Advice on first DIY speaker build

Williham · 16th April 2011, 01:55 PM

Hey guys,
I've just been told by a good chap who builds bespoke furniture that he'd be up for building some speakers with me!

Bloody exciting, as I've wanted to for a while but never really had the tools.

I want to build a pair of bookshelf speakers for a small to mid sized room, that can be driven easily by my 40W gainclone. The amp isn't important though, probably going to build something new at some point soon.

Anything up to £1000 for the drivers and crossovers is what I'm aiming for. I'm really a fan of speakers that can manage good imaging, so fairly detailed but not harsh sounding. I'm currently running some B&Ws 685s which I love the characteristic of the sound they produce.

Been looking at some of the kits on this website, I quite like the look of this one:
ARIA MHT - Visaton 2-way column speaker DIY kit - per pair (5948)  - Europe Audio

Anyone have any experience with that?
Also, I find fullrange drivers quite interesting, I would be up for a design based around a set of them if anyone can recommend a good one?

Cheers,
Will

Charles Darwin · 16th April 2011, 05:29 PM

Or you could go a different way, get vintage 10inch Tannoy dual-concentrics and give them the quality enclosure they deserved but never got. At least not from Tannoy.
Drivers to look for would be III LZ (10" Monitor Gold), 295HPD or 2558.

Just make sure the drivers come with the crossovers!
There is plenty in there to upgrade and fiddle with but they also contain an autoformer which is not easily replaceable. Tannoy put the 295HPD in a bookshelf-sized box and called it Eaton. Plans are readily available, keep the internal volume and port size.
The rest is only limited by your imagination.

Williham · 16th April 2011, 08:38 PM

Just had a quick look, they look like pretty impressive drivers.
Kinda look like an older version of what Kef are trying to do these days with their coaxial drivers.
There a bit big though, that's the only problem. I need a pair of speakers that can fit nicely on stands in a fairly small room.

Williham · 16th April 2011, 09:14 PM

Do you know of anything similar, but more around the 6.5" mark?

Charles Darwin · 16th April 2011, 10:10 PM

You could do a lot worse than looking through these to see if you can find something to suit your needs:
DIY Loudspeaker Projects Troels Gravesen

Zaph|Audio

How about a Zaph SR71?

Williham · 17th April 2011, 03:06 PM

I like the look of the Zaphs, seem a little cheaper than the Troels Gravesen designs.
Having said that I like the look of the the ZD5 :P
As the floorstanding version is so thin I think I could get away with it, and for that bass... "drools"

I've been looking at the the crossover design for it, and for some of the inductors he's listed the DC resistance values. How critical are these to the design? And if I can't find an inductor with the set resistance value could I get away with parralleling a resistor with the inductor, or putting one in series with it?

Williham · 17th April 2011, 03:41 PM

Also, for the coils listed that do not have their resistance value stated on the crossover diagram, ie the ones that don't have red resistors next to them; does their DC resistance value matter?

Charles Darwin · 17th April 2011, 09:16 PM

I would guess that when he gives the DC resistance it is an important part of the xover function.
And yes if your chosen inductors measure less make it up with a resistor.

If it's not listed I'd go for the lowest DC resistance you can find/afford.

Inductor · 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Williham

Also, for the coils listed that do not have their resistance value stated on the crossover diagram, ie the ones that don't have red resistors next to them; does their DC resistance value matter?

Stay way from the tweak with the resistor (+inductor), because you are adding more difficult to control variants. One of them is the power that goes trough.
It doesn't mean you can not test inductors in the inductor path. Said that, I would not give that importance but the fact of choosing the speaker (drivers), kit first. There was some talk on a new SEAS driver on diyAudio...
New SEAS coax!

Charles Darwin · 18th April 2011, 01:54 PM

How about going the active route with MiniDSP, that Behringer thing or a diy board (if you don't want digital) as a xover?

Saves you all that messing about with inductors, capacitors and resistors and gives more detail and tighter bass.
Plus no insertion loss and it won't cost more than boutiquey cap and inductors even when counting the extra amp.

16th April 2011, 01:55 PM	#1
Williham diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: United Kingdom	Advice on first DIY speaker build Hey guys, I've just been told by a good chap who builds bespoke furniture that he'd be up for building some speakers with me! Bloody exciting, as I've wanted to for a while but never really had the tools. I want to build a pair of bookshelf speakers for a small to mid sized room, that can be driven easily by my 40W gainclone. The amp isn't important though, probably going to build something new at some point soon. Anything up to £1000 for the drivers and crossovers is what I'm aiming for. I'm really a fan of speakers that can manage good imaging, so fairly detailed but not harsh sounding. I'm currently running some B&Ws 685s which I love the characteristic of the sound they produce. Been looking at some of the kits on this website, I quite like the look of this one: ARIA MHT - Visaton 2-way column speaker DIY kit - per pair (5948)  - Europe Audio Anyone have any experience with that? Also, I find fullrange drivers quite interesting, I would be up for a design based around a set of them if anyone can recommend a good one? Cheers, Will

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16th April 2011, 05:29 PM	#2
Charles Darwin diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Birmingham, UK	Or you could go a different way, get vintage 10inch Tannoy dual-concentrics and give them the quality enclosure they deserved but never got. At least not from Tannoy. Drivers to look for would be III LZ (10" Monitor Gold), 295HPD or 2558. Just make sure the drivers come with the crossovers! There is plenty in there to upgrade and fiddle with but they also contain an autoformer which is not easily replaceable. Tannoy put the 295HPD in a bookshelf-sized box and called it Eaton. Plans are readily available, keep the internal volume and port size. The rest is only limited by your imagination.

16th April 2011, 08:38 PM	#3
Williham diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: United Kingdom	Just had a quick look, they look like pretty impressive drivers. Kinda look like an older version of what Kef are trying to do these days with their coaxial drivers. There a bit big though, that's the only problem. I need a pair of speakers that can fit nicely on stands in a fairly small room.

16th April 2011, 09:14 PM	#4
Williham diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: United Kingdom	Do you know of anything similar, but more around the 6.5" mark?

16th April 2011, 10:10 PM	#5
Charles Darwin diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Birmingham, UK	You could do a lot worse than looking through these to see if you can find something to suit your needs: DIY Loudspeaker Projects Troels Gravesen Zaph\|Audio How about a Zaph SR71?

17th April 2011, 03:06 PM	#6
Williham diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: United Kingdom	I like the look of the Zaphs, seem a little cheaper than the Troels Gravesen designs. Having said that I like the look of the the ZD5 :P As the floorstanding version is so thin I think I could get away with it, and for that bass... "drools" I've been looking at the the crossover design for it, and for some of the inductors he's listed the DC resistance values. How critical are these to the design? And if I can't find an inductor with the set resistance value could I get away with parralleling a resistor with the inductor, or putting one in series with it?

17th April 2011, 03:41 PM	#7
Williham diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: United Kingdom	Also, for the coils listed that do not have their resistance value stated on the crossover diagram, ie the ones that don't have red resistors next to them; does their DC resistance value matter?

17th April 2011, 09:16 PM	#8
Charles Darwin diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Birmingham, UK	I would guess that when he gives the DC resistance it is an important part of the xover function. And yes if your chosen inductors measure less make it up with a resistor. If it's not listed I'd go for the lowest DC resistance you can find/afford.

18th April 2011, 01:54 PM	#10
Charles Darwin diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Birmingham, UK	How about going the active route with MiniDSP, that Behringer thing or a diy board (if you don't want digital) as a xover? Saves you all that messing about with inductors, capacitors and resistors and gives more detail and tighter bass. Plus no insertion loss and it won't cost more than boutiquey cap and inductors even when counting the extra amp.

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