DR200 and T30 First Impressions

[BrentEvans]

So, I've been asking a lot of questions about my various projects. A few months ago, forum member Brew contacted me and said he had a couple of DR200s in progress, and that when done, I could listen if I wanted to. He brought them over tonight, and all I can say is WOW. He brought 2 DR200 with melded arrays, and a T30. He actually brought two, but since we were in my church, and the idea was to try them out in there, we didn't bother with the other one.



We set one and the Tuba up, and flattened the EQ. Put on a recording from Sunday's service, and I started hearing details I'd never heard before except in headphones. They were a bit bright, but not excessively so. Played around with the EQ a bit, got them sounding good. I discovered this thing called midrange. I've never heard a system this clean across the entire spectrum. It was absolutely amazing. Then, we opened it up. I saw the chandeliers shaking. I've never heard bass like that. Loud and clean. Way too loud. Stupid loud. And they could have taken more. Awesome!

Test #2 was live music. Bruce suggested stacking the cabs, so we did. I played the keys and my brother-in-law sang for a bit. We were way louder than performance level, and he walked right in front of the stacl (which was not raised on the stand) and it took him intentionally pointing the mic at the speaker to feed back. This is with VERY little EQ, just a few mid cuts by ear to get a good sound. I turned on the Lav (the squeaky one from the other thread) and instantly had plenty of gain and intelligibility, but it did feed back a bit when I got close to the stack. We unstacked them, and put one up as high as it would go, and up on the platform. Got right under it and at louder volume than we'd normally use, and got a few little squeaks, but nothing that couldn't be handled with a few small notches, and with my upcoming SAC installation, it'll be a breeze. Also, played the bass through them live, and I heard harmonics coming out of the top. I've NEVER had that with the old OAP box because I had so much mid chopped out to keep the choir mics from feeding back.

We then spread the cabs wide (to the walls) and pushed them all the way up. I backed down to a normal performance volume and put on a recording to sing with. I walked all around the room, listening and singing, and probably making Bruce cringe, but couldn't find a spot where the sound was any different than anywhere else. Totally awesome. Turned on the choir mics, got up to performance levels with no feedback. Continued awesomeness.

My mind is made up. When the funding comes in, I will not hesitate to buy the plans and start making sawdust. I'll make a couple of DRs for the church, and a sub. Not sure if I need a T39 or not, that Tuba was STUPID loud. I honestly think we could run with something way less, but that's for another thread.

My first impression was definitely 100% positive. I'm sold. These are the real deal.

Another note: It was VERY beneficial to me to just listen and then sit down and shoot the bull with someone who's done this before. Looking at the cabs makes a difference too. I was worried about building the melded arrays, and some other things, and Bruce shared his experiences and now I'm not as anxious about some of the details. Reading on the forum is very educational, but getting over the nervousness was a product of our conversation.

Thanks again Bruce!

[David Carter]

Glad to hear you had great time! A demo is worth a thousand words!

[Brew]

My pleasure! Sharing is lots o fun. Especially seeing others reaction to hearing these BFM designs. Best of luck with the build.

[Tim A]

getting over the nervousness was a product of our conversation.

What's to be nervous about? Maybe sometimes the conversation here makes things seem overwhelming, but in the end it boils down to wood and plastic. Neither are exotic, both are replaceable. Follow the plans and you'll be fine.

[David Carter]

getting over the nervousness was a product of our conversation.

What's to be nervous about? Maybe sometimes the conversation here makes things seem overwhelming, but in the end it boils down to wood and plastic. Neither are exotic, both are replaceable. Follow the plans and you'll be fine.

We all know that's true, but I, for one, still get a bit anxious whenever I'm about to take the first step into any project--cab building or anything else. But, in the end, you're absolutely right--follow the plans and it'll be OK. I can say that now that I've got an O10, a pair of DR250's, and a pair of T39's under my belt, but I can understand where Brent's coming from, too.

Go for it, Brent. When it's all over and people are amazed at the awesome sounds filling your church, you'll smile to yourself, and think...

[BrentEvans]

What's to be nervous about?

To a degree, building something that's far more advanced than I've ever done before. To a greater degree, building something I have absolutely no experience with and putting money and time into it as a "leap of faith." Hearing is believing! Now that part is over with, and I just have to figure out how to do it without losing any fingers (that would be quite annoying to a keyboard / bass / guitar person). I'm the eternal kluttz.

That said, I feel a lot better about the whole thing now. Next comes raising the money.

[DJPhatman]

Now that part is over with, and I just have to figure out how to do it without losing any fingers (that would be quite annoying to a keyboard / bass / guitar person). I'm the eternal kluttz.

Have someone else do the cutting for you. There are a lot of really good cabinet-makers that need work. Just have him/her cut everything for you, and you do all the other parts. This will cost less than someone building the whole thing for you, and will be more satisfying.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

Have someone else do the cutting for you.

-1. Parts must be fitted/trimmed as they are installed. :iitp:

[Ron K]

Follow the plans and go slowly.If you get stuck hit the forums for help.The only reason I wont build Drs is I dont feel like investing the time in a more complicated build.

O-tops work well for me pack and stack rather nicely and they sound very good.The kicker is I can throw one together in 2 days tops. This propelled me to an armada of Sound Reinforcement in short order. Same goes for the T-24s @ 16" wide.

If DRs are what you think will work best for you then by all means try one.Dont sell yourself too short too soon.It's not like you want to build 20 of them right off the bat.2 boxes with some well spent time and you should be hearing wonderful music in a week or so.

Good luck.

[DJPhatman]

Have someone else do the cutting for you.

-1. Parts must be fitted/trimmed as they are installed. :iitp:

I meant having an experienced helper.

[AntonZ]

I just have to figure out how to do it without losing any fingers (that would be quite annoying to a keyboard / bass / guitar person). I'm the eternal kluttz.

If you are going to use a table saw, then please do order the panel jig with your plans. It costs next to nothing, it's a great addition to a simple table saw and makes the thing a lot safer to operate. It is easy to make, a joy to work with, makes cutting square pannels easier and faster and is a good starter before getting into the cab building itself.

[Bones]

any idea what the t30 was loaded with?

[BrentEvans]

Bruce will have to chime in on that but I think he said either 2012 or 2512.

[Bones]

im interested to know that, do you know if it was a dual cab or not?

[BrentEvans]

Don't think so. He's the one to ask though.