I couldn’t leave well enough alone before I left, so here are some preliminary pictures of the mobile speaker measurement rig.
The stack, with Sortimo's “LT-BOXX,” “LS-BOXX,” “i-BOXX 72” in black and a Bosch “i-BOXX 53.”
The top “LT-BOXX” holds the new polar measurement rig I’m testing for durability. It consists of a Monoprice XL ball camera mount with a Manfrotto projector tray on top. Every 5 deg. of rotation is marked on the mount.
If this new setup proves stable, it should shorten the time between measurements. That matters because I generally capture a lot of measurements per speaker: horizontal at 5 degree intervals from 0-90 (0-180 if the baffle is asymmetrical), vertical at 5 degree intervals from -30 to 30 or more, grill on vs. off at a few angles, and so on. I hope to add sensitivity and maybe some distortion measurements going forward. I would have done sensitivity for the NHT C3 review, but disorganization meant I had the choice between making sure I had enough time to get enough measurements to render the polar maps or fiddling with amp gain to get exactly 2.83V. Harmonic distortion I’ll only do I hear something that merits such an investigation.
The top compartment of the of the LS-BOXX holds microphones and tools right now.
Mikes are Cross Spectrum calibrated, Dayton EMM-6 (analog) and miniDSP UMIK (USB). The UMIK is a backup device. I strongly prefer to capture time corrected measurements, and obviously a USB microphone has no loopback correction option.
The microphone cases are
just too wide to fit in the box on their sides. I am considering whether to go “pro” with this and do a foam insert, with custom cut-outs for microphones. The alternative is to simply move the microphone cases to the LT-BOXX on top, maybe with velcro to secure them should the box tip over. Thoughts?
Tools are a multimeter (Uni-T) and lead kit (Extech), compact (180mm) waterpump pliers (Knipex "Cobra") with covered jaws, and a small ratcheting screwdriver (Bahco) with a bit magazine (Schröder-made Draper). I find small waterpump pliers useful for cranking down adjustable stands and similar task, and the muzzles keep the sharp teeth from tearing things up. Knipex's Cobra muzzles sell for about $6/10pk from KC Tool or Chad’s Toolbox.
My original idea of keeping the amp and USB interface connected in an i-BOXX 72 does not work, because I didn't consider how much the USB and loopback cables stuck out. So right now the L-BOXX 72 just holds my measurement amp (Parasound Zamp) and speaker cables (RapcoHorizon, >12AWG).
I fit the my speaker test leads cables with bananas at the amp end and alligator clips at the speaker end. If a speaker's binding posts are delicate I'll attach the clip to a banana or spade.
The amp and interface will fit that the way I want in an L-BOXX, so I might add another one later. Alternately, I think the Apogee Duet interface might fit in the i-BOXX with the amp. That would be my incentive to troubleshoot the loopback connection in FuzzMeasure with this interface. On the plus side, I can lock the amp in place in the i-BOXX for transport with nothing more than a couple foam blocks I found in the basement, because the lid is so sturdy. I had been thinking of screwing it into the bottom plate of the i-BOXX.
I received my Gedore L-BOXX kit yesterday. The eBay seller did not package it at all. They just stuck a label on the L-BOXX. Even so, it came through the Royal Mail just fine, which is a good sign. It is also a good sign of British honesty that the unsealed contents all arrived to my hotel.
I was less impressed with the contents.
The waterpump pliers are as expected. I have a slightly nicer pair of 250mm Gedore waterpump pliers (chromed with 2-part grips) already, and these feel substantially similar. The hex and torx L-keys are L-keys. No ball ends or other fancy features. Unlike most Gedore pliers, the nippers are not stamped “Made in Austria.” They look different from the versions Gedore sells separately under the same part number. I have nothing to test them on in this hotel room, though. I'm sure they're good enough for my speaker measurement tool kit.
However, the hammer handle is very rough. I think it needs a sanding before it is usable. As with the nippers, I suspect the screwdrivers and might be rebadged specials for this kit. The VDE screwdrivers have somewhat sticky handles, a different shape and colorway from the VDE Gedore PZ1 I picked up a few years ago, and no “Made in Germany” label.
That said, I paid 38 UKP shipped for the whole thing so complaining that the tools aren’t finished to the standard I expect from an expensive German tool brand is a little gratuitous. A Bosch-branded L-BOXX 102 alone is about 38 USD from Amazon, and an unbranded one in this colorway is $77 plus tax (for me) and shipping direct from Sortimo.