Hello from central Mississippi

[pdpMS]

Hi there, I’ve long lurked through these pages off and on over the years, waiting until a time that I’d be able to build some speakers of my own. We’ve bought a new house, so the time is coming near, and I’m looking for some advice.

I’m having a 50s stereo cabinet rebuilt (a Magnavox with a 9302 amp; it’s an heirloom cabinet, so pulling it apart for the amp isn’t an option). I am planning to change out the AM input to an auxiliary, and add banana plugs or right angle connectors in place of the screw terminal connections for external output. We’ll run the stereo’s built-in speakers some, but I’d love to have some modern speakers to connect for a more complete sound than what we’ll get out of the cab itself.

My main concern is with space. You can see the cabinet on the left of the first image.




This is the room the cabinet sits in, and will be for a long time (see: new house). The only real place to put speakers would be on either side of the cabinet (there’s just enough space on either side), or on the built-in shelving. There’s a computer desk on the wall to the right that’s out of the frame. I’m not looking to install an HT system, so any speakers will be used exclusively for music of (almost) all genres.

I know the first choice would be to build a pair of Davids. Before I planned for that endeavor, however, I wanted to know if there were any more compact arrangements that may deliver. Tonal quality and balance is more important to me than massive volume, but I won’t complain about a system with some kick.

And a final thought I had: if the Davids truly are the best choice, would disrupting the platter be something of concern when the speakers get turned up?

Thanks in advance, I fully anticipate needing more help from you all in the future.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

SLAs would work well, but then you'd have to have a separate sub or two as well. Used only with music T18s would be adequate.

[pdpMS]

I had considered SLAs with a T18, but I wasn't sure about the crossovers and splitting the source. I also assume that I'd need a separate amp for the sub, because I'm not sure what the 9302 is rated for power wise. This tag shows the only specs I can gather from the cab.



I could never figure out if the wattage was 90W with a misprint or 190W. Would 90W be enough to drive two SLAs?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

I could never figure out if the wattage was 90W with a misprint or 190W. Would 90W be enough to drive two SLAs?

That 90w is probably the power consumption, not output. It's plenty for SLAs, but you would need a separate sub amp, and a high pass filter on the input to the console amp. That's a simple task if you're good with electronics, not so much if you aren't.

[CoronaOperator]

I believe what your looking at is the power consumption of the whole cabinet, not output power to the drivers. Those amps typically measure about 13 watts before distortion kicks in. That is about an 11 dB gain from 1 watt.

[pdpMS]

I believe what your looking at is the power consumption of the whole cabinet, not output power to the drivers. Those amps typically measure about 13 watts before distortion kicks in. That is about an 11 dB gain from 1 watt.

Ok, that makes a lot more sense than what I was thinking. I've not dealt much with tubes, but I look forward to hearing this amp.

It's plenty for SLAs, but you would need a separate sub amp, and a high pass filter on the input to the console amp. That's a simple task if you're good with electronics, not so much if you aren't.

That's good to hear. I've done a good deal of wiring (and my fair share of head banging while sorting it out) in cars and motorcycles, and know enough about electronic wiring to get me in trouble. I'll be exercising plenty of Google-fu to make sure I don't pop anything expensive though.

[pdpMS]

After mulling over a large number of build threads (probably an unhealthy number), and running it by SWMBO, I've convinced myself to consider an eventual HT system. Below is where I could mount side channels.


I would repurpose the stereo speakers I was already planning on as split-duty for the stereo and surround sound. I still won't have space for a TT or THT, but I could make a second sub for the right hand side of the room (there's a little space available beside my aforementioned computer desk). The TV-to-couch distance is right at 10 feet. My few questions are:

Would SLAs or TLAs be better choice? I'd rather not eat up too much horizontal distance since there will be shelving behind the speakers (and I'm not sure of the depth of either array).

Would 2 T18s be able to keep up with an SLA surround? Assuming 6 speakers per SLA, and a room size of roughly 20'x15'. The kitchen is directly behind the couch through a 7' wide opening.

Could I get away with two different sized subs? I'm assuming the answer is no, for simplicity's sake.

What to do about a center channel? The mantel is only 8" wide, and the TV can't move vertically. Vertical height to the TV is just at 4" at the lowest point. I may be able to move the TV up an inch, inch and a half at most. Any more and I feel the tilt on the screen will get excessive.


I told you I'd be back with more questions. Thanks again.

[Tom Smit]

Welcome to the forum!




What are your thoughts about putting a THTLP in the kitchen pantry?

Do you/will you use the fireplace?

[pdpMS]

Thanks for the welcome. We do use the fireplace (actually had our first fire in it the other night).

As far as the pantry goes, we really have more of a washroom. Washer, dryer, beer fridge, and a few cabinets. Not much extra space, and the WAF was pretty low when I ran it by her.