Hello everyone!
Today I am beginning a new project I have thought about and plotted and schemed and brainstormed for over a year now. In the past I have had a few speaker projects built from scratch and it is about that time to start (and finish!) another.
If you haven't noticed, my projects so far (BeoVox 2500, Altec A7) have a theme.. They are all clones of original speakers driven by my desire and appreciation of the technology and style. However! I cannot really afford any of these original speakers so I have to resort to my abilities to intelligently engineer a precise clone but I try to add improvements as I see fit.
'BeoVox 3' - a passive clone of the excellent BeoLab 3. I have never heard the original (much like my previous two projects) but I am a huge fan of the technology (ALT) and of course, that spectacular David Lewis design.
The reason I have decided to make this project a reality is because of two friends of mine who are in the market for a new sound system have asked me for help and would like something to sound excellent, look modern and stylish yet fit a modest budget. After a long discussion with them, I merged my half baked idea for building a BeoLab 3 clone with their need for a pair of sleek speakers. Motivation? Check. Plus, let's be honest, my apartment doesn't exactly need any more speakers.
In this project I am combining a few objectives - I would like to include a few innovations in this project to keep it from simply being just a 'copy cat' build thread. I always work very hard to make meaningful technical contributions..
- I love building speakers, time to build some more.
- I want to 3D print the enclosure. I have been looking for a reason to print a speaker and I also have few traditional tools with which to build this wacky enclosure. The ALT is also the perfect candidate for printing however it will remain separate so that it can be a different color/material.
- I want to make the case in one piece (currently it is split horizontally). Because why not? It makes the build much easier, reduces potential for squeak/rattle and makes assembly a little but easier.
So to get this project started I set out a little over a week ago looking for parts. I quickly snapped up this set of orphaned BeoLab 3 parts. Aluminum enclosure, 2 passive radiators and the woofer. Also in transit is a second woofer.
Yet to be acquired are another set of passive radiators, 2 tweeters and maybe one of the ALT devices. If you have any of these parts - please PM me, I need these extras!
We will see in the end if I am able to give up the finished product, I tend to get attached to these things 😂
Location: San Francisco