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Zeppelin 1x8 SPEAKER CABINET KIT Assembly Instructions Manual

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SPEAKER CABINET

Assembly Instructions

1
8 SPEAKER CABINET KIT
x
ZEPPELINDESIGNLABS.COM • 2950 N. WESTERN, CHICAGO, IL 60618

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Summary of Contents for Zeppelin 1x8 SPEAKER CABINET KIT

  • Page 1: Assembly Instructions

    SPEAKER CABINET Assembly Instructions 8 SPEAKER CABINET KIT ZEPPELINDESIGNLABS.COM • 2950 N. WESTERN, CHICAGO, IL 60618...

  • Page 2: Table Of Contents

    1x8 SPEAKER CABINET ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS INTRODUCTION ...................... 3 CAUTIONS, WARNINGS & DANGERS ............... 3 WHAT YOU WILL NEED .................... 3 WHAT’S IN THE BOX ....................3 BUILDING THE CABINET ................... 8 A WORD ON COUNTERSINKS ................9 ASSEMBLING THE BOX ..................9 FINISHING THE BOX ...................

  • Page 3: Introduction

    INTRODUCTION Thanks for buying a 1x8 Speaker Cabinet kit from Zeppelin Design Labs! We hope you will have fun assembling this kit, followed by many years of musical enjoyment. We think we’ve produced a pretty nice product, and we’d love to hear your feedback. Send an email, or post on the ZDL forum.

  • Page 4: What's In The Box

    • Sharp pencil • 12” Ruler • Bar clamps, minimum 12” opening, two of them • Utility knife or X-Acto knife or scissors • Heat gun, or very hot hair dryer • Soldering Iron, good quality, 15-50 watt • Wet sponge or dry solder-cleaning pad •...
  • Page 5 STARTING! The baffle takes less than an hour to assemble, plus paint drying time. The cable takes about 15 minutes. The cabinet takes about 3 hours spread over 2-3 days. Figure 1: What’s In The Box?
  • Page 6 Table 1: 1x8 Speaker Cabinet Bill Of Materials Loose in the box: Part # Description Notes BB08 Baffle Board for 8” Speaker CA04.1 Cabinet Top/Bottom Shorter parts CA04.2 Cabinet Sides Longer parts CA04.3 Cabinet Cleat CA04.4 Cabinet Port, solid CA04.5 Cabinet Port w/Hole GC02 Grill Cloth Black/Silver/Beige...
  • Page 7 Figure 2: Parts Illustrations BB08 CA04.1 CA04.2 CA04.3 CA04.4 CA04.5 GC02 LS08 CB11 FT03 JA07 NU03 PL20 PL30 SC13 SC61 SC65 SC66 WA06 WA10...

  • Page 8: Building The Cabinet

    BUILDING THE CABINET The cabinet is a beginner’s woodworking project, but it will take several hours over several days to complete! Take your time, be careful, and you should produce a lovely, great sounding solid wood cabinet to be proud of. We are going to show you how we make the prefinished 1x8 here in our lab.

