Garden Speakers

Hello Everyone

Another project on the go !

My parents has a small garden in their house.

Most of the time we spend there is pretty quite , all you hear are birds and the " sound of silence ".

I wanna change it !

I decided to build from Plexiglas ( as usual ) a pair of speakers , supported with the LEPAI amplifier.



Hope you enjoy
:)

Step 1: Shopping List

The things you would need for this instructable are:

Set of component speakers - JBL CS 5C 120Watt

http://www.amazon.co.uk/JBL-CS-5C-2-Way-Components-Speaker/dp/B004OXETYW


Plexiglas - a sheet of 80X80  + a small 30X80 Black Plexiglas
Aluminum Angles - comes in 3M length
Crossovers- i ordered 5 already ( for future projects )

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Counter-down-l280-one-point-counter-down-second-high-quality-audio-speaker-counter-down-crossover/1137698502.html

45M of 2x1.5 wires for speakers ( approx 30$ )

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Bolts and Nuts ( 60 or so )
Silicon ( Clear + Black )
Drill +Drill kit
Saw + Special blade for Plexiglas
Electric driller
Dremel Tool + Dremel Kit
Clamps
Working Gloves
Caliber

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Moreover i decided to take it a step further and mod ( improve ) the Lepai amplifier .

I order from eBay a few Capacitors and a few induction coils .

All the parts i`m replacing according to recommendations of  www.diyaudio.com members ( they provide lots of manuals  )

Step 2: First Step - Cutting the Plexiglas

Lay the Plexiglas on a steady table , Grab it with a pair of clamps, mark the size of the cutting hole for the speakers

You need to make 2 pieces of this Plexiglas



Do see that i drilled with a driller a hole the size of the blade of the saw , and only then you can start drilling

Step 3: Finished Cutting the Front Panel

Just wanted to check that speaker sits ok inside the hole

Step 4: Use Dremel Tool to Smooth Internal Edges

Step 5: Cut Rear Part

One for each speaker

Step 6: Cut the Sides

Two sides for each speaker

Step 7: Use Sanding Paper to Smooth the Edges

Grab the Plexiglas on the clamps.

Take some sanding paper and smooth the edges

I also smoothed the edges using the Dremel tool

Step 8: Create Bottom Angles

Measure the size of the bottom part and cut accordingly 

Step 9: Finished Cutting the Plexiglas !

Step 10: With All the Equipment

Step 11: Cutting the Aluminum Angles

Step 12: Aluminum Angles Ready

Step 13: Drill Holes in the Aluminum Angles

In order to attache the Angles to the Plexiglas , i marked the places i want to drill , Grabbed the Aluminum Angles on the table using the clamps  and drilled it

Step 14: Checking the Alignment of the Angles With the Plexiglas

Step 15: Start Assembling the Speakers

Step 16: More Assembling

Step 17: Insert Woofer

Step 18: Insert Tweeter

Drill two holes for the tweeter above the Woofer.

Step 19: Create Additional Hole for the Wiring of the TWEETER

Using the DREMEL , cut a small narrow opening for the wiring  

After you finish with the cutting you can sand it with the DREMEL Tool also

Step 20: Tweeter Ready

Step 21: Create Bottom Enclosure for the Speaker Using Angles

Bought a bunch of aluminum angles ( 2 sizes )

 drilled hole in each of them ( measured the distance before the drill )  , and up we go

Step 22: Coffeeeee Break !@

Mui importante 

Step 23: Allocating the Crossover

Step 24: Soldering Time!!

The fun has arrived.

I just love soldering ! , it`s just fun !


The crossovers purpose is to receive from the AMP the output , take it , split it to High and Low frequencies and send it to the proper unit
( e.g Tweeter - High tones  or Woofer - Lower tones. )

Step 25: Soldering Finished for Tweeter

Step 26: Soldering Finished for Woofer

Step 27: Soldering Finished for Input As Well

Input in YELLOW

Step 28: Before Removing Nylon , Checking the Sound

checked the sound using my old AMP from my existing Boombox .

 the sound is OK for now

Step 29: Removing the Protective Nylon!

Step 30: Still Removing the Nylon

Step 31: Still Removing the Nylon #2

Step 32: Spacers for Crossover

Cut a small hose ( in the size of the bolts ) 

Place it between the crossover and the Plexi

Step 33: Solder Ending to the Speaker Wires to Connect to the Speakers

Step 34: Black Silicon for Internal Woofer

Since i don`t work in a factory , and the cutting is OK but not 100% accurate , there are small spaces between the Woofer and the Plexi.

this could damage the Acoustics ,and the sound in general .


Soooooooo , i took BLACK silicon , and made sure that it is 99% sealed

Step 35: Closing the Cover + Sealing It

Before we close the case , be sure to clean it a little , check that all the bolts are tighten  and in general that all wires are connected securely to the peripherals  ( e.g  speakers ,and crossover  ) 

Step 36: Add Small Reflex-Port

For the Acoustics sake , and for my good feeling , i will create a small ( 3cm ) hole  , this will act as a Reflex Port
 


BTW

Reflex-port uses to increase the efficiency of the system at low frequencies

Step 37: Still Reflex Port

Step 38: Add a Small Rubber Around the Hole

After finishing the hole , sand it a little , and add a small rubber housing , just for the looks

Step 39: Till We Mount Them - They Are Ready!

I have tested the sound using my Modded Lepai Amplifier.

The sound is absolutely awesome

The bass is great , and all this after a 20M (2x1.5 ) cable for each unit!

Step 40: The Lepai Amp Before the Upgrade !

Step 41: Modding the Lepai Amp

The Lepai amp , is one of the greatest amps on the market .

It`s cheap , and gives you a great value for your money

It cost between 15-20$ , and the sound is great , but not awesome!



So , you guessed it , i had to modify it , according to http://diyaudio.com website , i found a few forums with a lot of discussion on how and what to replace in order to say " Wow that`s a lot for 20$ "

I can actually say , that after replacing a few Capacitors , coils the sound has improved by 30% at least!
The bass is more responsive , and the power that it produces is much higher


Beneath you can see the old ( RED ) Output capacitors - there Value is :

63V .47uf +80/-20%
I have changed them to a : 250V .47uf 5% capacitors - way better!

Also i have replaced the Big capacitor .- which made the biggest improvement for the sound
The original Value is : 16V 3300uf 20%

I have changed it to :25VDC 4700uF !

Step 42: Prepare Plexiglas Case for Amp

I made an amplifier perspex cover.
Because of the new capacitors are higher, I would have to raise the lid. Eventually the situation was beneficial to the functioning of the amplifier, since now there are more ventilation for the electronic circuits

Step 43: The Amp

Step 44: Angles for Speakers

I had to mount the speakers in someway , so i decided to build a wooden speaker standUnfortunately I did not have too much time to spend it, so I just started to cut, made atangles to support the weight.Overall went well, very stable speakers

Step 45: Wire the Speakers

I bought around 40 meters speakers wires 2 mm thick
I started to wire the wires between the deck , and made sure that nothing is too tight, and I connected it to the speakers

Step 46: Completed!

Everything is ready!
Excellent sound, the sound is very clean, very balanced, and most importantly I am happy Comments are welcome :)