I've been naughty. Couldn't help myself. Some things are just meant to be fiddled with. Besides, it will all end when my re-coned drivers arrive from Steve. So this has been an opportunity to experiment with someone else's design. Thats naughty. This time, I found a set of short horns hiding in the closet. Hmmm, what can I do with these? No, not in front of the speakers, thats too obvious.  Hey, they almost fit the diameter of the magnet in the tear. But why point them forward? Try them facing the wrong way first. Not so noticeable. Wait, what if I face them forward and push them all the way up behind the basket? Now, there is a difference. More bass for one. The wavefront is loaded, and coincidently, just below it is the slot for the resonator. Better mid bass, more filled out. But the lower bass, now thats the extra kick. I like it and will not change until the FRX drivers arrive. Then it's time to settle down with a speaker I love already.  Stay TUNED.

This a shot of the unfinished cabinets with GIZ_GUTS temporarily wired in, and the short horn held in place(backwards) behind the driver. Excuse the dust and shoddy look. As I mentioned, these cabinets are not finished http://s1117.photobucket.com/albums/k585/4krow/?action=view&current=P9050001.jpg...

he heh so I waz thinkin'    'you know, these short horns are being held in place by dense foam rubber, but that means that they are vibrating because of the foam rubber'  Kept me up for awhile last night. But then a thought came to me. Don't use the foam rubber to support the short horns, use thumb screws instead. Yah so on down to True Value to buy the stuff. Ended up instead with knobs that have 1/2" long bolts sticking out of them. So then, drill the short horns in three places, thread the holes for the bolts to screw into, and have a short horn held in place by the bolts clamping around the magnet stucture. With me so far? you just tighten the knobs until you have made decent contact with the speaker magnet and a little tension....  I havent closed the gap between the magnet and the short horn yet. Listening each step of the way. Must say that there is a great improvement in sound stage, but not enough bass. If my FRX drivers don't come in soon, then I will be modifying the cabinet(in a temporary way) as to enclose the speaker from the back entirely. That will produce bass for sure(and a whole host of new problems). Well see

openly baff, that is a great article. I am a little jealous of a guy who has made a living with his imagination and knowledge the way that Mr. Pass has. He has gone in several directions in audio successfully.

 Damien, I gotta do something with my free time(thats what my team of psychiatrists recommend)....   BTW way look at the stuff I am trying with the short horns on this forum. Probably idiotic to the more intelligent engineer.

Damien,

That is the kind of thought that started me on this route in the first place.  I did, as you suggest, try using the short horn facing away at first. The effect is more of a spreading of the sound. It definately leads to a wider sound as such. The bass did not benefit as much as I would like, so I figured that I had nothing to lose by turning the horn the opposite direction. I think when it is placed close to the cone, there may be a loading effect. I did think of adding heavy weather strip to the top half only and see what that has to offer. When I had the FRX drivers, none of this seemed to be neccesary. I have even considered enclosing the top half of the cabinet, making become a type of loaded box, but to do that may require some therapy. I mean what the HELL am I doing? in reality, just screwing around.

Well, it sounds like i will have my work cut out for me anyway. I received an email from Steve saying that the replacement parts for the FRX will have a different sound character, predictably in the bass(not as much). Oh boy, more bass to tinker with. Good thing I have two subs.....

My initial reaction is go with the mic in the box and not change the outward appearance of the ZOB. Because I expect the DFR8 to lack enough bass for me I have a spare sub with a bad amp that is just waiting in case I need it. I was thinking of buying a ZKIT single channel amp kit and soldering it together for this but the shopping cart won't recognize any ZKIT anymore... Hope they aren't discontinued. Plate amps are cheap though. My sub is a Klipsch and is a wireless sub the amp probably works but I have no way to send the signal to turn it on. Tried my universal remote... no go.  Need mics though and I know nothing about them.

Here is a better photo of the latest rendition, complete with knobs, acorn nuts. http://s1117.photobucket.com/albums/k585/4krow/?action=view&current=P9250002.jpg...

I probably will try them, but I bet that I won't need them. You just got to go through that door sometimes, or you won't know what is on the other side. In my case burnt speakers. Yet, there really has been significant 'adventures' .  BTW this photo doesn't represent what you would normally see. In fact, there is no conscious knowledge of the reflective top coat. Somehow though, there is an appearance of depth after the top coat is applied. I will most likely apply another coat sparingly to even out the reflective properties. It is difficult to see where the paint is being sprayed when it is clear.

http://i1117.photobucket.com/albums/k585/4krow/P9250001_01.jpg

Yah, those were scary to cut. I mean, Ya can't uncut a mistake like that.
 What you can't see except from underneath the speaker are two very long bolts that hold the bottom of the baffles tight to the resonating chamber. They were drilled at an angle from the bottom of the chamber to the back of the baffle. I had to use special lag screws(10" long) and the cut them to the perfect length(or everybody would know the error  Heh heh).  
 I am anxious to see what you come up with since you have waited long enough to get this project playin.

Your a talented guy. The piano idea is just what I like to see. Unconventional and practical. Too much 'ordinary' thinking out there.
 The baffles you made look to be robust, and I think that is key to their performance. Keep me posted on whats next.

could have been worse....no, no maybe not, I hate green more than you.  
  Will be  drilling holes for the FRX driver soon. I use insert similar to T nuts, but w/o the teeth. They keep the bolts tight that hold the drivers. Also, for the bolts, I will try to find a black pan head allen bolt. Looks are important when they are up front.

Naw, the nasty truth is that FRX drivers couldn't be repaired, and I will have to wait for another pair to be made. That will be a LONG time if ever. However, the AN drivers are adequate and getting better as I tweek ahead. The bass is really cool, but the treble can be a bit much. All of that depends on the recordings a s much as anything.  I will probably have Steve send back the dead drivers though and see if I get any new insight.