"The Puget Sound!" DIY Speaker Contest

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BERENO said:
Im glad that it went well! I am sad that I was unable to make it... when/where is the next one?? :D


Bereno,

"The Puget Sound! DIY Speaker Contest" is held on alternate years. Originally this was to avoid conflict with VSAC, which was also held on alternating years. Another consideration in scheduling is to try to avoid conflict with the Vancouver Island DIY Fest, which is held annually. Before you get the idea that I'm a wonderfully thoughtful person, let me assure you that's it's only because I want to attend all three events myself.
;)

We do have some fairly casual meets locally from time to time, which are just a lot less work and perhaps even more fun.

Best Regards,
TerryO
 
Hey Terry,

What's this I hear about the results being suspect? Are you sure you are not just feeling guilty from finally winning something? By all accounts I heard, your speakers really did sound better than any other. They were some beautiful-sounding boxes.

Well, win or lose, I again had a great time and look forward to the next one.

Doug
 
Doug,

I'm glad you had a good time and except for some panic sessions, so did I:cannotbe:

I know that people have been waiting for the results of the Contest, so now that I've had a few days to actually get caught up.... here tiz:

This year "The Puget Sound! DIY Speaker Contest" was pretty successful, except for losing the amp and CD player in the "Public" listening room. Luckily for us, Mike Mardis (Panomaniac) jumped in and we able to figure out that both had departed to the Stereo Graveyard. We have requested a post-mortem autopsy to find out what can be determined.

When Mike had certified the component's death, we sprang into action to find replacements. We were able to substitute a Conrad-Johnson preamp and my LM 7480 Chip amp for power and a Slim Devices music server (I think it was) and were back in business.

It seemed like only a minute or two later when the fellows in the speaker setup crew came in and told us that one of the channels of the amp in the Judging room was making a weird sound.
About this time I'm wondering what was going on as the recently failed amp and the Judge's amp are the same model and they both reportedly had the problem with the Left Channel. Upon entering the Evaluation Room we had them play some music through the speakers that had been brought in for judging. A few notes and it was obvious that the moron who owned the black-box speakers had hastily unpacked the speakers and in doing so, Mr. Klutzo has knocked the phase plug off center and it was rubbing. I re-centered the plug and the problem was solved to the infinite relief of the Multitudes gathered round. We never discovered who had caused the problem, although the speakers bore a striking resemblance to a pair that I had entered. They say everyone has a twin somewhere, and evidently this applies to speakers as well!

The rest of the Contest went fairly well with few problems.

"Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?"

Once again the speakers entered were, without exception, very nice sounding and perhaps even better overall than those in the 2006 contest.

Starting with the modest 1-way/fullrange (under $75 total) class, we saw some real competition. When the dust finally settled, Howard Grim's Fostex (126?) Trapezoid TL/Horn ($71 total) took 1st place. Howard usually runs them with subwoofers (which aren't allowed for the Contest) and was apprehensive that they wouldn't sound very good. Evidently he fooled the judges, as they awarded him enough points to edge out the Radio Shack 1197 driven "Hi-Tweek Black Box Speakers" ($27) which came in 2nd.

The 1-way/fullrange (over $75) class winner was Doug Nash with his absolutely beautiful Fostex 108 Sigma/Frugalhorns($170 total). These actually are BLH designed to used in the corners of a room, but they still sounded pretty good away from any boundaries in the Judging Room. Doug does wonderful cabinet work and these certainly lived up to his reputation.

The next class is, in some ways, the favorite as listeners are constantly amazed with how good these can be. The 2-way (under $200) class had to be the most competitive one in the entire contest. I might add that the Pacific Northwest has some of the most talented (and cheapest!) speaker builders anywhere.
Mike Curtis took 1st place with his MTM featuring AR 5.25 inch mid-woofers and a Tangband Q-1 silk dome tweeter with 3rd order Butterworth crossover. His detailed checklist indicates that he spent a grand total of $128.00 on these. Very fine speakers that looked as good as they sounded.

