Radio Shack 1197 .18L Speaker Project

An old pair of unused Optimus metal cabinet speakers provided the perfect hole cutout and small size for this interesting project. This experience has proved to me that an aperiodic box (in this case the use of small 1/8" straws cut in half to 2.5" length, wrapped in a rubber band to further seal the port) can offer good sound. I look forward to trying other drivers with this approach.

 1197 mounted in the existing hole. Perfect fit! Tweeter is disconnected.
Straws from the coffee shop (1/8" x 2.5") cut in half fill tweeter hole. (70 straws)

Rope caulk seals gaps inside cabinet and deadens basket of 1197. Rubber band seals the front and holds straws in place. Put it all back together, damar the cone and add a white felt dot (white sounded better than green, just kidding - didn't hear any difference with or without the dot but wanted to try and reduce how excited this driver becomes. A dot of rope caulk on the dustcap made piano sound smaller... felt seems to have little or no effect but looks cute).

Overall, light in bass but there is some. Slightly forward but you can easily hear contribution of the straws when you cover with your hand and then remove. It's a nice little speaker calling out for a subwoofer - another future project.

Low and medium volumes the speaker sounds alive and detailed. It's lighter on its feet than the 1354 based Straight Pipes below. Certainly not as full sounding but in many ways the mids are clearer and fill the room better. Overall balance is superior with the Straight Pipes but I prefer the 1197's with a powered sub.