My A/V3s and thanks to all on this forum (1 Viewer)

[MikeSRC]

Well, it's now been a year since I first got some A/V-3 and A/V-3S kits from GR-Research. Work and other problems kept me from finishing them until a few months ago. While I have done a lot of work with electronics in the past, this was my first speaker project. It was also the first time I ever used a router or applied veneer.

I picked up a relatively low-priced Skil router, the Jasper circle guide and appropriate bits. Made a few mistakes with the MDF, but it's so cheap that simply redoing a piece was not a problem. I used rosewood veneer for the A/V-3. After debating the various methods of appling the veneer, I went with Patrick's iron-on glue technique, which was very easy to use with a foam roller and I believe is probably the easiest way to go for a beginner. Some danish oil on the veneer and they were done. I used the black ash PE vinyl on the A/V-3S. I did use the Sonicap upgrade in all the speakers and some Blackhole in the A/V-3s.

I have to admit that I was dubious about how good these speakers would sound, being used to listening to various speakers that cost 5-10 times as much. However, I was amazed by the clarity and detail the A/V-3s provide, especially after break-in. Easily equal to or better than speakers selling for $2-3K in many instances.

Next project, a pair of the A/V-1RS surrounds. It shouldn't take me a year to finish them this time.

Many thanks to the all the experts on this forum, particularly Hank F (for rosewood finishing advise), Patrick S (for the iron-on technique) and Brian B (for routing advise) and everyone else for various other tips.

Here are some pictures. I do have magnets embedded for grills, but I may never get around to adding them.

 

[Hank Frankenberg]

Mike: Congratulations! Those are beautiful speakers, and I know you'll enjoy the sound for years to come. You may get requests from friends and family to build more
You know my favorite speaker cabinet is Rosewood veneer with Danish oil finish
Now that you're officially hooked, I'd bet those surrounds will take quite a bit less than a year.

 

[Daniel Metcalf]

Very nice job! Don't worry about the grills, I haven't made any and probably won't. Of course, disregard this suggestion if you have "curious fingers" roaming about. Do you run a sub with yours?

 

[GrahamT]

Beautiful job. That veneer is sexy.

 

[Brian Corr]

Beautiful.

 

[Joey Skinner]

You gotta be proud of those! Outstanding, especially for a first time project. Are you going to build bases for the AV-3? Do you have any more pictures?

 

[Curt Badry]

Incredible job man! You must be proud!!!That's what DIY is all about.

 

[Joey Skinner]

This is good advice for all speaker builders, novice and pro. Sometimes I get stuck on making something work that's not exactly right when it would be easier to just start over.

Mike, Now that you're hooked on Diy speakers you'll be wanting to build those A/V-1RS surrounds soon. You'll love them. I have your setup but started out with A/V-1s for surrounds. I recently completed the A/V-1RS and they integrate into the system much better with no speaker stands and wires cluttering up the room.

 

[MikeSRC]

Thanks all. Since the last woodworking project I did was a birdhouse in high school wood shop that scared more birds than anything, I'm very happy with the results here. I've purchased the surrounds, but haven't got them out of the box yet.



No, I like the look of them the way they are and I don't have any pets or kids that might knock them over. Here's some pictures of the other speaker and the center channel. For those who are interested, a 4' X 8' sheet of veneer just covers both speakers. BTW, that's also a 92" DIY screen in the background.

 

[Frank A]

Mike, beautiful speakers. Can I ask where you got the veneer? Local or internet? You can pm/email me if it's not permissible to put it on the forum.

thx, Frank

 

[Brian Bunge]

Mike,

Damn, those look great! I don't remember what routing advice I gave you, but I'm glad I was able to help.

I do know that if Hank ever starts his own speaker company you'll be able to have any finish you want as long as it's rosewood!

 

[John Wes]

Wow...those are gorgeous!

I'm interested also, in where you got your veneer...

 

[MikeSRC]

Brian, it was a number of things from your various posts on the subject, particulaly bit types.

Regarding the veneer, it's 10 mil paperbacked veneer I got it from a place in the L.A. area. They used to have a website and ship nationwide, but they appear to have gone out of business or changed their name. In any event, the website's gone. By going there, I was able to choose from a half dozen sheets and pick out the best one. It's the same stuff that Tape-Ease sells however. After many oak and walnut speakers over the years, I was ready for something with a little more pop.

 

[Hank Frankenberg]

Hmmm...well, it worked for Henry Ford: "People can have any color Model T they want, as long as it's black".
Nope, I can't compete with Chinese factory-made cabinets, and a couple of those factories do beautiful work.:frowning: