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HPower

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Everything posted by HPower

  1. HPower
    Hey Beechnut, Have you decided on which model that you are going to build? I went with the Cinema F-20, mainly because of the lower cost and ease of build. This weekend I was able to get a start and have all the panels dry fitting with pocket screws. Next I will cut and fit the braces, then take it all apart and reassemble with the PL.
  2. HPower
    You are welcome Chuck. Nice B3! My buddy has a nice C3, he can't play but when he came across it for sale he could not pass it up. He has a couple buddies that play in bands and it is cool to hear them play when they are over.
  3. HPower
    In my mind, I think using contact cement like Ryan did will give you a fantastic job and perhaps making a better bond to the speaker. I just found that method harder for me to get done correctly. With the Heat-Lock method I used, you can position the veneer and move it around until you are happy with the spot. This is a little more difficult with contact cement, once it the veneer is down... it is down. When I veneered my Frugalhorns, they are a very irregular shape as you can see from the pics, so positioning the veneer required a bit of finesse. With the iron on method I was able to get a pretty good grain alignment from side to top, to side. Because the front baffle is sloped, the top panel to side is not really a true 90 degrees so the grain did not match perfect all the way across, but not too bad. Keeping the rebate to a minimum on a "squarer" cabinet like your Fortes you should be able to get a real nice grain match as you wrap from panel to panel.
  4. HPower
    Hey Jim, I am by no means an expert but I ended up doing the "Iron On" method for my couple of veneer jobs. http://www.veneersupplies.com/products/Better-Bond-Heat-Lock-Veneer-Glue.html http://www.veneersupplies.com/products/Veneer-Glue-Roller.html I purchased those 2 products and then followed, more or less this method: I tried the contact cement method and I had a real tough time keeping bubbles out and it also made it very difficult to position the veneer exactly where you wanted it on the cabinet. With the iron and Heat-Lock, it was simple to get the veneer in the right spot. This makes it super easy when trying to line the grain up when wrapping from one panel to the next. I tried Iron on with just brushing regular Titebound glue but it did not work as well as the Heat-Lock. I think this was more due to the brushing of the glue vs. the roller that I used with the Heat-Lock... use the Heat-Lock roller for applying the glue!!! 2 coats to both the veneer and cabinet. Much easier to work with and clean up is a breeze, wash roller with warm water and it is ready for the next project.
  5. HPower
    Forget the boxes, I wanta see pics of his new tools!... That didn't sound right. :o
  6. HPower
    Location and willingness to ship would help your sale.
  7. HPower
    Well, I have done a little Duratex practicing on my little speaker project and I really like this stuff! It goes on easy and you can manipulate the texture with how much you apply with the 2nd coat. I went with the conventional "stipple" finish but did try the "leatherette" look on some scrap and my go that route when I do the F-20.
  8. HPower
    I will probably practice on these first...
  9. HPower
    Ya, I have a couple other projects that need finishing and figured I would use the Duratex... I am just finishing up a pair of small speakers that I used a pair of CDT 6.5 Braxial drivers and Xovers that I reclaimed out of my old car. They are done, other than the grill cloth and giving them a coat of Duratex. Later this fall I still want to get to my Four Pi speaker build, I have had the Horns, Drivers, and Woofers sitting on my bench for well over a year. http://www.pispeakers.com/catalog/product_info.php/products_id/105 Still deciding if I will Duratex my 2 25hz Tapped Horns or I may veneer them in Cherry to match the FHorns. What is the shelf life like on the Duratex once it is opened?
  10. HPower
    I was wondering the same Carl, the black cabinet between the F-20 and right KHorn?
  11. HPower
    Just placed an order at Parts Express today for 1 Dayton Audio RSS390HF and a gallon of Acry-Tech DuraTex Black. My wife has a 10 day trip starting on the 14th so I will probably wait until then to start the F-20.
  12. HPower
    Thanks Carl, Makes sense to stick with a proven commodity. It's a little slow at work today so I drew up a F-20 layout in Illustrator and output a couple size as HPs (one on paper and 1 on acetate). As I did with my Frugalhorn and 25hz Tapped Horn builds, I will transfer the layout to the BB.
  13. HPower
    Hey Thad, Ya, the Dayton Ref HF seems to be the "cost effective" option once the MFW-15 drivers were no longer available. The Tempest-2 got a lot of love if price was not a concern. Just wondering what in the current crop of drivers might be the best option.
  14. HPower
    Hey Carl, What would be your top couple drivers recommendations for the F20? I am thinking about building 1 (or 2) this fall, then I can get my 2: 25hz Exodus Anarchy Tapped Horns out of the HT room and with my Frugalhorns, where then belong.
  15. HPower
