Best DIY Speaker for Rock

[Agisthos]

I am looking for opinions on a DIY speaker design/kit.

They will be used exclusively for 2 channel audio and I dont wan't a sub. Cost is not really an issue.

They need to be able to handle rock, dance and large scale orchestral music.

Good fast bass with PRAT for Metallica, Chemical Brothers e.t.c

My music tastes are varied but my limited experience with speakers so far has shown me that a lot of the audiophile ones are voiced for Norah Jones and struggle with popular recordings.

Solid state componants will be used.

Any suggestions?

[Mark25]

Wilmslow Audio's Home Studio Monitor would do the job nicely IMO.

[sreten]

Something along these lines should do the job well :

http://www.users.nac.net/markowitzgd/david/david.htm

Biamping with line level passive crossovers for the
bass / mid integration seems a good way to go to me,
and avoids some expensive crossover components.

A 2 way, 2.5 way MTM or a 2 way MTM could cut the
mustard if your listening level requirements are lower.

http://home.hetnet.nl/~geenius/Proteus.html

sreten.

[Xristo]

Originally posted by Agisthos

My music tastes are varied but my limited experience with speakers so far has shown me that a lot of the audiophile ones are voiced for Norah Jones and struggle with popular recordings.

A good speaker will play any type of music well, as long as the recording is of good quality. The reason why norah jones and like wise music is mostly auditioned on audiophile speakers is because that music is so simple in its makeup.

[Mark25]

Originally posted by Xristo
A good speaker will play any type of music well, as long as the recording is of good quality.

True, but some speakers can play music well without being so fussy about the recording quality/partnering equipment. Hence my recomendation.

[hacknet]

don`t mind me asking but what makes rock sound good ? is it the clear and accurate mid bass? is it the praty bass? is it the crystal clear guitar tones?

i`m trying to build a pair of speakers too...

[Mark25]

Originally posted by hacknet
don`t mind me asking but what makes rock sound good ?

To my ears; being able to clearly distinguish between the bass guitar and bass drum is fundamental to an enjoyable rock sound. (i find the 100Hz hump in a cheap speakers bass o/p to make it sound bigger than it is detrimental in this respect)

But for the type of rock music i listen to, not highlighting the poor recording quality is also an issue.

[sreten]

IMO its a question of expectation.

All you really need is good deep fastish bass that will play clean,
(most cheap and small loudspeakers fall over here), and a balance
suited to good levels, rather than the more laid back balance
typically used for listening at "acoustic" levels.

At moderate levels a rock speaker sounds a little "middy",
upping the volume is needed to bring up the bass and to
a lesser extent the treble.

Things improve immeasurably with good reproduction of the
drum kits bass drum "kick", again small and wimpy speakers
simply don't deliver here. IMO this needs bass in-room down
to the lower 30's, not difficult if you know what your doing.

Distortion performance is an issue, as this is generally directly
related to input power power, higher sensitivity speakers have
lower distortion and are more suited to higher level playback.

Matching the speaker to the room is critical for good levels,
simply put the bigger the room the bigger the speaker you
need, also a fairly lively room acoustic is better for rock than
the more ideal damped acoustic suited to say classical music.

Also note for smaller rooms a "big" speaker is not required,
but it must have a good bass unit capable of some throw,
overdamped reflex's tuned to the low 30's work well.

Its not difficult using passive line level EQ to have alternative
balances for a speaker for "normal" and "loud" use.

sreten.

[qi]

You might enjoy the Jensen Imperials at www.decware.com if cost is not an issue...

[sreten]

Originally posted by Mark25


To my ears; being able to clearly distinguish between the bass guitar and bass drum is fundamental to an enjoyable rock sound. (i find the 100Hz hump in a cheap speakers bass o/p to make it sound bigger than it is detrimental in this respect)

But for the type of rock music i listen to, not highlighting the poor recording quality is also an issue.

Room size, moderately loud or just loud, approximate budget,
acceptable size, amplication etc would help to give some pointers,
as there is a lot of choice out there.

sreten.