Questions on new Maelstrom-X 18" Build

[Fresh Meat]

It took a little convincing of my wife - but I finally will get to upgrade my sub woofer. I will be ordering my Gen II Mal 18" very soon (by the end of this week) and would like to nail down all of the build details.

Sub Woofer Parts:
Driver - Maelstrom-X 18"
5 way binding post (parts-express part #260-309)

I prefer a sealed sub and was planning on utilizing one of Neo Dan's cut-sheets unless there is something new and improved that I should know about. http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...m-x-build.html

Now to the questions.
1) I have several small children so I will need to figure out a way to add a speaker grill to help protect the driver.
2) I would like the finish to match my speakers - which are piano black - would this be difficult?
3) Please point out anything obvious that I have missed


I will be powering this beast with a Behringer EP2500 which I will be picking up for my birthday in Feb. So I should have plenty of time to build it right.

[Kevin Haskins]

Fresh Meat wrote:

It took a little convincing of my wife - but I finally will get to upgrade my sub woofer. I will be ordering my Gen II Mal 18" very soon (by the end of this week) and would like to nail down all of the build details.

Sub Woofer Parts:
Driver - Maelstrom-X 18"
5 way binding post (parts-express part #260-309)

I prefer a sealed sub and was planning on utilizing one of Neo Dan's cut-sheets unless there is something new and improved that I should know about. http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...m-x-build.html

Now to the questions.
1) I have several small children so I will need to figure out a way to add a speaker grill to help protect the driver.
2) I would like the finish to match my speakers - which are piano black - would this be difficult?
3) Please point out anything obvious that I have missed


I will be powering this beast with a Behringer EP2500 which I will be picking up for my birthday in Feb. So I should have plenty of time to build it right.

1) You could always down-fire the driver. You need feet, about 3" tall but that might be easier than building a grill.

2) Good luck with that. Piano black finishes take a LOT of work. You spray, sand, spray, sand, spray, sand, spray, sand, spray, sand etc.. etc... I prefer veneer simply because it is easy and you don't have to breath paint fumes. Of course if you have a paint booth, or take it to an auto shop where they do paint work on a regular basis, they can do a pretty good job.

3) Nothing obvious. I'd budget for the ability to measure the room and equalize. Same advice I give everyone.

Kevin Haskins
Exodus Audio

[Lonely Raven]

The other option to piano black *paint* is piano black laminate.

A sheet of high quality piano black laminate goes for about $150, and can typically be shipped directly to your door (it comes rolled up). You'll need quality contact cement, roller to apply the cement, and a hard rubber roller to roll out any air bubbles. Then you'll need a laminate trimmer bit for your router, or a mini-router that's made for laminate trimming.

Once your done, you'll have a solid, scratch resistant piano black finish, but you'll have black plastic looking corners (from trimming the laminate with the router). I've done this a few times over the years, and it's always floored everyone how nice it looked.

[Fresh Meat]

Kevin Haskins wrote:

1) You could always down-fire the driver. You need feet, about 3" tall but that might be easier than building a grill.

2) Good luck with that. Piano black finishes take a LOT of work. You spray, sand, spray, sand, spray, sand, spray, sand, spray, sand etc.. etc... I prefer veneer simply because it is easy and you don't have to breath paint fumes. Of course if you have a paint booth, or take it to an auto shop where they do paint work on a regular basis, they can do a pretty good job.

3) Nothing obvious. I'd budget for the ability to measure the room and equalize. Same advice I give everyone.

Kevin Haskins
Exodus Audio

Thanks!

1) If I down-fire the driver, do I need to be concerned about speaker sag, given the size and mass of this driver?
2) I have not had great luck in getting veneer to adheir - but then it is possible that I am not prepping the surface properly. Or possibly it is my kids peeling it back
3) Will do - I will cross that bridge when I get there.

[Fresh Meat]

Lonely Raven wrote:

The other option to piano black *paint* is piano black laminate.

A sheet of high quality piano black laminate goes for about $150, and can typically be shipped directly to your door (it comes rolled up). You'll need quality contact cement, roller to apply the cement, and a hard rubber roller to roll out any air bubbles. Then you'll need a laminate trimmer bit for your router, or a mini-router that's made for laminate trimming.

Once your done, you'll have a solid, scratch resistant piano black finish, but you'll have black plastic looking corners (from trimming the laminate with the router). I've done this a few times over the years, and it's always floored everyone how nice it looked.

I will look into this - can you provide me a link to your laminate source that you have used in the past?

[Lonely Raven]

Fresh Meat wrote:

I will look into this - can you provide me a link to your laminate source that you have used in the past?

It's been 10+ years since I've done this, and most of the companies I've used probably don't exist anymore (especially after this economic down-turn).

I would check with your local Home Depot or Lowes, and see if they can order some Piano Black laminate. If you do it right, your kids would be hard pressed to peed it up. I had a piano black 1cu box rattling around the hatch area of a SAAB Turbo for a few years, and the laminate (and MDF underneath) cracked long before it would ever peel up.

If you're patient, and have the funds, laminate is the way to go. Painting is a whole 'nother art/skill, and unless you have someone that knows how to do it, it's not something you want to jump into as fresh meat.

[Fresh Meat]

Lonely Raven wrote:

It's been 10+ years since I've done this, and most of the companies I've used probably don't exist anymore (especially after this economic down-turn).

I would check with your local Home Depot or Lowes, and see if they can order some Piano Black laminate. If you do it right, your kids would be hard pressed to peed it up. I had a piano black 1cu box rattling around the hatch area of a SAAB Turbo for a few years, and the laminate (and MDF underneath) cracked long before it would ever peel up.

If you're patient, and have the funds, laminate is the way to go. Painting is a whole 'nother art/skill, and unless you have someone that knows how to do it, it's not something you want to jump into as fresh meat.

Hehe - thanks for the advise - I will start asking around then

[Lonely Raven]

Fresh Meat wrote:

Hehe - thanks for the advise - I will start asking around then

Very few people have done piano black laminate here. If you build it, show photos and expect a LOT of people asking how you did it. If i wasn't so broke, I'd be doing it myself...cause I like the fame.

[Fresh Meat]

I just thought of a couple more questions - what hardware do you recommend for mounting the speaker? Is there any need for a gasket?

[Fresh Meat]

Well I have jumped in... I just placed the order for my Maelstrom-X 18"

[Lonely Raven]

Fresh Meat wrote:

Well I have jumped in... I just placed the order for my Maelstrom-X 18"

Cool! Post a build log!!

I just ordered my 21" and picked up some plywood last night. So I'm right there with ya!

[Fresh Meat]

Yeah - my wife doesn't understand why I am so excited - but she is very understanding Maybe she will get it once I fire it up

[Mike P.]

You won't regret it! Post lots of build pics when you get started.