I'm building a push pull 2A3 amplifier soon, which will be good for about 8 to 10 watts (see here for the design).
As such, I will need a pair of fairly high efficiency speakers to pair with the amp. I would just build one of the Fostex reccommended backloading horns, or some other similar design and go on my merry way. But there is a caveat:
I'm going to college next year (Northwestern). I won't have much space, and I'll have a roommate at least my first year. So large speakers are out.
So I need small, high efficiency speakers that can work well near the wall. They will be paired with a sub (not sure what yet). I have a table saw at my disposal, so DIY is preferable.
My budget is less than $1000, but the less the better, obviously, as long as it sounds good. I'd like to spend no more than $750, if possible.
If I don't find anything to DIY, I"ll probably buy the Omega Super 3Rs. So use that as a reference of what kind of quality I'm looking for.
I have no preference on what kind of design it is, as long as it is small and efficient. I hope this works out, as I really don't want to give up on good sounding speakers during college. Using headphones 100% of the time would really start to irritate me (I'll be using AKG K1000s). Thanks for any help!
As such, I will need a pair of fairly high efficiency speakers to pair with the amp. I would just build one of the Fostex reccommended backloading horns, or some other similar design and go on my merry way. But there is a caveat:
I'm going to college next year (Northwestern). I won't have much space, and I'll have a roommate at least my first year. So large speakers are out.
So I need small, high efficiency speakers that can work well near the wall. They will be paired with a sub (not sure what yet). I have a table saw at my disposal, so DIY is preferable.
My budget is less than $1000, but the less the better, obviously, as long as it sounds good. I'd like to spend no more than $750, if possible.
If I don't find anything to DIY, I"ll probably buy the Omega Super 3Rs. So use that as a reference of what kind of quality I'm looking for.
I have no preference on what kind of design it is, as long as it is small and efficient. I hope this works out, as I really don't want to give up on good sounding speakers during college. Using headphones 100% of the time would really start to irritate me (I'll be using AKG K1000s). Thanks for any help!
The Omega's use a modded FE127E though I don't know what the mods are. If you can handle reading a very long thread you could look at the "Reference" design in the single driver forum. There were a few suggested design though I'm sorry to say we haven't concluded it. I would be very inclined to look at the FE108EZ in something like a folded QWT for your situation.
Small room, small speaker, IMHO quite gorgeous.... don't discount them because they will come in WAY under budget.
http://home.hetnet.nl/~geenius/Solo103.html
dave
http://home.hetnet.nl/~geenius/Solo103.html
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
dave
That looks like a nice design, but I don't think it's really for me. I do listen to a lot of rock music, as well as large scale orchestral music. Both of those are huge shortcomings for that speaker.
One of the things that sounded so nice to me about the Omega Super 3 is that it CAN play large scale music without any problems (at least according to the reviews I've read). I'd also like a design that gets down to at least 65 Hz or so on its own. I don't want to have to use the sub for higher frequencies than that, because the speakers will likely be on a desk, or right next to it, and the sub will be on the floor next to the speakers. So I can't rely on the sub too much.
I'm not against using cheap drivers (actually, some of the fostex are very expensive compared to standard drivers). But that enclosure is even smaller than I'd like, and just doesn't get quite low enough. Is there anything similar that is a little larger and will scale better with the music?
The other thing about the Super 3 that appeals to me is its shape. The wide but shallow design would be more suited to the lack of space in a dorm room than a conventional speaker shape, but obviously it's not something that would make or break what design I choose. It would just be a little bonus.
One of the things that sounded so nice to me about the Omega Super 3 is that it CAN play large scale music without any problems (at least according to the reviews I've read). I'd also like a design that gets down to at least 65 Hz or so on its own. I don't want to have to use the sub for higher frequencies than that, because the speakers will likely be on a desk, or right next to it, and the sub will be on the floor next to the speakers. So I can't rely on the sub too much.
I'm not against using cheap drivers (actually, some of the fostex are very expensive compared to standard drivers). But that enclosure is even smaller than I'd like, and just doesn't get quite low enough. Is there anything similar that is a little larger and will scale better with the music?
