BillFitzmaurice.info

Got some more things done on these WH 8. Pictures of the crossovers before installing:
low pass

High pass

After installation

My new flexible driver (new best friend)

the a gear I am trying to replace with these builds being used as a shop stereo:

The tweeter array almost completed(waiting on 2 more goldwoods) just sitting in position (not installed):

I know that I have read on here somewhere that people have had problems with t nuts spinning out but I have used them plenty in other projects and have never had a problem.

These t nuts are 5/16" tall and accept a 1/4" pan head allen head machine screw that's 1&1/4" long.

To use these t nuts I screw the spacer to the baffle in the correct alignment, then put the speaker in place and mark the holes on the spacer and remove the speaker. Then I drill both the spacer and baffle with the smallest bit that the t nut's shank will fit through (5/16). Then separate the spacer and baffle and place the t nut's shank into the hole on the back of the spacer and drive it home with a hammer as far as it will go. In this arrangement the t nut winds up trapped between the spacer and baffle. Then glue the spacer, being sure not to glue too close to the t nuts so the glue does not flow into the t nut. Place the spacer and speaker aligned correctly, and drive the allen head screws through the speaker and the spacer and baffle to insure alignment. Now screw the spacer to the baffle with 1" wood screws where you can get at least 2 of them in. Unscrew the speaker from the assembly and put more wood screws through the spacer into the baffle to finish it off. I can see no way the t nuts could ever spin out when the t nut is trapped between the spacer and baffle and is driven home with a hammer. However great care has to be given to ensure that everything (spacer, baffle and speaker) are all in exact alignment by drilling them all through.

The most difficult item to obtain so far has been simple expanded sheet metal for the grille. I have Lowe's and 84 Lumber trying to order a couple of 4'x4' sheets of it. Our Lowe's in Christiansburg has worthless 1'x2' pieces that won't work for anything, however they called the distributor to try and order a 4x4 foot sheet...we shall see.

Do you have a metal supply facility nearby, one that sells flat bar, angled metals, tubing etc. ? They should have it, and possibly cheaper.

heavybdrums wrote:The most difficult item to obtain so far has been simple expanded sheet metal for the grille. I have Lowe's and 84 Lumber trying to order a couple of 4'x4' sheets of it. Our Lowe's in Christiansburg has worthless 1'x2' pieces that won't work for anything, however they called the distributor to try and order a 4x4 foot sheet...we shall see.

This is where I got mine.

http://www.reliablehardware.com/customspeakergrill.aspx

heavybdrums wrote:The most difficult item to obtain so far has been simple expanded sheet metal for the grille. I have Lowe's and 84 Lumber trying to order a couple of 4'x4' sheets of it. Our Lowe's in Christiansburg has worthless 1'x2' pieces that won't work for anything, however they called the distributor to try and order a 4x4 foot sheet...we shall see.

My local Lowes sells it in 2x8 pieces, found near the concrete mix, sold as stucco netting.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_11811-1278-LATH ... co+netting

Thanks for the input on the expanded sheet metal guys. I did finally find this : http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/n ... -flattened. Bill, I have seen the stucco stuff but thought it might be too easy to dent being a bit on the thin side and being a bit sharp, but definitely cheap.

heavybdrums wrote:Thanks for the input on the expanded sheet metal guys. I did finally find this : http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/n ... -flattened. Bill, I have seen the stucco stuff but thought it might be too easy to dent being a bit on the thin side and being a bit sharp, but definitely cheap.

For that kind of price - I'd order real speaker grill cut to size. It wouldn't be much more and they'd look better and you wouldn't have to cut 'em.

heavybdrums wrote:Bill, I have seen the stucco stuff but thought it might be too easy to dent being a bit on the thin side and being a bit sharp, but definitely cheap.

It will dent, but so will any grille if someone steps on it or drops something one it. What matters is that it won't break. It's a bit sharp, but a coating of DuraTex fixes that.

Bruce Weldy wrote:

heavybdrums wrote:Thanks for the input on the expanded sheet metal guys. I did finally find this : http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/n ... -flattened. Bill, I have seen the stucco stuff but thought it might be too easy to dent being a bit on the thin side and being a bit sharp, but definitely cheap.

For that kind of price - I'd order real speaker grill cut to size. It wouldn't be much more and they'd look better and you wouldn't have to cut 'em.

The pre cut speaker grille from reliable hardware is $36 each with shipping so I'm going with this for now and may re-look at the stucco mesh as a cheap option in the future.]


this stuff is a little cheaper @ $30 / 2'x2' and I have it now from a local store and at 13 ga is pretty bomb proof, but will continue to look for cheaper options that I like the looks of and is heavy duty enough. There is still the possibility of getting this stuff in a more efficient 4'x4' size, and I have no problem cutting this with a metal cutting blade in a circular saw. For this build this expanded metal painted metallic gold will look awesome beside the red/brown tweeters and urethaned horns.

I am pretty concerned with the look of these and trying to achieve a custom, yet classy look, not so much a "stock" look. There is an old saying I once heard from Bobby Darin; "People hear what they see" when considering stage show presentations, and i believe this could apply to BFM pa speakers somewhat, which people are not familiar with (brand name) and have never heard of. Showing people the value of loaded horns in the current sound reinforcement industry is going to be an uphill battle any way you look at it, seeing as most pros use direct radiators today.

I am having problems making the penn elcom corners fit the odd angles of the WH 8's and thinking of using the rubber feet instead without corners. Suggestions on how to make these 90 degree corners work on the non-90 degree corners of the monitors?

heavybdrums wrote:I am having problems making the penn elcom corners fit the odd angles of the WH 8's and thinking of using the rubber feet instead without corners. Suggestions on how to make these 90 degree corners work on the non-90 degree corners of the monitors?

Just like this.

heavybdrums wrote: Showing people the value of loaded horns in the current sound reinforcement industry is going to be an uphill battle any way you look at it, seeing as most pros use direct radiators today.

Horns are quite common in the pro-touring genre, where cabs cost upwards of $3k each. You don't see them in the price range where the average DJ/band buys because there aren't any, for the same reason why there are no $15k BMW or Mercedes.