Hello Everyone. I want to humbly show my new speaker system. It is a variation adapted from many designs, ideas and opinions from most af the members of this forum, specially from gainphile, to who I want to thank specially for his tips and advice. As You can see it may not look any different of special from other projects, But as it is, to me is an ear and mind opener becuse it let me rediscover details that were in my cd's and also showed me how good or bad a recording can be. I have not used any kind of measuring tool, since I do not have any. Just tuning by ear and EQing with the help of a circuit already integrated in my receiver(used as pre-pro) like the audyssey, that emits tones and calibrates the sound based on the mic placed at the listeners position. At this time I am enjoying their sound which is bigger and more dynamic than I expected, so I can crank it up to almost live listening levels without any trace of distortion. I know that it can be refined, but I do not want to get into that neurosis for now( no offense to anyone ), just to enjoy and plan the final baffle shape and some minor XO settings on the Behringer. Recommendations for XO settings and types(butterworth, L-R, Bessel) are welcome as well as comments and questions about the details on drivers.
Attachments
Woof!
Are the pencil marks the final layout? I really look forward to seeing the final version and your impressions of it once you live with it for a time. I was impressed with my OB speakers when I finished them, but after 6 months of living with them I actually like them more and more everyday. After finishing my first pair of speakers I have really paid closer attention to what other people listen to in their homes and REALLY pay attention to what's on the shelves in stores when I have time to shop. It may be a symptom of a DIY personality, but I call it justification cause I have yet to regret building my own! Enjoy the ride!
Are the pencil marks the final layout? I really look forward to seeing the final version and your impressions of it once you live with it for a time. I was impressed with my OB speakers when I finished them, but after 6 months of living with them I actually like them more and more everyday. After finishing my first pair of speakers I have really paid closer attention to what other people listen to in their homes and REALLY pay attention to what's on the shelves in stores when I have time to shop. It may be a symptom of a DIY personality, but I call it justification cause I have yet to regret building my own! Enjoy the ride!
Hello and thanks for your response!!! First with the last. The B&G's came without the back cup, only the NEO3's are the ones that you have to deal wth the infamous cup. I also included more pictures so You can have an idea of the project. Not the prettiest but functional for my test purposes. And for the first post, I can tell You that I have been a fan of audio equipment since 6th or 7th grade, when I got my firsr Technics receiver and made a pair of 3-way small speakers using Radio Shack drivers and components. The "ignorance is bliss" saying is true, because a little later I heard Rega, NAD, B&W and my neurosis started... Had Magnepans, PSB, Cambers, Klipsh, Definitive Technology, and always wanted something more. The maggies left a scar in my heart that had me wanting that kind of sound again, but lacked the capacity of playing loud and clear. So after a gap of about 10 years and after seeing the Jamo R909 by accident, the flame started, and the search led me to this forum. Now I am sure that I will not regret doing this. Now all box speakers sound like people singing in a box. OB's are not the best, It's sonic signature give you a different perspective of the recording compared to conventionl speakers. Now, my final baffle must be at least 1.5"-2" thick, multi-layered, and handsomely finished to blend into the room and disappear in the dark. Also, the pencil marks are because an experimented menber of this forum discovered that the baffle should be no more than 2.2 times the diameter of the driver due to diffraction problems. so the mid and tweeter baffles must be reduced to their sides. Thanks for Your concern and sharing. I will update as soon as mods are made.
Attachments
That also increases the requirements for electronic EQ in the crossover, which makes it more difficult to tune by ear. If you have a laptop / computer that runs Windows, then there's excellent free software that can take measurements, and a calibrated mic + appropriate preamp will set you back around $100 - 150. There are multiple tutorials online to help with the learning curve.
Something to consider
It's also difficult to recommend crossover settings without having any measurements to look at.How do you like the Neo8 as a tweeter? Is it roughly at ear height? Do you hear the sound change much between a seated and standing position?
Last edited:
That also increases the requirements for electronic EQ in the crossover, which makes it more difficult to tune by ear. If you have a laptop / computer that runs Windows, then there's excellent free software that can take measurements, and a calibrated mic + appropriate preamp will set you back around $100 - 150. There are multiple tutorials online to help with the learning curve.
Something to consider
How do you like the Neo8 as a tweeter? Is it roughly at ear height? Do you hear the sound change much between a seated and standing position?
BTW what software are you using?
From my recent experience with OB-1, I suspect you will have issues getting bass out of that design.
The baffle also looks fairly thin, and I suspect may vibrate quite a bit.
edit: I just saw your comment that the final baffle will be much thicker..
I would suggest you try some side pieces about 1ft deep up to the top of the bass drivers. This will help towards both issues.
You could probably just clamp them on using a wide clamp, just as a trial.
The baffle also looks fairly thin, and I suspect may vibrate quite a bit.
edit: I just saw your comment that the final baffle will be much thicker..
I would suggest you try some side pieces about 1ft deep up to the top of the bass drivers. This will help towards both issues.
You could probably just clamp them on using a wide clamp, just as a trial.
Last edited:
Nice Juliopr ! It's true that once you listen to OB it's really...really hard to listen to box speakers. They do many things right. When you build the thick baffle, make sure you chamber the inside cutout as wide as possible otherwise the cavity resonance will colour the sound. I consistently have great result with simple 45deg angle.
