First time 3-way speaker setup/crossover help.

[N10]

Hey guys,

I'm a first time builder looking for some help with designing a 3-way speaker system.

I've found the drivers i'd like to use, but I have no idea how compatible they are with one another and I also have no clue as to how to properly design a crossover. Any help would be appreciated!

The 3 drivers I have are as follows.

Tweeter: Dayton RS28A Aluminum Dome Tweeter
Mid: Dayton RS52AN-8 2" Dome Midrange
Woofer: Dayton ST305-8 12" Series II Woofer

They are all from Parts express and all the specs are listed there.

I'd really like to know if the setup I've picked out is something that would sound decent together. And more importantly, if the first part is true, then how would I go about making a crossover for it? Parts express had several prebuilt crossovers, but from what I've read, crossovers really need to be hand built for each specific setup, and that's where I get stuck.

Any help is much appreciated! Just be honest that's all I ask.
Thanks.

[Cal Weldon]

Originally posted by N10
all the specs are listed there.

How about you provide us the links to save time.

[N10]

Here they are, sorry for not including them.

Tweeter: Dayton RS28A-4 1-1/8" Aluminum Dome Tweeter


Mid: Dayton RS52AN-8 2" Dome Midrange



Woofer: Dayton ST305-8 12" Series II Woofer

There they are linkwise. But to save more time I'll give you guys some specs for each, hopefully that'll save you from some time waste too.

Tweeter: 4 ohms impedance, frequency range 1600-20000 Hz.
Power handling 100 watts RMS/150 watts max.

Mid: 8 ohms impedance, Frequency range 500-7000 Hz.
Power handling 60 watts RMS/90 watts max.

Woofer: 8 ohms impedance, Frequency range 27-2000 Hz.
Power handling 275 watts RMS/380 watts max.

Those specs I wrote are probably too general, but I hope they help some, and if not, the links will point you to more detailed ones.

Here's the link to the crossover I was looking at as well, incase it was even worth looking at, but I'm pretty convinced i'll need to handbuild one now.

Crossover: Dayton XO3W-700/5.6K 3-Way Crossover 700/5,600 Hz

If there's anything else I need to include, let me know.

I do not have any cabinets built for this setup.

[MJL21193]

Hi,
You will get a bunch of "go with an established design" and "don't use a pre-made crossover" from others, so I won't go there.
The woofer looks ok, but you need to change the mid. The woofer will be best crossing well below 700Hz, and that mid you've picked doesn't go that low.

Have you done any enclosure modeling yet? I use Unibox for this and find the results to be accurate and dependable. Learning to use it properly can take some practice.
What are you thinking - vented or sealed. For that woofer, vented would probably be the best alignment.

Good luck with your project.

[Cal Weldon]

What he said.

[infinia]

Hi
If you already have the drivers you could shoot for an AR3 type of cloned design. Maybe use a smaller (non EBS) ported instead of sealed box. IMO could be really good sounding (not monitor quality) with the RS52 one the better mid domes out there.

edit> I think the woofer mid response looks shakey but it depends on the testing and your perspective, anyway FWIW a lot of people loved old school AR designs.

[N10]

Originally posted by MJL21193

What are you thinking - vented or sealed. For that woofer, vented would probably be the best alignment.

Good luck with your project.

Thanks for the feedback! I'll look for another mid and post back here...I'm glad the tweeter and woofer are compatible though...gives me somewhere to start.

As for enclosures, I was just sketching some things out, and I was planning on a vented one, although it's harder to do that way, I think I could manage it, just volume becomes more important then correct? Which prompts me to ask is it alright to use the manufacturers recommended volumes and just add them together for all 3 drivers to calculate the box volume?

[N10]

Here are some mids that would meet the below 700hz requirement.

1. Tang Band W3-1723SA coaxial midrange

2. Pioneer FB12EU14-51F midrange

3. Pyle Pro PDMR5

My only question about these is, does wattage really matter? The tang bend mid is only 10 watts RMS/20 watts max. The tweeter/woofer are each over 100 watts RMS. Should that be a problem? The other two are in a similar watt range so it's not an issue really there.

[MJL21193]

Originally posted by N10

As for enclosures, I was just sketching some things out, and I was planning on a vented one, although it's harder to do that way, I think I could manage it, just volume becomes more important then correct? Which prompts me to ask is it alright to use the manufacturers recommended volumes and just add them together for all 3 drivers to calculate the box volume?

The mid will absolutely need to be in its own enclosure within the box, otherwise it will be (heavily ) influenced by the woofer.

The tweeter is sealed already and doesn't need this, or a volume to work in.

The mids you have picked still do not go low enough (also, the first one is a coax). You should be looking at a midwoofer that has good response down to 100Hz or less and up to ~5K. That woofer should cross around 300Hz.

[N10]

Alright...so something like the mids below would be optimal?

1. HiVi Mid/bass

2. Tang band midbass

3. 3" midrange


And again, is wattage something I should be considering as well?

If one of these will work then I know i'm on the right track as far as selections go, and I'll look into them more closely and make a final choice. Then it's just about the crossover. I'll scout around the forums more before I pester anyone more deeply for info on that.

Thanks for the insights! If it weren't for the feedback i'd have made several big mistakes!