    The Blueberry would be a good choice for a one box solution with it's nice phono section. I am running a Transcendent Sound Grounded Grid Preamp with my Welborne DRD45s and I think that is a pretty nice match, especially considering the cost. With that said, I just bought a Modwright SWL 9.0 SE line tube preamp that I will be taking delivery of next week. I had a 9.0 SE about 7-8 years ago and I remember it as being a fantastic pre, hence me wanting to try one again. Of course, with either of these units, a separate phono pre would be needed to spin those old fashion vinyl things.
  16. HPower
    I got the new EML Mesh plates dropped into the DRDs last night and after reading all the great reads from above, I was very anxious to see what was going to happen when I flipped the power switches. No fireworks show... that was a good start! Initially, there was more noticeable hum than the RCAs but after adjusting the hum pots a bit I was able to nullify most of the hum. The EMLs may have a very slight bit more hum than my original tubes... probably not enough to be a concern. Although, with me really paying attention to noise I did notice a bit of a mechanical hum from my left amp. When I dampen the transformer by pushing my hand on it, almost all of the noise goes away. I may open up the amp and see if it just needs to be tightened up a bit more to the chassis / top plate. Also, while adjusting the hum pot I heard some scratchy noises... seems like the pots could use some Detoxit cleaning. As for sound, I did not have much time for critical listening... don't you just hate when those pesky wives put demands on your hobby time. Muddy Water, "Folk Singer" did sound very good on first listen! Hopefully I will have more spare time over the weekend to let the tubes burn in a bit and do some listening.
  17. HPower
    Well, my "new to me" DRD45s are the tube rectified version so hopefully they will not torch up the new bottles on start up.
  18. HPower
    Hey JBryan, Thanks for sharing all your background experiences! I see by my tracking info that the new EML's landed this morning, so hopefully I will have time tonight to plug them in and see... what's what. For these new tubes I dealt with George at TubesUSA, were you dealing with the same distributer?
  19. HPower
    Thanks for the info guys, I will cross my fingers for a quite, hum free experience. Cut-Throat, if you remember my original DRDs that you advised me on when deciding to buy them back in '08, they ran a pair of vintage Cunningham. Edit... just took a look at a pic of my old Welbornes and it looks like they output tubes were National Unions. Those amps were dead quite with those tubes. The new amps with the RCAs are also dead quite, so if the new EML are noisy, we will see what George's (TubesUSA) customer service is like.
  20. HPower
    A couple of weeks ago I picked up a nice pair of Welborne DRD45s that are now paired up with my Ground Grid preamp to drive my Cornscalas. The DRDs came with a pair of vintage RCA 45s with unknown hours. After playing these new (to me) amps for a couple of weeks it brought back memories of how good my previous KHorns sounded with my 1st pair of DRD45s (should have not sold those). With everything sounding so good, and me being a compulsive Audiofool, I figured I should try to make things sound even better... I ordered a pair of Emission Lab 45 tubes and am hoping all the good things I have read about them is true. Have any other DRD / 45 amp users tried these tubes? I probably should have posted this thread before dropping that kind of money on 2 tubes, but like I said... Audiofool.
  21. HPower
  22. HPower
    With my Cornscala build from a couple of years ago, I used pocket screws and dry fit everything with the screws first. Once I was happy with the way things were going together, I dis-assemble and then re-assembled using PL. I didn't find enough slipping to matter. Mind you I built all the exterior joints "proud" by about 1 mm and then trimmed with the router after and sanded.
  23. HPower

    VRDs on Agon.

    HPower posted a topic in Alerts!

    I wish I had some spare cash right now for these babys! http://app.audiogon.com/listings/tube-nosvalves-vrd-kt-150-monoblocks-with-upgrades-2014-12-26-amplifiers-07727-farmingdale-nj
  24. HPower

    Crown Power

    HPower replied to babadono's topic in Subwoofers

    Yesterday I messaged unique square on FleaBay and asked if they would pass on the $40 Crown instant rebate that is being offered until the end of Dec. and they responded by saying to try entering a price in the "Make an Offer". So I offered $278, instead of the "buy it now price" of $318. Offer accepted and XLS 1500 will arrive on Dec. 31. Not a bad price for anybody wanting one of these right now.
  25. HPower

    Crown Power

    HPower replied to babadono's topic in Subwoofers

    I have not done a ton of planning yet but the "Dayton Audio RSS390HF-4 15" Reference HF Subwoofer 4 Ohm" seems to be commonly used in the F20 builds. Is this the best driver choice? I wonder what different driver Carl has tried in his builds. Would the think the 2 x 525Ws at 4 Ohms of the XLS 1500 should match well with that'd driver in 2: F20s? PE has $40 off on the XLS 1500 until the end of Dec.
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