  • Page 9: A Word On Countersinks

    A WORD ON COUNTERSINKS The overall success of this project depends somewhat on your ability to accurately countersink the wood screws, so that the heads lie just below the surface of the wood, but no deeper. There are several ways to do this: •...
  • Page 10 With the pencil, label the parts where it won’t show so you can easily fit them together again later. Put the labels all towards the front. Marking the Jack Plate : Install the 1/4” input jack (Part # J2) into the jack plate (Part # PL20). Fit the jack through the hole in the Port (Part # CA04.5).
  • Page 11 With scissors or blade and ruler, cut out the templates provided with your kit. Tape the templates to the cabinet bottom, and to the right-hand side (as you face the front), and to one of the ports. If the templates do not match the wood size PERFECTLY (it happens), line up the FRONT EDGE of the template to the FRONT EDGE of the wood, and center it along the length of the wood.
  • Page 12 Use the Cleat template to poke two holes in one side of each cleat (Part # CA04.3). As long as you are careful, as shown, there is no need to use tape. TIP: See our online video for a demonstration of how easy Installing the Cleats (Part # CA04.3): Place one of the sides this is.
  • Page 13 Grab your drill with the 1/16 bit set to stick out about 1-1/8”, and drill two pilot holes at the marks, through the cleat and into the side. Label the cleat and the side, so you can put it back in place later. Set the cleat aside.
  • Page 14 12. Run a bead of glue down the back of one cleat. Spread it out into a uniform, thin layer with a stick. Place two of the #6x1-1/4 wood screws (Part # SC61) into the countersunk holes until they just protrude through the glue. TRIPLE-CHECK YOUR LABELS TO ASSURE THAT YOU ARE PUTTING THE CLEAT IN THE CORRECT SPOT! THIS IS VITAL TO A DECENT OUTCOME! Place the screw tips into the mating pilot holes in the cabinet side.
  • Page 15 15. Stand up all four pieces of wood on their FRONT edges on your clean, smooth, flat work surface. Dry-fit them together. Use a bar clamp to snug the pieces together as shown. Hopefully your clamps have plastic pads on the bearing surfaces. If not, DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN the clamps or you will mar the wood.
  • Page 16 18. Fit your drill with the 1/16” bit, sticking out about 1-1/8”. At the corner you lined up, drill two holes at the nail/awl marks, through the side, and into the mated wood piece. 19. Continue to the other three corners, loosening the clamps and lining up the corners one by one. Drill a total of 8 holes.
  • Page 17 22. Inspect the inside faces of the wood pieces for splinters or “blowout”: bits of wood standing above the surrounding surface. Clean these off with a bit of 120-grit sandpaper. 23. Dry-fit the four sides as before, with the front edges down on the table. Apply some wood glue to one end of the TOP.
  • Page 18 25. Add the second clamp right across the joint and apply moderate pressure to hold the joint securely for screwing. 26. With a #2 Philips screwdriver or cordless screw gun, press in hard and drive the two screws barely snug. You will tighten these later.
  • Page 19 28. Now apply glue to the remaining exposed ends of both the TOP and BOTTOM. Fit four screws into the remaining SIDE and maneuver them into all four little pilot holes. Align, clamp and screw the joints (barely snug) one at a time. 51-54...
  • Page 20 29. Check the box for overall squareness: measure diagonally across the cabinet to see if it measures the same in both directions. If not, clamp the baffle board into one acute corner as shown. 55, 56 This will pull the whole box into perfect square. Now tighten all eight cabinet screws on the sides. If necessary, use the other clamp to hold the joints tight as you drive the screws home.
  • Page 21 31. Move the bar clamps to the ports and clamp them tightly to the top and bottom. 32. Drill four holes 1/16 x 1-1/8” deep through the ports where marked and into the cleats. 33. Re-drill the four port holes with the 9/64 bit , and countersink .
  • Page 22 34. Remove the clamps from the ports, set the cabinet on its back, and check the front for square again. If the cabinet is not square, place the baffle back into the cabinet and clamp it tightly into one of the acute corners. This will pull the whole box perfectly square.
  • Page 23 DANGER Routers are dangerous, tricky machines that can do you serious harm if misused. If you are unfamiliar with routers, get a friend to help you! 37. Remove the dust with a vacuum or compressed air and inspect the seams between the Sides and the Top and Bottom.

  • Page 24: Finishing The Box

    FINISHING THE BOX There are lots of ways to apply a beautiful, durable finish to a solid wood box. Following is how we finish our cabinets here at the Lab. You may finish your cab any way you like. Please send us photos of your completed project for our gallery! Your cabinet is made of top-grade solid poplar.
  • Page 25 b. “Ease” the square edges; that is, strike off the sharp square edge the mill applied to the wood. Your finish ingredients cannot accumulate on a sharp edge. Don’t use the orbital for this, at least not for the inside edges; sand the square edges by hand only. The orbital is likely to chew up the inside corners.
  • Page 26 With a rag, apply a liberal coat of MinWax Dark Walnut Wood Finish #2716. This is an oil- based stain, one of the easiest to use. Coat the entire cabinet inside and out, paying attention to the inside corners. There is no point in trying to stain the inside of the hole in the port. 76-78 Now wipe the stain off again with a large clean rag.
  • Page 27 Use a clean rag to apply a coat of MinWax Wpe-On Poly Clear Satin. This is a remarkable product that is thin enough to soak straight into the wood but thick enough to provide a decent finish without running or dripping. Pour a little product into a disposable metal cup, like the bottom inch cut from a soda can.
  • Page 28 Clean up your work space as best you can. Remove all the dust from the cabinet and the work table. It is dust in the air that affects the final finish. Apply a second coat of Wipe-On Poly to the exterior. Allow to dry thoroughly. 10.