The other thing about the Super 3 that appeals to me is its shape. The wide but shallow design would be more suited to the lack of space in a dorm room than a conventional speaker shape, but obviously it's not something that would make or break what design I choose. It would just be a little bonus.
Hmm, I've been looking further into some of the Fostex designs, since they seem like a good solution. How about the FX120 in the Fostex reccommended bass reflex enclosure? The only thing I'm a little concerned about is if the sensitivity would be high enough. The Omega Super 3s get 93dB sensitivity out of a 91dB driver, so maybe I could get about 91dB out of the 89dB FX120. That should be enough, especially considering the FX120's VERY benign impedance curve. The respons looks great too. It has less treble energy than the FE127E, which looks pretty peaky above 5kHz. Or what about the FF125K, that driver's response looks nice if it's off axis a bit, and it's more sensitive than the FX120.
Here's the FX120:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/pdf/fx120.pdf
And here's the FF125K:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/pdf/ff125k.pdf
And here's the enclosure:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/ff_enc.shtml
What do you guys think?
Here's the FX120:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/pdf/fx120.pdf
And here's the FF125K:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/pdf/ff125k.pdf
And here's the enclosure:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/speaker_comp/ff_enc.shtml
What do you guys think?
Would the 89dB Fostexes be a bad idea for use with a <10 watt amp? I'll be listening in the nearfield, so volume will obviously be reasonable. I'll probably never be more than five or six feet from the speakers at most, and I'll likely be much closer than that. The response of the FX120 seems very attractive and it lacks the rising trend of some of the other Fostex drivers.
How about the F120A? It's pretty expensive, but not for an Alnico design, and it's still well within my budget.
How about the F120A? It's pretty expensive, but not for an Alnico design, and it's still well within my budget.
I don't see that as a problem. I've used 85db speakers with the little Sonic T amp and it could get loud enough in a small room. I know you identified the Omega for comparison but can you be any more specific about cabinet size? I'm thinking you'll be using stands for bookshelf speakers so what about a slender floorstander that could be placed close to a wall?
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Joined 2002
I might not even have room for stands. I was thinking I might just put them on my desk. The largest dorm rooms at Northwestern are about 12 X 18 feet (or something like that), and I'll be sharing that with another person. My room may not even be that big.
Moreover, a small floorstander probably wouldn't be tall enough for my application, and I won't have room to angle them back. Besides, I'm not exactly an expert cabinet maker. A small cabinet is much easier for me to construct.
As far as size is concerned, I'm thinking I don't want anything larger than 15 liters, and preferable 12 liters or less. All of the Fostex enclosures are around 10 liters for the 4.5" drivers.
I think I'm probably going to go with either the F120A, FX120, or Jordan JX92S. I'd rather use the FX120 due to price, but if the F120A or the JX92S is better I could afford them. I'll probably start a new thread asking about those three specific drivers. Thanks for your help, and if you have any other suggestions, by all means chime in.
Moreover, a small floorstander probably wouldn't be tall enough for my application, and I won't have room to angle them back. Besides, I'm not exactly an expert cabinet maker. A small cabinet is much easier for me to construct.
As far as size is concerned, I'm thinking I don't want anything larger than 15 liters, and preferable 12 liters or less. All of the Fostex enclosures are around 10 liters for the 4.5" drivers.
I think I'm probably going to go with either the F120A, FX120, or Jordan JX92S. I'd rather use the FX120 due to price, but if the F120A or the JX92S is better I could afford them. I'll probably start a new thread asking about those three specific drivers. Thanks for your help, and if you have any other suggestions, by all means chime in.
tennisets said:
Any idea if you have wall-space... i've had and have built speakers designed to attach to a wall... no bafflestep to worry about (and the flat ones can be disguised as pictures)
For really small it is hard to beat the 7-8 litre box the WR125 fits into... too bad it is so inefficient (but that's Hoffman's Iron Law at work).
dave
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