EnABL

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Fri Apr 17, 2015 3:52 am

Three years till we have had more than enough transformers in our lives. It is possible that we may have worked out an arrangement with a competitor/collaborator in that time and some tubes would then be supported. I should have a dealer for SE 300B, 2A3 and 45 tubes shortly, soon as they work out their online store craziness.

As we have progressed with learning how to find the major vectors for resonance propagation on diaphragms of all sorts the % of gloss to clear water has fallen to 10% for light cones like Lowthers, up to 30% for the thicker items like F 200A and most other Fostex drivers.

simon · Post by **simon** » Fri Apr 17, 2015 9:15 am

Sorry to hear you're not so good Bud. Selfishly I hope you go on making transformers for many years - the 4.5k SE OPTs you made me for 300B are my best transformers, and they're 'only' level 1. But I could happily retire today (if I didn't have 25 years of work in front of me) so entirely understand your desire to have a rest.

Did I understand correctly - you have plans for someone else to make some of your OPTs 'under license' in the future? If so that would be great news - I have plans to build a nice 45 amp one day and hope your OPTs will still be available in some form.

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Fri Apr 17, 2015 7:13 pm

Thanks for the kind words guys.

Simon, our new dealer will specialize in amplifier kits and will also make the OPT's available without the kit. They actually have product on hand and if anyone wants a pair of opts from us in less than 12 weeks give Ivar at ivardlr@gmail.com a nudge. He has SE 300B, 2A3 and 45 OPT's in all three levels of performance on hand and will be happy to sell them. His eventual site will be for Granada ElectroAcoustics Corp, website will be Granadaelectro.com, whenever they get it sorted.

simon · Post by **simon** » Fri Apr 17, 2015 10:58 pm

That's good news Bud, I wish you and the new suppliers good luck.

IslandPink · Post by **IslandPink** » Mon Apr 27, 2015 6:48 pm

Hi Bud
Just working my way through threads on this, trying to get a clearer idea of the process. Am I right that there are two slightly different methods here, basically (i) your recommendations and (ii) Dave's more sophisticated method ?
I'm reading about 'damar' and the 'trefoil pattern' in Dave's description ( with a pic of said trefoil ) but as a first-attempt on the 103E can it be simpler ?
I'd like to get going on this at the weekend, so let's say I took the 103E's and diluted some micro-scale gloss at 25% to 75% water, then took a small paint brush and (i) covered the cones and dustcap thinly with one coat (ii) left to dry overnight , and (iii) repeated for a second coat , then (iv) once fully dry, listen carefully for a while .. ?

There's mention of PVA, though , in your advice, where is this used ? ( PVA is easy to get, of course, have some in the house for wood-glueing ) .

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Fri May 08, 2015 10:29 pm

Dave and I have our individual specialty that each solve a different problem. He deals with materials versus structural resonance issues that determine leakage of energy from transverse waves into direct pressure waves. The EnABL patterns go on top of his process and do not affect the earlier control Dave's specialty provides. The addition of an ever slighter amount of the Gloss coating material than I used before meeting up with Dave, showed how important his process is for paper type diaphragms. An even further, though slighter reduction in Gloss use, shows the effectiveness of applying EnABL patterns at points of maximum dispersion, no matter where they are on the diaphragm.

So, no these are not competing technologies.

The PVA I use is as a point of mass loading, at the last place where the dome of any diaphragm has emission, center, top. Taking a round tooth pick and cutting off the tip, down to the largest diameter, is about the size of the droplet used. Though, the wet end does make contact with the dome for fluid transfer. White Elmer's Glue is a pretty good PVA. Dave uses Modge Podge, a PVA material, in addition to the Damar varnish.

IslandPink · Post by **IslandPink** » Fri May 08, 2015 10:53 pm

OK, thanks for the comment on the PVA - can do that .
Is that a 'yes' on the use of the Micro Scale gloss coat, then ?

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Sat May 09, 2015 12:44 am

In 10, 20 and 50% solution in clean water, yes.

IslandPink · Post by **IslandPink** » Sun May 10, 2015 2:08 pm

Thanks. I used a 25% solution of MSGC , and did two coats, one yesterday , one today . Will do the PVA spot on the centre of the dome tonight . Then I'll take a good listen .

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Mon May 11, 2015 3:39 am

Do be aware that the Gloss coat does not take the place of the patterns. It just spreads the patterns control over a larger zone. In some cases the Gloss is not needed at all. The final rest for Gloss cross linking takes about 48 hours to achieve. I doubt seriously that you will think that what you have done is of any use by itself and it may cause those resonance node supports to become worse, until dispersed by patterns in appropriate places.

IslandPink · Post by **IslandPink** » Mon May 11, 2015 6:09 pm

Gotcha Bud - and thanks for the warning it may not sound better ...yet .
Pretty soon I'll be trying that tap-test again and probably asking you more advice on what I'm hearing . Then we can come up with a radius for the pattern .

IslandPink · Post by **IslandPink** » Mon May 11, 2015 8:00 pm

Interesting, listening to the first few tracks. It has changed a little and sounds a little more musical to my ears. The vocals are a bit smoother, and there's a 'silky' quality to cymbals and guitars that wasn't there before.
Now, on this 'tap-test' thing, is it necessary to remove the drivers from the cabinets or can they be done in-situ ?

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Mon May 11, 2015 10:23 pm

They can be done in the cabinet with some reservations about the cabinets' radiation troubles. For your initial delving's you can leave them in, but you will have to remove them later.

I assume you are a visual and visualization sort of intelligence, so I suggest this youtube video. Take note of the "monkey nuts" descriptor and what is shown about micro resonance patterns. Trust me, you won't be insulted in anyway so do turn the sound up to normal levels.

What you have heard is fewer repetitions of the same information, down below the 4ms comprehension limit of our human systems. We do still respond to these signal repetition events and in mass, their removal leaves just the original signal and you notice it as more information correctly portrayed in phase. You have applied a conformal coating spec, acrylic floor wax, industrial grade, to your diaphragms' micro surfaces. It normalizes the boundary layer. It has repressed the small signal recursion events that are described above and in the youtube vid. The larger ones will succumb to the patterns...note, multiple patterns.

IslandPink · Post by **IslandPink** » Tue May 12, 2015 6:36 pm

BudP wrote: As you listen to the tap decay, while taping radially along the surface, you will notice a narrow zone where the decay seems to loose direction and then change direction as you move back and forth across it. Once you can focus on just the decay portion of the tap this will become fairly obvious. A pattern set in the middle of the directionless portion will disperse this activity completely.

Bud, I'm trying to understand what you mean by the decay having a direction, and therefore 'losing direction' or 'changing direction' . Are we talking about something purely audible, or are you talking about the decay being a spatial property, for example decaying in or out along a radial line on the cone ?

BudP · Post by **BudP** » Wed May 13, 2015 2:44 am

I will assume you have isolated the major audible components of a tap test tap..... ?

With the driver sitting magnet down, on a convenient eating table, sit next to it, facing the top and if it is a cone more or less perpendicular to the opposite side of the cone, so tilting is allowed. With a light, dense piece of wood, about 3 mm in dia. and rounded off on the taping end, start taping on that opposite cone side, about 1/4th the way up the cone wall. Listen for the tap decay while keeping the tip more or less in one spot. After you are sure you can hear the decay, begin to move the tap spot up the cone side in a radial line. What changes? Are you still aware of the decay when a change occurs?

Please keep after this until you can follow the decay through a point where some or all of the tap audible characteristics have changed. Now go back to that first point where something changed and tap back and forth, in a radial line, across that change point and listen to which direction the decay sort of, echos towards.

Spoiler alert: The decay should echo towards the voice coil when you are below the change point and towards the surround when you are above it. When you are right on top of a change point there will not be a definite direction.

Is this what you wanted to know? If we were in the same room this would take about 3 minutes to master.

audio-talk

EnABL

#16

#17

#18

#19

#20

#21

#22

#23

#24

#25

#26

#27

#28

#29

#30