Let's review!
Well, I never thought I'd be tinkering (building) with speakers, but here I go!
Saw and listened to the BK-16's at CES in the Fostex room. Always wanted to play with horns but didn't want to devote a lot of time to speaker building. But after seeing this kit, I knew I had to finally venture down this path.
First off, I don't want to get buried with tweak after tweak. I just wanted to assemble a small inexpensive horn cab and load it with a resonably priced driver. Originally, I just wanted to get the cabinets and load it with possibly the FE166E. I didn't want to load up the price with the FF165K AND the super tweeter that Madisound sells in the kit. You know, stripped down kit, pair of drivers and cabs.
Well, as of this morning I pre-ordered the FE166ES-R. Thought, what the h*ll...right? Hold off on the cabs until the drivers arrive.
So am I going way off base in this direction, BK-16 cab's and FE166ES-R's? Can I get acceptable results with this combination as a first venture into horns without getting too tweaky? I realize the FE166ES-R's are not the FE166E's but I thought why not try the ES-R's if they're limited edition...
Thanks,
Gilbert
Well, I never thought I'd be tinkering (building) with speakers, but here I go!
Saw and listened to the BK-16's at CES in the Fostex room. Always wanted to play with horns but didn't want to devote a lot of time to speaker building. But after seeing this kit, I knew I had to finally venture down this path.
First off, I don't want to get buried with tweak after tweak. I just wanted to assemble a small inexpensive horn cab and load it with a resonably priced driver. Originally, I just wanted to get the cabinets and load it with possibly the FE166E. I didn't want to load up the price with the FF165K AND the super tweeter that Madisound sells in the kit. You know, stripped down kit, pair of drivers and cabs.
Well, as of this morning I pre-ordered the FE166ES-R. Thought, what the h*ll...right? Hold off on the cabs until the drivers arrive.
So am I going way off base in this direction, BK-16 cab's and FE166ES-R's? Can I get acceptable results with this combination as a first venture into horns without getting too tweaky? I realize the FE166ES-R's are not the FE166E's but I thought why not try the ES-R's if they're limited edition...
Thanks,
Gilbert
Timn8ter said:
hey laddie
looked around a while for the ductseal...the only stuff i could find was in a tube, fiber based (weird) and looked like it wasn't the same deal you are suggesting...
so i subbed Sta-Put plumber's putty...thick, non-drying claylike substance.
dang that stuff worked like whoa.
far better than damping sheet.
still waiting on the HP reflectors.
Re: Let's review!
those limited edition fostex drivers are beyond hip.
i'm finding the fe-166e/horn combo not quite acceptable in the raw, and i will chronicle my tweaks here...and in the other thread:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49421
fwiw there is some good input on the subject by some experienced folks, check it out...and fear not the speaker building
Gilbert said:
those limited edition fostex drivers are beyond hip.
i'm finding the fe-166e/horn combo not quite acceptable in the raw, and i will chronicle my tweaks here...and in the other thread:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49421
fwiw there is some good input on the subject by some experienced folks, check it out...and fear not the speaker building
I'd be suspicious of plumber's putty, it dries out, gets hard, shrinks and cracks over time in a dry environment. In fact the opened container seems to have a shelf life of around a year.
Duct seal, which can be found in electrician's supply depts, is used to weatherproof cable entering meter boxes. It stays flexible for decades. I'm using some I had left over from 15 yrs ago, and it's still like new.
Duct seal, which can be found in electrician's supply depts, is used to weatherproof cable entering meter boxes. It stays flexible for decades. I'm using some I had left over from 15 yrs ago, and it's still like new.
This thread...
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=23468&highlight=
Note: there are other brands too....
dave
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=23468&highlight=
Note: there are other brands too....
dave
Re: Let's review!
Well, you guys haven't scared me away from the BK-16's yet. Looks like there is too much wiggle room in 'adjusting' them, Blackie seems to be on the verge of getting them dialed in and hopefully the HP diffusers will help with a big chunk of the puzzle. Again, I've pre-ordered a pair of the FE166ES-R's and want to try the BK-16's with them. A small, easy to build, horn kit is what I'm after for my first project, nothing complicated, expensive, and time consuming. Even if Blackie can't get them perfectly set-up for his tastes, nobody has declared the FE166/BK-16 'unsuitable' in this combination and the ignorant diy'er (like me) might get an acceptable level of performance, more so with some nice triodes...yes? While I realize nobody has any info on the FE166ES-R yet, I can't help to think they wouldn't be that much different and buying the cabs wouldn't be a total waste of cash.
