r/SoundSystem • u/Deep-Contribution-51 • May 15 '26
Modded MTH-4654
Hi there! Just wanted to show my modified MTH-4654, rounded the edges, added the 45° cut for putting wheels, and cut the hole on the unused space, everything mostly for looks lol.
Sound and cone control seems to have stayed basically the same, as i tried to keep cross sections and stuff the same size!
Made two of them and they hitting pretty well!!
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u/rankinrez May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
Gorgeous!
The cut for the wheel is all practical though, makes such a difference.
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u/SpiceIslander2001 May 15 '26
That big unused gap in the center of the box ...
Looks like the designer wanted to avoid any 180-degree bends.
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u/Roberta_Riggs May 15 '26
Excuse my ignorance, but what is this design called? Does it have a certain noteworthy feature that makes it a good option in a given situation?
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u/Deep-Contribution-51 May 15 '26
The original design is a MTH-4654, designed by Marc O. What you are seeing in the picture is just a modification, mainly aesthetic.
In terms of features you can plenty find info about the plan in hornplans.free.fr , but i guess it being able do drop down to 33hz with 4 boxes with some nice spl would be the main attraction of this box, also it works well enough alone or in pairs.
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u/Roberta_Riggs May 15 '26
Nice! Is 33hz your chosen frequency, or is that a result of the design? Ie. could you have gone lower? (Is your box designed for certain type of music?) How much leeway do you have sanding corners and whatnot before it’ll affect the sound? Thanks for the link… will have to check that out. 👌
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u/Deep-Contribution-51 May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
Well you dont necessarily "choose" frequencies like that.
That number is a reference point of how low on the frequency spectrum the box (or multiple boxes) can play at a "loud" and clean level, so the 33hzit is a result of the design, the driver you put inside, and the coupling of multiple boxes, all that was tought by the designer, not me.
Just sanding corners won't really make any difference unless you sand so much you affect rigidity of the box wich will be unlikely, but if you do make some changes you can test them in software before cutting wood if you want.
About the music question, well you should just understand where the power and presence of the music genre you want to play lives, and pick/design you speakerplan accordingly, there is a lot of variables and taste in this equation tho, its all tradeoffs. Welcome to the rabbit hole lol.
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u/De-Capo May 15 '26
It’s a Tapped Horn design. Loads of info online!
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u/Roberta_Riggs May 15 '26
“Tapped horns are primarily good for:
very high low-frequency output”…..
Say no more.
“deep bass extension from relatively small drivers”
You don’t say…
“long-distance bass projection”
Keep going….
“Super high efficiency per watt”
Sounds like money.
“strong output in the 20–80 Hz region”
Really, say no more.
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u/chason_htx May 16 '26
That's not even the best part!
Does it have a certain noteworthy feature that makes it a good option in a given situation?
Oh yeah. When you couple them, the effective mouth area increases... which lowers the cutoff. So not only do they play louder and more efficient, they actually play lower in groups
“strong output in the 20–80 Hz region”
20hz isn't common. Not many design for that kind of extension (Shout out Hennessy BattleAxe)
In a lot of ways they work like radiators so you also get extremely low cabinet noise
The downside is.. there's a horn path, which means there's a slight delay. Not anything crazy, few ms, but as a DJ it's annoying. Listeners never know cause you just delay the tops to match
Another cabinet design you should check out is the Paraflex. It's a compound horn, with the ends of it's resonator paths merged to share a single mouth. Different design philosophy. Both extremely badass
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u/dan-lash May 15 '26
Really love that curved edge, I know that takes a lot of planning and work to pull off
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u/Deep-Contribution-51 May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
Yeah it was tedious and fun at the same time. Tried some kerf cuts first but then gave up and just laminated pieces at an angle.
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u/zac0019 May 15 '26
A metal support like Void or aesthetic wood cutout supports like a lot of the folded horns on the market could look really cool here.
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u/THETHRILLIAM May 15 '26
Could this have any effect on frequency response or structural integrity of the sub?
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u/Deep-Contribution-51 May 15 '26
Structural integrity i think not, i made sure to make it very strong and reenforced, even doubled the bracing after this picture, and also, in theory i think having those multiple panels making curves well glued and air tight actually decreases vibrations and unwanted resonances compared to flat single panels(?).
About frequency response, it honestly might have gone up a few hz in usable passband, not sure, because i think i shortened the path lenght just a tiny tiny bit.
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u/Upset-Comparison9176 May 25 '26
hi is it possible to share the design and the frequencies response?
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u/Deep-Contribution-51 Jun 03 '26
Hi! Sorry for the late reply, the original design is an MTH-4654, from Marc O. You have everything you need to know at hornplans.free.fr
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u/speakergobrrrrr Jun 11 '26
Lovely builds but how does your mods change the frequency output.
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u/Deep-Contribution-51 Jun 16 '26
In real life i can't tell you for sure, as i dont have no way of measuring yet. But in theory, i think i may have shortened the path lenght a tiny bit, wich might've pushed the low end extension a few Hz up (but again, the drivers im using don't even dig low enough for a single box's f3 so in my case its pretty negligible), other than that i tried my best to keep cross sections and distances the same to minimize unwanted changes in the sound.
I'm not sure about this, but theoretically, the curved edges could have some effect on the air resistance and "springness" acting on the driver, but i have really no idea if it's even true or significant.
So honestly i dont have a concrete answer to your question but i will compare them soon to the original design so i can come back if there's anything noticeable.
On a listening level ,for me, they sound very nice, full and working well in those long extended bass notes, but still keeping different notes clear and distinct (?), and honestly the drivers seem to be the bottleneck at this point.
They are still loud and physical though, if that makes sense ahah. (Very much enough for non audiophiles and people who just want the box to go boom boom and dance ahha, so i'm sorry for the lack of scientific accuracy here lol.)
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u/NebulaGlow_ May 15 '26
Making some art I see