full range desktop speaker.

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Hey all...

I'm a bit new to this, and was wanting to ask some questions...

I'm after a set of speakers to hook up to my computer (for now, would probably get moved to a small HT at a later date), but have a few things it has to be...

No higher than 450mm (or atleast as close to).
Have reasonably decent bass without a sub, <50hz would be perfect.
decent mids, and highs (I realize it might need a tweeter)

On the desk, it can come out no further than 430mm, and about the same in width, so i cant see that being a prob at all.

Now, I've found a design i kinda like, but am unsure if it will suit me.

http://spiralspeaker.web.fc2.com/aaaspeaker/extra/engag220z/eng-ag220z.html

I'm not sure if it would suit me, as i listen to a wide range of genres, from...
Blues, Rock'n'Roll (old school), Jazz, Swing, (not sure exactly what genre it fits into) i also like pieces like what Hanz Zimmer does.... these make up about 75% of what i listen to, the others being a mixture of a lot of genres.
I also, play quite a few games/movies, but more time is spent listening to music.

So, the question there is, would something like that, suit me?

I was originally going to buy something along the lines of the Dali Concept 2, Paradigm Atom... etc.
Then i thought about a DIY 2way, and after doing some research, i found some pros/cons of singe wide range speakers, and here i am.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Cheers.
 
falis said:
I know this is the DiY place, but check out these (and the reviews at places like 6moons): http://www.audio-magus.com/product_p/sjb3.htm

I'd certainly consider them for your application, and you should be able to get them more locally, since they're made in Hong Kong.

- Ed

Thanks for the reply, I have looked at these and read a few reviews, but i dont feel i would be getting my moneys worth with them, as it seems the average price is over $500 in Australia, and i would like something a bit bigger, part of the reason being is i dont want to have to use a sub, which is why I'm considering a 2way setup more at the moment.

cwujek said:
The Fonkens are a great set of speakers that fit the smaller dimensions you want.
http://www.planet10-hifi.com/fonken.html


Cheers for that, sifting through them now.
 
Sh1mmy said:


Thanks for the reply, I have looked at these and read a few reviews, but i dont feel i would be getting my moneys worth with them, as it seems the average price is over $500 in Australia, and i would like something a bit bigger, part of the reason being is i dont want to have to use a sub, which is why I'm considering a 2way setup more at the moment.

If you were going to go with something like the JB3, I would suggest making these:

http://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker18.html
 
falis said:
Let us know what you decide to do.
Will do.

Scottmoose said:
Suggestion: don't go with the unshielded 166 (without shielding it) if it's going anywhere near electronic equipment. Just in case.

I was actually wondering that... is that the only difference between the '6' and '7'? and does it go for all sizes?

cwujek said:


If you were going to go with something like the JB3, I would suggest making these:

http://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker18.html

I wouldn't mind something like that, and might do make it, later as a small project, i would certainly rather make that than spend $500 on the JB3, (thanks for the link though, would be good for something a bit more portable)
However, right now, I'm after something a bit bigger, as i don't want to use a sub, at least not for a while anyway.


Thanks.
 
Here are my new desktop speakers
 

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cwujek said:
The Fonkens are a great set of speakers that fit the smaller dimensions you want.
http://www.planet10-hifi.com/fonken.html

Sorry, i didn't take much notice of this post before... lol.
had a look, and seems alright, i had actually came across them before also, but discarded the idea thinking they wouldn't suit me...
However though, I've done a bit more reading, and it seems i underestimated these by a long shot.
I'm now taking them more seriously, and is on the short-list.

sintacto said:
Here are my new desktop speakers

Looking good there.

Henkjan said:
I am about to complete a pair of desktop TL's with a 3" Omnes Audio driver, which performs quite impressive, bass down to 50Hz, accoustic bass sounds full size, even drums sound good.

I will post with pix as soon as they are complete (just need some paint and photos)

Wow, that sounds pretty good.


Going back to the Fonkens, the one that kinda stood out to me is the "miniOnken" (mainly because i can get the driver easily), and 2ndly the "Fonken".
Which of these 2 would be the better one?, or if thats an impossible question, what are the difference between the 2? frequency range, quality, sensitivity... etc.
If anyone has any ideas, would these compare with, (for example) Usher S-510, Dali Concept1/2, Paradigm Atom?
(EDIT: could these be made with MDF or Ply-wood? as most examples ive seen have been made of various hardwoods)

Also, another i saw on the same site is the Aperiodic one...
http://homepage.mac.com/tlinespeakers/FAL/box-plans/p10-4L-aperiodic.gif

Anyone know anything about them?

