribs have been wiped down with denatured alcohol and have been handled while wearing latex gloves.




All sprayed with first coat of primer



Some close ups of how the primer looks. The last photo shows how the primer really soaked in and I was a little low on the spray. The sanding and additional coats should even steven it all out.







Next day or two will be sanding the rest of the ribs down. I was able to get 3 sanded today.

[JonMarsh]

Nice work! You're doing a great job!

[Steve Manning]

Now we know who to send parts to for finishing! Looking good Sven ..... I imagine the cooler weather is nice for spraying.

[svenarajala]

Now we know who to send parts to for finishing! Looking good Sven ..... I imagine the cooler weather is nice for spraying.

Yes the cooler weather is great! I hope to get some more painting done tomorrow!

[svenarajala]

After a very long day of work I mustered up the energy to sand all the ribs down to get ready for the next coat of primer. After they were all sanded I stacked them up. I have been keeping them in order for when it is assembly time. Here is a view of them sanded, but not cleaned yet.





I wiped them all down with my favorite cleaner Denatured Alcohol. I left them in this position to dry for the night.





I will probably wipe them down with a dry lint free cloth tomorrow before painting. I'm hopefully going to be able to take the afternoon off so I can get some painting done.

[svenarajala]

After a long weekend of sanding and painting, I finally have one cabinet painted. I need to start the next cabinet tomorrow!

Last coat of primer applied, and still wet:



It's looking pretty smooth!



First coat of black paint applied:



The final product for cabinet 1:





I have moved all these pieces down to the basement now, to make space to paint the next cabinet. Tomorrow primer begins for cabinet 2!

[Steve Manning]

Looking very nice Sven

[svenarajala]

Looking very nice Sven

3 coats of the primer was a big factor in this. I’m really pleased with the results. My arms will Argue that they are exhausted from the sanding

[svenarajala]

It was a sand, paint, sand weekend for cabinet 2. I have one more coat of primer to apply, sand again, and then start spraying the black. Getting soooooo close! I moved the first cabinet and all parts down to the basement for building. I will need to take the sonic barrier back upstairs to cut in the garage, but for now it can wait in the basement.

All the parts plus cabinet 1:



The goal for this week is to get all the painting done.