I would prefer to keep a flat response for this exercise.
Most drivers attempt to produce a flat response in their usable range, and simple analog filters only produce n*6db/oct slopes for an nth order filter. House type curves require fractional order filters -0.5db/oct , and I think it would be too difficult to include in the $30 budget limit.
Most drivers attempt to produce a flat response in their usable range, and simple analog filters only produce n*6db/oct slopes for an nth order filter. House type curves require fractional order filters -0.5db/oct , and I think it would be too difficult to include in the $30 budget limit.
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Minor update - I got my radial arm saw back from my fathers house today. Wood cutting is imminent. Also, someday I will need to use a tablesaw and see if it truly that much better. I find the circular saw for cutting a sheet to manageable size, and then the radial arm saw to be workable, but I suspect it is a whole new world to slide the wood on a nice smooth cast iron table. I have some melamine type MDF stuff with super low friction - it was the running platform a belt wrapped around for a treadmill I scrapped. I will be making a new sacraficial table out of that stuff to see if it works amazing for ripping.
Sadly, I no longer have the jig I make to mount my router to the radial arm table as a make shift router table. I may have to make something nice enough this time that I do not toss it when the project is done. So confession time - I will be using a radial arm saw, not a table saw, and I have never completed a multiway speaker before. I have done probably 20ish subwoofers, and 5 speakers for surround sound have been waiting to complete for 15ish year, but the time is now!
Anyone else at the collecting tools, collecting wood, buying drivers stage?
Sadly, I no longer have the jig I make to mount my router to the radial arm table as a make shift router table. I may have to make something nice enough this time that I do not toss it when the project is done. So confession time - I will be using a radial arm saw, not a table saw, and I have never completed a multiway speaker before. I have done probably 20ish subwoofers, and 5 speakers for surround sound have been waiting to complete for 15ish year, but the time is now!
Anyone else at the collecting tools, collecting wood, buying drivers stage?
Go find a 10" Craftsman table saw for $150 asap. Ripping on the radial arm is messy and not entirely safe. You need a table saw. Save the radial arm for cutting up scrap. They are obsolete in the age of sliding/gliding compound miter saws. If you stick with the radial arm you MUST purchase a correct blade for it, which is the same type sliders use. The key spec is hook angle, which needs to be near 0 degrees. Table saws need 15-20 degrees. This matters.
I have to disagree on them being useless. Any 24" cut I want to make, cutting to length or cutting at an angle, it is amazing. I also made a wet saw out of mine for tile so it swaps back and forth between wood cutting, and with a different saw slide part + diamond blade and the wet tray, to cut ceramics and stone. I do have a compound miter and use it for trim and chopping dimenional lumber to length when I want to cut something in the back yard or anywhere away from the garage. Otherwise, the radial arm saw is just as easy, and compared to my rather low end ryobi miter saw, just as accurate. I do love that ryobi miter though, I have used the crab out of it and it keeps chugging.
I agree though, ripping is borderline on the radial arm saw. At least the recall retrofit has all sorts of safety shields and such on them now, and when you feed in against the blade, never with it, it will not suck in the wood. I have never heard of the teeth angle thing, but I am glad to learn it, thanks. I think the blade on there now is from the early 90's which shows you how long a carbide blade stays sharp when cared for!
The thing I do not get about any table saw I see for less than a grand is the table surface is only like 24x24. Is it like a rite of passage that the first thing you do with them is build a larger table to surround it?
I agree though, ripping is borderline on the radial arm saw. At least the recall retrofit has all sorts of safety shields and such on them now, and when you feed in against the blade, never with it, it will not suck in the wood. I have never heard of the teeth angle thing, but I am glad to learn it, thanks. I think the blade on there now is from the early 90's which shows you how long a carbide blade stays sharp when cared for!
The thing I do not get about any table saw I see for less than a grand is the table surface is only like 24x24. Is it like a rite of passage that the first thing you do with them is build a larger table to surround it?
It depends on what shop you use when browsing for parts.
If the shop is in EU you can shop for 37 EUR.
If the shop is in the US you can shop for 30 USD.
It does not matter where YOU are located, it is to diversify and increase options, as well as even out REAL COST when purchasing drivers.
You do not have to actually order parts from that shop, you just use it as a basis for calculating prices. Order from where it's cheapest for you including shipping.
If the shop is in EU you can shop for 37 EUR.
If the shop is in the US you can shop for 30 USD.
It does not matter where YOU are located, it is to diversify and increase options, as well as even out REAL COST when purchasing drivers.
You do not have to actually order parts from that shop, you just use it as a basis for calculating prices. Order from where it's cheapest for you including shipping.
Find the drivers you want in an EU or US shop, note the prices, then order them from wherever you want, and at whatever cost you are willing to pay.
Edit:
Here are some EU shops:
Speakers & Audio Parts, EU Webshop
Strassacker: Lautsprecher - Boxen - Selbstbau
Here are some US shops:
Parts Express: Speakers, Amplifiers, Audio Parts and Solutions
Madisound Speaker Components
There might be cheaper or more diversified shops about if you start looking, but these are the ones I know best.
Edit2:
A hot tip is to choose the driver manufacturer your heart desires most, check out if there is a web-shop in the same country they are manufactured from the sales contact information, often cheaper.
Edit:
Here are some EU shops:
Speakers & Audio Parts, EU Webshop
Strassacker: Lautsprecher - Boxen - Selbstbau
Here are some US shops:
Parts Express: Speakers, Amplifiers, Audio Parts and Solutions
Madisound Speaker Components
There might be cheaper or more diversified shops about if you start looking, but these are the ones I know best.