Gilbert
noisenyc said:
those limited edition fostex drivers are beyond hip.
i'm finding the fe-166e/horn combo not quite acceptable in the raw, and i will chronicle my tweaks here...and in the other thread:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49421
fwiw there is some good input on the subject by some experienced folks, check it out...and fear not the speaker building
Well, you guys haven't scared me away from the BK-16's yet. Looks like there is too much wiggle room in 'adjusting' them, Blackie seems to be on the verge of getting them dialed in and hopefully the HP diffusers will help with a big chunk of the puzzle. Again, I've pre-ordered a pair of the FE166ES-R's and want to try the BK-16's with them. A small, easy to build, horn kit is what I'm after for my first project, nothing complicated, expensive, and time consuming. Even if Blackie can't get them perfectly set-up for his tastes, nobody has declared the FE166/BK-16 'unsuitable' in this combination and the ignorant diy'er (like me) might get an acceptable level of performance, more so with some nice triodes...yes? While I realize nobody has any info on the FE166ES-R yet, I can't help to think they wouldn't be that much different and buying the cabs wouldn't be a total waste of cash.
Gilbert
Re: Re: Let's review!
they are by no means unsuitable. i think they are what ya want!
you can try setting them up like i end up doing...or try something else and make suggestions for me to try.
the kit is really simple to assemble, you will need a mess of pretty big clamps which you will probably use again SOON because building is HIGHLY ADDICTIVE haha
"not time consuming" hehehehe
abandon hope all ye who enter here!
Gilbert said:
they are by no means unsuitable. i think they are what ya want!
you can try setting them up like i end up doing...or try something else and make suggestions for me to try.
the kit is really simple to assemble, you will need a mess of pretty big clamps which you will probably use again SOON because building is HIGHLY ADDICTIVE haha
"not time consuming" hehehehe
abandon hope all ye who enter here!
Re: Let's review!
Well then, that's just what I wanted...a little push into the black hole, good! And as they say, misery loves company. I just didn't want to buy something only to find out I made a big mistake to where the square peg won't fit into the round hole. I love to roll around in the 'tweaks' as much as anyone else.
Wood woorking equipment is not a problem, could probably use a few more clamps though.
I build tube amps from total scratch out of the stuff I collect from trading, swap meets, and hamfests. The "not time consuming" part was tongue in cheek as you can't (or can) imagine the time I waste on carving this, cutting that, for the chassis, let alone the time it takes to solder up things. Every time I think 'what the hell am I doing wasting all this time', I just turn on something like Biker Build-off on the Discovery channel and watch those fools bending sheet metal over their knees for a gas tank or something, that makes me feel better right away!
noisenyc said:
they are by no means unsuitable. i think they are what ya want!
you can try setting them up like i end up doing...or try something else and make suggestions for me to try.
the kit is really simple to assemble, you will need a mess of pretty big clamps which you will probably use again SOON because building is HIGHLY ADDICTIVE haha
"not time consuming" hehehehe
abandon hope all ye who enter here!
Well then, that's just what I wanted...a little push into the black hole, good! And as they say, misery loves company.
I just didn't want to buy something only to find out I made a big mistake to where the square peg won't fit into the round hole. I love to roll around in the 'tweaks' as much as anyone else.Wood woorking equipment is not a problem, could probably use a few more clamps though.
I build tube amps from total scratch out of the stuff I collect from trading, swap meets, and hamfests. The "not time consuming" part was tongue in cheek as you can't (or can) imagine the time I waste on carving this, cutting that, for the chassis, let alone the time it takes to solder up things. Every time I think 'what the hell am I doing wasting all this time', I just turn on something like Biker Build-off on the Discovery channel and watch those fools bending sheet metal over their knees for a gas tank or something, that makes me feel better right away!
OK, fair enough. Sure, to some degree it would be a taste thing. The BK16 appears to have a shorter path and higher acoustic crossover. The 'recommended' 166ES-R horn has a lower crossover and longer path. So the BK16 might be a bit too midrangey, depending on your preferences, but may also be more lively. The FE166ESR recommended horn might be smoother and less phasey, and should have deeper bass. But yeah, it would be a pain to build compared to the CNC'd BK16 kit. Hard to beat that deal.
GB
Greg B said:
noisenyc said:
Please forgive the ignorant newbie, dear sirs, who spends way too much cashola on audio stuff!
While I don't know anything about speaker building, I've always wanted to play with some horns. When I saw Madisounds BK-16 kit in the Fostex room at CES, I kind of got hooked on it's size and the fact that it was a kit. I did realize being compact as it is, that it might have some limitations. Then I thought to just buy the cabs only and ditch the driver/tweeter combination, those tweeters (T90A) are close to half the cost of the kit! It looked like the FE166E would be a close substitute and reduce the overall 'investment' by a big chunk. Then when I read about the ES-R's, I figured what the hell and pre-orded some. It's still a lot cheaper than the original combo.But, I just want to get my feet wet with horns. It's like I have NO time as it is and I would probably stay away from the whole deal if I had to build the advertised plans for the ES-R's. I'll need to be encouraged
with an easy goal to begin with before I jump in over my head with a more complex project.But I guess I haven't 'bought' anything yet and will continue to follow the progress made here. I don't think it is totally wrong to pick up a pair of the ES-R's for the fun of it? It's not like I'm buying a pair of Tannoy concentrics or anything. Does anyone else make cab 'kits'? I don't want huge horns as my space is limited and I have better speakers, Tannoy concentrics, that take up much of the current space.
Gilbert
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.