# Speaker design



## Joejoegun (Dec 29, 2010)

Ok. So i know that it is very uncommon to make a set of box speakers from a hard wood (if you can even call it that) but i have some really nice old cedar planks that i think would make some beautiful speaker boxes. Now the density of cedar is about 23 lb/ft3 and the density of particle board is about 45 lb/ft3 so i know that there is going to be more sound absorption. 

What type of speakers/drivers would work best? and what design for the box should i keep in mind?

Thanks. 

-Joe


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## Stroh (Sep 14, 2010)

Just a thought but if you find the cedar limiting you could always "laminate" a box made from a particle, mdf or whatever you need to get the sound you want.


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## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

I would be asking this on the woodwork forum site as timber expands and contracts with the weather and should not be laminated with mdf or chipboard.

Try http://www.woodworkforums.com/f99/ this is the section for speaker and instrument building.


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## Anthony (Oct 5, 2006)

Yeah, I wouldn't laminate cedar over mdf unless you can resaw it very thin.

As for building an entire box -- if the design is ported and you can stand a little of "loss", you can design the box with a tongue and groove interlock on the sides and top. Impossible to get a perfect seal, as you have to account for wood movement, but you could make some nice boxes. A product you can try is "spaceballs", little rubber balls used in cabinet doors to keep the panels from rattling. They go in the groove and act as a cushion to take up any expansion the wood tries to do.

Good luck.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

Joejoegun said:


> Ok. So i know that it is very uncommon to make a set of box speakers from a hard wood (if you can even call it that) but i have some really nice old cedar planks that i think would make some beautiful speaker boxes. Now the density of cedar is about 23 lb/ft3 and the density of particle board is about 45 lb/ft3 so i know that there is going to be more sound absorption.
> 
> What type of speakers/drivers would work best? and what design for the box should i keep in mind?
> 
> ...


Hardwood is not a good wood for building speakers with. You could use the cedar for bracing the interior, but using it for the exterior is not recommended. The best material for building speakers is cabinet quality 13 birch ply. The other good material is MDF. Hardwood is overly resonate. Cedar planks have many wonderful uses, but a speaker enclosure is not one of them.


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