Dave Rosgaard's 2nd place TM entry was right behind Mike with Definitive Technology drivers, utilizing 2nd order series crossovers that he designs using his own proprietary software. As usual, Dave's speakers sounded superb. (He noted that he had spent $150)

Jim Giblin took the 2-way (over $200) class with his Hawthorne Audio Silver Iris Coax drivers (2nd order crossover) mounted on open baffles. I didn't get a chance to hear them myself, but comments by several people that had were very complimentary. Jim listed a total cost of $290.

With the preliminary matches out of the way, it was time for the Heavyweight Division Bareknuckle Main Event. I'm not sure if any side bets were being made, but there was a lot of speculation as to the outcome of the 3-way (under $300) class.

In one corner was the "Blond Giant," John Nail from the cattle country of Eastern Washington. John is a "scientific" fighter, able to utilize deft moves and feints before delivering a knockout blow.

In the other corner was "Terrible Todd" Lee, a street brawler from the Northlands. Unorthodox and brutal, Todd is unpredictable and ignores conventional methods. Powerful and Intelligent, he's able to drive opponents into the ground with an Earthshaking roundhouse punch delivered with incredible accuracy.

John carefully selects and measures the worth of his components, ever watchful that they fit into his carefully orchestrated plan. No false steps, everything is factored into his overall strategy to achieve victory.
He has chosen a Vifa D19AD-05-06 tweeter, NHT 4.5 inch midrange driver and a pair of Recoton 6.5 Polymineral drivers for the woofers. He's using a 3rd order Butterworth "hi-Lo" filter on top and a 2nd order "mid/bass" crossover. His cabinet is constructed with all mitered joints and are seamless in appearance, even under the Clearcoated Imperial Purple paint.
John has spent $266.00 on his speakers.



Todd wastes no effort on nuances and delicate preparation. His cabinets are bailed out of the local pawn shop and immediately gutted without further fanfare! He reaches over and grabs a Radio Shack tweeter and immediately decides that it's good enough for "the job." Once again he grabs a driver, this time a Radio Shack midrange and then, with lightening speed, he selects and installs a pair of MCM woofers. He follows this with 1st order crossovers at 400Hz and 10kHz that sound right to his practiced ear.
Todd's entry weighs in at an estimated $80.00!

The Contest is at last concluded, both contestants are bloodied but unbowed. There has been no Knock Out, or even a TKO, in this match, both are willing to continue and neither will consider, much less admit, defeat.

The outcome will be decided on points and everyone waits for the Judges' scores to be tallied.

Finally comes the decision...John Nail, the Blond Giant, wins the 3-way class. With a possible 300 points, John has beaten Todd by 5 points to win the his class and "Best Sound of Show." Todd takes second place in class and also for "Best Sound."

Mike Curtis is third highest for "Best Sound" with his 2-way (under $200) entry.

There were 2 "Kit" speakers entered in the Contest and both received class wins.

In the $175 and under Kit class, a pair of Dave Rosgaard's DR-1 (2-way) were constructed my myself. A total of $68.00 was spent on these.

In the $326 and up class, a pair of Exodus Audio "Kepler" kit speakers took 1st place in class and "Best Sounding Kit"
These were also entered by myself and cost $499 for the pair.

Chad Kirby brought a pair of desktop/computer speakers that had fantastic wood working and were said to sound pretty darn nice as well! He was also presented with a certificate.

The Pacific NorthWest Audio Society (PNWAS) had their Photographer, Joe Pittman, there taking pictures and we hope to have them available soon.

"The Puget Sound! DIY Speaker Contest" for 2008 is now history, and I'd like to congratulate all the people that helped make it not only possible but a success as well.
Special thanks to our panel of judges: Winston Ma, Mike Lavigne and Bruce Brown for staying the course and insuring that the speakers were carefully evaluated.

I'll be following this up with more detail over the next few days, but let me emphasize that this is a Contest for DIY speaker builders to show what they can do. Kits are allowed to compete against other kits, but aren't eligible for "Best Sound of Show" which is reserved for original designs.

Best Regards,
TerryO
 
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