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My Unscientific But Probably Valid Reluctance To Use MDF
I'm not an engineer and don't try to play one on Usenet, but I avoid
MDF because of some common sense reasons. It is hygroscopic (yeah, I mistyped the word last time) which means it picks up water. If it gets good and soaked you might as well build a big bonfire and burn it, standing well upwind. It is nonresonant, but its absorption spectra is such that it tends to make speakers using it sound not just neutral but "actively dull". We call that "crapping up the sound", in unscientific terms. It's less rugged than good plywoods and is unrepairable. I have seen many guitar cabs that if plywood could be repaired by judicious clamping and epoxy without destroying the Tolex, but in MDF must be stripped of drivers and burned. That's the only way to get rid of it. Composites are certainly OK for cabs if they are engineered for the purpose, but they are probably beyond the home constructor, except for machinable prefabricated materials like Corian. MDF is a composite too, just IMO an unsuitable one. I'm sure this will drive Arny to apoplexy, but that's the deal as I see it. |
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wrote in message oups.com... I'm not an engineer and don't try to play one on Usenet, but I avoid MDF because of some common sense reasons. It is hygroscopic (yeah, I mistyped the word last time) which means it picks up water. If it gets good and soaked you might as well build a big bonfire and burn it, standing well upwind. All wood products are to varying degrees... plywood too, even outdoor grades. You planning on soaking your speakers? How will your drivers and crossovers stand up to that? It is nonresonant, but its absorption spectra is such that it tends to make speakers using it sound not just neutral but "actively dull". We call that "crapping up the sound", in unscientific terms. Now you're making stuff up. I suppose the absorption spectra of a comfortable listening chair will crap up the sound as well. I think you should be listening while seated on a spike for optimum "uncrapped" sound. It's less rugged than good plywoods and is unrepairable. Plywood will inevitably delaminate and then buzz which will really crap up the sound. I have seen many guitar cabs that if plywood could be repaired by judicious clamping and epoxy without destroying the Tolex, but in MDF must be stripped of drivers and burned. That's the only way to get rid of it. You must have inhaled a bit too much formaldehyde from your MDF torching parties. What does guitar speakers cabinets have to do with Hi-fi speaker cabinets? ScottW |