Topic: A Fostex 167e cabinet build for a pdvd member

[alexg]

Today I started building a pair of speaker cabinets for Fostex 167e drivers.

The design is based on this: http://homepage.mac.com/tlinespeakers/FH/download/half-Chili-map-0v91-130108.pdf


The drivers fresh from the box.


The "supervisor" making sure am doing it right. 


Cutting the mdf material.


After a few hours of work.

I will be continuing the build next Sunday, and will post additional pictures.

[edrel sison]

wow. nice speaker project. and who will own these babies?

[alexg]

wow. nice speaker project. and who will own these babies?

The same person who I am gathering parts for a PP KT88/EL34 in triode mode amp! 

[edrel sison]

congrats to the owner!

[romymartinez]

wow. nice speaker project. and who will own these babies?

The same person who I am gathering parts for a PP KT88/EL34 in triode mode amp! 

Lucky guy. 

[ATJr.]

Alexg,

can you make a pair for me?, this time i would like to try a Dai-Ichi driver and find out how it compares...

please pm me about damanges okey?

[karce]

congrats sir... galing amps to speakers na

[alexg]

Alexg,

can you make a pair for me?, this time i would like to try a Dai-Ichi driver and find out how it compares...

please pm me about damanges okey?

Hi Tony,

What size of driver you want to use? If it is 6" full range, then, I can try it on this cabinet before the owner pick it up. 

If you can get a pair of 8" Beyma fullrange, then you will have a rocking pair of speakers too! (google "Viech" and check out the design, I am using a pair now and it rocks.)

[ATJr.]

Hi Tony,

What size of driver you want to use? If it is 6" full range, then, I can try it on this cabinet before the owner pick it up. 

If you can get a pair of 8" Beyma fullrange, then you will have a rocking pair of speakers too! (google "Viech" and check out the design, I am using a pair now and it rocks.)

same size will do.....can your cabinet accept 8" driver?

[alexg]

same size will do.....can your cabinet accept 8" driver?

There are designs for 8" drivers (half chang and half chili, I don't know why the designers named these speakers this way  ), those are designed for the 8" Fostex drivers, I don't know how it will sound with others.

The German designed Viech is the best bang for the buck speakers that I know of, the drivers are less than 4K for the pair.

Regards.

[kimmy_kimmy]

hi alex, would you know where i can get a pair of beyma 8ag/n locally?

thanks

can you also pm me how much the viech build would cost? 

[alexg]

hi alex, would you know where i can get a pair of beyma 8ag/n locally?

thanks

can you also pm me how much the viech build would cost? 

PM'd you the information.

I will take pix of my Viech and post it here.

[kimmy_kimmy]

thanks alex 

[alexg]

I did some more work on the speaker box.


The rectangular port on the box on the left.


The internal brace, cutting all the holes. This brace stiffens the front baffle and the back of the cabinet.


The brace for the side of the cabinet. The burnt wood is from my router, the blades are a bit dull. The opening was routed as relief for the driver.


Ready for dry fit.


It fits! Now I have to do the other cabinet.

The progress is painfully slow, the cuts needs to be very accurate for better fit and stronger, non-resonating speaker cabinet. 

[ramble_on]

great woodworking skills alex 

[dana]

medyo complicated pala internals nyan alexg...
the owner must be grinning now from ear to ear from your semi finished work
am sure, dami televiewers dto sa thread watching the progress of this project.

congrats!

[alexg]

medyo complicated pala internals nyan alexg...
the owner must be grinning now from ear to ear from your semi finished work
am sure, dami televiewers dto sa thread watching the progress of this project.

congrats!

I just decided to modify the internal bracing from the original design (it is quite simple, but looks complicated).  Resonating MDF really kills the sound. If I have access to the "REAL" marine grade plywood (void-free plywood), then I would rather use marine ply. (Most of the "marine ply" that you can buy from hardware stores only have "marine" stickers, but not real marine ply.)

Even better are baltic birch plywood, better acoustic properties. Beware, though, some diy people advertise birch ply, when in fact, those ply they using are just pine plywood from shipping crates.    Hehehehehe....

[romymartinez]

Sir alexg,

Looking really good!     

[edrel sison]

very nice build of a speaker. i can just imagine how heavy those monsters are..
congrats alex and romy!

[alexg]

I resumed building the speakers today (too bad I have a full time job, and I can only do this on the weekend,  )


I sealed the interior of the cabinets with polyurethane automotive clear coat (got it from my work for free).


After gluing and sealing the interior of the cabinets, I started gluing the narra parquets for the final finish.







Slowly but surely am getting there! 

Tomorrow, I will work on it for a couple of hours, and then we are going to a store having a great CD sale!

[romymartinez]

Sir alexg,

How thick is the narra?

Looks great!

Regards,

romymartinez

[alexg]

Romy,

The narra parquet strips are 3/8" thick. 2"x12"

I have four more sides to cover (I have covered 8 sides already).

After I finish gluing all the narra, then I will have to use a router to even up all the surfaces of the cabinets, then use a power planer to smooth, then a lot of sanding! (am glad I have an electric orbital sander).

After sanding, then the application of spray flat urethane finish, then at last, I can audition the speakers!

[alexg]

I am finally finished with gluing all the narra strips.

Today I power planed the surfaces, but I have not sanded the speaker boxes prior to coating with polyurethane varnish.

I will be installing the drivers and binding posts just to see what kind of sound these speakers will produce.

[squatt3r]

looking good sir. how much will it weigh?

[alexg]

looking good sir. how much will it weigh?

I have not put it on a scale, but it is substantially heavy. It has a 3/4" MDF topped with 1/4" narra covering, + the internal bracing. hehehehe....

Tonight I should be able to hook it up to my 1.8 watt per channel tube amp. 

[squatt3r]

saw a lot of Fortex drivers dito sa Singapore sa may Martin Electronics. wala nga lang gagawa ng speaker box dito hehe.

[alexg]

saw a lot of Fortex drivers dito sa Singapore sa may Martin Electronics. wala nga lang gagawa ng speaker box dito hehe.

Check out Leda Resources and/or Ahfart Audio, both a Singaporean company, they do speaker cabinets, am sure they already have kits for Fostex speakers.

BTW, how much is the 167e or the 207/208 Fostex sa Singapore? Thanks.

[alexg]

Finally, installed the drivers and wired the speakers temporarily. I was just dying to hear them with my tube amp:







First few minutes, typical of a brand new Fostex, shouty and incoherent. I will breakin tonight and check out the sound tomorrow. But, even right now, the vocals are to die for! 

I will coat the speaker cabinet with flat polyurethane varnish on the following weekends, and I might tell the owner that my dog chewed the driver and offer him money for the drivers, and keep the speakers. 

[romymartinez]

Wow looks awasome.

ON which amps are they paired with at the moment? 

OT: Your Denon DCD-590 with two 6n1p tubes sticking out looks sexy. 

[alexg]

Wow looks awasome.

ON which amps are they paired with at the moment? 

OT: Your Denon DCD-590 with two 6n1p tubes sticking out looks sexy. 

Am using my 1.8wpc EF86-6s4a power amp.

You can have your Denon CDP done like my Denon, just bring it over. hehehe...