The Fairchild Ghost. Subwoofer project.

ALXAndy · 13 Jul 2025 at 16:25

OK so finally feels like I am starting to get somewhere ! Before I go into that though I forgot to mention I grabbed this on PD for £21.

I have a 5 way, but I am continually messing around pulling things in and out of it. I have flipped the "ears" and it will power the amp and all my chargers. Obs no protection, so another PD deal was this for £7.

OK so today I curved one edge of the port and then double curved the air end. I then got into my groove painting sealer. In fact I got so into it that only one panel is left to seal on the inside now. I literally ran out of space to put them to dry lol.

And said port. Sadly the filler is lost and it is too hot to go out to the front shed and look. So I ordered some more.

I have one outer panel to round over now. I wasn't sure if it would go into the sunken screw holes so did not want to risk it. By the time I figured it wasn't all the tools were cleaned and put away so I will do that tomorrow. This is what I mean here.

Lots of clearance.

ALXAndy · 14 Jul 2025 at 16:19

OK so today I did the part I was dreading the most. First I mapped out the bolt holes for the acrylic, then centre punched. This was after clamping it to the part it will bolt onto.

About two hours later. Took a bit to work out how much epoxy I should use on the threadserts. By the time I was done my hands were all sticky and I was annoyed lol.

I will do the gasket tonight, as I need to know how thick it all is with the gasket in before I set the wood part into the cabinet.

ALXAndy · 15 Jul 2025 at 16:58

Just a half an update. Will post some more pics in a bit.

For now though I am thinking about the DSP. I found a 1 amp PSU for it (from an old router) and it all works great. The cables are ugly though. So I got this.

The problem is no matter how well I braid the cable it still looks like poop at the plug end. So, I have asked @Cenedd to print me a plug cover thingermebob. Not measured anything up yet.

I also did not want to leave it on 24/7 but due to it having an AMP REM it would be. So, I got the next best thing.

Last night I cut the gasket. After messing with it for nearly two hours I realised it was just far too thick. So, I swallowed my pride, lobbed it all in the bin and ordered this. This is the same material (neoprene) but it is only 2mm thick and will look much better.

ALXAndy · 15 Jul 2025 at 18:59

So today I finished the roundovers. I then attached the port and the brace. These clamps are fantastic.

And then started primer.

ALXAndy · 16 Jul 2025 at 17:27

Fill, sand, fill again, sand some more and then the first coat of satin white. Still some sanding to do on the second round.

Sadly my skin condition is back with a vengeance. Which really sucks and is slowing me down badly

ALXAndy · 18 Jul 2025 at 18:53

OK so no post yesterday. No point I was just doing even more sodding painting !. So I got the toilet finished lmao. OK, dad joke but it does look like a bog a bit.

Doubt it would hold my weight though lol.

But yeah, I seriously misunderestimated (lmfao, good old George Bush) how much sodding painting was going to be involved tbh. So, today I took myself and a load of panels out into the garden and just went at it. One more to do, but, not until the whole rest of the cabinet is built so at least on Sunday when I go back at it I can actually do something other than ruddy painting !

I also got this done last night.

ALXAndy · 23 Jul 2025 at 16:20

OK so it went awful quiet....

Had to go back to the hospital. It got so bad it was bleeding again. They have taken a biopsy now but think it's psoriasis. All over my private parts.

I now have more creams and more potent painkillers. Im going back Friday all being well. Im really hating not being able to do pretty much anything.

clone · 25 Jul 2025 at 10:50

A man of many talents I see

ALXAndy · 25 Jul 2025 at 14:49

clone said:
A man of many talents I see

Among them having a mushroom farm in my undies it seems. Biopsy has come back, it is fungal now. Seems the initial infection confused every thing and every one. Still, I am not complaining it is better than psoriasis. There is no cure for that...

I've bought a new cordless cheapy drill. I killed my Bosch screwdriver and I don't want to keep swapping out bits. I also got this.

I've had an idea for an enclosure. So yeah, lets all cross our fingers and hope that my 4 month long nightmare may be coming to an end and I can actually do things without being in constant agony.

