swt61

I have an extra pair of 32 ohm drivers Marc. You're welcome to them. Once the job slows down (late Oct.) I plan on trying some mini Donut style housings. I have two different donor phones that you're welcome to as well. A really cool looking pair of old Pioneer, and generic cheapo phone. I think the Pioneer will work without a lot of heavy modding.

I haven't had a chance to try them out yet, but from all the info I imagine they'll be pretty nice. Mine are 32 ohm, but they're are other impedances as well. I'll be transplanting a pair into some Darth Beyer woodies soon, but there will be some big modifications.

Yeah they are. The heatsinks are pretty tall, so that's why such long standoffs. I think they're going to work without shaving them. If you'll notice on the bottom of the long standoffs I've put some nuts, those should give us the space needed. Me too, but we'll solve that problem if it occurs. I'm not opposed to a separate case for the toroids if necessary.

^ Very nice Marc! I've gotten the case mocked up. It's a little unorthodoxed, because I had to suspend the second board from the top of the case. This was necessary because the standoffs were in the way otherwise. I don't actually have the second board on hand, so you'll have to use your imagination there. That's it in Marc's pic above. I ended up mounting the toroids in a piggy back configuration. The caps and rectifiers were a bit snug, but there is enough room. This was my first case up job, so go easy on me.

Happy Birthday!

Best to stick to code at any rate. And I too prefer a slightly taller step, but you have to take into account that many people will be using the steps, so I find that the 7" average works well as a goal. Codes are slightly different everywhere, but I'm positive that a 7" rise will meet all codes across the country. As far as ripping the boards Pars, if you have a fence that attaches to your circular saw (most come with one), then it's quite easy. They usually look similar to this one... QFT!

Thanks, I was hoping you'd like the Bloodwood OK, as it's the only wood I had on hand that was wide enough.

Yes good points Nate. That's exactly what I do as well, as you stated 2 x 8s aren't uniform even if they were the right size to start with.

Not sure about plans, but the good news is they're very simple to build. Ideally you'd like the rise of each step to be 7", and the tread to be 11". You can adjust those measurements to work with the total height you need, but stay close to them. Basically you're going to use 2 x 8 lumber to build your boxes. One box per step of coarse, and each box will be 22" narrower and 11" less deep than the one below it. You'll just construct a basic 4 sided box from the 2 x 8s, and use joist in between to strengthen the structure. Let's say you're going to build a two step box as in the pic you posted. Your top box will want to be the width of the door or wider. You can decide on the depth, but if you want a landing on top as pictured keep it relatively square in shape. Let's say for the sake of our conversation that the top landing is 3' x 3'. You'll want to cut two pieces of 2 x 8 to 3' length, and 3 pieces of 2 x 8 to 2' 9" in length. Then attach the three shorter pieces to the 3' pieces as shown... Making sure to attach the shorter outside pieces inside the longer 3' pieces. This will result in a 3' x 3' square box. Simply repeat this procedure for the step below, but make the next step 22" wider and 11" deeper. In this case that would be 58" wide x 47" deep. this will give you a tread width of 11" all the way around the three sides of the step. I'd add one more joist for a total of four on this box as well for added sturdiness. Once you have all the boxes built simply cut 3/4" plywood to the top dimension of each box and nail or screw the plywood on top of each box, making sure to mark your inside joist, so that you can see where to nail to these as well. The boxes can be joined with nails from underneath. Simply nail from the bottom of the plywood top into the joist of the smaller box on top. If you want them to be decorative like the steps in your pic you can add a layer of 1 x 8 Oak boards around the perimeter of each box. Mitered corners will look best here. Then use carpet or vinyl flooring to cover the plywood.

Just the front panel, where the panel is recessed 1/2". Here's a pic, although I have the case sitting on it's back... The wood panel stands proud of the sides by 1/4", and the sides of the wood panel are chamfered 1/4". The top and bottom are rounded over 1/4" to match the round corners of the metal side pieces.

I received the case and parts today. It will indeed be a tight fit, but I think it's workable. I think Marc will be bringing the chilluns to the beach tomorrow, so I'll go over it in person with him then. I'm much more of a visual learner than an aural learner. This case aches for a wooden front panel, with the 1/2" recess and all. I had some 6" wide Bloodwood laying around, so that's what I used. They're in the first coat of lacquer now, and need a few notches cut into the back after finishing. Once Marc and I agree on the internal layout I'll drill all the mounting holes and post some pics.

Hmmm, interesting. I'll have to see everything before I can envision it, but the bolts holding the toroids shouldn't be too hard to cover with the wood trim. I'm glad you have an idea as to how to fit everything, I'll definitely try your idea first.

Alison could simply sing in my ear and I'm sure I'd pop then and there. Of coarse I'd have to forget the rest of them are there.

Once I receive the case and make my gameplan I'll try to document that part of the project.

Nate have you seen these bad boys? I keep meaning to order them, but haven't yet. Audio Catalog

You did Alison Krauss? Or was it one of the band members? And a big congrats DigiPete!

Happy Birthday!

I'm a fuddy duddy too.

Well if you're a speaker guy the β24 could be a relative bargain if you're considering some of the big boys on the block like Krell, Levinson etc... I'm in the same boat as others, in that my β22 has more power than needed for my speakers. But again it's a build I'd love to keep watch of. Nate, what kind of power switch are you using big guy?

Just curious if any of our excellent DIY gang are planning on building one of these? I have no immediate plans for one, but I'd love to see the build in progress if anyone is heading down that path.

The Gods are a fickle bunch my friend.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday!

Yummm! Wenge rocks!

It's very well deserved, I can tell from the pics that you took your time and didn't take short cuts with sanding and finishing. The gloss definitely has the wow factor. I usually go with a satin finish, so that finger prints aren't a never ending job to wipe off. There's no denying that the high gloss just sucks your eyes into the beautiful grain pattern though, and IMO looks stunning on that particular Rosewood. Can't wait to see the finished Grados as well. :cool: