3D Printed speakers - Unlock impossible designs compare to conventional

[MCH]

Good questions. The water is part of the chemical reaction in the plaster that makes it set, so there are no volatiles or off-gasses. The reaction is exothermic though so maybe pour in parts for a large enclosure in case it heats up enough to deform/melt the plastic.

I don't expect cracks to be an issue. The wood glue is added for the purpose of making the dried plaster less crumbly and its encased in the plastic walls with the gyroid fill in between to lend its support too. If you were to drop a dried speaker, then it might crack. I can CT again after "x" amount of time to confirm this theory though.

Water is a volatile, and you have quite some there. I don't know what exact products you used so it is very difficult to predict if it is going to shrink or crack. Well, it would be difficult even knowing, being a mixture, and will also depend on the volume etc etc.
It is just a suggestion to have into account.

 

[DVinylfan]

Great thread.
The obvious question being: can 3D printed speakers deliver 3D sound?
Since the advantage of 3D printing is to produce more complex designs than traditional production methods, what greater complexity in speaker design is required to improve/progress speaker designs when compared to those designed and manufactured with non-3D printed methods, e.g. B&W Nautilis?

 

[celstark]

I've started doing some tests while considering a 3d printed speaker build. The test box shape is meant to emulate what part of a speaker enclosure might look like with 19mm walls and a flat bottom with hollow space in the center.


I have access to a CT scanner with my job so I took a scan of the dried plaster-filled box. This gives us a comprehensive view of the internal structure of a filled 3d printed enclosure. We can see if there are any air bubbles or areas where the plaster filler didn't get to. The CT also provides density information on the materials in the scan.

Results: The CT images are below. The plaster/glue mixture flowed well within the hollow walls and there were only a few small air bubbles. In the 3d view (top right) you can see the plaster volume and there are no big gaps or areas where the plaster/glue mixture did not reach (I didn't fill the walls up all the way so its irregular on top). The plaster/glue mixture averages about 850HU (Hounsfield Unit is a relative density scale used in CT. web search for more info). The PLA+ is about 700HU.

OMG, I love this! I'd done some resonance testing using a contact mic to examine PLA vs. PETG vs. TPU and to test some infill setups. The mics, meant for things like violins and such, are cheap and good at least for relative measures. I did 5 measure / remove / reapply passes to get a decent stable curve. BTW, your CT will be loads better than my MRI for this, but LMK if we need MR.

 

[somebodyelse]

Water is a volatile, and you have quite some there. I don't know what exact products you used so it is very difficult to predict if it is going to shrink or crack. Well, it would be difficult even knowing, being a mixture, and will also depend on the volume etc etc.
It is just a suggestion to have into account.

Assuming the correct ratio of water to plaster of paris is used, the water is all consumed in the reaction. It doesn't shrink or crack which is what makes it good for casting of or in molds.

 

[bmc0]

Assuming the correct ratio of water to plaster of paris is used, the water is all consumed in the reaction.

Not true except for a few specialty gypsum cements (e.g. USG Drystone). The chemical water requirement is approx. 18 parts per 100 parts plaster by mass, but standard plaster (β-gypsum without water reducing additives) needs 70 parts water or more for a pourable consistency.

 

[willi_vintage]

latest ongoing with the 3D printed speaker project... The design has been fundamentally changed again to ensure better aesthetics, but also aspects such as torsional rigidity, avoidance of standing waves, good utilisation of the available space, etc. And it is quite huge (round about 24 ltr. volume per speaker). The parts are already printed, the next step will be acoustic measurements in an anechoic chamber and impedance measurements to actively equalise the system using DSP. Special attention will be paid to the enclosure walls. These are not usually printed solidly in a 3D print. Acoustically and mechanically not optimal, but the whole thing can be filled. Also am gonna play a bit with the waveguide (red colored, inserted part)

 

[Kalasbarnet]

latest ongoing with the 3D printed speaker project... The design has been fundamentally changed again to ensure better aesthetics, but also aspects such as torsional rigidity, avoidance of standing waves, good utilisation of the available space, etc. And it is quite huge (round about 24 ltr. volume per speaker). The parts are already printed, the next step will be acoustic measurements in an anechoic chamber and impedance measurements to actively equalise the system using DSP. Special attention will be paid to the enclosure walls. These are not usually printed solidly in a 3D print. Acoustically and mechanically not optimal, but the whole thing can be filled. Also am gonna play a bit with the waveguide (red colored, inserted part)
View attachment 458107
View attachment 458108

Hi! I just created an account here to be able to reply to this one post!