  • Page 29: Building The Baffle Board

    BUILDING THE BAFFLE BOARD Cut out the paper template of the baffle board and tape it to the baffle board (Part # BB08) with masking tape. Line up the outside edges as best you can. Use the awl, or hammer and nail, to mark the locations of the four 9/64 holes near the corners of the board.
  • Page 30 Use the hammer and awl or nail to mark the locations of the four 7/32 holes near the edge of the round cutout. Remove the template. Use the drill and the 9/64 bit to drill the four holes in the corners of the board. If you have a drill press, use it.
  • Page 31 Use the hammer to tap the four t-nuts (Part # NU03) into the four holes near the round cutout. Keep tapping until the t-nuts are flat against the board. Paint the side of the baffle board with the t-nuts and the inside surface of the round cutout flat black.
  • Page 32 a. Set the grill cloth face-down on the table. The face is the side with a distinct grid pattern and broken black lines. Set the baffle board black-side-down neatly centered on the grill cloth. Align one of the edges of the baffle board with one of the silver lines about an inch from the edge of the grill cloth.
  • Page 33 c. Place the baffle board back on the cloth with the edges against the two folds. Now find the line on the grill cloth (one of the threads) that is parallel and closest to the the other side of the baffle, opposite the first fold.
  • Page 34 (notice the orientation of the baffle board mounting holes). Alternatively, if you own a Percolator 2 Watt Tube Amplifier by Zeppelin Design Labs, orient the cloth to match the pattern on the amp grill. While holding the baffle board (black side and t-nuts down) onto the grill cloth, flip the assembly over and look at the front.
  • Page 35 11. Place the assembly face down on the table. While holding the grill cloth in its proper place, use your staple gun to put one staple into the edge of the baffle board in the middle of each side. Make sure the staple is right in the middle of the baffle board in both directions (up/down and left/right).
  • Page 36 14. Fold the remaining grill cloth over to the back of the baffle board and staple it down. Leave about 1/2” from the corners without any staples. 116, 117 15. At one corner of the baffle board, hold both corners of the grill cloth down, one of top of the other. Use your razor to cut a 45 degree line through both layers of cloth, from the corner of the baffle board.
  • Page 37 16. Use a lighter to singe loose threads at the corners. WARNING: The grill cloth is flammable! Be extremely careful to only singe the tips of loose fibers without setting your baffle board on fire. 17. If the grill cloth seems looser than you are comfortable with then you can use your heat gun to tighten it up.
  • Page 38 Leave it slightly loose. 20. Repeat for the remaining three screws and washers. Now tighten them all down securely. 21. Place the Zeppelin Design Labs serial number sticker on the frame of the speaker, as in the photo.
  • Page 39 22. Take one of the zip wires (Part # CB11), split both ends about 1/2”, and strip about 3/16” (5 mm) insulation from all four ends. Note one of the conductors has ribbed insulation; the other has writing on the insulation. By convention, we consider the ribbed wire as negative. 23.
  • Page 40 25. Double-check that you have marked the jack plate so you can put it back onto the port later in the correct orientation. Remove the plate from the jack. Mount the 1/4” input jack (Part # JA05) in a vise or clamp in a way that you can solder to the terminals. Place the ribbed wire in the hole of the negative lug (the one attached to the barrel of the jack).
  • Page 41 26. Now tin the terminals on the speaker and solder the other end of the wire to the speaker terminals. Be careful to solder the ribbed wire to the negative terminal (the one marked with a “-”). Solder the wire with writing on it to the positive terminal (marked with “+”). Also be careful not to drip molten solder onto the speaker cone! That’s it!

  • Page 42: Making The Speaker Cable

    MAKING THE SPEAKER CABLE Take the remaining 6” zip wire (Part # CB11) and split the ends about ½” (13mm). Now use your flush or diagonal cutters and cut off about 3/16” (4-5 mm) from both ends of the ribbed wire. Now strip about 3/16”...
  • Page 43 With the needle-nose pliers, carefully open the crimp ring at the rear of the jack. Mount the jack in some sort of clamp, vise or fixture, with the solder terminals exposed. Tin the two contact points on the jack as shown. 147, 148...
  • Page 44 Solder the slightly-shorter ribbed wire to the negative lug as shown. Now solder the other wire (with writing on it) to the positive lug. 150-152 After the lugs have adequately cooled, carefully squeeze the crimp rings back down onto the wire.
  • Page 45 Slide the jack barrel along the wire and over the jack. Screw it on tight. Take the jack out of the clamp or vise. 10. Unscrew the barrel of the other jack (Part # JA07) and slip the barrel over the wire so it can be screwed on to the other jack after you solder it, and then slip the little plastic sleeve over the wire as well.
  • Page 46 negative against the other positive for discontinuity. If anything shows any sign of being other than the way it should be, repeat Steps 12 and 13. That’s it! You have just built a quality speaker cable for your cabinet! This cable is the impedance delivery device for your amplifier.

  • Page 47: Putting It All Together

    PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER Install the Ports: If you chose to leave the Ports loose (see the note in “ASSEMBLING THE BOX” above step 30), put them back in the cabinet now. Be careful to put them back in the same position and orientation as when you drilled the pilot holes! If they were a tight fit before finishing, they will be VERY tight now.
  • Page 48 Place a #6x1-1/4 wood screw (Part # SC61) through one of the holes and use a screw driver or screw gun to drive it into the cleat just enough to mark the cleat. Repeat for all four corners. 163, 164 Remove the baffle and use the 1/16 bit to drill four pilot holes about ½”...
  • Page 49 10. Repeat for the other three corners, then go back and tighten all four screws. 11. Flip the cabinet over face-down. Push the jack out through the port hole. Put the jack plate (Part # PL20) back on the jack and bolt it on tight. Place the jack plate over the port hole, lining up the mark on the plate with the mark on the cabinet.

  • Page 50: Using Your New Speaker Cab

    USING YOUR NEW SPEAKER CAB BREAKING IN Your 1x8 Cabinet features a Jensen C8R speaker. We have found that these Jensen speakers are typically a bit stiff straight from the box. They tend to soften up the more you play through them, and they reach a nice bright, clear tone once they are mostly broken in.

  • Page 51: Replacing The Speaker

    REPLACING THE SPEAKER Some people like to swap out the speaker in their cabinets from time to time, and for various reasons – usually because they destroyed the original speaker, or they obtained a special or vintage speaker and they are dying to try it out. We recommend you service your speaker from the rear, by removing the ports and loosening the machine screws from the t-nuts.

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