Hi. I'm new here and I am planning to build my first full range speakers. I am seeking for enclosure/box advice which would suit my need, can be a floor stander or stand mount. It will be used for nearfield listening, about 1.25 to 1.5 meters from listener and can be placed 1.5-2ft from the wall. Will hook it up to a Macbook pro>ODAC>Arcam A65+ amp (a tube amp hopefully in the near future). Room size is 4X4m with 9Ft ceiling, a small office/listening room. I am completely newbie in building enclosures but a friend who makes furniture can help me out so difficult to build enclosures won't be a hindrance.
Thanks in advance!
Thanks in advance!
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Hi Dave,
I've been looking at built Mar-Kens here in daiyAudio for several weeks now and to tell you honestly it's at the top of my list. I like the design a lot, those with real wood veneer finishes are simply gorgeous.
Will it give sufficient low end if used nearfield? I'm not looking for heart-thumping bass but something accurate is what I want. The room is not acoustically treated, 4 concrete walls, a desk & some photography stuff. I also have a pair for 30" solid wood speaker stands which I use right now with my 2 way speakers.
thanks for taking time to reply.
Anton
Anton; I've had enough experience with numerous Fon / Mar-Ken enclosures, and several Pensils to anticipate the generic differences in performance between them for most drivers.
Pensils (or any full size MLTL) would deliver deeper bass extension, while the "Kens" would have a higher but very smooth roll-off.
Your room size and listing distance are such I'd opine the MarKens would be sufficient, and you already have stands. Depending on driver placement on Dave's drawings, you might need to invert the cabinets on the 30" stands.
Not to second guess your woodworking skills, but the traps can be a bit challenging for a first timer, while the rectangular and CGRS are pretty straight forward.
Pensils (or any full size MLTL) would deliver deeper bass extension, while the "Kens" would have a higher but very smooth roll-off.
Your room size and listing distance are such I'd opine the MarKens would be sufficient, and you already have stands. Depending on driver placement on Dave's drawings, you might need to invert the cabinets on the 30" stands.
Not to second guess your woodworking skills, but the traps can be a bit challenging for a first timer, while the rectangular and CGRS are pretty straight forward.
The design of all the miniOnkens is intended to maximize the finese and acciracy of the bass. They go as low as the go. For your use that should be more than sufficient.
For the A10p there are 2 sizes of Mar-Ken, so far i have only drawn the smaller one, but it would not take long to get done with-ever one you require (they all have to get drawn eventually)
The larger one gets another 5-10 Hz extension at the bottom.
dave
For the A10p there are 2 sizes of Mar-Ken, so far i have only drawn the smaller one, but it would not take long to get done with-ever one you require (they all have to get drawn eventually)
The larger one gets another 5-10 Hz extension at the bottom.
dave
@chrisb: thanks for the input, now i'm leaning towards the Mar-Ken.when you say "invert" the cabinets, is it the same as "toe in"? 
you are right about the traps, looking at it i'm thinking the degree of difficulty is not for a starter like me, guess I have to show my furniture maker buddy the plans and see if he can be more patient with me & help me out in building a pair. But either way I'm ok with the rectangular one, the fascia is what really captured me
@Dave: i'm eyeing the Mar-Ken10. hoping the plans will be available soon, quite excited about this build. thanks for the help.
thanks for the insight guys, it encourages newbies like me to pursue the DIY route which I think & hope would be more satisfying than buying off the shelves. btw, here is what I currently use in my listening room. the stands in the pic is what I'm gonna use with my future A10P.
you are right about the traps, looking at it i'm thinking the degree of difficulty is not for a starter like me, guess I have to show my furniture maker buddy the plans and see if he can be more patient with me & help me out in building a pair. But either way I'm ok with the rectangular one, the fascia is what really captured me
@Dave: i'm eyeing the Mar-Ken10. hoping the plans will be available soon, quite excited about this build. thanks for the help.
thanks for the insight guys, it encourages newbies like me to pursue the DIY route which I think & hope would be more satisfying than buying off the shelves. btw, here is what I currently use in my listening room. the stands in the pic is what I'm gonna use with my future A10P.
anthony - by inverted I meant sit "upside down" on the stands
I've built more than a few of Dave's miniOnken based designs, and generally the driver is not vertically centered on the front baffle, so inverting them could place the drivers as much as several inches lower, if that becomes an issue when using your existing stands. OTOH, some situations or personal preferences call for higher acoustic centers for drivers than I tend to use, which is between 30-32".
I've built more than a few of Dave's miniOnken based designs, and generally the driver is not vertically centered on the front baffle, so inverting them could place the drivers as much as several inches lower, if that becomes an issue when using your existing stands. OTOH, some situations or personal preferences call for higher acoustic centers for drivers than I tend to use, which is between 30-32".
While not exactly the same internal details, think FH3 on steroids - somewhere there should be a picture of the two side by side.
both the new 10s are very nice sounding drivers - but so far I think I prefer the paper
Zia: approx dimensions, depending on thickness of material - we used 18mm- 965mm H x 239mmW x 540mm D at the base. Perhaps the recent posts of interest will prompt Dave to publish the drawings? As to weight, not even all plywood is the same density, so it'd be hard to say, but my guess would be at least 15 kilos each.