Looks awesome! How are ypu planning on powering it? Hypex? What drivers are you planning on using?

I tried printing a huge 3-way a couple of years ago, bought a 500x500mm elegoo max for the job, each speaker printed in 2 parts, was going to fill it with epoxy granite, sb acoustics ceramic drivers + augerpro waveguide.

Never got around to finishing it and have since ordered a cnc kit in order to build with sheet material/aluminium instead.

Your design looks really good! I would be sort of interested to do something similar but with the cnc when it is ready, aluminium baffle would be cool.

Edit: your design with purifi tweet + 2 woofers as a MTM 2way would be pretty cool too bad the tweeter is extremely expensive.

 

[willi_vintage]

Thank you @ Kalasbarnet. For testing/measurement purposes only, it is operated with an amplifier based on TPA 3255, for DSP based on a ADAU1701. What will finally be installed has not yet been decided. The drivers are SB Acoustics with Textreme cone.

 

[Kalasbarnet]

Wow nice! Great choice in drivers!

Looking really good. Please keep us updated to your progress! Yours is easily the best attempt at 3d printed "classical" speakers that i have seen and i have really been searching but it's a brand new field it seems.

If you're into horns check out the Ath generated horns thread at diyaudio.

Another extremely cool 3d printed MEH project is the Solana if you're into that:

Solana — JW Sound

Highly capable point source loudspeaker optimized for flexible deployment in a range of environments.

www.jwsound.live

 

[ppataki]

Just posted this yesterday

Thread '3D printed sphere speakers with Sica 5.5" coax drivers' https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...re-speakers-with-sica-5-5-coax-drivers.63702/

I thought to share it in this thread too

 

[TulseLuper]

Wow nice! Great choice in drivers!

Looking really good. Please keep us updated to your progress! Yours is easily the best attempt at 3d printed "classical" speakers that i have seen and i have really been searching but it's a brand new field it seems.

If you're into horns check out the Ath generated horns thread at diyaudio.

Another extremely cool 3d printed MEH project is the Solana if you're into that:

Solana — JW Sound

Highly capable point source loudspeaker optimized for flexible deployment in a range of environments.

www.jwsound.live

The Solana looks very good. I might build a pair for home use. I'd start with a test box to see if the low end is satisfying or not, but might end up with a bass module of some kind to make it a 3-way.

 

[willi_vintage]

FAI partially done. Vertical aligment, impedance, waterfall, energy plot et. are missing and will be done in the next steps. This is just to get a first impression....and it is
espc. BR design is in great need of improvement.
Midwoofer, 1 m measuring distance. Without damping material. On axis with the tweeter. Black 0°, green 15°, magenta 30°, blue 45°:

Midwoofer, 1 m measuring distance. With Polyester fleece. On axis with the tweeter. Black 0°, green 15°, magenta 30°, red 45°:

@ BR Port without damping material:

Midwoofer, 10 cm measuring distance. Without damping material, on axis:

Tweeter, 1 m measuring distance. Without damping material. On axis with the tweeter. Black 0°, green 15°, magenta 30°, red 45°:

Tweeter, 15 cm measuring distance. Without damping material, on axis:

 

[Terplover]

3d Printed Speakerenclosure 2 Way

I thought it was about time to start a thread on my second 3D-printed speaker build! I'm not an expert in speaker design or acoustics, so I’d be genuinely grateful for any tips, feedback, or advice you’re willing to share. After being really impressed by the results of the D-Note 3D-printed...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Got a new exciting Project.
What are your thaughts on Wallthickness ( not parameters) or Plaster of Paris compared to just PLA with good infill? Costs are about the same. Feel free to join the discussion in the Post. Got some more Infos there.

 

[tinnitus]

My steps to 3D printed speakers.

First print the speaker module with filament. Diameter is 300mm printing time over 50 hours.

Walls filled with sand. No success.

Next step for new material concrete. Printing the formwork (negative) in 3D. Good success, unfortunately the formwork crumbled after 8 modules because the 3D print is inflexible.

Next step 3D printing module (positive) molding with polyurethane or silicone and concrete casting in the pu mold. This ensures freedom of form.

Transducer: 2x Wavecore SW270WA01-01 and Wavecore WF120CU07 (no passiv xover).