Pics of completed AlNiCo speakers

[Serow]

Here's my first set of DIYed (non-subwoofer) speakers. I got the vintage AlNiCo drivers from planet10 (Thanks Dave!) and most of the materials from PartsExpress. The crossover is two-way 1st order at 5000 Hz. Thanks to everyone here for the information shared freely - the true spirit of the internet.

[planet10]

Originally posted by Serow
[B]Here's my first set of DIYed (non-subwoofer) speakers. I got the vintage AlNiCo drivers from planet10 (Thanks Dave!)

Eric?

Canadian 8" & Coral tweeter?



How do they sound? What are you using for amps & source?

Tell us more about the process.

dave

[tomasro]

What did you use for the foam on the inside of your box? Specifically please. They look great, how do they sound?

Don't you think that the front panel is a bit thin? It may lead to low end problems when you want to add a subwoofer.

Just a thought. Great job!

[mrfeedback]

Serow,
IME those L-Pad attenuators are BAD news sonically.
The problem is that the contacts go noisey and cause a rotten distortion.
Much better to IMO to use a rotary switch with fixed resistors, or select on test resistor values and leave it at that.

Eric.

[planet10]

Originally posted by mrfeedback
L-Pads

Eric is right about the sonics on these when they go bad, but they are very useful in getting the attenuation levels right. Once you get the right levels set, a tweak is to replace the LPAD with a pair of fixed resistors, or if only a small amount of attenuation is needed you can add a series R and twiddle the cap value appropriately.

Any pot or switch is actually something you would like to minimize the number of in any system.

What have you built before?

(BTW: this one should easily qualify as a Frugal-phile(tm) speaker)

dave

[Serow]

Originally posted by planet10


Eric?

Canadian 8" & Coral tweeter?

How do they sound? What are you using for amps & source?

Tell us more about the process.

dave

Yes, I'm Eric. I bought the drivers you mentioned. To me, they sound better than I could have hoped for the money I spent. The treble is clear but not harsh, possibly a bit mellow. The mids are the best part - voice and lyric distinguishability is excellent! The bass is decent but somewhat lean. I haven't installed a baffle-step correction yet, may do so soon. I've got an older 40 watt Sony T-F4A amp, with a Dual 701 and a Panasonic DVD player as the sources. They're extremely sensitive - at a reasonable level, the 8 ohm VU meters on the Sony sit at a nominal .01 watt level with peaks rising to .1 watts.

The boxes were built using .75" MDF, carpenter's glue and an air nailer to hold it together while the glue dried. I expoxied in some tee-nuts for the drivers. I used contact cement in a spray can to attach the foam on the inside. This stuff comes out like spider web and won't soak into the open-cell foam; it worked excellently. The foam comes from Walmart -it's meant for use as a sleeping pad. The veneer is an adhesive-backed vinyl laminate from PartsExpress. It works well, but you need a steady hand and a sharp single-bladed razor blade to trim it neatly.

Originally posted by tomasro


Don't you think that the front panel is a bit thin? It may lead to low end problems when you want to add a subwoofer.

I hope they're not too thin - the whole thing is .75" MDF and the completed speakers are not light

Originally posted by mrfeedback


IME those L-Pad attenuators are BAD news sonically

I put these in here because I had to finish these in one day (tight time schedule) and had no idea how sensitive the different drivers were. It turns out that so far I've left the L-pad at zero attenuation, so I may jumper it out in the future.

Originally posted by planet10


What have you built before?

(BTW: this one should easily qualify as a Frugal-phile(tm) speaker)


dave

I've built subwoofers and installed stereos for my friends' cars, constructed a few headphone amplifiers, and built remote-control airplanes in the past. Speaking of frugal, now I need an easily built low-power amp - something <5 watts, Class A tube or MOSFET.

[planet10]

Originally posted by Serow
Speaking of frugal, now I need an easily built low-power amp - something <5 watts, Class A tube or MOSFET.

Part 2 of my Frugal-phile(tm) essay will be on amps. But a tip. Start looking for an old console - on the west coast, at least, the German ones seem to have the best guts - or an old stereo tube tape deck (i found a Sony with Tamura OPTs), or an old tube integrated or receiver you can use for iron. A buddy just picked up a $10 Normende and by the time the Isophon drivers go on eBay he will have enuff cash to buy bits to rebuild the amp 1st class.

dave

[planet10]

Originally posted by Serow
The treble is clear but not harsh, possibly a bit mellow. The mids are the best part - voice and lyric distinguishability is excellent! The bass is decent but somewhat lean.

Even with BSC these probably won't really rock in the deep bass dept. One of the trade-offs to get the extension at the top is to sacrifice a bit at the bottom -- the reason for subs.

I hope they're not too thin - the whole thing is .75" MDF and the completed speakers are not light

I doubt this will be a problem. They are low excursion drivers with a lowish mass.

dave

[Serow]

I realize that these are not going to pump out the bass. I prefer a balanced sound in general. Once I get out of this apartment, it'll be time to build some serious true subwoofers.

Eric

[planet10]

Originally posted by Serow
Once I get out of this apartment, it'll be time to build some serious true subwoofers.

:^)


and we all have to remember that most of the music is in the middle.

enjoy the music.

dave