Page 1 of 2

Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 11:42 am
by vikash
Image
The first panels glued together. I used Jointers Mate for this build.

Image
Some more panels joined together. Angles cut on the table saw. Driver spacers cut with a router and diy circle jig. Finally a sanity check that 3012LF driver fits.

Image
Some more panels and braces fitted.

Image
Another view showing the horn path starting to take shape.

Image
I decided late in the day to not have an empty cavity where the castors are fitted. This required some jiggery pokery with the router and chamfer bit.

Image
Another view, just cus I like this shot.

Image
Neutrik Speakon NLJ2MD-V (PCB mount) connector fitted. I chose this one because I wanted to flush mount it from the inside of the panel.

Image
The other side of the connector, sealed with glue. Hopefully I'll never have to take it out.

Image
The 69 cab shot. All panels bar one fitted.

Image
I use the superior (IMO) Insert Nuts for the driver and access cover, and for the castors.

Image
Access cover fits nicely.

Image
Another shot of the cabs just before the remaining panel is glued on.

Image
Front shot after the last panel is glued on and trimmed down with a flush trim bit.

Image
Rear shot of the completed woodwork.

Image
A bit closer. All edges rounded with a router and roundover bit.

Image
The finished cabs side by side.

Image
Applied some caulk to some of the outside edges for a smoother edge/finish.

Image
20mm wide gasket applied for the access cover.

Image
Drivers being run in.

Image
Two coats of TuffCab paint applied. The first by brush, and finished with a small sponge roller.

Image
A closeup of the finish.

Image
And another closeup of the finish around the driver access hole.

Image
The driver mounted with penny washers and socket head bolts.



Done. And all in the nick of time really as these will be put through their paces this Saturday night. I've just received the DCX2496 and got it set up - first impressions are it's very impressive for ~£200. They will be powered by a Behringer PMP4000 Europower Mixer as that's all I have to hand for the time being. Testing in my 20' by 20/16' living room (with a pair of QSC K12 tops) and the T39's sound impressive so far. I've crossed them at 80Hz as 100Hz seems a little too high at first audition, but I'll have a proper play at the venue on Saturday morning.

All in all, I have to say I severely underestimated the time required to build a pair of these, and in my haste I made a few stupid mistakes which resulted in the cabinets being a bit bent (namely attaching the mouth braces before the last side panel which has thrown things out a bit). If I'm honest then I would say that the cost of my time, plus the cost of materials plus an additional (say ~£500) required for power and DSP - I wonder if I wouldn't have been far better off (financially) with a pair of KSubs (which I haven't heard, but was considering before looking at plans on the net and ending up here).

That's not a negative on the T39's by any means, just a bit disgruntled with how long it's taken me to build and take time off work for it. On the flip side I've absolutely loved every minute building these and I get the feeling that they will justify themselves completely come Saturday night. I will let you know. ;)

V

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 11:52 am
by Radian
Beautiful work none the less! :clap: :clap:
vikash wrote:That's not a negative on the T39's by any means, just a bit disgruntled with how long it's taken me to build and take time off work for it. On the flip side I've absolutely loved every minute building these and I get the feeling that they will justify themselves completely come Saturday night.
"Sweat equity"

One question though...IF the speakon jack ever malfunctions in the future, how would you go about servicing it?

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 12:20 pm
by vikash
Radian wrote:One question though...IF the speakon jack ever malfunctions in the future, how would you go about servicing it?
Not my proudest design decision that. I guess the easiest thing would be to wire a new connector to the access cover.

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 12:36 pm
by jswingchun
Nice cabs, well done. I love T39s.

This is a really cool picture:

Image

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 1:53 pm
by Chris_Allen
vikash wrote:Not my proudest design decision that. I guess the easiest thing would be to wire a new connector to the access cover.
Nice build - fingers crossed that you don't have a problem with the jack. In hindsight, it would have probably been better between the wheels and had two of them.

That's where you can put them in your next pair!

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 3:53 pm
by AntonZ
Vik, may I have your workshop please? Pretty sure you will be granted the 5H award once Harley wakes up. Bloody hell, what a lovely place to work in. The cabs look great, too :clap:

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 4:47 pm
by Harley
For you Vik

Image

Very nice indeed - both the build and the workshop.

