MDF or just plywood?

[snowbikeboy12 0]

i want to build a box but i cant find MDF wood any were so i was wondering if useing ply wood would make a big difference

[ShaneSauce 2]

i want to build a box but i cant find MDF wood any were so i was wondering if useing ply wood would make a big difference

DON'T USE PLYWOOD.

Where have you looked for MDF?

[snowbikeboy12 0]

i looked at menards and home depot and lowes

[topgun 262]

i want to build a box but i cant find MDF wood any were so i was wondering if useing ply wood would make a big difference

Any typical lumber yard should carry MDF in 4x8 sheets, no using plywood will not make much of a difference as long as you aren't using just complete crap.

[snowbikeboy12 0]

i found some wood but they dont show prices on line so can any body estimate how much a 3/4 thick 4x8 sheet would be?

[jonbearsmt 919]

lowes and HD both have MDF.

people use berch aswel.

[jonbearsmt 919]

you only need one topic for the wood... and you depending on size and what state your in its from 15~ 35 bucks.

[coobies5 43]

i pay $20-22 for a 4x8 3/4" mdf at the nearest home depot around me, i went to lowes once and they wanted $40 for the same size and everything, but i think they are around the same price as home depot now.

[KU40 173]

lowes and HD both have MDF.

people use berch aswel.

I just used Birch Plywood on my latest box. Excellent stuff. I'll never use MDF again as long as I can find it.

[Thumpper 266]

plywood does work but if you end up with a big void (happens often with plywood) you

will end up with an added bonus of a buzzing/vibarating panel

[Installer4life 0]

Burch is good and light weight. Also no pre drilling is using screws however its more than 2 times the price of MDF and not as dense. I have never seen a Home Depot that didn't have MDF although I think higher quality stuff is available..

[Kanaworm$ 292]

i looked at menards and home depot and lowes

Really?....All 3 have it in my area. Might want to ask if they carry it if you haven't already.

[snowbikeboy12 0]

i will definitly check home depot again as soon as i find the right sub

[anarchyaudio 0]

I use birch plywood, its light weight easy to work with and have never had a problem with vibration off the wood. I would not use regular plywood its craptastic. its 26 bucks for mdf here 42 for birch. its a little more expensive but looks really good, is light and really easy to work with. Hope this helps

[jonbearsmt 919]

im going with birch wood on my next box.

[B7L|BL4Z3R 4]

i pay 28 for my 4x8

[KU40 173]

plywood does work but if you end up with a big void (happens often with plywood) you

will end up with an added bonus of a buzzing/vibarating panel

You can get void-free plywood (it's actually graded that way). It can be hard to find, though.

[Punkeyboozter 19]

no one here knows what birch plywood is. can someone post a pic so i can know what I am looking for pls?

I was told to use marine ply once before as well(not sure how good that will work though)

[anarchyaudio 0]

no one here knows what birch plywood is. can someone post a pic so i can know what I am looking for pls?

I was told to use marine ply once before as well(not sure how good that will work though)

http://www.wholesaleplywood.com/pictures.html

[KU40 173]

I think 3/4" birch plywood is 13 ply. My Home Depot didn't have it, but the hometown lumber yard did (score one for the mom and pop shop!).

[buggsson 0]

Burch is good and light weight. Also no pre drilling is using screws however its more than 2 times the price of MDF and not as dense.

That's the point. When doing sub boxes there are in essence two ways to do it, for not exiting the frequencies you do not want to exite, either do a heavy box (MDF) or a light but stiff box (BB=baltic burch, or apple ply). I will do BB when the times arrive. There are many box material threads over at diyaudio.com for those interested in the pros and cons of various materials.

Edit: I forgot to mention, when doing at least BB or other ply, you can with advantage use a biscuit joiner instead of screws, guess they might work with MDF as well. I would'n want any unnecessary metal in my boxes.

Edited December 11, 2008 by buggsson

[buggsson 0]

no one here knows what birch plywood is. can someone post a pic so i can know what I am looking for pls?

I was told to use marine ply once before as well(not sure how good that will work though)

http://www.wholesaleplywood.com/pictures.html

I doubt that their comparison is fair, my guess is they used ply with voids, because that is what you see, a void, voidfree is the name of the game.

[SPY 2]

3/4" Birch Ply vs 3/4" MDF

Both purchased ad Home Depot. Birch ply is about 2x the cost of MDF but also almost 1/2 the weight.

[RustyWCA 0]

I use birch for my box. I bought 40 sheets =0 and i think somewhere around 40 or 50 bucks a sheet.

[buggsson 0]

3/4" Birch Ply vs 3/4" MDF

Both purchased ad Home Depot. Birch ply is about 2x the cost of MDF but also almost 1/2 the weight.

That seem like the ply only have like 5 ply? Or do I see incorrectly? The 1" BB I'm gonna use have 21 ply if I remember correctly, the more plys, the merrier.

A thread with lots of both MDF and ply talk: http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=63817