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Building the Ergo E-IX mini-monitor loudspeaker system

It's not masonry. It is a wood frame wall with gypsum board surface; standard drwall as we call it here. But it should be OK. If not I wil alter them. Thanks.

Steve,

I am in the US with the same standard timber / drywall construction and do prefer the freestanding XO (especially now I am using them very far away from the back wall). When I had passive Kan's I could never get them to work well, active for some reason worked great. For me speakers designed for placement against a rear wall just don't seem to work as well in timber frame constructions.
 
I also drilled 4 inch diameter holes in the floating insulated concrete floor and inserted posts to the ground works below so the transfer of vibrations would not feed back into the hifi rack and then to the turntable. It was when I was 3/4 way through this that my wife pointed out to me that it was about 4 years since I had actually played a piece of vinyl. What can I say. I no longer have any records or deck.
 
Well,, the veneer arrived. It took forever to get here and was not cheap! I got a sheet of excellent quarter cut ash that will be stained black to match the credenza and keep the WAF all good. I finished applying the veneer this morning. They look very good; I am pleased. I would post pictures but I cannot figure out how to do that. Oh well. On to the next step. Grille frames. Don't hate me. :)
 
Here are some pictures. The subs are built as stands to support the tweeters of the ERGO IXs at seated ear level.
I included a picture of the interior before veneering and cutting all the holes. You can see the baffle incuded to get the interior sub volume correct. I may fill the upper void with dry sand. I am using a vented EBS alignment that will be flat down to 33 HZ within the sub pass band. The small tube that goes in and out the back at top and bottom is to run speaker wire to the ERGOs so it is not hanging down the back. The 8" T-B drivers are mounted on the left side on one stand and on the right side on the other As I said before, they will be finished in black but I'm not 100% decided yet what I will finish them with. Something that will will impart a deep, even black to the ash.

I hope this picture hosting works.







 
I'm not sure I follow the idea for the tube. There doesn't seem to be a hole on the top of the bass bins, and does this mean the E-IXs will have its input terminals on its underside?
 
I'm not sure I follow the idea for the tube. There doesn't seem to be a hole on the top of the bass bins, and does this mean the E-IXs will have its input terminals on its underside?
There are small holes in each end near top and bottom where the speaker wire tubes come out. They are centered horizontally about 3 cm from each edge with about about 11 mm dia. They should be good enough for 12 or 14 gauge speaker wire. I confess that the pictures are fuzzy. Interestng thought on the bottom Ergo IX terminal. I had thought of that myself but decided to make the subs and Ergos so they could work as independent units if desired. Putting termianls on both the bottom and the back crossed my mind. But in the end, the Ergos are excellent speakers on their own; a friend has a pair that I have heard. So I want to preserve the possibility of using them as stand alone speakers in any manner. Hence I am building them with standard terminal cups and added the internal wire guide to the subs to try for a cleaner appearance when used with them.
 
Well, I totally screwed up the staining. So I sanded it off and I'm doing it again. I hope I can correct :( I have faith.
 
I confess that the pictures are fuzzy.
If you’re taking photos with your phone there’s probably a fingerprint on the camera. My old phone had the lens in the middle of the back but the new one is in the top corner so I’m constantly having my first photo be fuzzy. I wipe it with my shirt and it’s back to normal.
 
So here is a thing . When I built the Ergos I ran them in for 200+ hours and ended changing the 4.7 ohm resistors to 7.5 ohm to reduce the top end forwardness. I put it down to the room , reflection, ears etc. A few weeks I was sitting down listening to the Ergos and came to the decision they were sounding kind of dull; I guess they are now 400+ hours . Change back to the 4.7ohm's and WHAM the speakers are now sounding brilliant again.
Who would have thought it, the guy who designed them knew what he was on about !
Moral of the story is that they may take more than the suggested 200 hours to run in and James does indeed know his onions.
 
In my case, I am still with 6 ohm. My room is made of cement bricks so it is very reflective. By the way I am now listening to the ergos more (90%) than my main system (10%). The ergos are really excellence performer. I may install it to my main system after it got few more hours may be in few months later.
 
I am on the search for some spectacular wood to make the cabs from and have not decided whether to veneer or use solid. Enjoying the posts on here as well, thanks all.
 
I am on the search for some spectacular wood to make the cabs from and have not decided whether to veneer or use solid. Enjoying the posts on here as well, thanks all.

For a box this small I don't think there'd be any harm using solid wood, as long as it's dry enough.
 
For a box this small I don't think there'd be any harm using solid wood, as long as it's dry enough.

Oh yes, I am not too worried about that. Just that there are much more interesting woods to be had with veneers.

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I used dense MDF (Baltic birch plywood would also work) veneered with ash and then stained black to match the credenza. Gotta keep the wife happy! I just finished mine yesterday. They look great but they sound spectacular! So good that I am now compelled to finish my preamp next and not the subwoofers. BTW, the wood is not the gating item. Use what makes you happy as as long as the resulting enclosures are solid and don't resonate.
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Indeed, it was just the asthetic I was considering having built speakers in MDF and solid before.

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The more I listen to my Ergos the more I like them, the more music I hear. Thank you James!
I'd post pictures if I could but the old technique to do that is no longer working.
 
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In my case, I am still with 6 ohm. My room is made of cement bricks so it is very reflective. By the way I am now listening to the ergos more (90%) than my main system (10%). The ergos are really excellence performer. I may install it to my main system after it got few more hours may be in few months later.
My only complaint is that they are so revealing they show the faults in some mixes. I put on Eric Dolphy - Out to lunch yesterday, recorded by Rudy Vn Gelder in '65'. It was breathtakingly good. What space and detail. Davis' bowed bass, Williams' touch and dynamics on the drums, Bobby Hutcherson's vibes resonance and the incredible sound of Dolphy's bass clarinet. It was pure magic. I followed that with a Brand X record, a band I always really liked, and it sounded too 'etched', not that pleasant, really. 3d order harmonics in the mix? I don't know. Has anyone else had simialr experiences or is there something not right with my build or system?
 


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