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Tarkus Build Thread

datrumole

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well, it only took a year, but here we are

*skip if easily bored*

i've got a heck of a theater setup in the basement with (3) DIYSG Fusion 8's, (3) magnus-12 front array, (2) Volt 6's, (4) infinity 1262s nearfield

htpc --> udac8 --> diy unbal to bal converter with THAT1646 --> inuke3000dsp for subs, diy icepower 500asp + (2) 500A hangers for LCR, aiyima A07 for Surr

so that said, the upstairs tv didnt get much love. so i ripped out a polk audio surround system and went searching. i realized i wanted a dedicated 2ch system for the upstairs, i wanted full range, so i wasn't totally set on any bookshelf style, and the bass needed to come out of something larger than a 6".

i pined over troels designs, and althought his stuff is amazing, it's expensive, maybe one day. the uluwatu was near top of the list, but the build looked a touch more complex than i wanted and felt you could get something similar with just a larger driver. the apollos and helix MTMs honestly probably would have been built if there wasn't a back order on parts at the time i was considering, but again, still wanted something with a large driver incorporated. and then i stumbled upon the tarkus, boom, lets go

i was then so inspired by the top most build on paul's tarkus page, and the wife liked it too, so i was sold

components ordered, baltic birch procured, lets get to building

*ok, sorry, normal stuff now*

wood chopped up, tops mostly glued

PXL_20210121_040334827.jpg


braces for the upper array, 3/4" dowel

PXL_20210131_221905345.jpg


braced and foamed before the faces went on (boot with tha fuuuuur)

PXL_20210203_015235593.jpg


got this idea from another thread on attaching the port, basically we took and routed out the port dimension into a block of wood, glued the wood to the backwall, and used E6000 adhesive to glue the port in the hole

PXL_20210212_033308352.jpg


then just flush routed and put a round over on it, came out nice

PXL_20210305_013443567.jpg


port in

PXL_20210305_015429944.jpg


some crossover love, went with the zister resistors (also had some rpi heatsinks i put on them) and audyn q4 caps as a slight bump

PXL_20210122_161619256.jpg


testing them out

firefox_LK5dmOrmpf.png


faces on, time for the finish

PXL_20210528_201746901.jpg
 
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datrumole

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so we modeled it after the 'sunburst' build from the tarkus page, bolland83 i believe is the user name on parts-express

he did his with mdf, so adding the faux grain wasn't needed

baltic birch can be a blotchy wood, so we went with aniline dye (keda kit from amazon) and went with their straight brown. i believe we did 1/16th teaspoon per 1oz (bought these little 1/32 teaspoon scoops from amazon), mixed with water, sprayed with a HF HVLP Purple Gun

came out really nice

makeshift spray booth with a popup tent and 0.31mil plastic from amazon

PXL_20211108_172047552.jpg


also had some scrap wood lying around, bought some lazy susan things, and made little spinny platforms

PXL_20211008_221759912.NIGHT.jpg


all dyed up

i_view64_2KP99EjOoi.png

on to the sunburst.

grabbed a 2oz ceramcoat black acrylic paint from hobby lobby for like 2 bucks, watered it down 50/50, and ran it through the crappiest harbor freight airbrush they sell for like 10 bucks, and it worked awesome!!

however, what wasn't awesome was my technique, yikes! needless to say this was done on the backs of the speakers which were then later filled in to all black. i thought i could 'blend' it in directly, but it looked like crap

PXL_20211021_225004525.jpg


however, after some practice, i got the technique down, they key was to spray INWARD to the wood from the outside which gave the affect i wanted

PXL_20211025_215319785.jpg


little plate trick. cut out the middles of the plate so your hand can go through them, tape to the back of the speaker hole. then, cut another plate to cover the hole

PXL_20211026_001828304.jpg



PXL_20211026_001906750.jpg


finished off with renner 851 clearcoat in a 25 sheen (all products were water based on this build)

PXL_20211113_221425636.jpg

PXL_20211113_221434882.jpg


voila, they sound incredible, thanks to paul for his beautiful design, and bolland83 for his inspiration for the burst look

i_view64_zstFiBbPDl.png
 
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datrumole

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final thoughts: they really do sound utterly amazing, the imaging is unbelievable, the depth, everything is so clear. grinning from ear to ear

the AVR is going away, i have a Topping E30 (that i actually already hooked up to the AVR last night) and a DIY L20.5 amp

the amp blew on my first power up, and took out my power supply with it, so i'm in the process of doing a full rebuild of the L20.5 amp with true toshiba transistors, replacing all caps, and a few other resistors. should be done shortly

thanks all for having a look!
 

617

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Nice finishing skills! I always thought that design was very well done. Carmody really got a lot of output capability at a low cost with that design.
 