ALXAndy · 26 Jul 2025 at 19:10

OK, so finally I am not in agony. I fitted the gasket foam and bolted down the top.

And then set to work.

So the top and back are now on.

I have to wait until tomorrow before a side can go on (and the bottom) as firstly I need to finish painting the inside of the port and secondly I need some stanley blades to scrape the paint from the edges. It will literally stop it screwing together properly.

I did this last time but was in so much pain after I did not get a pic. But the feet threadserts were set with epoxy.

And so.

Cenedd · 26 Jul 2025 at 22:58

Glad things are starting to look up.

ALXAndy · 27 Jul 2025 at 11:50

Same dude. I have hives all over me and I am itchy, but I think the latest steroid cream brought that on. I have stopped using it now, not sure how long it remains. Still that I can deal with.

I am just about to fire up the CNC for the back plate. It got delayed as mum was messing me around. She was supposed to go out so I could do it then and didn't, then got all stroppy and said she didn't want me doing it the day after. Then I had to leave. So much for "If I buy and give you a kitchen makeover you won't complain once when I do my speaker". /roll eyes.

Cenedd · 27 Jul 2025 at 14:23

Ah, I feel that one comes under the same category as "When YOU'RE driving YOU can choose the music"! :cry:

ALXAndy · 27 Jul 2025 at 14:33

hah. well she has been good as gold today so that's cool. It is done. Have drilled 10 holes in it, then marked it out on the back panel and pre drilled the screw holes.

Unfortunately the USB socket needs more than a 30mm hole. So I bought a 35mm hole saw. It is not long enough to bolt through the plate onto the wood, so it needs clearance for the nut.

Ah well. I finished painting the port now, and have put sealer on the last of the panels to be painted. Footy on in a bit, so I will do more painting with that in the background.

ALXAndy · 27 Jul 2025 at 15:50

OK so I am now waiting for paint to dry. The final side is in primer, so now needs two coats of satin white. Not sure there will be enough time today to get it all done but we will see. Just depends how it dries.

I have now fitted the bottom. So, this will be the last and only fully cross sectional pic.

Front.

And the back.

Now you'll note there are a load of holes and markings there..

That is because this is done.

Which I am very happy with. I also ordered this. It is not the usual material (which turns to powder and cracks if you drill it) it is PVC. The reason for that is because this will be the back box for the VU meter. I will machine my own face plate for it in gold.

It will need two speaker terminals (got, I got them before I decided to switch to Speakon) and a power socket. Will sort that out later.

ALXAndy · Monday at 18:05

Well for a moment there I thought it was over. I laid it down and placed the side panel over it. It was out. Like, I would say nearly a centimetre out. I sat there wondering how I could have gone so wrong. Then I remembered this actually happened last time. To fix it you line it up at the top (I put two screws in) and then pull the bugger into shape and add screws as you do so. The back was the most off, then the bottom, then the whole front unit with the port on. I got there eventually after drilling out the motherlode of countersunk holes then pre drill etc.

It is about 1/2mm proud along the front. That is fine, it will sand out. I think that blade thickness comes into things when you are talking about .mm.

I then spent the next hour or so setting this up.

ALXAndy · Tuesday at 12:12

To do list. You can ignore this lol. Cut the two holes for the back panel connectors. Cut and shape foam padding before you fit the other side or it will be impossible.

Cenedd · Tuesday at 12:16

ALXAndy said:
To do list.

....use router bits that won't shed a bearing mid cut and destroy your work.

What, too soon?!

ALXAndy · Tuesday at 14:00

Nah that was the old speaker lol. Next time I use that is with a bit with no bearing.

Just hole sawed the holes for the terminals. Needs touching up. Fits lovely though so there is that.

ALXAndy · Tuesday at 16:07

OK that is it for today. Got this done and finished, then removed it and packed it away.

I then cut all of these to size. The reason why I did it now is because it will be impossible down in the port area once the only access hole is the woofer hole. I also needed to do this now and then number and pack them away so they don't get filled with dust when I cut said woofer hole.

And I created this pic to reference when they go in permanently with contact adhesive.

I can get the remaining side panel on tomorrow now.