The BEST Dressed Speaker, Piano Black Finish On A Budget - CSS 1TDX Part 2 

I certainly made some mistakes along the way but thankfully with woodworking there is almost always a way to fix it haha. Thanks for sharing your past projects as well, finishing projects can be such a pain but also so rewarding.

Right on, a little of this, a little of that

Took a bit to finish but finally paid off, now onto sound testing.

That’s really interesting to hear in comparison to the KEF, I look forward to testing and comparing these.

I've owned 4 different CSS speakers, including 2TDX towers. I also own a pair of KEF R3 Metas. May I ask, in what ways did the CSS sound better than the R7's? I am soon to build the 3TDX with superior crossovers.

@@timball4892 I just ordered the 3TD-X upgrade kit. I look forward to getting these built. The upgrade I purchased just has the upgraded crossover instead of the new amber caps. I spoke with one of the owners of CSS and he said even they could barely hear any difference but they wanted to offer the upgrade since customers were asking about them. For me, they had better reproduction of female voices. Especially someone like Etta James. There was just more body and realism to them. The CSS really gave her voice soulful richness. The KEF were definitely thinner in the sound. I also found that the KEF were a little sibilent with snare and cymbals. Anything a little bit more busy and they would start to sound like a box of snakes rather than individual pieces with a natural decay. The CSS speakers for me had a very natural cymbol sound that would decay naturally maybe that’s part of the crossover upgrade? I’m not sure but my feelings on the CSS speakers over my KEF speakers was immediately mirrored by my wife and she’s usually pretty reserved with her thoughts on my audio equipment. I also had a set of R3 Metas that I let go of. Great bookshelf but again, just overshadowed by the R7s and the CSS. No surprise there though….

@@rareearthfab5511 Thanks for the thorough response. I would agree with your thoughts on the R3's, I have them for sale but not any action on them and they are brand new, with stands, black and am selling for $1800 but that is beside the point. My other speakers are Magnepan 3.7i's and they are awesome in many ways but contrast from dynamic speakers in impact and dynamics. I supplement with a pair of REL T7X's. I live fairly close to CSS and have visited them once and am going to pick up my 3TDX kits either this week or next. Awesome guys and super service oriented.

Sure thing, thanks for watching as well.

Thanks so much! This build was a lot of fun.

@@MattCoykendall1 So how do they sound? CSS is literally right around the corner from me up in town, I need to visit those guys one day.

Yes I will get started on the sound review soon, I am expecting good things so far.

Thank you!

Thank you so much! Finishing is one of those things that can be frustrating at the moment but I’m already looking forward to the next one.

Yeah, the extra sheen gave it what it needed, I knew it needed something more so I kept playing around with it. If you dont want to mess with the gloss black...try an autobody shop, I might even do that next time.

Thanks!

Thanks!

Appreciate the watch!

You bet! Thanks for tuning in too

The 3TDX will be a really nice addition. What do you think of the bass modules?

@@MattCoykendall1 I actually preferred the bass on the 2TDX towers. Not a powerful and maybe just a touch lighter, less extended, but more articulate. I no longer own any of the models so the 3 will not be an addition. I have either given them away to children/friends or sold them. I love building them and trying new speakers. Some would say it is a hobby and others might say an addiction...ha! Again, great review and anxious to hear your opinion on how they sound

I noticed that right away as well, these really benefit from a good power source.

Yes I can attest the superior x-over need as much power and capacitance as you can afford. 100w A/B minimum.

It was certainly a fun build, finishing can be so frustrating at times but also rewarding...when it all works out!

Sign me up haha

Hey Tony! How’s it going?

@mattcoykendall1 All good in the ‘hood my friend. Can’t wait for your review of their sound.

There is certainly something to building it also, feel a little more connected to it.

So far so good on the sound but it’s still very early in my review, separate review will be coming.

Nailed it

I don’t think I included it but as glue happy as I was I included the coils as well.