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Step 6Cut the speaker panels
I build all of my speakers from a type of fiber board called MEDEX. It's a LEED certified formaldehyde free material that's similar to MDF, but far heavier, denser, and moisture resistant. Many contractors use it as a building material in humid climates, and it's widely used to make counter tops.
It's not stocked in every lumberyard, but it can be special ordered. If your local lumber yard can't find a source for it, or if you don't want to pay the higher price for it, MDF is the next building material of choice. Avoid plywood, hardwoods, OSB, strand board, and light density fiber boards if possible.
The speaker cabinets should be as sonically dead as possible. That means heavy, thick-walled, and well constructed. Ideally the entire cabinet should be built out of 1.5" material. In reality, I've only done a handful of speakers that were that thick due to the cost and weight. The industry standard is a 1.5" front baffle, and then 3/4" for the rest of the cabinets. Zalytron builds their cabinets to these same specifications. Many other companies do not. Look closely to see what's included in your specific kit if your ordering one that has the cabinet included.
Plan out your speakers on paper and create a cutting diagram based upon the raw 4' x 8' sheets. Head to the lumberyard and pick up as many sheets of MDF or MEDEX as you need for your projects.
Transfer your cutting diagram onto the sheets themselves and then begin to break them down, making the biggest cuts first. Work the large sheets down into small manageable panels and cut things to their exact size. When cutting like-sized speaker panels make all of your same-sized-passes on the table saw at the same time, without moving the fence, to ensure that parallel panels will be exactly the same size.
Once all of your panels are cut, check and then recheck your measurements. If the speaker cabinets are going to be square, they've got to start with perfectly cut panels, otherwise they just won't ever line up correctly.
It's not stocked in every lumberyard, but it can be special ordered. If your local lumber yard can't find a source for it, or if you don't want to pay the higher price for it, MDF is the next building material of choice. Avoid plywood, hardwoods, OSB, strand board, and light density fiber boards if possible.
The speaker cabinets should be as sonically dead as possible. That means heavy, thick-walled, and well constructed. Ideally the entire cabinet should be built out of 1.5" material. In reality, I've only done a handful of speakers that were that thick due to the cost and weight. The industry standard is a 1.5" front baffle, and then 3/4" for the rest of the cabinets. Zalytron builds their cabinets to these same specifications. Many other companies do not. Look closely to see what's included in your specific kit if your ordering one that has the cabinet included.
Plan out your speakers on paper and create a cutting diagram based upon the raw 4' x 8' sheets. Head to the lumberyard and pick up as many sheets of MDF or MEDEX as you need for your projects.
Transfer your cutting diagram onto the sheets themselves and then begin to break them down, making the biggest cuts first. Work the large sheets down into small manageable panels and cut things to their exact size. When cutting like-sized speaker panels make all of your same-sized-passes on the table saw at the same time, without moving the fence, to ensure that parallel panels will be exactly the same size.
Once all of your panels are cut, check and then recheck your measurements. If the speaker cabinets are going to be square, they've got to start with perfectly cut panels, otherwise they just won't ever line up correctly.
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