New Speaker Build... step by step
Having recently completed an experimental speaker build for my home theatre setup over the Xmas Holiday break, It was time to have a go at some audiophile two ways, solely to be used for music, from either the media PC, DVD, or CD carousel player as the sources.
I'll start with a little background so you know where the thinking is. I'm an ex-audioholic from the 70's when things were great and there was literally oodles of top notch hi-fi gear available. In fact we were spoiled for choice.
Then in the early eighties I got married and hi-fi and photography went out the window.
It wasn't until 2000 when my brother sent me a dividend from some shares he had bought for us that I was able to get back into some form of Audio gear. Home theatre was only really starting to get going at this stage, we were still a ways off DVD's & DTS, in those days its was Pro LogicII and Dolby Digital and you needed a good VHS player.
Now the good thing about this was the Sony amp, it was excellent both audio and HT wise. I don't think they bettered it for the best part of 10 years. The other really nice thing was the B&W DM308's that were on sale at the time, so they were snapped up. I started to enjoy music again about this time, though the system was primarily used as home theatre.
I like the B&W and Kef ranges. Their smooth English delivery was something I was used to hearing from the Kef days in the 1970's.
I've heard other very nice units lately and been annoying hi-fi shops as well. Now my son works for one of those shops. Unfortunately finances don't permit replacing the 308's with the newer 683's as they are a touch under $4000 NZD, which isn't something that would please the minister of finance in our house.
It had become obvious that with the advent of DTS sound and my Onkyo amp that the DM308's werent doing too well and were being pushed too hard so I sold them and built the Aria 1's.
You can follow that build at my blog just follow this A Kiwi Retrospective: Building the Aria 1's -- Pt1.
Aria 1's in use in the HT lounge.
The new build is a vented 2 way "to prove the theory" so to speak
It's also very much experimental and depending upon outcome a three way floor stander set might just be on the cards as well.
Having recently completed an experimental speaker build for my home theatre setup over the Xmas Holiday break, It was time to have a go at some audiophile two ways, solely to be used for music, from either the media PC, DVD, or CD carousel player as the sources.
I'll start with a little background so you know where the thinking is. I'm an ex-audioholic from the 70's when things were great and there was literally oodles of top notch hi-fi gear available. In fact we were spoiled for choice.
Then in the early eighties I got married and hi-fi and photography went out the window.
It wasn't until 2000 when my brother sent me a dividend from some shares he had bought for us that I was able to get back into some form of Audio gear. Home theatre was only really starting to get going at this stage, we were still a ways off DVD's & DTS, in those days its was Pro LogicII and Dolby Digital and you needed a good VHS player.
Now the good thing about this was the Sony amp, it was excellent both audio and HT wise. I don't think they bettered it for the best part of 10 years. The other really nice thing was the B&W DM308's that were on sale at the time, so they were snapped up. I started to enjoy music again about this time, though the system was primarily used as home theatre.
I like the B&W and Kef ranges. Their smooth English delivery was something I was used to hearing from the Kef days in the 1970's.
I've heard other very nice units lately and been annoying hi-fi shops as well. Now my son works for one of those shops. Unfortunately finances don't permit replacing the 308's with the newer 683's as they are a touch under $4000 NZD, which isn't something that would please the minister of finance in our house.
It had become obvious that with the advent of DTS sound and my Onkyo amp that the DM308's werent doing too well and were being pushed too hard so I sold them and built the Aria 1's.
You can follow that build at my blog just follow this A Kiwi Retrospective: Building the Aria 1's -- Pt1.
Aria 1's in use in the HT lounge.
The new build is a vented 2 way "to prove the theory" so to speak
It's also very much experimental and depending upon outcome a three way floor stander set might just be on the cards as well.
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Design Parameters
Doing the 3-way for the H.T was easy as it was an all sealed cabinet design.