Seeing those I wish I hadn't sold my 4 eminence alphas.
Happy refining your speakers and keep us posted !
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Seeing those I wish I hadn't sold my 4 eminence alphas.
Happy refining your speakers and keep us posted !
Last edited:
Saurav, I have found that to notice some radical change in response, You have to be pretty below or above the axis. Otherwise, to me, they sound like no other conventional transducer. voices and instruments are presented with such detail and decay and also seem to blend well with the mids which are SB Acoustics. About the electronic EQ, My Pioneer Elite has what they call MCACC(multi ch acoustical calibration circuit) which does reverb and standing wave correction and Pro EQ with 10 band EQ for each of the 7.1 channels, using a mic that I place in the listening position. Not the best an most precise, but helped me tame most of that "shouty" midrange. Also the drivers are pretty close in sensitivity ratings, maybe that helps also.That also increases the requirements for electronic EQ in the crossover, which makes it more difficult to tune by ear. If you have a laptop / computer that runs Windows, then there's excellent free software that can take measurements, and a calibrated mic + appropriate preamp will set you back around $100 - 150. There are multiple tutorials online to help with the learning curve.
Something to consider
How do you like the Neo8 as a tweeter? Is it roughly at ear height? Do you hear the sound change much between a seated and standing position?
Andy, I am one of your OB-1 admirers!! I like the round top and the beyma mid. to be honest, when I first listened, I used the Pure Direct setting, bypassing any processing, except XO. It was boomy!!!!!! even before mounting the alphas in the baffle, 1 sounded just right but 2 in parallel were a blast!! That made me speed up the test baffle, because I knew I would not hold much longer until some skilled woodworker materialized my project. Home Depot cutted the panels and my wife made the holes and the legs. I bolted everything else anh hooked it up, crossed my fingers and have been tweaking with XO points and types since then. So, putting wings or side panels to the back were not in my agenda. Unless You can kindly explain me why should I consider adding them. I am open to suggestions... Is it low level bass response? I will appreciate your comments.From my recent experience with OB-1, I suspect you will have issues getting bass out of that design.
The baffle also looks fairly thin, and I suspect may vibrate quite a bit.
edit: I just saw your comment that the final baffle will be much thicker..
I would suggest you try some side pieces about 1ft deep up to the top of the bass drivers. This will help towards both issues.
You could probably just clamp them on using a wide clamp, just as a trial.
gainphile!!! Thanks for your support. You bet I will have those cutouts made with the angles on the final baffles. I wish better quality bass drivers suited for OB were available..Nice Juliopr ! It's true that once you listen to OB it's really...really hard to listen to box speakers. They do many things right. When you build the thick baffle, make sure you chamber the inside cutout as wide as possible otherwise the cavity resonance will colour the sound. I consistently have great result with simple 45deg angle.
Seeing those I wish I hadn't sold my 4 eminence alphas.
Happy refining your speakers and keep us posted !
Roger. I have considered using 2 more NEO8's to make a mid-high line array and to increase power handling. but no supertweeters. Somehow I feel satisfied at this moment using them. In some recordings even sound pretty bright. I am cutting them between 700-800Hz, so they can reproduce more of the mids. please share your opinion on thes matter.
I trialed OB-1 without and sides, and found I lost a LOT of low end bass response. You seem to be saying that you are getting enough without the sides.
Bare in mind that the Eminence alpha has a pretty high Qts (iirc) but the drivers I am using have a Qts of around 0.32 and an Fs of 32Hz.. They are very different drivers from the Eminence Alpha.
Also , seeing that you are running active, you may be able to EQ the bass up a bit.
Thing is, it should be pretty easy to see if sides make any difference.. just get 4 pieces of mdf about 3ft x 1ft, and some 2ft clamps.
Last edited:
There is no shortages of bass from 4x Eminence 15A. The only downside is the short 3mm throw, but surface area is nice !
Let's say we wish to target an acoustic response of fo=20hz (!), and Q=0.5. Then the eq should be a combination of a notch filter and 12db shelving lowpass:
This will give -3db at 40hz and -6db at 20hz which is similar to the Orions.
If the desired listening SPL is lower, then my personal preference is 20hz with Q=0.7, which will give -3db at 20hz. Not everyone likes 100+ db
Let's say we wish to target an acoustic response of fo=20hz (!), and Q=0.5. Then the eq should be a combination of a notch filter and 12db shelving lowpass:
This will give -3db at 40hz and -6db at 20hz which is similar to the Orions.
If the desired listening SPL is lower, then my personal preference is 20hz with Q=0.7, which will give -3db at 20hz. Not everyone likes 100+ db
Yes, Roger, that is what I thought. more of the same driver tend to sound equal or louder but with less excursion, so it can crossed over lower. the twin alphas are a proof of that. In fact, after this experience, I wish I bought the RD40 or the RD58 instead. It may address both vertical radiation coverage, power handling and may have allowed to make a 2-way instead of a 3-way system. I am using the notch filter to tame the 12k peak and it helps a lot with most of the bright recordings but does not seem to dull the good ones. Some recording engineers seem to fall sleep while recording and slide the highest octave keys by accident.
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.