Replaced/updated cheap ceiling speakers...
I received an unexpected anniversary award from my "new" company (400,000+ employees worldwide) after the company (3500 employees worldwide) I had worked for over the last 29 years was purchased. The old company had completely quit giving out anniversary awards, so I certainly didn't expect anything from the new outfit.
Surprise, I got a 30 year award! The award? 488 points. Yep, points.
To spend said points, I was constrained to an award website contracted by the company. They only had items, no gift cards or a way to convert 488 points into cash. After searching the site several times for something I wanted... anything... I finally arrived at two objects that I could use to improve the entertainment system in the Sunseeker:
A new set of Yamaha NS-IC400 speakers ($150 value) and a new full HD Samsung 32" TV.
The speakers arrived within a week, but the TV is not scheduled to ship until the end of December... maybe.
Enough about the back story...
I removed and measured the cheap ASAElectronics speakers (available from your favorite online store for $15/Pair!), and determined I had a depth issue.
While the opening was 1/4" larger than needed, but still usable:
The depth was a 1/4" shy of the 3 1/8" needed:
So I set about designing and building a set of spacers. I considered various materials, and finally settled on some of the solid surface (Corian) left over from our countertop project.
I had 4" strips, but needed these to be about 7" wide, so I laminated two panels with a finger joint & epoxy:
and proceeded to turn these on the lathe. Solid surface is hard, and normally is machined with carbide tipped tools. I have HSS tools for lathe work, so I kept them sharp, and was able to convert the squares to discs, and cut the center opening. I used a roman ogee bit in the router for the edge profile, but the remainder of the work was done on the lathe:
Results:
More pics: Speaker Project
Surprise, I got a 30 year award! The award? 488 points. Yep, points.
To spend said points, I was constrained to an award website contracted by the company. They only had items, no gift cards or a way to convert 488 points into cash. After searching the site several times for something I wanted... anything... I finally arrived at two objects that I could use to improve the entertainment system in the Sunseeker:
A new set of Yamaha NS-IC400 speakers ($150 value) and a new full HD Samsung 32" TV.
The speakers arrived within a week, but the TV is not scheduled to ship until the end of December... maybe.
Enough about the back story...
I removed and measured the cheap ASAElectronics speakers (available from your favorite online store for $15/Pair!), and determined I had a depth issue.
While the opening was 1/4" larger than needed, but still usable:
The depth was a 1/4" shy of the 3 1/8" needed:
So I set about designing and building a set of spacers. I considered various materials, and finally settled on some of the solid surface (Corian) left over from our countertop project.
I had 4" strips, but needed these to be about 7" wide, so I laminated two panels with a finger joint & epoxy:
and proceeded to turn these on the lathe. Solid surface is hard, and normally is machined with carbide tipped tools. I have HSS tools for lathe work, so I kept them sharp, and was able to convert the squares to discs, and cut the center opening. I used a roman ogee bit in the router for the edge profile, but the remainder of the work was done on the lathe:
Results:
More pics: Speaker Project
