DIY 10B Design

markmarc · 08-10-2005, 10:14 PM

I would like to take a beat up pair of Polk 10B's and remove the the drivers, tweeters, and crossovers. Then take a pair of MTM cabinets from Ebay, finish with maple veneer in a hard rock stain. I think the sound results would be pretty stunning, especially with a decent subwoofer.

(If anybody has the necessary pieces let me know.)

Any opinions??

Polkersince85 · 08-10-2005, 10:25 PM

Sounds feasible. You may want to maintain the volume of the M10 to preserve the acoustic suspension properties. IMO, if you have ever heard the imaging of the vertical array of the M7, then a vertical array using the M10 volume and bass would be awesome. It would be closer to a RTA 11T design.

dkg999 · 08-11-2005, 01:50 AM

I recently rebuilt a set of Monitor 7's I found at a flea market. The cabinets had been water damaged but the fronts, rears, and all drivers were like new. It wasn't real challenging to rebuild the cabinets using cabinet grade particle board, keeping the same dimensions.

jcaut · 08-12-2005, 10:36 AM

Wait a second-

You're talking about the old Monitor 10b's with the side-by-side midwoofers, a tweeter centered above, and a passive radiator? And you're proposing putting them in an MTM configuration- presumably ported- and ditching the passive radiator? If I understand that correctly, then I don't think it's a good idea. You'll almost certainly come up with something that sounds inferior to the original. The crossover will no longer be ideal, you'll likely end up with serious vertical lobing issues with the MTM configuration, due to the center-to-center spacing of the drivers.

A much better bet, IMO, would be to rework the original enclosures, or rebuild them from scratch.

Jason

markmarc · 08-12-2005, 12:55 PM

Jason:
The passive radiator is the one issue I'm struggling with. Have thought about using it either on the bottom as the RT towers, or on the side.
The idea is to have some fun based upon finding a beatup cabinet. DIY is all about experimenting. I won't be out of pocket much, so I will chalk it up to fun entertainment. Having owned a pair of 10B's back in the 80's, I am very aware of the VERY basic nature of the cabinet design. The insulation used was packed into each speaker differently. Goes to show how very basic speaker design was back then.
Thanks for the opinion.

jcaut · 08-12-2005, 01:49 PM

You can replace a passive radiator with a port, since they function in the same manner, but the best bet would be to keep it, IMO. If you do, and can keep the cabinet volume about the same, you should be able to maintain the bass response of the original. You could experiment with the MTM configuration. Personally I think it would be difficult to get right, but it might be worth a try. And I agree that the experimenting is part of the fun.

I'm still working on a DIY project that was obvioulsy inspired by the Mon 10. I haven't had much time to spend on it lately. HERE is the thread, if you're interested.

Jason

08-10-2005, 10:14 PM	#1
markmarc Polkhead Member Sales Rating: (4) Join Date: May 2005 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 1,310	DIY 10B Design I would like to take a beat up pair of Polk 10B's and remove the the drivers, tweeters, and crossovers. Then take a pair of MTM cabinets from Ebay, finish with maple veneer in a hard rock stain. I think the sound results would be pretty stunning, especially with a decent subwoofer. (If anybody has the necessary pieces let me know.) Any opinions?? Last edited by markmarc; 08-10-2005 at 10:20 PM..

08-11-2005, 01:50 AM	#3
dkg999 Polk Expert Member Sales Rating: (17) Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Northern IL/Central IA Posts: 3,829	I recently rebuilt a set of Monitor 7's I found at a flea market. The cabinets had been water damaged but the fronts, rears, and all drivers were like new. It wasn't real challenging to rebuild the cabinets using cabinet grade particle board, keeping the same dimensions. __________________ DKG999 ----------------------------------------- HT System: LSi9, LSiC, LSiFX, LSi7, SVS 20-39 PC+, B&K 507 S2 AVR, B&K 125.2, Tripplite LCR-2400, Cambridge 540v2 DVD, Sony BDP-S550 BD, Signal Cable PC, BJC Interconnects and speaker cables, Sony XBR5 46" LCD

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08-10-2005, 10:25 PM	#2
Polkersince85 Polkhead Member Sales Rating: (0) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Georgia Posts: 1,174	Sounds feasible. You may want to maintain the volume of the M10 to preserve the acoustic suspension properties. IMO, if you have ever heard the imaging of the vertical array of the M7, then a vertical array using the M10 volume and bass would be awesome. It would be closer to a RTA 11T design.

08-12-2005, 10:36 AM	#4
jcaut Polkhead Member Sales Rating: (5) Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Paris, Arkansas Posts: 1,771	Wait a second- You're talking about the old Monitor 10b's with the side-by-side midwoofers, a tweeter centered above, and a passive radiator? And you're proposing putting them in an MTM configuration- presumably ported- and ditching the passive radiator? If I understand that correctly, then I don't think it's a good idea. You'll almost certainly come up with something that sounds inferior to the original. The crossover will no longer be ideal, you'll likely end up with serious vertical lobing issues with the MTM configuration, due to the center-to-center spacing of the drivers. A much better bet, IMO, would be to rework the original enclosures, or rebuild them from scratch. Jason

08-12-2005, 12:55 PM	#5
markmarc Polkhead Member Sales Rating: (4) Join Date: May 2005 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 1,310	Jason: The passive radiator is the one issue I'm struggling with. Have thought about using it either on the bottom as the RT towers, or on the side. The idea is to have some fun based upon finding a beatup cabinet. DIY is all about experimenting. I won't be out of pocket much, so I will chalk it up to fun entertainment. Having owned a pair of 10B's back in the 80's, I am very aware of the VERY basic nature of the cabinet design. The insulation used was packed into each speaker differently. Goes to show how very basic speaker design was back then. Thanks for the opinion.

08-12-2005, 01:49 PM	#6
jcaut Polkhead Member Sales Rating: (5) Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Paris, Arkansas Posts: 1,771	You can replace a passive radiator with a port, since they function in the same manner, but the best bet would be to keep it, IMO. If you do, and can keep the cabinet volume about the same, you should be able to maintain the bass response of the original. You could experiment with the MTM configuration. Personally I think it would be difficult to get right, but it might be worth a try. And I agree that the experimenting is part of the fun. I'm still working on a DIY project that was obvioulsy inspired by the Mon 10. I haven't had much time to spend on it lately. HERE is the thread, if you're interested. Jason

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