Hej Troels,
Efter års tilløb er jeg endelig gået i gang med at bygge mine egne
højtalere. Dette har udelukkende kunne lade sig gøre på grund af dit
arbejde og website, så det skal du have mange mange tak for!
Egentlig har jeg været interesseret i at bygge en stor gulvhøjtaler, men
jeg fik overtalt mig selv til at lave et øve projekt først og valget
faldt på en SEAS CURV. Det kan ikke understreges nok hvor glad jeg er
for den beslutning.
Mine højtalere er i sidste fase, hvor jeg roder lidt med dæmpe materiale
og desuden skal kabinetterne have (mindst) én gang maling til. Så p.t.
står de placeret oven på mine 110 cm. gulv modeller, med løse front
baffler, enheder kun skruet i med 2 skruer og porten kun lige sat i så
den stikker et par cm. ud fra bagsiden. Og ved du hvad - de spiller
fuldstændig mageløst! De sidste 2 aftener(og nætter) har jeg været det
meste af mit musik katalog igennem og gang på gang må jeg ryste på
hovedet over hvad de små højtalere er i stand til.
Jeg glæder mig til, at det hele bliver samlet ordentligt og til, at jeg
får bygget et par ordentlige standere.
Endnu engang mange tak fordi du deler dit arbejde med alle os andre.
mvh, Jannik Hendriksen
Hi Troels,
so here is my
follow-up on the CURV speakers I build some 6 months ago. As mentioned
this speakerbuild was a first time for me and ment as a test to see if I
could do it before comitting to a bigger speaker project. I was hoping
for a nice sounding speaker but didn't really know what to expect. I was
sure they wouldn't replace the big floorstanders I was using. All images
from the process can be found here: https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/113682251011612857239/albums/6028391173557866593
and you are welcome to link to it, grab images, or both.
The cabinet building was a very rewarding
process. I enjoyed the (very) late hours in the garage so much. Being
super particular and even manufacturing my own tools (circular guide)
was so much fun. I chose to build in MDF and tried to achieve a high
gloss finish following a guide I found on the web. That is a long and
tiresome process and wears on your patience and mine didn't last so it
is not a perfect job. The baffle was made from Ikea bamboo cutting
boards. They are nice and cheap but you need a sharp router bit. They
darken quite a lot as time goes.
The stands I made was also a process and they
work great. They are made from a base (big Ikea bamboo chopping board),
a pvc pipe filled with quartz sand, and an mdf top plate. The pipe is
counter sunk into both top and bottom and glued in the bottom.
furthermore an all thread rod goes all the way from top to bottom inside
the tube and holds it all firmly together. I have some cheap Monacor
spikes under the stand and blue tack between speaker and stand.
Ok sound... It is good! These speakers
are very detailed. I have a few records which have followed me for over
20 years and which I have listened to on quite a few systems and the
Curvs revealed details which I hadn't heard before on most if not all of
my records. On one track on "...but seriously" with Phill Collins there
is a backup singer which I always thought was him self. When I heard
that track on the Curvs it was immediately clear that it is not Phill
but someone else. I have heard this record many many times.
Accoustic instruments sound very natural and
detailed and are -if the recording allows it - placed with space and
precision in the soundstage. I'm not a big symphony listener but I do
have a few in my collection and picking out individual instruments is
easy and the soundstage is nice and deep.
On material like Porcupine Tree, Steven
Wilson, and Dream Theater there are sometimes rather complex passages
where details easily gets lost but here the Curvs keeps composure with
speed and precision.
Bass extension is impressive for such a small
speaker. It goes much lower than I would have thought and again with
detail. I know my bigger speakers goes lower and moves more air with
twin 170mm bass drivers but I'd much rather have the precise bass of
the Curvs.
As with all speakers you need to place them
correctly to get everything from them. I have them 70 cm. from baffle to
front wall and 75 cm. from floor to bottom. Like this they integrate
nicely into my 5*7m. room. (which has an opening into even further
space). I had the room fitted with big corner traps and broadband
absorbers for a month and the speakers really shined. That is going to
be build in permanently now.
So as you might have guessed thte old
speakers are out and the Curvs are in!
If you are a first time builder or just need
a small speaker the Curv is a good option at a ridiculous low price. The
only thing to consider is the small crossover. It has to be tight and if
you suck at soldering like I do it can be a bit frustrating. I attached
the components to the board with double sided tape before gluing to
ensure it would be able to get in. In the end I had to make the hole in
the brace bigger after I had painted the cabs. That wasn't optimal but
it worked.
Thank you again for your work. I feel the
itch again so hopefully before winter is over I will write you again :-)
Merry christmas and a happy new year to you
and your loved ones.
Jannik
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