Will wrapping B&W 683's in a walnut covering affect the overall sound of the speakers

[mattsk8]

Hello all!

I've recently purchase a new home theater system (getting back into audio after a 20 year lapse. Kids are older now)

Here's what I bought

Oppo BDP-105 (using directly as a preamp now)
Emotiva XPA-100's (x 3 for each of the front channels)
Emotiva XPA-200 (rear channels)
B&W 683's for fronts
B&W HTM-61 Center
Polk TSI-300's for the rears (I know- no comments necessary)
SVS PB12+ subwoofer

So here's my dilema. Due to space constraints I would like to have an XPA 100 under each of the front L & R speakers. Rather than have a huge rack of audio equipment (my wife's objections). They will be connected directly to the Oppo via XLR cables on the dedicated analog outs. I make higher end furniture as a hobby and would like to wrap the B&W's in a 3/4" thick walnut surround. It would be glued directly to the existing cabinet and I would replace the existing base with one that would encapsulate the amp underneath with about 2" clearance between it and the speaker. Will this effect the acoustics of the speakers? Any help would be appreciated. I will not do anything to the rear of the speaker.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

PS The front or rear of the speaker will NOT be altered.

If you build furniture, why not make new cabinets for the B&Ws instead of adding wood to the old ones? Make a (same dimension as original) new cabinet out of MDF or baltic birch and veneer it. You could even add better bracing to your new cabinets and maybe reduce cabinet resonance and get better sound out of them. This way, if it all goes south and you give up, you didn't ruin your original cabinets and you can continue to listen to your B&Ws while you do it .

Another huge benefit is that it gets your foot in the door to DIY speaker building; because IMO w/ all the incredible designs that are available and your knowledge of woodworking, you've already got what it takes to build a great set of speakers. You came to the right place w/ your question for sure! Although your wife might disagree in the long run, speaker building can be expensive and addictive

 

[slipperybidness]

If you build furniture, why not make new cabinets for the B&Ws instead of adding wood to the old ones? Make a (same dimension as original) new cabinet out of MDF or baltic birch and veneer it. You could even add better bracing to your new cabinets and maybe reduce cabinet resonance and get better sound out of them. This way, if it all goes south and you give up, you didn't ruin your original cabinets and you can continue to listen to your B&Ws while you do it .

Another huge benefit is that it gets your foot in the door to DIY speaker building; because IMO w/ all the incredible designs that are available and your knowledge of woodworking, you've already got what it takes to build a great set of speakers. You came to the right place w/ your question for sure! Although your wife might disagree in the long run, speaker building can be expensive and addictive

+1

I think the woodworking is the hard part. If you are good at that, then you are way ahead of the DIY speaker game. There are a lot of great public domain designs out there, search for murphyblaster and see what comes up.