2020 Monkeymatic Mixcube

[norburybrook]

Love it...I want one....seriously I want one I grew up using aurotones in the studios



I also want to try that beer...looks interesting as well.....


congrats. I'm loving all your builds .

M

[xtian]

So you left no space at all around the speaker, which is totally surrounded by isolating material ...

This is easily changed. You're suggesting less batting is mo' betta?

[JazzGuitarGimp]

How the heck do you keep your workbench so uncluttered?

[xtian]

For perfect speaker holes from 4" to 15" look into a rotozip. Works amazing and very affordable

I have one, actually! I've tried it several times for putting speaker holes in 1/2" cabinet grade plywood, and struggled to work cleanly. It struggles to cut, and I got ragged holes. I can't imagine trying to cut 3/4" walnut! What's the secret?

[xtian]

How the heck do you keep your workbench so uncluttered?

Same thing happens at dinner prep. If I cook, the kitchen is clean when the food hits the table. If my wife cooks, cleanup is a whole project...

[pdf64]

The most effective place to damp down standing waves (especially in a cube) is at the centre, least effective is lining the inner surfaces.

[xtian]

The most effective place to damp down standing waves (especially in a cube) is at the centre, least effective is lining the inner surfaces.

So...like a cylinder of batting between the magnet and the RCA jack?

[ChopSauce]

So you left no space at all around the speaker, which is totally surrounded by isolating material ...

This is easily changed. You're suggesting less batting is mo' betta?

Actually, I was just expecting to learn one more thing...

It looks like it's happening...

[pdf64]

The most effective place to damp down standing waves (especially in a cube) is at the centre, least effective is lining the inner surfaces.

So...like a cylinder of batting between the magnet and the RCA jack?

I guess more of a ball than a cylinder, but whatever is practical to implement.
I commented really to give you confidence to (lightly) fill the enclosed space. The main thing to avoid is packing the material tightly around the back of the speaker basket.
But beware that my reading / experience around the topic is a few decades old

[Leo_Gnardo]

So you left no space at all around the speaker, which is totally surrounded by isolating material ...

Much like the original Auratone. It was just a small speaker 4" or maybe 3" in a simple small cube enclosure. We used to call them "Horrortone." I never opened one up, so don't know whether the cube was stuffed with sound absorbent material.

The Auratone idea was to monitor your mix on a speaker that represented the modest speaker that might be found in the typical TV or automobile or clock radio or small stereo, keeping in mind most people don't have big fancy hi fi gear. Of course mixes always sound fantastic on the big fancy speakers. If you can get your mix to sound good on down-market equipment, you have a much better chance on grabbing the listener's ear and maybe just maybe convincing them that they cannot live another minute without buying your record.

As time went on, by the mid '80's, recognizing that many music fans had better gear than the Auratone represented, studios started to park a pair of small bookshelf speakers on the mix console's meter bridge. Yamaha's NS-10 became the "gold standard" with 6" and 8" concentric-driver Tannoys also in use but somewhat less popular. I did a couple days work at London's Mayfair Studio at the time - they had a small "boom box" mounted on a mic stand, placed just behind the meter bridge. The idea continues: listen to your mix on gear that the ordinary punter uses. These days, I suppose that would be some cheap "ear buds."

That walnut cube looks terrific xtian! Built like the proverbial "brick outhouse."

[xtian]

It would be a tricky puzzle to try to mix from scratch on the "cube" style monitor. But if you know your song has n elements, you listen to make sure each element is clear and audible on the cube. Vocal will pop out in front on the cube also. Of course I listen on the iPhone's speaker as well. Bass often vanishes, so it's good to add a little harmonic distortion to get up into the mobile phone speaker range.

"May the cube be with you." - Thomas Dolby

[xtian]

I added a 1/4" jack. This thing sounds surprisingly good as a guitar speaker!

IMG_4150.jpg

[norburybrook]

Leo you must be as old as me I remember that entire monitor history perfectly


I sill have, and use my NS10's. NS10's were actually useful because they have good phase/transient response as they're a sealed cabinet design. The frequency response isn't great but that was overshadowed by it's good phase/transient response which meant you could actually mix well on them, perhaps use some decent phones or the big monitors to check the low end.

The horrortone was very important back in the day for checking mono compatibility, as people listened on mono radios etc. and also some albums were mono. I can't think of an example now where that would still be useful even though old schoolers still worry about it


I think the mobile phone/laptop speaker has indeed become the aurotone of today.

Great little project and a tool for life


M

[martin manning]

Some laptop speakers are not half bad, generally good stereo separation too. Straight out of the phone is definitely bad, no bass, but good in-ear phones are fine. Modern portable bluetooth speakers are much better than the crap we listened to back in the day. I have a JBL (Charge 3) that does very well for carrying about the house and outdoors, playing from my phone. Very respectable stereo sound from a liter-sized package. Running some MJQ through it right now.

[Leo_Gnardo]

I added a 1/4" jack. This thing sounds surprisingly good as a guitar speaker!

Boy-o-boy you're on to something now - mic it up with a large-diaphragm condenser that's as big as the speaker cab. Then use the same speaker to assess your mono mixdown. Diabolical!