T48 stack

[jakkle21]

Im going with Seth's suggestions, looking at the boxes, it seems like the "right" number for each section.
I've gotten panels 5 & 6 on one box now, and all the wood to finish them, so hopefully next week I'll get those panels on the other one and get 7 & 8 done on both.

[Seth]

Love the update and photo. You're so close to hearing firsthand how premium subwoofers sound.

It's looking good, looks like you've put a lot of intention in making all the seams air tight

You're coming down the home stretch. Almost there. Keep up the good work!

[Seth]

Is this one glued in? Definitely make sure.

[jakkle21]

Is this one glued in? Definitely make sure.
Compress_20230712_125755_5443.jpg

That one was still loose when the picture was taken, but it has been glued in. Thank you for the concern though.

I'm approaching the end here, at least of the construction. Just a few pieces left! I may be able to test them next week

The only things left to cut, are the access covers and braces, and a piece to mount my jacks to, I already have the last sides cut.
I have all my hardware ready, new cables, speaker gasket, the speakers and the rest of the PA system.
I wish I could call in to work tomorrow and have them done, but I have come this far, I can wait another week to work on them.
I am extremely excited though.

[Seth]

Wah-how-how-how-howww... Mother Goose! They look amazing jak! Great job!!!

At this time I'd like to prepare you for what you're gonna hear and what you're not gonna hear. For some, it takes a little getting used to. Once you are used to it, anything else sounds like garbage.

You know that sound when you're pushing the limits and it sounds "loud"? I know you do, we all do. That "loud" sound is distortion. Even a clock radio can sound "loud", when it's actually not. You're not going to get that sound with these subs. These will be louder than the ones you've been using, but they won't have the distortion that "sounds loud". They will play louder, yet completely clean without distortion, which at first may not register in your mind as a good thing. Trust me, it is.

Please, please, please... if you're not 100% sure about setting it all up, let us help you with your EQ, crossover, and limiter settings. Setup and calibration is what makes any system the best it can be. Even after all these years I'm still learning new things I'd gladly pass on. DO NOT FOLLOW THE DRIVERACK INSTRUCTIONS FOR SETTING THE LIMITER.

I'm super excited for you!!!

[jakkle21]

Thank you Seth, they have come a long way since I started and I'm pretty pleased with the results so far, definitely the most complicated wood working project I've done to date.
I know exactly what you mean about "loud" vs clean and actually loud, and I'm very excited to get to play with and dial in some nice bass. I have one dj in my group who is always messing with the eq on his controller to make it sound "good" as he says, but he's just jacking up the bass and highs until they are redlining and I have to readjust everything down system so he doesn't clip anything, but anyone else playing has plenty of headroom across the entire band. So far me best strategy has been to turn up the monitors a lot when he's playing, but also, my current subs are not great and I'm definitely pushing them pretty hard.
I will double check all my settings and approach to the crossover and limiter before I forward it all up. I'm not so proud as to think I know it all, and I'd hate to miss something basic and cause damage to something at this point. I've got a lot of time and materials into this project

[jakkle21]

They are done!
At least the first pair. They still need to get painted, but they are built and wired.

Now I need test them and get them dialed in.

[Seth]

How's it going jak? Getting them all figured out alright? How are they doing?

[howiez]

Looking beautiful! Can't wait to see them finished, keep the pix coming!

[jakkle21]

Sorry for the long delay. They still need to be painted and I need to redo the plug panels and fix one of their plug access ports.

But they have been tested, enthusiasticly approved of and run successfully.
The Saturday after my last post, I woke up early to test them out.
I set my limiter to just over 50V and started plugging stuff in.
While hooking them up, I noticed I labeled the ports wrong on one of them, but that's not a big deal.
With the first test track, they sounded great, smooth and rich. I was amazed by how much sound they made while barely vibrating themselves. While feeling them, I noticed only one was working and got worried, so I switched their wires and the other one stopped working, then I checked my connections and noticed one of the wires on the amp was loose, so I tightened that down and then they both slapped.
We stated turning them up, because we had to test them, and the wood shop stated rattling, then something fell off a shelf, so we turned them back down to a reasonable level.
The following weekend (Labor Day specifically) was the big event that I had really wanted to have them ready for and with the successful test, we took allcrhe gear out and setup on Tuesday, for sound check and such.