For the music speakers I opted for a two way ported box to start with. The resons for this were
There are only a limited amount of driver suppliers here in N.Z and as I had no previous experience with the units I selected, it was always going to be a little bit risky trying these items.
The cabinet design is a slight modification from Paul Carmody's Classix
https://sites.google.com/site/undefinition/diy-classix
This gave me the basis for the design and it was just a matter of using Madisounds excellent on-line calculators to come up with the final cabinet sizes and select the correct porting.
The drivers I choose were a gamble but they were priced right for an experimental build.
The two drivers set comprised of a 6.5inch woofer/mid and a no-name brand tweeter that had a reasonable performance curve. I was a little worried that the RMS rating of the tweeter was going to be too low, but as it turns out that's not an issue.
Woofer, made by Tronix in Europe.
Surplustronics - Wide Range Kevlar 6.5" 125W RMS
Tweeter 902.472 (bottom of the page)
Audio Shop Loudspeakers
For a crossover I choose an off the shelf unit from Jaycar. I'd used these as replacements in an older set of speakers and they perform very nicely. They are a 2nd Order Butterworth Xover, with the crossover point being 3500 @12db. These are 50 watt units, and the overall rating for the speakers will be rated @ 40watts RMS as per the tweeter being the limiting factor.
If I were to do these again I would probably use the new Vifa BC25TG15 as it seems to be getting good reviews.
So there we have it the basis of a system.
Off to the workshop...
Doing the 3-way for the H.T was easy as it was an all sealed cabinet design.
For the music speakers I opted for a two way ported box to start with. The resons for this were
- Had never made a vented enclosure.
- Had no prior experience using the components selected
- Very limited budget
- Wanted to perfect certain build techniques (spray finish)
- Wanted to try a stand mount speaker rather than floor stander.
There are only a limited amount of driver suppliers here in N.Z and as I had no previous experience with the units I selected, it was always going to be a little bit risky trying these items.
The cabinet design is a slight modification from Paul Carmody's Classix
https://sites.google.com/site/undefinition/diy-classix
This gave me the basis for the design and it was just a matter of using Madisounds excellent on-line calculators to come up with the final cabinet sizes and select the correct porting.
The drivers I choose were a gamble but they were priced right for an experimental build.
The two drivers set comprised of a 6.5inch woofer/mid and a no-name brand tweeter that had a reasonable performance curve. I was a little worried that the RMS rating of the tweeter was going to be too low, but as it turns out that's not an issue.
Woofer, made by Tronix in Europe.
Surplustronics - Wide Range Kevlar 6.5" 125W RMS
Tweeter 902.472 (bottom of the page)
Audio Shop Loudspeakers
For a crossover I choose an off the shelf unit from Jaycar. I'd used these as replacements in an older set of speakers and they perform very nicely. They are a 2nd Order Butterworth Xover, with the crossover point being 3500 @12db. These are 50 watt units, and the overall rating for the speakers will be rated @ 40watts RMS as per the tweeter being the limiting factor.
If I were to do these again I would probably use the new Vifa BC25TG15 as it seems to be getting good reviews.
So there we have it the basis of a system.
Off to the workshop...
Constructing the cabinets .. materials
Fortunately I'm blessed with a half decent woodwork work shop. I like building furniture, consequently half the furniture in the house is my own design. So I have plenty of tools to hand ( although theres always room for more 😀)
I choose 18mm (3/4inch) mdf as the basis for the cabinets with a Macrocarpa wood veneer finish. This was to be stained with Wattyl English Mahogany Stain
Then finished with 3 to five layers of sprayed on High-gloss Polyurethane.
The first order of business was to make the veneer panels and layout the cutting sizes on the MDF. You can see this in the following images. I make my veneer panels 3/16 x 6" (5mm X 150MM) and lengths that at 4 to 6 inches longer than required.
Testing a offcut of veneer for color, stack of veneer panels and the cutting layou on the MDF.
5mm (3/16) veneer panels.
