Hi Guys,
Well I've recently sold my big boy DIY V2.0 to a local guy who fell in love with the relentless bass and badass looks of the heavy weight brute!
The plan was to build a replacement for the V2.0 but after a little consideration, I thought it would be great to have an easily portable box that was a bit bigger than my original V1.0 box but with improved sound quality and a more refined overall design.
So the new V4.0 box was to be the same width as the V1.0 but taller and substantially deeper to achieve a big increase in the volume of air the driver would see to boost the bass achievable with a 6 inch, 6 ohm home Hi Fi speaker.
When I start these projects, I always have an idea what I want to achieve whilst keeping the size and weight under control as I always use these things outdoors. I tend to stick with sealed and separated speaker cabinets as they need to be around 20% smaller than an equivalent ported cabinet. Below is a chart detailing what m3 each size speaker needs to create strong and deep bass in a sealed cabinet application:
4" ======== .25 - .39 cubic feet
6" ======== .35 - .54 cubic feet **
8" ======== .54 - .96 cubic feet
10" ======= .96 - 1.8 cubic feet
12" ======= 1.8 - 3.5 cubic feet
My cabinets worked out to be bang on .38 cubic feet each which brings the V4.0 specs just within spec according to the Hi Fi experts. You can see just how big each individual cabinet really needs to be to achieve strong lows. Each cabinet would also be filled with acoustic fill to further increase the volume of air the speaker would 'see'.
Anyway, here we go. First up, I cut and glued the base and front panels + the internal walls. The top, bottom and side panels are 3/4 inch plywood with the front and back panels dropping to 1/2 inch ply:
View attachment 24697
After allowing the glue to dry overnight, it was time to attach the side and top panels. Here is a side by side shot of the box at this build stage beside the V1.0 box for size comparison:
View attachment 24698View attachment 24699
For the V4.0 box, I changed the design of the access door by moving it to the rear panel. I also enlarged the door and made it flush with the surrounding panel.
Fast forward a few boring steps, View attachment 24728View attachment 24700View attachment 24702
As usual, lots of sanding, filling, sanding and spray painting later I had an empty box with holes in it!
Time to load up the electrics, speakers and wiring. I also changed the charging plug from a bulky female cigarette lighter style plug to a standard style 3mm plug. Volt meter, amp and switches are all carry overs from previous versions.
So here she is completed:
View attachment 24703View attachment 24704
I'm still waiting on a new Bluetooth receiver that I ordered from Joe. I've readied the wiring so only around 10 minutes work is required to equip this box with Bluetooth 4.0. So it's RCA inputs only for the time being.
Total weight fully loaded came in at exactly 12 kilos.
Total build time was 4 days (2 weekends). My first box took me a month!!
After sealing up the wiring holes with hot glue tonight, I think the speaker cabinets are now air tight. Even small air leaks can drastically affect bass performance!!
In summary, the sound quality (bass and treble) is very close to the big V2.0 box. The smaller 6 inch speakers don't go quite as low as the 8 inchers in the V2.0 but the bass is fast, tight and deeper than any other 6 inch speaker I've ever heard. The silk dome tweeters sound very sweet and round out the sound signature nicely. BTW, all speakers used in the V4.0 are
roadside finds!
Very happy overall - the V4.0 is a very big step up performance wise from my first effort V1.0 box. The cabinets in the V1.0 just weren't big enough to allow the strength of bass I was after.
James.....View attachment 24705View attachment 24706View attachment 24707
Well I've recently sold my big boy DIY V2.0 to a local guy who fell in love with the relentless bass and badass looks of the heavy weight brute!
The plan was to build a replacement for the V2.0 but after a little consideration, I thought it would be great to have an easily portable box that was a bit bigger than my original V1.0 box but with improved sound quality and a more refined overall design.
So the new V4.0 box was to be the same width as the V1.0 but taller and substantially deeper to achieve a big increase in the volume of air the driver would see to boost the bass achievable with a 6 inch, 6 ohm home Hi Fi speaker.
When I start these projects, I always have an idea what I want to achieve whilst keeping the size and weight under control as I always use these things outdoors. I tend to stick with sealed and separated speaker cabinets as they need to be around 20% smaller than an equivalent ported cabinet. Below is a chart detailing what m3 each size speaker needs to create strong and deep bass in a sealed cabinet application:
4" ======== .25 - .39 cubic feet
6" ======== .35 - .54 cubic feet **
8" ======== .54 - .96 cubic feet
10" ======= .96 - 1.8 cubic feet
12" ======= 1.8 - 3.5 cubic feet
My cabinets worked out to be bang on .38 cubic feet each which brings the V4.0 specs just within spec according to the Hi Fi experts. You can see just how big each individual cabinet really needs to be to achieve strong lows. Each cabinet would also be filled with acoustic fill to further increase the volume of air the speaker would 'see'.
Anyway, here we go. First up, I cut and glued the base and front panels + the internal walls. The top, bottom and side panels are 3/4 inch plywood with the front and back panels dropping to 1/2 inch ply:
View attachment 24697
After allowing the glue to dry overnight, it was time to attach the side and top panels. Here is a side by side shot of the box at this build stage beside the V1.0 box for size comparison:
View attachment 24698View attachment 24699
For the V4.0 box, I changed the design of the access door by moving it to the rear panel. I also enlarged the door and made it flush with the surrounding panel.
Fast forward a few boring steps, View attachment 24728View attachment 24700View attachment 24702
As usual, lots of sanding, filling, sanding and spray painting later I had an empty box with holes in it!
Time to load up the electrics, speakers and wiring. I also changed the charging plug from a bulky female cigarette lighter style plug to a standard style 3mm plug. Volt meter, amp and switches are all carry overs from previous versions.
So here she is completed:
View attachment 24703View attachment 24704
I'm still waiting on a new Bluetooth receiver that I ordered from Joe. I've readied the wiring so only around 10 minutes work is required to equip this box with Bluetooth 4.0. So it's RCA inputs only for the time being.
Total weight fully loaded came in at exactly 12 kilos.
Total build time was 4 days (2 weekends). My first box took me a month!!
After sealing up the wiring holes with hot glue tonight, I think the speaker cabinets are now air tight. Even small air leaks can drastically affect bass performance!!
In summary, the sound quality (bass and treble) is very close to the big V2.0 box. The smaller 6 inch speakers don't go quite as low as the 8 inchers in the V2.0 but the bass is fast, tight and deeper than any other 6 inch speaker I've ever heard. The silk dome tweeters sound very sweet and round out the sound signature nicely. BTW, all speakers used in the V4.0 are
roadside finds!
Very happy overall - the V4.0 is a very big step up performance wise from my first effort V1.0 box. The cabinets in the V1.0 just weren't big enough to allow the strength of bass I was after.
James.....
View attachment 24705View attachment 24706View attachment 24707