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datrumole

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And there's me thinking you were going to build one of these.

View attachment 166164
haha, it's on his page, i'd never heard of it!

Nice finishing skills! I always thought that design was very well done. Carmody really got a lot of output capability at a low cost with that design.
much appreciated, many thanks to lots of youtubers!

and yeah, carmody knocked it out of the park on this one, i think the BOM for just the speaker parts was a touch over 330
 
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q3cpma

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Looks nice, but I do wonder about directivity with such a large midrange crossing at 2 kHz to an almost waveguide-less tweeter. I particularly like the two box style, but prefered the colour before edge darkening, personally.
 

AudioAaron

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These look awesome. I've always wanted to do a P.C. build.

How do they compare to the Fusion-8's?
 

Chrispy

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haha, it's on his page, i'd never heard of it!

One of Emerson Lake & Palmer's best. I particularly like the Steven Wilson remix in multich. Was definitely what caught my eye! Nice work!
 
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datrumole

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These look awesome. I've always wanted to do a P.C. build.

How do they compare to the Fusion-8's?

the fusions are a different breed all together, i dont think a fair comparison due to the lack of bass

the fusions give you everything they've got, and then some; in the range they excel in. there is literally no topping them out. i have 250w available to throw at them, i'm sure i use about 50% of it, and they laugh at me. however, they simply do not have the depth the tarkus has, and for obvious reaons

for home theater, i just would never give up a high efficiency speaker and round out the bottom with big drivers, so to me, the fusion (and like designs) will always be in my HT. its funny, it never seems loud enough. i realized, it's distortion that causes that 'harshness' that loud feels like. when you have something that doesnt distort, loud doesn't 'hurt' if that makes sense

for a more pure 2ch, i really wanted something of a single source, i wanted the full range from a single speaker. i know there are plenty of schools of thought about having the bass separate so you can find the sweet spot in the room etc etc...but there just is something about two sources of sound, period, that gives off it's own sound. is it always in the best room placement, nope, but it has it's own distinct sound signature all in it's own right that my HT cannot replicate in the same way

so i think they are perfect for what they achieve, and by no means would i not consider the tarkus as an LR for a theater, i just haven't put them through the ringer just yet
 

jae

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Any FR measurement/results in your room? They deserve a purifi ;)
 
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datrumole

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Any FR measurement/results in your room? They deserve a purifi ;)
nothing yet, plan to get that done some time this weekend

i'd love a purifi, but plan on building another really well measured amp, the L20.5
 
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datrumole

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datrumole

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hey all, finally got around to doing some measurements

run off my denon in direct mode, so no EQ

look pretty consistent. both were measured in the same location in the room at 1m (var smoothing)

tarkus_1m_same_position.png
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here is them in the normal locations at MLP, again no EQ, using MMM at about ~4m (13.5ft) (var smoothing)

note the massive drop off of the tweeter, i guess at that distance it runs out of steam quick?

tarkus_4m.png


here are the left speakers overlaid from 1m and 4m to illustrate the tweeter fall off, bumped up the dB offset to illustrate a bit better

tarkus_1m_4m_overlay_left.png
 
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datrumole

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update:

i'm an idiot, spent the last two days pulling my hair out with this tweeter dip, no matter of EQ could get rid of it

then it dawned on me, the dac has some filters...grrr, sure enough, i was on 'slow roll off', went to sharp and voila...back to normal

some updated plots. still a drop in the high frequencies in MLP, but i can assume that to be expected over the distance

1m, no idea how to read phase stuff yet

1m_denon_left.png


4m MLP, MMM RTA measurement, overlaid the 1m. looks to be about a 3db variation 11/12kish

1m_4m_left_overlay.png
 
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datrumole

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Did the Tarkus ever make it down into your theater space?

nah, but i've watched a few movies with them, but cant really give them a fair shake with downmixing

but if i had the space to do 3 LCR with tarkus, i wouldnt hesitate
 

VistaCruisin

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Yea I’ve been going back and forth on doing matching LCR. Currently my LR are Klipsch Heresy 1.5 on some custom stands to get the tweeters at the same level as my BA VS 325C. Very nice center for its size. The BA use a fancy dimpled tweeter design.

Anticipating having to look at different driver options if the Tarkus or other diy options to attempt a close tone match.

What I like about this design and good ole Monkey boxes are the flexibility on height.
As well as gaining a bit more full range in sound.
I can have them for 2 ch and surround sound in my living room. Having the tops of the speakers under the bottom frame of the TV.

The Heresy’s are very cool and original, but also dependent on a subwoofer. Probably not unlike your theater room choice LCR.

Congrats on a great project and thanks for sharing.
 
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