I like the colour and character of the Macrocarpa, and it takes stain very easily and depending upon applications will darken readily. You can see the grain in the second image and this was used for the front of one cabinet. All the wood I use in this manner is recycled from various sources, and comes with all sorts of check makes, holes etc, which make for interesting finishes. The idea here is to get away from mass produced looking finishes and have a unique piece of custom made furniture.
Thats also been the comment with the larger HT speakers. They aren't just speakers but feature pieces of furniture.
As you can see in this shot there is a lot of interesting grain in the wood so they should like excellent when finished. If they sound as good as they look then that's all I can ask.
Fortunately I'm blessed with a half decent woodwork work shop. I like building furniture, consequently half the furniture in the house is my own design. So I have plenty of tools to hand ( although theres always room for more 😀)
I choose 18mm (3/4inch) mdf as the basis for the cabinets with a Macrocarpa wood veneer finish. This was to be stained with Wattyl English Mahogany Stain
Then finished with 3 to five layers of sprayed on High-gloss Polyurethane.
The first order of business was to make the veneer panels and layout the cutting sizes on the MDF. You can see this in the following images. I make my veneer panels 3/16 x 6" (5mm X 150MM) and lengths that at 4 to 6 inches longer than required.
Testing a offcut of veneer for color, stack of veneer panels and the cutting layou on the MDF.
5mm (3/16) veneer panels.
I like the colour and character of the Macrocarpa, and it takes stain very easily and depending upon applications will darken readily. You can see the grain in the second image and this was used for the front of one cabinet. All the wood I use in this manner is recycled from various sources, and comes with all sorts of check makes, holes etc, which make for interesting finishes. The idea here is to get away from mass produced looking finishes and have a unique piece of custom made furniture.
Thats also been the comment with the larger HT speakers. They aren't just speakers but feature pieces of furniture.
As you can see in this shot there is a lot of interesting grain in the wood so they should like excellent when finished. If they sound as good as they look then that's all I can ask.
Construction ... Front Baffles.
Once I have all the parts cut and sanded and the veneer finished its time to start assembly.
While the glue dries on the fronts I assemble the rest of the parts of the enclosures. All battening is glued and screwed in to place and the rear baffle and sides top & bottom are all assembled and glued and screwed where necessary.
One of the things I hadn't counted on was how to mount the woofer. It wasn't until I had the unit in front of me that I saw that it is a rear mount flange on the speaker. It was a damn good thing I checked this prior to laying out the design. It meant I would have to round over the hole on the front side of the baffle to get a smooth and visually pleasing edge.
Once I have all the parts cut and sanded and the veneer finished its time to start assembly.
Gluing veneer to front baffles
I glue the veneer to the front baffles first, mitred as well so that when the glue has set the mitred corners are ready for the side panels.
While the glue dries on the fronts I assemble the rest of the parts of the enclosures. All battening is glued and screwed in to place and the rear baffle and sides top & bottom are all assembled and glued and screwed where necessary.
One of the things I hadn't counted on was how to mount the woofer. It wasn't until I had the unit in front of me that I saw that it is a rear mount flange on the speaker. It was a damn good thing I checked this prior to laying out the design. It meant I would have to round over the hole on the front side of the baffle to get a smooth and visually pleasing edge.
Front Baffles veneered and holes routed
Woofer Hole rounded using a 3/4 round over bit.
This gives a very good transition from the rounding to the face.
A smaller bit would have left the curve too steep.
Woofer Hole rounded using a 3/4 round over bit.
This gives a very good transition from the rounding to the face.
A smaller bit would have left the curve too steep.
Construction ... Enclosure
Once the front baffles are finished they can then be glued and screwed to the rest of the pre assembled enclosure.
When this has been done the rest of the veneer is applied. As the cabinet size isn't large it only requires two pieces of veneer per side and this makes it a very simple process. The biggest thing here is ensuring that the joins between each panel are as exact as you can make them and that you get each piece sitting nice and flat on the MDF inner casing.