I tried my best to wall/corner load them, but was kind of limited by the layout, but over all I was happy with the placement. Plenty of even bass across the entire dance floor area. I did get some weird delays from the dj booth but only with 175bpm (give or take) 4 on the floor baselines, where the bass hit would arrive halve a beat late, id you stepped a few feet to either side, the effect went away, and I could find it amywhere else, but I able to consistently reporduce it with different songs that had similar tempo and driving bass. I'm pretty sure it was reflection of the brick wall to the left of the picture, Dj booth is on the right.
Very cool and educational to get to experience that first hand
P.s. I Still haven't turned them up all the way, max I've hit is about 75% on the amp, which is an old Macro-Tech, so i know it can handle it.

[Bruce Weldy]

P.s. I Still haven't turned them up all the way, max I've hit is about 75% on the amp, which is an old Macro-Tech, so i know it can handle it.

You are using the attenuator on the amp to control volume? Did you set your voltage limits with the amp all the way up? You really should turn the amp all the way up...all the time. You control volume at the mixer level.

By setting the voltage limit with the amp all the way up, you have established a line that the amp can't cross. By leaving them all the way up, some nimrod can't crank 'em up on you during a show.

[jakkle21]

I did set the limiter with the amp turned all the way up. But the amp controls were just easier to use than the mixers to make adjustments during the event. Or rather after getting my levels and gain-staiging set, I would use the mixer's to adjust the entire system volume, then adjust the sub-amp a little if neede. and since I set the limiter with them all the way up I knew there was little danger, to the equipment at least, if some one cranked the knob up.
Next time I want to hook a computer up to my driverack and see if that makes it easier to do all of that on there though.

[Bruce Weldy]

I did set the limiter with the amp turned all the way up. But the amp controls were just easier to use than the mixers to make adjustments during the event. Or rather after getting my levels and gain-staiging set, I would use the mixer's to adjust the entire system volume, then adjust the sub-amp a little if neede. and since I set the limiter with them all the way up I knew there was little danger, to the equipment at least, if some one cranked the knob up.
Next time I want to hook a computer up to my driverack and see if that makes it easier to do all of that on there though.

Sounds like you need to get your system outside away from boundaries and get the crossover, balance between tops and subs, and EQ set for your system. That will always give you a spot to start where your system is tuned properly. Save it as your master. Then all you should ever have to do is re-EQ for the room. The other settings should never change as they are already optimized. Then the mixer is the only volume you ever need to adjust.

Don't know what you are using for a mixer, but if it's digital, then you could save the EQ setting for the various rooms. I have several venues in my mixer. Sound check for the bands is very fast as everything is saved from the time before. If you are just playing music, then it's even easier.

If you don't have any kind of master EQ on your mixer, then it may be worth investing in a stand along EQ to place between the mixer and the driverack. Make your room adjustments on that. While a 31 band would be nice, even a dual 15-band would take care of the room for recorded music.

And yeah, I get it that you have the driverack (I've got a bunch of 'em) - but, you can't always run auto EQ and have time to EQ a room. With a secondary EQ, you can put on a song and fix it by ear very quickly. I haven't used Auto EQ in years as most venues aren't amenable to it because patrons are usually there when you are setting up.

Anyway....just some food for thought.

[jakkle21]

Yeah, I still have a lot to learn.
My mixer doesn't have much eq in it. Berhinger rack mounted mixer, and fairly basic.
I want a stand alone eq, or a fancier mixer, but I've been waiting until I need it and am better at using it.
Thanks for the tips

[Seth]

Yeah, I still have a lot to learn.
My mixer doesn't have much eq in it. Berhinger rack mounted mixer, and fairly basic.
I want a stand alone eq, or a fancier mixer, but I've been waiting until I need it and am better at using it.
Thanks for the tips

I want to help you set this rig up and get it dialed in. Over several days, I've typed up really long responses for this thread, then chosen not to post them for whatever reason. Let me know if you're still poking your head in here and we'll get this thing set up really well. Once it's set up and tuned, it shouldn't matter which DJ is playing or what their settings are, unless they're idiots. And you shouldn't need an additional outboard EQ. Everything you need is in your Driverack.

Set up and tuned well, your system should sound jaw dropping amazing... especially if/when you build and add the second pair of T48's and a V-Plate.

Are you still lurking about? Wanna take a little time and set this puppy up?