Need opinions...

[Caine Drathul]

I would really like everyone's input based on your saber creations...

I am making a sinktube saber with a Vader soundboard. I am planning on using the stock Vader battery pack/speaker combo and wonder if I should keep the speaker pointing down (I am putting the switch on the end cap, so I would just use a 35mm film canister as a sound resonator) and drill holes toward the bottom of the hilt OR point the speaker upwards and drill holes toward the mid-top of the hilt? I understand that this method along with the resonator makes a real "throaty" sound.

Opinions please! Thanks!

[Lord Dottore Matto]

Uhem, I seem to be the current expert in reverse sound sabers, so I shall give a little advice. The first thing to think about is the hilt type and electronics setup that you are using. Using an MR battery/speaker combo for reverse sound would present a number of problems for you. First, how are you planning on getting your wires bye the module and up to the emitter (and your LED)? You would want your speaker to be stationary (I.e. not removable) and you sure do not want to use an MR speaker. Do you really want to have to take the saber apart at the emitter end every time you need to change the batteries? Use the standard pommel end for your sound holes on this saber. Make sure to see my posts in the gallery (the Crusader and the Reconciliation) if you want to learn about reverse sound sabers.

Good luck. If you want any more advice, post a render or picture of your hilt

[Caine Drathul]

Thanks for the quick response. That was what I was thinking anyways, just wanted an expert opinion.

[Count Malik]

Sounds like your good to me... There are different ways to put stock MR sound-speaker-battery pack in a sink tube. look in the gallery section. (somewhere in the mhs section I think.) someone made a saber with the set up you are talking about. Now about the upside down pack w/speaker that can work... But in the end its all up to you! thats what makes it a custom saber!;-):smile:

[Novastar]

For the record, the MR speakers are actually not all that bad, especially considering how they are mounted on the battery pack, how little resonance comes out of a stock MR... and the sound quality (which I believe is 4-bit or 8-bit) from the board itself.

As to what LDM said--yup, right on the money. In general, it actually doesn't matter where you mount a speaker... the most important thing is what you do with the ability to create RESONANCE.

I mean... a good example is... turn on a standard/stock MR. Cover up the pommel. You'll hear almost ZERO sound at this point.

Try that with one of my Flange III sabers. You'll only "cover up" about 50% of the sound (maybe less!). This is simply because I have resonance holes ABOVE the speaker, as well as its little cavity/hole near the pommel.

Ideally, I say LDM's ideas are best for sound because:

* A speaker mounted closer to the EMITTER (or "top") of a saber... makes more logical sense (if you will)... as the "energy blade" makes the hum, right? Or, whatever, I don't know. I like that though.

* A speaker mounted somewhat more inside the hilt can be allowed resonance holes in "front of" and "in back of" the speaker. Although in reality... it really doesn't matter which way most speakers face. They get fed "normal polarity" and then "reverse polarity" to achieve the push & pull thing. So... it doesn't really matter most of the time. Especially in something as simple and small as a saber.

* Centrally mounted speakers leave the pommel open for... other endeavors! Such as switches (duh, heheh)!!

I would have made the Flange III sabers this way, but... alas--the sheer diameter of the speakers alone (36mm, 45mm, etc.) completely prohibited that.

And in this case... it was WORTH it. I would love to see a saber that is of similar outer diameter than rivals the RIDICULOUS volume of these things. Actually... they're pretty irritating and obnoxious at times when I'm using them!! Sometimes it's quite literally TOO much. :)

[Onli-Won Kanomi]

Interesting points Novastar.

I have been thinking about this myself and wondering about whether as much brighter higher-wattage LEDs or clusters begin to be used and overheating becomes more of an issue whether putting the speaker relatively close behind and aimed toward the heatsink might also be helpful in cooling as an alternative to the active-cooling fans etc that some have suggested. Afterall a speaker is already ACTIVELY pushing AIR right...so if it pushes sound/air toward/over the heatsink as sound escapes through perpendicular holes around it then maybe it would push hot air out though those holes too helping cool future super-powerful LEDs?

I'm thinking in particular of the TCSS heatsink that has the ring cuts in the 'mushroom stem' instead of being solid but there isnt much air flow inside a hilt normally to utilize that extra surface area for cooling...whereas if the sound holes were drilled in the hilt area just behind the the threads around where the 'stem' would normally be and the speaker was mounted an inch or two back for resonance and was blasting air toward it it that would have to pass by and be deflcted by the stem before the sound escaped then maybe that might help cool the LED???

Maybe not necessary yet with triple LEDs like Ace and X-Wing have made available to us but that approach may be useful with even more powerful LED developments in the future eh? I'm thinking something like this might even be necessary when we get to the 1500 lumens/100watt lightbulb equivalent 'daylight' sabers in a few years

[Phiily Manyaan]

The holes themselves would even cool the heatsinks significantly when you swing the saber, as for the speaker cooling it, it would have to do SOMETHING. Its probably not pushing that much air but some.

[Novastar]

...putting the speaker relatively close behind and aimed toward the heatsink might also be helpful in cooling as an alternative to the active-cooling fans etc that some have suggested. Afterall a speaker is already ACTIVELY pushing AIR right...so if it pushes sound/air toward/over the heatsink as sound escapes through perpendicular holes around it then maybe it would push hot air out though those holes too helping cool future super-powerful LEDs?No. You're thinking of more super-large speakers, such as the huge "sub-woofers" that are found on most entertainment speaker sets. These push quite a bit of air... but even THAT amount--would probably be insufficient to do any significant (and I do say significant) cooling to the LEDs.

For this sort of thing, a cooling fan + vent holes (+ swinging the saber around) would help the best I'd think.

But this kind of worry for heat would most likely only be necessary if you were pumping all kinds of wild current/voltage in there. Like... for a P7 or something just INSANE with ~4A...

And even then... you'd simply want to add more aluminum or copper material for the LED to distribute its heat. In fact... in some cases... when a saber is really designed well--the entire hilt can act as a heatsink of sorts, and dissipate a fairly monstrous amount of heat.

But while we're on cooling fans... those things HAVE been discussed as of late, and who knows--they might become mainstream someday. Could even happen this year: you never know. :)

[Onli-Won Kanomi]

Not enough airflow eh...darn I was hoping the enclosed space and resonance chamber channeling it might make it of at least some use esp since right now theres no airflow at all over the heatsink...ah well another not-so-brilliant idea bites the dust eh...hope the narrow lil choke section doesnt get tooo hot to handle with the tri-rebels I've got coming.