Overnight Sensations alternatives?

[spaid]

Hi all,

I decided I want to try building my first set of speakers, and thought a small, cheaper set to use with my computer would be a good place to start. After much googling, I settled on the Overnight Sensations... only to discover the components are almost impossible to source here in Australia.

So I'm wondering, are there any similarly priced/performing designs that the parts for are available here? Or is the price going to end up more expensive here regardless of design? I was hoping to get the electronics for < $200, but maybe at this lower end I'd be better off just buying a set of decent speakers...

[MCPete]

Originally Posted by spaid

After much googling, I settled on the Overnight Sensations... only to discover the components are almost impossible to source here in Australia.

When you say "components", I would think that you mean the woofer and tweeter, not the crossover parts. If you like the design of the Overnight Sensations, then you might try to arrive at an Australian clone of that design.
That is, you could look to see if you can find a woofer and a tweeter available in the land down under with specifications closely matching those of the Overnight Sensations.

Coming up with a clone is going to inevitably require some tweaking of the design to get something like the Overnight Sensations, but perhaps some of the members here would find that interesting to do.

I would say more, but I don't know if you would want to get involved in this sort of thing, so I won't waste my breath.

Regards,
Pete

[spaid]

Originally Posted by MCPete

Coming up with a clone is going to inevitably require some tweaking of the design to get something like the Overnight Sensations, but perhaps some of the members here would find that interesting to do.

Thanks for the suggestion, MCPete. I was hoping to make my first foray into the world of DIY with a proven design, but if it's possible to achieve something similar with different drivers then that might be worth exploring. I can see myself becoming interested in tweaking and designing my own eventually, but I don't want my first attempt to put me off the whole idea :P

[fatmarley]

Small and cheap?

Aura NS6-255 and Vifa BC25SC TM - Techtalk Speaker Building, Audio, Video, and Electronics Customer Discussion Forum From Parts-Express.com

I know I keep posting this link but it just goes to show that price has little to do with sound quality (Aurasound ns6)

[spaid]

Looks like an interesting option, but again finding the drivers in Aus becomes a problem, at least for the woofer. I'm beginning to think that diy down under is not such a good proposition value wise for the cheaper speakers, when postage will end up a significant proportion of the final price.

[sreten]

Hi,

Jaycar seem to do a decent cheap tweeter and 4" mid/bass :

25mm Shielded Dome Tweeter - Jaycar Electronics



4" Paper Cone Woofer/Midrange - Jaycar Electronics



but it seems you'd need someones help with measurements
and simulation to arrive at a decent box and x/o design.

The drivers seem decent enough value.

rgds, sreten.

[spaid]

I had hoped to start with something tried and tested, but at those driver prices maybe it is worth just diving in.
Best case I end up pleasantly surprised, worst case it's still a good learning experience.

[fatmarley]

Originally Posted by spaid

Looks like an interesting option, but again finding the drivers in Aus becomes a problem, at least for the woofer. I'm beginning to think that diy down under is not such a good proposition value wise for the cheaper speakers, when postage will end up a significant proportion of the final price.

I had 4 Aura NS6s delivered to the UK for $63 and the drivers were $36, so around 100 USD in total.

It worked out at something like £15 for each driver. Not cheap compared to what you pay in America, but still not a bad price IMO.

[spaid]

Originally Posted by fatmarley

I had 4 Aura NS6s delivered to the UK for $63 and the drivers were $36, so around 100 USD in total.

It worked out at something like £15 for each driver. Not cheap compared to what you pay in America, but still not a bad price IMO.

It looks like I could get 2 sets of the drivers delivered for just over $100 USD all up. Does using different brands for crossover components make much difference as long as the ratings are the same? I'd prefer to find them locally if possible.

[fastbike1]

Is it not possible to source the HiVi drivers in Oz? I would have thought Chinese drivers were easier to get in Australia. There is a HiVi T20 tweeter version.

Originally Posted by spaid

Hi all,

I decided I want to try building my first set of speakers, and thought a small, cheaper set to use with my computer would be a good place to start. After much googling, I settled on the Overnight Sensations... only to discover the components are almost impossible to source here in Australia.

So I'm wondering, are there any similarly priced/performing designs that the parts for are available here? Or is the price going to end up more expensive here regardless of design? I was hoping to get the electronics for < $200, but maybe at this lower end I'd be better off just buying a set of decent speakers...