Edit2:
A hot tip is to choose the driver manufacturer your heart desires most, check out if there is a web-shop in the same country they are manufactured from the sales contact information, often cheaper.
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Which drivers?
I guess there would have to be a new round of estimates/calculation on what the Relative Cost should be for your continent. Big Mac Index is not accurate enough for calculating actual cost, at least for anything other than the actual Big Mac, it is too much of an oversimplification, and does not transfer properly to technical products and services.
I guess there would have to be a new round of estimates/calculation on what the Relative Cost should be for your continent. Big Mac Index is not accurate enough for calculating actual cost, at least for anything other than the actual Big Mac, it is too much of an oversimplification, and does not transfer properly to technical products and services.
example:
http://www.altronics.com.au/p/c3038-130mm-5-inch-40w-woofer-aluminium-cone-speaker/
It's a woofer made by Taiwanese company Lyeco (same company that makes Dynavox and some Dayton Audio and MCM woofers afaik). Can be found in local electronics stores and on Ebay AU. Probably similar to something like a Dayton DA135.
Comparatively drivers here are generally more expensive than both US and EU (about 1.5x overseas price), but the odd asian made driver can be found for a reasonable price - generally a custom order that a local electronics chain has made and the driver therefore can't be found anywhere else in the world.
http://www.altronics.com.au/p/c3038-130mm-5-inch-40w-woofer-aluminium-cone-speaker/
It's a woofer made by Taiwanese company Lyeco (same company that makes Dynavox and some Dayton Audio and MCM woofers afaik). Can be found in local electronics stores and on Ebay AU. Probably similar to something like a Dayton DA135.
Comparatively drivers here are generally more expensive than both US and EU (about 1.5x overseas price), but the odd asian made driver can be found for a reasonable price - generally a custom order that a local electronics chain has made and the driver therefore can't be found anywhere else in the world.
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Well there aren't many examples because there aren't a lot of drivers that aren't also sold in EU or US. Most of it is 'buyout' type stock so the prices can be rather volatile. Otherwise something that would be $20USD on parts-express we are paying maybe $35-40AUD.
Also what if I want to mix and match parts that are found commonly in both the EU and US? E.g. I might want to use a Dayton Audio tweeter (cheaper in US) and a Visaton woofer (cheaper in EU). How am I supposed to work out my budget?
Also what if I want to mix and match parts that are found commonly in both the EU and US? E.g. I might want to use a Dayton Audio tweeter (cheaper in US) and a Visaton woofer (cheaper in EU). How am I supposed to work out my budget?
If we are allowing 37 Euro if bought in Europe, then we should allow $58 Australian if purchased there. That's the current exchange rate. £32.50 in the UK.
Builders outside the USA should be able to use US prices, if the driver is available in the US. The reason the US dollar amount is a little lower is because prices here are generally lower. Shipping is not counted.
Builders outside the USA should be able to use US prices, if the driver is available in the US. The reason the US dollar amount is a little lower is because prices here are generally lower. Shipping is not counted.
I think that works if we are agreed that parts in the US are cheaper and everywhere else is about the same as Europe.
Say I use some driver that is $10USD at parts-express that's 33% of my budget gone so I have 67% of my budget remaining i.e. $38AUD or 24Euro or $20USD. I might then pick another driver that is 20Euro, leaving me $6AUD, 4Euro, or $5USD to spend. I buy $6AUD of capacitors and inductors from a local shop and I have nothing left to spend.
Say I use some driver that is $10USD at parts-express that's 33% of my budget gone so I have 67% of my budget remaining i.e. $38AUD or 24Euro or $20USD. I might then pick another driver that is 20Euro, leaving me $6AUD, 4Euro, or $5USD to spend. I buy $6AUD of capacitors and inductors from a local shop and I have nothing left to spend.
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What I can get my hands on (cheaply at least) is a mish mash of stuff from both continents because Australia doesn't belong to either. If I limit myself to one or the other, I'm limiting myself to a fraction of what is available locally. Otherwise I'm going out of my way to order everything from Parts-express or similar and paying about 2-4x the intended budget to get drivers on my door step. That doesn't seem to be in the spirit of the competition. Also isn't that the point of making the EU budget bigger than the exchange rate? If someone in the US wants to quote an EU price for a particular item because it's 'cheaper' in budget % than the US price, good for them.
Also what's our view on unbranded stuff that can be found from dealers on ebay/etc? Avoid? Is the spirit of the competition to design something that might plausibly be able to be reproduced by buying stuff from a 'reputable' dealer such as Parts-express? If so, buyouts should be strongly discouraged too.
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So I am supposed to pretend as if i live somewhere else
. Seems against the spirit of a fun cheap challenge.I think what I am getting at is that
Scenario 1:
-I buy a 6.5" woofer for $35AUD. let's assume this is some local brand and can't be found anywhere else. Just like if someone bought a buyout from parts-express, people in europe probably wouldn't be interested in it because the shipping is killer. Likewise, no one would be interested in this except other Australians.
-I buy a Peerless full range driver for $15AUD. This driver is also widely available in Europe and USA but it is much cheaper in USA.
Scenario 2:
-I buy a 6.5" woofer for $55AUD (a ripoff price, but shipping is cheap because local) from a local electronics distributor. This driver is widely available very cheaply in europe however.
-I buy a Peerless full range driver for $15AUD. This driver is also widely available in Europe and USA but it is much cheaper in USA.
How am I supposed to quote my budget so people don't 'down vote me for mix and matching'
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