Cheers.
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
Sh1mmy said:
Going back to the Fonkens, the one that kinda stood out to me is the "miniOnken" (mainly because i can get the driver easily), and 2ndly the "Fonken".
Which of these 2 would be the better one?, or if thats an impossible question, what are the difference between the 2? frequency range, quality, sensitivity... etc.
If anyone has any ideas, would these compare with, (for example) Usher S-510, Dali Concept1/2, Paradigm Atom?
(EDIT: could these be made with MDF or Ply-wood? as most examples ive seen have been made of various hardwoods)

The full size Fonken goes lower, is more open thru the midrange, and the box dissappears more readily. The mFonken compromises bass depth (althou with a bit of a bump before it falls off), and openess (the proximity of box walls are the culprit) to get a small box. The mFonken is pretty close to LS3/5A size. The Atom doesn't come close (althou goes lower) and the one set of LS3/5A we had for compare got embarassed.

Also, another i saw on the same site is the Aperiodic one...
http://p10hifi.net/tlinespeakers/FAL/box-plans/p10-4L-aperiodic.gif

I don't know if anyone has built that variation, but we did the other and performance was very good... based on it, any FR125 boxes we do down the road will be 4.5-7 liter aperiodic -- seems to really suit the driver.

dave
 

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Franz Gysi said:
A very good speaker, running for years on my desktop:

An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.


Fostex FE83E recommended enclosure:

http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/pdf/recom_enclose/83e_enclrev.pdf

Regards
Franz

nice, certainly looks unique, might look at doing something like that as a future 'fun' project.

planet10 said:


The full size Fonken goes lower, is more open thru the midrange, and the box dissappears more readily. The mFonken compromises bass depth (althou with a bit of a bump before it falls off), and openess (the proximity of box walls are the culprit) to get a small box. The mFonken is pretty close to LS3/5A size. The Atom doesn't come close (althou goes lower) and the one set of LS3/5A we had for compare got embarassed.



I don't know if anyone has built that variation, but we did the other and performance was very good... based on it, any FR125 boxes we do down the road will be 4.5-7 liter aperiodic -- seems to really suit the driver.

dave

Sorry for the confusion, but when you said "full size fonken" did you mean the floor stander one or the one similar to the miniOnken, but with a fostex driver?
Seems this miniOnken is a lot of bang-for-ya-buck, and looks like i underestimated them in a big way.

so, in your opinion would you say the miniOnken is much better than the Aperiodic one?

Henkjan said:
FR125 in ~4liter aperiodic sounds great, the bass doesn't go deeep but then again one does not seem to miss it, it sounds like a large speaker. :ashamed: yes also this one is waiting to be finished, just some paint (soldered the notch filter this evening)

Nice, is there anything you could compare it to, or would you say its in a league of its own?

Also, how big an amp would i need to power the miniOnken? As I've now read a bit more about them and it seems they are quite in-sensitive.

Cheers.
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
Sh1mmy said:
\Sorry for the confusion, but when you said "full size fonken" did you mean the floor stander one or the one similar to the miniOnken, but with a fostex driver?

The latter...

Fonken-3D-tn.gif


so, in your opinion would you say the miniOnken is much better than the Aperiodic one?

No.

I personally prefer the FE127eN Fonken to anything else we have done... and they get even better with the support woofers... part of this is down to the amps i prefer. If you have an HT revceiver for instance thge FR125 speakers will gain an edge.

Also, how big an amp would i need to power the miniOnken? As I've now read a bit more about them and it seems they are quite in-sensitive.

A good 15-30 Watts per channel.

dave
 
planet10 said:


The latter...

An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.




No.

I personally prefer the FE127eN Fonken to anything else we have done... and they get even better with the support woofers... part of this is down to the amps i prefer. If you have an HT revceiver for instance thge FR125 speakers will gain an edge.



A good 15-30 Watts per channel.

dave

Ahh, fair enough...

I haven't got an amp/receiver yet, was going to get it after i decided on what speakers to buy.
Most likely i will try and get something older, like a '70s Rotel, NAD,Pioneer, Yamaha or something along those lines.


planet10 said:


The process is more involved than that...

dave

lol, I gathered that, was just speaking figuratively... in a nutshell.
As much as i would love to do something like that, i don't reckon i would have the confidence to do it since its not reversible right?

so just out of standard FE127E and FR125SR, is your preference still towards the fostex one?
 
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