Replacing sound proofing in cabniets

Agree with above posts, but will add a couple of other suggestions...

You can try to completely stuff the box with foam - the type Sean recommended exactly. While it goes against the conventional wisdom to stuff a ported box, this is what the Fried Line Tunnel or the Von Schweikert Transmission Line(I disagree that it is a TL) do.

Or, you can use polyester batting, loosely filling up the box.

Both of these things can relieve a speaker of its boxiness in many, many instances, turning wheezing bass into more natural sound. As in all cases, experimentation is needed to see if it works for you and/or your speakers.

Sean, excellent job on those Legacys!!!

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that you have taken them at least two levels forward. Your diligence in reducing the number of connections in the crossover would pay enormous dividends, at least to me. You obviously know much better than I how things improved, but if I would venture to guess, I would predict the dynamics and clarity improved audibly, while also realizing gains in liquidity and smoothness at the same time. The audio Holy Grail!

Did you go with the Solen caps in this project that we have talked about in the past? If so, I know you have great sound. I think these caps really get shortchanged when it comes to how good they sound. Full sounding and smooth, again, with great detail. The BEST everyday cap out there(well, actually the thicker film SCR/AXON made on the same line is a bit better, but they're both close). And, did you give those wirewound resistors a shot, Ohmite or otherwise?

I concur with your assessment of the bass alignment. You can only get so much from a box, and that makes me realize why I have been so underwhelmed by the Legacy bass in the past. When you see that kind of artillery, you expect to be blown back. When it doesn't happen, you are left with a lot of disappointment.

I will say that my last encounter with Legacy, at a demonstration they put on locally was by far my best time with them. Again, I found the Focus and the minimonitor to be the best in the line, and even quite good in some areas where a lot of (most) audiophile speakers fall down. My biggest complaint was that the metal dome tweeter was woefully out of date, and its piercing sonics bore this out. They have addressed this since, and I would like to give them another listen.

Their headquarters, in Allentown, are only about an hour from my home, or less.

I also agree with your statements to SteveAllen. While the books(and I have the utmost respect for Dickason's Cookbook) say what they say, I had to say what I have outlined previously goes against conventional wisdom. Like you, I have found that stuffing the ported box often has the opposite effect of producing a more boomy sound. As Fried and Von Schweikert show, it actually produces a less boxy sound. I know I am going to have a bunch of people jump on me here, but I consider the bass of my Fried A/6 Line Tunnel to be superior to my buddy's Von Schweikert VR2.

Sean, I take it that you are referring to the Legacys you have been working on?

As you know, I am not such a big fan of their speakers. I will say that the Focus and the minimonitor sound the best in the lineup to my ears. Legacy is my biggest disappointment in audio, where the whole definitely does not add up to the sum of its parts. Of couse, I am speaking "on paper", and your recent exercise probably proves that the sum of the parts isn't all that much to begin with.

When I was about 19, I finally had enough money to buy a pair of Legacys, and a used pair popped up in a nearby audio salon. After receiving their catalogs for years, I just "knew" they were the best speaker out there. Especially, at the price point.

I mean, come on, all those woofers are drivers, in a big, beautifully finished, well braced box. The testimonials were jammed with people who had moved to them from all of the respected brands - Thiel, Wilson, Mirage - let's just say that from this and all of the other "wonder products" I have encountered, I have zero faith in testimonials these days.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, I decided to go to the store to listen to my Legacies. It was a foregone conclusion that I would be buying them. The audition was simply a formality. Credit card in hand(if they were at a distant dealer, I would have just had them shipped), I drove on over.

Wow! All I can say is that there is no other product that I have encountered in audio that failed to live up to its hype like these babies. The overwhelming feeling I got was that it was impossible for a speaker this big and bold to come across this small and weak.

I won't go into all of the other details, but in a Legacy show, at the Allen Organ Company, which seems to have bought the line from Bill Duddleston, along with his services, I got the same exact impression.

The VERY valuable lesson I came away with was to NEVER DRINK FROM THE LABEL and NEVER TRUST THE MAGAZINES OVER A REAL, PERSONAL AUDITION!