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2 Pi tower baffles [message #47377] Sun, 24 July 2005 00:23 Go to next message
Shane is currently offline  Shane
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Put this in the construction forum also.


Having now got the kit from Wayne sitting in my living room I am thinking about what I want to do with the cabinets. I think I would like to use MDF with oak veneer (to match all the dark red mission furniture), but would like to have hardwood rounded corner edges that are say 1/16" proud on the front with a lighter stained front baffle as well as oversize hardwood base and top plates. It seems to me the only easy way to do this would be to double the front baffle, as I wouldn't think any type of spline to attach the corners would be very strong between the hardwood and MDF. Plywood I could see, but not the MDF.

Also, will doubling the front baffle, but leaving the suggested inside dimensions the same, cause any acoustic problems?


Re: 2 Pi tower baffles [message #47378 is a reply to message #47377] Sun, 24 July 2005 04:47 Go to previous messageGo to next message
BillEpstein is currently offline  BillEpstein
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I've built several Pi Speakers and always double the baffle. For the way it looks. Perhaps the reinforcement even sounds better.
This, of course, isn't in the Pi Catalogue but is strongly influenced by Wayne's expertise (I have none, just tools).

The hardwood corners left proud is a fine idea I've contemplated in the past and could be embellished by routing a narrow reveal 'tween the board and panel. Go for it!

Re: 2 Pi tower baffles [message #47379 is a reply to message #47378] Sun, 24 July 2005 04:53 Go to previous messageGo to next message
spkrman57
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Bill - you are too modest!

Ron

Re: 2 Pi tower baffles [message #47380 is a reply to message #47377] Sun, 24 July 2005 08:53 Go to previous messageGo to next message
elektratig is currently offline  elektratig
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Grand Master
Shane,

I responded to your post over in the Craftsmen Forum before seeing the thread here.

Re: 2 Pi tower baffles [message #47381 is a reply to message #47378] Sun, 24 July 2005 10:24 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Shane is currently offline  Shane
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Bill, you're work is just fantastic. I'm looking for the WAF on this project and she really likes the idea of say a 2" wide solid oak edge on the front baffles similar to your picture there. A small reveal is a good idea, better than leaving the pieces pround I think.

If your doing something kinda fancy... [message #47382 is a reply to message #47377] Sun, 24 July 2005 10:47 Go to previous messageGo to next message
GarlandGarland is currently offline  GarlandGarland
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Viscount
...then I would strongly suggest using baltic birch plywood. MDF is ok for loudspeakers but it's not too durable, hard to get good strong joints with, and doesn't take screws very well. I also feel that the dense BB ply sounds better- more alive. Also, when you're finished, the little bit more you spent on the cabinets will enhance the overall value and your pride in making them yourself! BTW, are you the Shane from the New England Bottleheads? If so, Hope to see you at a future get together, if we can ever get back into having them!

Garland

Re: If your doing something kinda fancy... [message #47383 is a reply to message #47382] Sun, 24 July 2005 11:01 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Shane is currently offline  Shane
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I'd like to use BB, but haven't found anything but the stuff from HD or Lowes. There is a very small hardwoods place that I will check out tomorrow, since they aren't open on the weekends. I want to keep the costs reasonable, but am definitely willing to spend the extra to make them look nice.

Nope, not from New England. Amarillo, TX. But I do check in on the BH forum occasionally as I am thinking of making a Seduction for my future TT.

Re:Hey 2XGarland [message #47384 is a reply to message #47382] Sun, 24 July 2005 11:42 Go to previous messageGo to next message
BillEpstein is currently offline  BillEpstein
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The 'Baltic Birch' I find here in the mid-
West has "footballs" in the good side. I suspect 'Baltic' has fallen victim of Glasnost. At least it's cheap and void free but needs to be veneered. Is the old good stuff still available under another name? Maybe Latvian or Hungarian or Tjadikastanian?

Re: If your doing something kinda fancy... [message #47385 is a reply to message #47383] Sun, 24 July 2005 12:38 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
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Call around the lumber wholesalers. Chances are there's a large warehouse in Amarillo that provides materials for all the cabinetmakers in the area. They'll have dozens of sheets of genuine Baltic Birch, and can probably recommend someone you can buy it through. Maybe they'll even sell you a sheet directly.

By the way, the real stuff has cyrillic markings, as you might expect. The last sheets I bought had "фк" stamped on them. The Russian "F" (ф) was a dead giveaway.


Well, the BB I bought was very dense... [message #47386 is a reply to message #47384] Sun, 24 July 2005 19:17 Go to previous messageGo to previous message
GarlandGarland is currently offline  GarlandGarland
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Viscount
... and though lacking the markings Wayne talks about I feel it still is worth the $$. And veneering isn't that hard to do or if that's too much, the stained birch beats out MDF IMHO.
As an aside, Sorry about the moniker! When Wayne switched over to the roundtable I found that I couldn't use my old moniker to log on so this is what I ended up with. -not meant to reveal my vanity, lord knows one of me is more than enough!
And Bill, how's that GE oil cap breaking in? yuck yuck!

G.

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