1/2” birch ply sufficient for box build?

Well certainly someone who is impartial as to how much money you spend. Show me some hard data from real-world measurements of what difference we can expect from taking your advice. Once you quantify the performance difference than everybody can judge whether or not the extra money is worth the improvement in real world utility.

I have used that or similar from the big box stores with good results.

So show us some Termlab or RTA measurements illustrating the difference we can expect to see depending on which type of MDF we use.

That's like you saying all Birch is the same, or, all 2'x4"'s are the same, they aren't. Obviously, the denser the MDF, the better. Some MDF will even start flaking off in layers. Buy whatever you want, just know that all MDF's aren't created equal.
 
That's a big list of binders, can you show me an ingredient list that shows the difference between binders used by home depot and these luxury lumber yards?

I don't care about color or texture as mdf is ugly. But HD mdf is glass smoth. It's heavy and dense. If you want the most dense possible pour a concrete box....

O.k., believe what you want. Just sayin.

Screenshot_20210218-181724_Google.jpg
 
I did not say that. I asked you to provide data to show us how these different types of lumber will effect performance. Since you have not we can safely assume you cannot and are once again just talking out your arse.

Use whatever type of MDF that you want to. Just know that they aren't all the same. It's common sense that the denser the MDF, then, it will be stronger and have less flex. But, like I said, use what you want.
 
You shouldn't flex any wood with proper baffle thickness and bracing for whatever power you have. I do a 1.5" baffle at the minimum not counting a flush panel as I like to have more than 3/4" to screw the subs to.

3/4" walls are efficient for my SA 12. If I had a U series I would do three layer baffle and 1" walls minimum.
 
So how much measured output or distortion does that translate into in dB SPL? Can we see the test data that you or someone else collected to get this information?

Just admit you're talking out your arse and don't have one bit of evidence to support your claim.

You just keep buying the low grade MDF. My lumber told me today that he carries about 7 different grades of MDF. Denser = stiffer = less flex. I don't have time to do all of this testing that you are talking about. It's common sense. We het the best grade ¾" MDF for $34 a sheet.
 
I’ve never heard a difference between any types of wood I’ve used for sub boxes. If it’s a solid build, it will sound fine. The issue with cheap wood comes when sanding and finishing the enclosure. Really easy to sand right through the the thin birch veneer when using Home Depot birch, for instance. Also, a particle board box may sound fine, but it’s super heavy and chips and breaks easy. If you’re carpeting your box, particle board and MDF would work fine, and save a few bucks. If you’re painting or staining, then the quality of wood makes a big difference in appearance, but you won’t hear a difference. If you were to build 2 identical boxes, 1 from particle board and the other with sanded pine and did a blind sound test, I would bet my savings that you wouldn’t be able to hear any difference between the 2.
 
I don't have time to do all of this testing
Yet you have plenty of time to spout off all of your opinions with no real world data to back them up.
Looks like good quality plywood to me. Again though, I challenge someone to provide some data which shows real world performance gains from building two identical boxes with different brands of 3/4" plywood and reporting back on the measurable differences.
 
I want to stain my next box so I’m looking at birch or sanded pine. My issue with the HD sanded pine is last time I used it (5ply), it was delaminating in the middle and I had to force glue in and clamp it down until it dried which was tedious and just annoying.
 
My sanded pine was $59 a sheet. It has 7 layers total but has 3 different thicknesses with the outer layers being the thinest.
Cuts clean. The last wood I bought was horrible it splintered really bad near the cut not sure what kind it was.
 
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