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 4:59 pm
by vikash
Since a few people have mentioned it [the connector] I've been thinking about it more and more. It should be fairly straight forward to cut it out with a hole cutter, then insert a piece of ply through the handle holes to back it - and fix a new connector to that à la bills plans.
AntonZ wrote:Vik, may I have your workshop please? Pretty sure you will be granted the 5H award once Harley wakes up. Bloody hell, what a lovely place to work in. The cabs look great, too :clap:
Thanks, the garage and workbench were recent(ish) projects. ;)
Garage makeover pics: https://picasaweb.google.com/madaboutso ... opMakeover#
Workbench build pics: https://picasaweb.google.com/madaboutso ... yWorkbench#
Harley wrote: Image
Very nice indeed - both the build and the workshop.
Lol. Well, err, thank you very much. 8)

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 9:11 pm
by Spoon
Absolutely beautiful work! I'm starting my second set of OT12's tomorrow and you have me drooling to build more 39's!

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 9:59 pm
by Tom Smit
Very nice....cabs, shop, bench. :clap:

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 10:08 pm
by LEVLHED
very nice pictures too! you obviously used a "real" camera

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2011 5:14 pm
by RENDOG
Very cool!

Awesome pictures, what camera did you use?
"I wonder if I wouldn't have been far better off (financially) with a pair of KSubs (which I haven't heard, but was considering before looking at plans on the net and ending up here)."
I've heard 2 Ksubs and 2 tops that a band was using indoors. When the band wasn't playing, they played music off their laptop and it sounded pretty good. To be more specific, it sounded like a "complete" or "well rounded" system similar to when you add a basic subwoofer to a home theater or car audio system. I don't know what volume level they had the Ksubs at but I believe a pair of Titans would have significantly more output than the Ksubs.

A wedding DJ who would like a little more thump can spend $1100 on a Ksub and it would make their "no subwoofer" system sound better. If the DJ added a second Ksub, it would sound even better and someone might compliment him/her on their setup. If the DJ brought 2 Titan 39's and turned them to full volume, some guests and venue management will probably ask for it to be turned down.

2 Ksubs should be about $2100. Your 2 Titans should have been about $400 each and then $500 for amp with built in crossover for a total of $1300. I know that your time is money but I think you made a really good decision going with the Titans.

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 5:31 pm
by vikash
Thanks for the compliments. The camera is a 5D MkII and for those shots I use a 24-70L lens.

I used the T39's in earnest for the first time last night and was generally impressed. The venue was a wooden cabin about 25' x 75' at a guess with the subs corner loaded and the DJ setup at the other short corner. This meant I heard/felt a lot more bass than the average guest. The feedback I got from some guests was that the bass sounded very good. One guest in particular, also a DJ, found the subs interesting and might veer over here soon to find out more...

I took some measurements today with all levels set to the maximum used last night. Using a True RMS DMM, a 60Hz sine wave measured 61v at the sub output and the VU meter was up all the way to max on the sub amp (+10). 100Hz measured 54v with again max levels on the VU meter.

However, I was adjusting the sub amp volume throughout last night so that the VU meter was at 3/4 max (+4). At this level and with program content the max voltage reading I could get was 34v. Even at this level the subs were skating a little and there was a bit of rattle, which I assume and hope was nothing in the cabinet.

I'm trying to make sense of all this and in particular I'm trying to figure how much more, if at all, I could have pushed them. Even though they were skating around and I had to move them back into position a few times during the night (and even tried taping them together), I have a feeling they have more SPL capability.

I will have to get a proper amp soon ;)

Your thoughts appreciated...

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 8:38 pm
by Spoon
I'm thinking you didn't have them on their sides and V plated. Mine have never walked or skated anywhere when set up this way. Check your casters for the rattle. I can't hear them when a band is playing but I do sometimes when I"m playing heavier dance music. But I need to be pretty close to notice it. Once again, VERY nice work!

Re: Vik's pair of T39's (and lots of pics).

Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 8:53 pm
by LEVLHED
I could have guessed 5D!