# CSS Trios 12 PR project...



## smally21

received a pile of boxes from CSS today. going to stick with the 20" cube design, dressed up on the outside to match a cherry audio stand i just put in...threw in a few pics of the shop and the boss, one of two.
opened 1 driver and 1 PR to check some measurements, then put them away. wont need them for a while.
packaging from CSS is excellent, and considering 60+lbs and the cubic feet, shipping rate is excellent.
part of me (the audio trader) says make them in black ash, and part of me says make them custom to the room needs and existing furniture.
questions before starting? well ive searched the forums and found every conceivable answer to my questions. if anything, im on the fence about down firing or front firing-down firing is one less exposed driver, but not such a need i would sacrifice anything. i dislike working with MDF, but it is such a perfect material it will be used on unseen surfaces. cherry plywood and solid cherry will provide the finish..

the subs..

















a few of the shop..


















the build advisor..









the stand...









posts will be erratic. i could build these pretty quick but other projects will likely interfere. not to mention the fishing season is starting.


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## fusseli

*Re: Sealed CSS Trios 12 project...*

Cool, looks like it will be an impressive build. So are you building two subs then, and they will be PRs not sealed subs?


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## smally21

*Re: Sealed CSS Trios 12 project...*

thank you:shh:


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## fusseli

*Re: Sealed CSS Trios 12 project...*

No problemo! PR and ported are the same but different


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## chrapladm

Subscribed!!

What an awesome setup of tools. Jealous


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## smally21

well thank you. i started out with a piece or two in the garage. then i bought out a wood shop, then i horsetraded a piece or two, then i sold everything and bought out another shop..then kijiji..you get the idea!

seemed sensible to connect the audio to the woodworking. mostly replica cabinets/panels. the sub idea is very recent. have also taken piles of parts, or damaged speakers and made cabs for them.

just wrapped up this guy, replaced the veneer panels with real rosewood..apologies no subs to show you yet..


















working today or id be all over this!!


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## chrapladm

No need to apologies. This is the DIY thread so these pics are applicable.:T


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## smally21

Dropped the kids off at school and had about exactly, 2.5 hours to myself today. managed to do all the cuts, all the circles and countersinking, mock up the project and mill all the biscuit joints. throw in a trip to the tool repair centre after the table saw belt came apart! some pics...the whole project makes more sense being just built with mdf and then veneered, but quite frankly, i'm just not in the mood for laying on veneer. and, IMO, there is not alot of savings in it (unless you're talking weight!). And time consuming..

countersunk bottom in 1"MDF. Just sunk a little, lots of depth for the mounting.










Pretty chewed up belt..no spares left!










clean up the holes..last bit left some burn marks..










big fan of biscuits for any cabinet work..quick and clean! 










mock up..catch any errors..










the morning's efforts...the extra mdf on the end are the mounts for the PRs - will be attached to the inside..for a full countersunk effect.










a word on the Jasper circle jig. i've always made my own jigs, but if i'm going to keep bulding speakers this is a no brainer. i used my calipers to measure some holes they are bang on. id question its durablilty being plastic..id pay double for one in aluminum. seems pricey at first but guys with great ideas deserve to make money. not to mention it replaces a pile of hole saws, homemade jigs, drill press cutters, etc. and shop space, and organization is key. simplify and keep the shop orderly.


thursday and friday will drill the mounting holes, install mounting hardware, sand and assemble. while they firm up ill dress the solid cherry for the legs and top...

ill throw this out there this project is moving smoothly thanks to the shared projects and experience of the membership here that i've poached over the last few weeks..:clap:


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## fusseli

Looks great so far, I'm also a big fan of bottom mounting whenever possible :T Tends to look better with a perfectly round cutout... I'm sure yours will turn out better than my past attempts!


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## smally21

friday morning predrilled the holes for the PRs and drivers. Assembled with #20 biscuits and used brad nails instead of clamps (you won't see them anyway, and they allow me to continue working).










planed and jointed the cherry. cut all the legs at once to ensure equal length. Installed with glue and brads. (gorrila glue, if curious, i like the way it flows). The routered a profile into the edge banding for the tops, to match the audio stand. cut into strips and installed with biscuits and glue.










terminal cups arrived in the afternoon, ill drill those in next and add some acoustic material to the front and rear of the boxes. Then stain, wait 24 hours, spray on clearcoat, and install the drivers.


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## fusseli

Looking great, that's going to be an awesome pair of subs. 

So you are orienting the sub down, and the two PRs on the sides?


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## smally21

Yessir.


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## fusseli

smally21 said:


> Yessir.


