mkaramazov Posted October 7, 2023 Share Posted October 7, 2023 (edited) I thought I would start this system thread on rehousing a pair of Goodmans Axiom 301s into some new cabinets. I have previously featured these speakers in another thread. They used to be installed in a large stand mount infinite baffle cabinets. Although they sounded quite good, Goodmans aficionados will know that this was not to specification - these drivers need a bigger box and were designed to be used with an aperiodic port, the Goodmans ARU. I had vague plans to pay a cabinet maker to build something for me, but never quite found the opportunity. A couple of months ago I happened upon a cheap pair of large cabinets. Those with eagle eyes (on the pictures below) may know these are the bass section cabinets from a 1960s pair of Wharfedale Airdales. They are truly huge, and a very heavy, solidly made piece of furniture, with excellent internal bracing. I decided to flip the cabinets upside down, and install my Goodmans 301 drivers, which slotted neatly into the ports designed for a 12 inch driver. The Goodmans DLM 2 horn tweeters are currently running naked on top. With my McChanson 6as7 SET amp, these sound quite magic. Sensitivity is of course very impressive, and they are singing with very little power. This is a big scale sound and very full from top to bottom - I never thought I would get such immense bass out of these old Goodman's drivers. The tweeters seem also to have been released , and I have a very sweet open treble emerging from the combo. I have no idea if these cabinets are anywhere near ideal spec, though they do sound very good, and there is lots more scope for tweaks. I do have some Goodman's ARUs in storage, which perhaps could be installed. The big question is how I accommodate these speakers in my two bedroom flat! But hearing them makes me think I will just have to find a way. Looking forward to this project unfolding in the next little while. Edited October 7, 2023 by mkaramazov 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRolley Posted December 8, 2023 Share Posted December 8, 2023 So cool to see you have experimented with changing out of those smaller enclosures-which were actually nice looking, if not getting the very best out the drivers. I love how you have flipped these new (vintage) enclosures above. We spoke some time ago about your Goodmans (and McChanson) and they never left my mind. I since acquired some McChanson amps-I got a 2 Watt amp that I paired with Coral drivers which sounded lovely, but I wanted a little more power. I came across another 2 watter exactly the same and Eric customised them for me, turning each into a switchable stand alone stereo amp or mono amp, I also had a headphone out added to one as I had a baby on the way at the time and foresaw a time when headphones would enter the scene. Suffice to say that the legends are true when it comes to Eric and his incredible, personalised customer service and relations. I know that he had a number of projects on the go at the time, but I felt like his sole customer in terms of his enthusiasm for the work. The two mono blocks did what I hoped and ramped up the volume-I listen loud-and they are perfect. I managed to acquire a pair of DLM-2 horn tweeters along with some 10" Axioms drivers too. They have sat in my storage until recently a local pair of 12" axiom 201's came my way. I gave the 12" a run and remembered that I had the DLM-2's hidden away. I've hooked them up and they work, but I haven't experimented much yet. I wonder if you can share how you are connecting the DLM-2's? The DLM-2's have an inbuilt crossover, and I have just connected the amplifiers' speaker outputs to the Axiom driver terminals and connected another length of cable from the axioms to the DLM-2's. I'm assuming that this has the Axioms running in full range and the tweeters doing their thing on top of that. Does that sound right to you? How are you getting your signal to both? On a side note, as I already had the DLM-2's paired with my 10" drivers, I'm looking at having some crossovers made and using some Coles Super Tweeters for the 12's. I want to experiment with open baffles for mine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkaramazov Posted December 10, 2023 Author Share Posted December 10, 2023 On 08/12/2023 at 1:41 PM, RockRolley said: So cool to see you have experimented with changing out of those smaller enclosures-which were actually nice looking, if not getting the very best out the drivers. I love how you have flipped these new (vintage) enclosures above. We spoke some time ago about your Goodmans (and McChanson) and they never left my mind. I since acquired some McChanson amps-I got a 2 Watt amp that I paired with Coral drivers which sounded lovely, but I wanted a little more power. I came across another 2 watter exactly the same and Eric customised them for me, turning each into a switchable stand alone stereo amp or mono amp, I also had a headphone out added to one as I had a baby on the way at the time and foresaw a time when headphones would enter the scene. Suffice to say that the legends are true when it comes to Eric and his incredible, personalised customer service and relations. I know that he had a number of projects on the go at the time, but I felt like his sole customer in terms of his enthusiasm for the work. The two mono blocks did what I hoped and ramped up the volume-I listen loud-and they are perfect. I managed to acquire a pair of DLM-2 horn tweeters along with some 10" Axioms drivers too. They have sat in my storage until recently a local pair of 12" axiom 201's came my way. I gave the 12" a run and remembered that I had the DLM-2's hidden away. I've hooked them up and they work, but I haven't experimented much yet. I wonder if you can share how you are connecting the DLM-2's? The DLM-2's have an inbuilt crossover, and I have just connected the amplifiers' speaker outputs to the Axiom driver terminals and connected another length of cable from the axioms to the DLM-2's. I'm assuming that this has the Axioms running in full range and the tweeters doing their thing on top of that. Does that sound right to you? How are you getting your signal to both? On a side note, as I already had the DLM-2's paired with my 10" drivers, I'm looking at having some crossovers made and using some Coles Super Tweeters for the 12's. I want to experiment with open baffles for mine. Thanks for the post @RockRolley! Yes, Eric is a pleasure to deal with, and it sounds like he has helped you along your journey. I really love the amp I got from him, and still fondly remember his service. Nice to hear that you have been experimenting with vintage Goodmans drivers! That is exactly how to use the DLM 2 tweeters. Run a length of cable from your amp to your main drivers, and then a second length from those drivers to the tweeters. There is an internal crossover on the DLM 2 that cuts in from 5000hz. In my system they integrate pretty smoothly with the Goodmans Axiom 301s, and after hearing the system both with and without the tweeters, I can definately say that those DLM 2s do improve the sound substantially. I imagine they will sound great with your Axiom 201s, or your 10" Goodmans drivers (Twin Axiom 10?). I have placed mine on top, which when I sit down means that the tweeters are slightly above ear level. This sounds pretty good to me; however you may want to experiment with placement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkaramazov Posted December 10, 2023 Author Share Posted December 10, 2023 And just a bit of an update. I have since played around with placement - this time placed where my usual speakers sit. Absurdly big for the room. But you only live once. Running a Tung Sol 5998, this sounds very nice - even a few moments of real bass 'slam' playing Supertramp which I found hard to believe. The experiments continue.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
illusion Posted December 10, 2023 Share Posted December 10, 2023 Nice setup, but some worrying looking stuff on that coffee table 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkaramazov Posted December 10, 2023 Author Share Posted December 10, 2023 4 minutes ago, illusion said: Nice setup, but some worrying looking stuff on that coffee table Thank you. Ha ha, yes, made no effort to tidy the coffee table! BTW for clarity - in case anyone is worried - that is my stylus cleaning gear (including an Audio Technica AT637 ultrasonic stylus cleaner, and AT stylus cleaning fluid), and that syringe is thermal paste . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
illusion Posted December 10, 2023 Share Posted December 10, 2023 hehe thanks for clearing that up 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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