RBR discussion thread

[Clearwave]

I will answer questions about the new Madisound/Clearwave Loudspeaker Design RBR kit here. Thanks for your interest

Jed

[ripcard]

Using my best Tim Allen...Uuwwrgh???

[ripcard]

Ok, sorry! I just looked up the kit on the Madisound website. Congrats on the kit Jed.

I regularly check your site and forum for news and saw nothing of this so it was a bit of a surprise. How does this kit compare to your Minuet2 light design?

[Clearwave]

Ok, sorry! I just looked up the kit on the Madisound website. Congrats on the kit Jed.

I regularly check your site and forum for news and saw nothing of this so it was a bit of a surprise. How does this kit compare to your Minuet2 light design?

Thanks!

I didn't want to say anything about the design until it was all finished for Madisound. Besides, pleasant surprises are fun!

The Minuet2 Light design is the replacement for the RBR... although one main difference is the 15W4531G has 3dbs more sensitivity at the expense of a lower impedance. The Minuet2 Light also contains a zobel impedance equalization network-- which adds to the cost a bit. However, Madisound's pricing on the RBR is unbelievable, so there really isn't a catch with it. I'm glad I was able to help them out to offer such a bargain.

Jed

[Scudfly]

Would i be right to assume that the foam goes in all three chambers (Front to back)and the same in the top and bottom of the cabinet?If so Where would the best place be to put the crossover?By the way i finally get to hear some of the best speakers,thanks to the price of the kit at madisound.Everything about this speaker kit has been positive and the designer(s) don't get enough credit.Thanks for all your good work.

[Clearwave]

Would i be right to assume that the foam goes in all three chambers (Front to back)and the same in the top and bottom of the cabinet?If so Where would the best place be to put the crossover?By the way i finally get to hear some of the best speakers,thanks to the price of the kit at madisound.Everything about this speaker kit has been positive and the designer(s) don't get enough credit.Thanks for all your good work.

Line the walls (top, bottom, sides) with foam except for where you want to put the crossover. That can go on the back or side wall. In other words I wouldn't put foam under the crossover board. The last chamber at the back should be foam and poly fill.

Thank you for the compliments.

[Scudfly]

That's what i needed to know and thanks for the fast reply.

[Clearwave]

That's what i needed to know and thanks for the fast reply.

No problem. Are you going with the ported or sealed version? Someone just emailed me that it was hard to get the crossover board to fit in the sealed version.

If anyone else can verify that I'll make the changes to the sealed version's box layout to give it a bit more depth for the crossover board. From my quick calculations, the board is 4" X 9" and should be able to squeeze through the holes to get to the back wall.

Feedback on that would be great.

Also, take note the tweeter flange is 104mm and not 100mm as noted at madisound. The cutout is more like 75mm as well and not 70mm. Thanks for letting me know about that Brian M!

Regards,

Jed

[Scudfly]

I'm going with the ported version just to see what the bass is like on the scanspeak.

[Scudfly]

The box construction is almost done and i should get the rest of the parts today to finish up.Now to pick a veneer and finish.I may build the sealed boxes and give them a shot too.

[Clearwave]

Do report back when you are done and post some pics. What veneer do you think you will get?

[psound]

I was calculating the volume requirements of the enclosure you specified, and came up with just over 24 liters including bracing.

How much of a problem will it be to build these using a PE Dayton curved 1 cu.ft. enclosure, possibly with additional bracing or some other means to consume a bit more internal volume?
Will an adjustment need to be made to the crossover to accommodate the difference in baffle width between that enclosure and the one you spec'd in terms of BSC?

Also, with curved sides, I'm curious as to what kind of stuffing changes may be required as well -- but this would probably have to be adjusted to suit personal preferences anyway.

Thanks for any insight, speculation is always welcome too!

[Bob in Tucson]

Hi Jed,

First, thanks for helping all of us newbies!

Second, I'd like to build the kit as a floorstander (ported). I can imagine two options for this and would appreciate your advice.

Option 1. Build a taller enclosure of the same volume, with the baffle width unchanged; this would option be my preference. For a box about 32" tall and a 7.5" baffle, that would be a depth of about 8.5" inches. Right now the port extends 9", so that would have to be changed, which might muck with the existing x-over? Ideally, I'd like to lower the port nearer the floor too... Thoughts? If this is a bunch of work, please send me an email and perhaps we can work something out.

Option 2. Build the existing ported version, but make the box taller with a solid "brace" effectively forming the bottom of the monitor. Basically build the monitor with an extra internal "box" at the bottom.

Many many thanks,
Bob

[Clearwave]

I was calculating the volume requirements of the enclosure you specified, and came up with just over 24 liters including bracing.

How much of a problem will it be to build these using a PE Dayton curved 1 cu.ft. enclosure, possibly with additional bracing or some other means to consume a bit more internal volume?
Will an adjustment need to be made to the crossover to accommodate the difference in baffle width between that enclosure and the one you spec'd in terms of BSC?

Also, with curved sides, I'm curious as to what kind of stuffing changes may be required as well -- but this would probably have to be adjusted to suit personal preferences anyway.

Thanks for any insight, speculation is always welcome too!

Hi, I think a closer match is the PE cabinet with 8X20" baffle. There you wouldn't really have to change much at all with the current design.

[Clearwave]

Hi Jed,

First, thanks for helping all of us newbies!

Second, I'd like to build the kit as a floorstander (ported). I can imagine two options for this and would appreciate your advice.

Option 1. Build a taller enclosure of the same volume, with the baffle width unchanged; this would option be my preference. For a box about 32" tall and a 7.5" baffle, that would be a depth of about 8.5" inches. Right now the port extends 9", so that would have to be changed, which might muck with the existing x-over? Ideally, I'd like to lower the port nearer the floor too... Thoughts? If this is a bunch of work, please send me an email and perhaps we can work something out.

Option 2. Build the existing ported version, but make the box taller with a solid "brace" effectively forming the bottom of the monitor. Basically build the monitor with an extra internal "box" at the bottom.

Many many thanks,
Bob

The crossover really influences frequencies above the bass range. It is there to provide the right amount of baffle step compensation and sum the drivers to a flat response on and off axis. That part is done for you. Keep the baffle width and driver orientation relative to the top edge the same to maintain the same diffraction properties that were measured.

That said, if you want to try a different box, keep the box volume the same and port out the bottom or use an elbow for the port tube so that the entry is about 2.5" away from any wall.