Excellent. Just wanted to verify, naturally added mass to a PR would definitely not work out so well if the PR was down-firing  

Do you also have the PRs on opposite sides of the box (as to cancel eachother's vibration)? It's hard to tell from the pics.


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## smally21

the PRs are opposed. due to some changes from the original 20" cube, and some internal space taken up i will recalculate the volume and figure out the proper amount to weight the PRs. might ask for a little help with that one. should get the stain on this morning.


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## fusseli

Gotcha. If the net volume didn't change much you probably won't need to worry about re-tuning. It is worth taking a quick look at though.


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## smally21

i have strayed somewhat from the cube. and i used the mdf mounts for the PRs. ill post the new volume and perhaps you could give me some advice towards the number of washers to use. installed the tops and stained today. pics to follow. cherry has a tendency to be blotchy, but i dont like using a wood conditioner as it takes away some of its natural properties (being blotchy). as the cherry ages it darkens and the condiitoner seems to have a negative effect on that process as well. the clear coat should brighten up some of the areas that appear 'dull' after the stain application.


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## fusseli

Sure, no problem.


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## smally21

here is a pic of the stained pair..











and a few after clear coating. they are banished to the garage til they smell better. it was early and the sun was coming thru the garage windows and left the appearance of shadows and such. there are 3 coats of precatalyzed lacquer applied with an HVLP sprayer. i use that or nitrocellulose lacquer, which is a prime ingredient in TNT and other explosives. as such i tend to stick with the pre-cat.


















assy on wednesday!! getting pretty pumped!!


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## ALPHUX

HI
Was wondering if you had the fast track on another 18" Maelstom?
Or an EP4000 also?
Thanks
Steve
PS All I have is the sonotube so far!:dontknow:


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## smally21

Think you may have the wrong guy steve. No 18" subs here.


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## gperkins_1973

Very impressive work there. Interesting to hear what you think of them went completed.


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## smally21

so the calculated interior volume worked out to 3.245cubic feet. only slightly larger than the 3.2 in the 20" cube..which called for 450 grams..this should stay the same i would assume..power supply is 400w RMS 1000peak..

also need to look at the wiring, as it will be wired today..ill check the posted diagrams..this is a single voice coil - why are there 2 connections for each? not 2 posts like DVC, but two terminals for + and 2 for -. not sure about this..

a little advice would be appreciated..


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## fusseli

smally21 said:


> so the calculated interior volume worked out to 3.245cubic feet. only slightly larger than the 3.2 in the 20" cube..which called for 450 grams..this should stay the same i would assume..power supply is 400w RMS 1000peak..
> 
> also need to look at the wiring, as it will be wired today..ill check the posted diagrams..this is a single voice coil - why are there 2 connections for each? not 2 posts like DVC, but two terminals for + and 2 for -. not sure about this..
> 
> a little advice would be appreciated..


That's such a small change in volume I definitely wouldn't be concerned, just go with the specified number of washers. 3.2cuft is what the kit calls for, right?

Multiple terminals are probably just there to aid daisy-chained parallel connections.


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## bgarcia17

Looks great all around. Please share your impressions when you can. This kit is on my 'to buy' list.


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## smally21

the woofers are complete, ill post some pics later. happily no rattles or vibrations. so they work like they should.

i havent tried much in the way of placement or done any EQing so cant make a fair evaluation..but i will make an early observation.

lots of rumble when there should be, turn 'em up you certainly know they are there. but it seems very mushy and inarticulate..lets call it noise rather than music. going to do some work on placement and take some measurements over the weekend. im also working the kinks out of the new emotiva UMC1 so as mentioned lots of changes going on of late and im not really on top of them yet.,..

pics soon!


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## fusseli

Sounds like something needs to be dialed in. There's no reason at all for those to sound mushy! For initial testing I'd turn off any and all EQ on your receiver (the UMC1?) and set nothing but the LPF for the sub with a matching HPF for your mains. 

Can you remind me what you are powering the subs with?


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## caper26

Please tell me where you got the Jasper 200 circle jig in Canada.

Also, what is the status of this project??


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## smally21

sorry fell off the map for a while. the subs have been in service for a while now..ill have some finish pics up..

i played around with the UMC 1 for a while, then moved back to an AVR, so i have less EQ options. i'm not unhappy with the sound, though its not very articulate - to be fair i havent worked very hard to alleviate.
big move coming up to a new house so the measuring and eq'ing will likely take place there..

im using a paradigm x300 amp

the jasper jig i ordered from the states, shipping was reasonable and timely..


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## caper26

what seller did you buy the jig from? I can't find any that deliver to canada.


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## smally21

i bought it straight from the jaspertools website - shipping is flat rate 6.00 to canada.


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## caper26

thanks so much for getting back to me on that.


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