Rather apples /oranges between both the 2 drivers and different enclosures. I've yet to hear a direct comparison between the 10.3 and Ps in the same enclosure, so final assessment is reserved.. As much as I enjoy the spacious soundstage delivered by both of the FHs, an all of the Woden rear mouth designs I've heard ( Maeshowe / Valiant and Victor), I'll have to admit that the less intrusive real-estate requirement of MLTLs such as the Pensils and Microtowers certainly work better for my own domestic situation, and possibly many others .
How's that for waffling on the question.
both the new 10s are very nice sounding drivers - but so far I think I prefer the paper
Zia: approx dimensions, depending on thickness of material - we used 18mm- 965mm H x 239mmW x 540mm D at the base. Perhaps the recent posts of interest will prompt Dave to publish the drawings? As to weight, not even all plywood is the same density, so it'd be hard to say, but my guess would be at least 15 kilos each.
Rather apples /oranges between both the 2 drivers and different enclosures. I've yet to hear a direct comparison between the 10.3 and Ps in the same enclosure, so final assessment is reserved.. As much as I enjoy the spacious soundstage delivered by both of the FHs, an all of the Woden rear mouth designs I've heard ( Maeshowe / Valiant and Victor), I'll have to admit that the less intrusive real-estate requirement of MLTLs such as the Pensils and Microtowers certainly work better for my own domestic situation, and possibly many others .
How's that for waffling on the question.
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Having just hefted them, and a near 22 kg package of FE208eS, 15 kg is probably high.
(fronts are lined up)
dave
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Chris,
Thanks for sharing the dimensions. Understand that both the drivers are plenty good, but the "favorite" will vary from person to person.
The soundstage depth is one of the nice features of the FH Mk3, and potential for greater scale and SPL do sound attractive for the FH-XL...
Silly question - would putting the slot port of a Pensil at the back of the cabinet have any chance of improving the sound stage depth?
Thanks for sharing the dimensions. Understand that both the drivers are plenty good, but the "favorite" will vary from person to person
. The soundstage depth is one of the nice features of the FH Mk3, and potential for greater scale and SPL do sound attractive for the FH-XL...
Silly question - would putting the slot port of a Pensil at the back of the cabinet have any chance of improving the sound stage depth?
@Chris,
What would be the ideal height of the driver/cone in relation to the listener's ear? I'm not familiar with full range but AFAIK for 2 way speakers it is recommended that the tweeters be at the same height as the listener's ears.
@Dave,
Would you recommend an FHXL or even a pensil for my listening distance requirement? I can move my current speakers & stands to the bedroom and just make a floorstander for my listening room.
Looking at the pics of the FHXL in your previous post made me confused
thanks everyone!
What would be the ideal height of the driver/cone in relation to the listener's ear? I'm not familiar with full range but AFAIK for 2 way speakers it is recommended that the tweeters be at the same height as the listener's ears.
@Dave,
Would you recommend an FHXL or even a pensil for my listening distance requirement? I can move my current speakers & stands to the bedroom and just make a floorstander for my listening room.
Looking at the pics of the FHXL in your previous post made me confused
thanks everyone!
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"ideal" ? - I'm not sure there'd be consensus on that - but I like between 30 -32" myself - I'm not tall, and prefer most of my listening in relaxed seating mode where my ears will be about that high from the floor. With the FH3 and at least a couple of other designs, we've found that a few degrees (5) of backwards tilt to the front baffle or entire cabinet can work very well.
I think I suggested earlier that for the size of room and listening distance that the MarKens on stands should be sufficient. If you elected to sell the stands with the Wharfdales, , Pensils for 10Ps would make more sense than FHXL - the latter have a much deeper footprint ( i.e. 318mm vs 540mm).
I think I suggested earlier that for the size of room and listening distance that the MarKens on stands should be sufficient. If you elected to sell the stands with the Wharfdales, , Pensils for 10Ps would make more sense than FHXL - the latter have a much deeper footprint ( i.e. 318mm vs 540mm).
Dear a3cervo,
You should do a Pensil 10p.
No one has documented a build of this yet, or shared detailed listening impressions, and I believe we are all suffering for it. The advancement of diy audio (and my own self interested curiosity) demand that this intriguing new driver and time tested enclosure design be explored, no matter the cost (to you) . If you have seen the recent documentary The Dark Knight Rises, you already know the kind of heroic altruism to which I am referring. The fate of our stereos rests in your hands, good sir.
Be our Batman.
Sincerely,
Soda
You should do a Pensil 10p.
No one has documented a build of this yet, or shared detailed listening impressions, and I believe we are all suffering for it. The advancement of diy audio (and my own self interested curiosity) demand that this intriguing new driver and time tested enclosure design be explored, no matter the cost (to you) . If you have seen the recent documentary The Dark Knight Rises, you already know the kind of heroic altruism to which I am referring. The fate of our stereos rests in your hands, good sir.
Be our Batman.
Sincerely,
Soda
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