Voigt Pipe or ML TQWT Speaker?

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Voigt Pipe or ML TQWT Speaker?

Postby Shannon Parks » Wed Jun 27, 2007 6:03 am

I'm jumping into my first DIY speaker project just because I've always wanted a full range loudspeaker. Seems that the Voigt Pipe & ML TQWT designs are similar enough that I jumped straight into building one. I originally planned to use Martin King's bass extension tube from Parts Express (or Madisound), but reading his updates on that design it seems the bass performance was lacking. However, the Voigt Pipe folks who make theirs into a horn bottom (rectangular cutout with angled wood at bottom) seem to note remarkable bass (for the design!). Anybody that has built these both care to enlighten me? Please, no reference to formulas on Martin's site - just colored opinions please. :)

I'm leaning towards a horn end design and using the Fostex FE166E.

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Postby SteveH » Wed Jun 27, 2007 8:00 am

Looks nice and cleeeean. How are you planning on finishing it ?
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Postby Shannon Parks » Wed Jun 27, 2007 11:44 am

Yeah, I'll actually do some sanding, stain them and polyurethane them. I definitely want the polyurethane to be used as a last line of defense against air leaks. The wood is just some veneered 8" by 60" shelves I had laying around.

Here's the two main links I've referenced:
http://fredt300b.smugmug.com/gallery/147575#5434769
http://www.quarter-wave.com/Project02/Project02.html

I admit I really don't know what I'm doing, but that's the fun of it. Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_09
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Postby wiredbecker » Wed Jun 27, 2007 1:01 pm

Looks like a great start.
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Postby parabellum » Wed Jun 27, 2007 1:19 pm

where does one buy veneer for projects like this. I looked all over home depot and didnt see any. I got plans to make a set of single driver speakers and I wanna use MDF and later glue some real nice veneer on top and lacquer it.
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Postby MarkC » Wed Jun 27, 2007 2:40 pm

Hey Shannon,

I built a pair of these : http://melhuish.org/audio/DIYRH10.html

They sound pretty good. I was interested in building some Voight pipes because I had 2 pair of the Radio Shack drivers that everybody was raving about but I never got around to building them. There's some pretty interesting designs out on the single driver website. Good luck.

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Postby SteveH » Thu Jun 28, 2007 5:56 am

Re: Veneer. Try Ebay...Seriously ! They have some REAL nice stuff on there for very reasonable prices. Of course you can always try places like woodcraft, etc - but expect to pay 2x.
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Postby Shannon Parks » Thu Jun 28, 2007 6:32 am

[Googles "veneered shelves".] Man, I didn't realize that this veneered shelving board was so expensive. Wife wouldn't let me make shelves with it, so viola! There was a pile of it in the garage when I bought this house years ago. Thanks for the encouragement folks, and I'll forge on. Hopefully I can make a whole home theater setup with this design.
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Postby EWBrown » Thu Jun 28, 2007 8:12 am

If you just need narrow veneer strips to cover up the cut edges, that should be available at almost any hardware store. The local True Value and Ace HW stores haev this in various woods, and at widths from 1/2 to 3/4 inch, perhaps also 1 inch, I don't remember if they had that in stock at th time. This veneer strip comes in a roll of a few feet, and is easy to apply, glue it on and sand/stain as needed.

Parts Express also has this, as well as real and fake (melamine) veneer sheets.

/ed B in NH .
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Postby parabellum » Thu Jun 28, 2007 9:37 am

thanks for the veneer buying tips. I'll check out ebay first. When the time comes I want the speakers looking like a million bucks Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_03


Good luck with the project shannon. I did a bit of the reasearch on this before and remember two interesting bits. First is to use only brass (non-ferrous ) screws whereever then need to be used. Ferrous screws form a magnetic field around them and allegedly there is a noticable difference. Second, if you don't have super precision cutting equipment and there might be some holes in the end, then use this special glue that was used to keep the wood ariplanes together in WW1. If it can keep a damn plane together then it will surely keep a speaker together. I can dig up a name if you want.
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Postby parabellum » Thu Jun 28, 2007 9:58 am

wow i just browsed the veneers on ebay, some are real expensive and i didn't find too many that would fit with what i had in mind. This might turn out to be more diffucult then I thought Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_21
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Postby erichayes » Thu Jun 28, 2007 1:01 pm

We have an outfit up here called Almquist Lumber that specializes in exotic woods (for all the luthiers and yacht builders, I imagine). 707-825-8880

They might be able to turn you on to some dealer down there that could supply you with what you're looking for. Or you can take a nice five hour drive and see what they have first hand.

Lumber Liquidators is in Oakland, I believe, but I think they deal primarily in flooring. They might be worth giving a call to, as well.
Eric in the Jefferson State
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Postby SDS-PAGE » Thu Jun 28, 2007 1:44 pm

Check Home Depot for veneered shelves. They seem to be reasonably priced. The only downside is that they come finished, so you are stuck with whatever they sell. You might me able to Methylene Chloride off the finish.
Home Depot also sells oak-on-plywood boards. I personally am not a fan of the dramatic grain of oak, but many do.
Here is a trick for making shelves cheap. Get particle boards (they are dirt cheap) then veneer it yourself. Veneers can be pricey depending on where you get it, but they do come cheaper if you buy in bulk. If you feel ambitious, you can even make your own veneers. Hit up a local lumber yard and ask for wood chunks/scraps then slice them up. You do need to be set to do these kind of things.

The best thing will be to get nice wood (pine and oak are cheap), either processed or in need of processing, and finsh them in their natural stain. Danish oil or Tung oil are nice for natural+antique look, but polyurethane might be more practical for speaker construction.

My personal favorite is redwood. Just finished making a base with it for my Double Darling project and it looks/smells real nice.
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Postby parabellum » Thu Jun 28, 2007 3:10 pm

I don't want to hijact this thread completely. Shannon can you maybe split it?

It will be a little while before I start the speaker project so I'm not sure if i will do it with MDF then put the veneer on myself (which is most likely) or get the real wood and just finish it after construction.

All I know is that in the end I want to end up with something like this:

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Postby SteveH » Thu Jun 28, 2007 4:15 pm

Well, I assure you those speakers are veneer Yellow_Light_Colorz_PDT_01

It looks like zebrawood..
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