Our molded, monocoque enclosure construction enables implementation of cabinet geometry that would be impossible to execute with any sheet stock/joinery or extruded aluminum methods. We use state of the art 3D modeling and computer numerical controlled machining to develop and produce cabinet forms that can be optimized for the multiple goals of correct driver placement, reduction of internal standing wave modes, and minimization of diffraction and reflection anomalies. Here an Arrakis tooling form is being carved out on a five axis, CNC milling machine from a block of rigid polyurethane and will ultimately serve as the pattern for the production tooling.
Our composite cabinet walls are constructed from two, high tensile strength, glass fiber reinforced, loaded resin shells that are separated by a proprietary high density, high hysteresis loss, epoxy core material that bonds the inner and outer shells together. This geometry creates an immensely stiff, yet highly damped beam section for the cabinet walls, exploiting the shell’s tensile modulus, and the core’s compression and shear modulus. This kind of composite construction cannot be matched by any single or homogeneous material since the cabinet walls must exhibit high mass, high stiffness, and high damping, a combination of conflicting attributes unobtainable in any single material.
The Arrakis benefits from our most ambitious enclosure construction techniques. In this highly engineered composite system, the main structural outer shells for the Arrakis baffles utilize state of the art, high modulus, carbon fiber pre-preg fabric layers which are laid up in the CNC machined aluminum tool, vacuum de-bulked, and then consolidated at high heat and pressure to form the immensely stiff outer shell for the baffle. Here, JT is laying up the first layer of carbon fiber pre-preg in the Arrakis baffle tool.
Because our composite enclosures are so stiff, massive, and non-resonant, they essentially function as an inertial reference. Subsequently, our composite cabinets exhibit virtually no energy storage. The result is an enclosure that is so inert it has no discernable contribution to the sound at any frequency or volume, and allows the drive elements to display the greatest possible dynamic contrasts. This total lack of cabinet coloration results in a dramatic increase in clarity throughout the entire frequency range, as well as the “blackest” background possible from any loudspeaker enclosure. And, while other manufacturers make outrageous claims about comparatively pedestrian construction techniques, we can actually demonstrate that our composite enclosures easily outperform any other production loudspeaker enclosure.