I know that there will be those that are scratching their heads as to why I'm using such a thick veneer. There's three reasons for this.
Once the cabinet is assembled, veneer applied and allowed to dry, its time to break out the spot filler and do some sanding. For sanding I do all my work with a random orbital. I have a cupboard full of sanders, std orbitals, finishers etc... but I find the Random Orbital gives by far the best finish. Its also connected to my mini dust collector so its a dust free work environment.
At this point I'm looking to fill any little voids in the wood, or nail holes and get it sanded to a 400 grit finish.
Once I'm happy with the finish at this point, its time to apply the first of two coats of stain.
Once the front baffles are finished they can then be glued and screwed to the rest of the pre assembled enclosure.
When this has been done the rest of the veneer is applied. As the cabinet size isn't large it only requires two pieces of veneer per side and this makes it a very simple process. The biggest thing here is ensuring that the joins between each panel are as exact as you can make them and that you get each piece sitting nice and flat on the MDF inner casing.
I know that there will be those that are scratching their heads as to why I'm using such a thick veneer. There's three reasons for this.
- You cant buy veneer retail here at decent prices and the pieces that you can, are way too small for using in this manner.The veneer I make is easy to do and work with and costs next to nothing and provides a very nice finish.
- Secondly it makes for extremely stiff cabinet walls, but more importantly the two different substrates have very good resonance reduction properties.
- This reduces considerably any radiated sound from the speaker sides. Its much the same principle as we you in the glass trade for sound control in glass. Two different thickness's help diffuse sound. Its why double glazing reduces sound as well as laminated glass.
Once the cabinet is assembled, veneer applied and allowed to dry, its time to break out the spot filler and do some sanding. For sanding I do all my work with a random orbital. I have a cupboard full of sanders, std orbitals, finishers etc... but I find the Random Orbital gives by far the best finish. Its also connected to my mini dust collector so its a dust free work environment.
At this point I'm looking to fill any little voids in the wood, or nail holes and get it sanded to a 400 grit finish.
Once I'm happy with the finish at this point, its time to apply the first of two coats of stain.
Assembled cabinet at sanding stage.
Rear of assembled cabinet being sand finished.
Any little gaps are filled and the cabinet interior
joins are sealed with a non acetic curing silicon.
Rear of assembled cabinet being sand finished.
Any little gaps are filled and the cabinet interior
joins are sealed with a non acetic curing silicon.
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Rear Baffle & Crossover
Once the first coat of stain was applied. I turned my focus to the rear baffle.
It is removable and supports the crossover which is screw mount to the inside surface. The tuned port tube was fitted and sealed under the flange with thin foam tape. I wanted a rolled edge tube but they aren't available in the 2 inch (50mm) diameter that the design called for.
The speaker terminals are the simple spring loaded variety, which are connected to a connector block and to the crossover. This allows the panel to be removed with crossover attached but without having to pull the connectors off the speaker posts.
The internal walls and rear panel are covered with a Dacron/Polyester acoustic cloth. I haven't put any fill in the cabinet at this point. It may be that I will need to add a small amount of stuffing if the cabinet bass reproduction isn't as good as it should be. Most folks I've talked with suggest that's it probably best to leave it as I have built them. Thoughts on this aspect would be appreciated.
Once the first coat of stain was applied. I turned my focus to the rear baffle.
It is removable and supports the crossover which is screw mount to the inside surface. The tuned port tube was fitted and sealed under the flange with thin foam tape. I wanted a rolled edge tube but they aren't available in the 2 inch (50mm) diameter that the design called for.
Pre-fit of rear baffle
You can just see the top of the port
through the tweeter hole.
You can just see the top of the port
through the tweeter hole.
The speaker terminals are the simple spring loaded variety, which are connected to a connector block and to the crossover. This allows the panel to be removed with crossover attached but without having to pull the connectors off the speaker posts.
Rear of cabinet with port fitted.
The internal walls and rear panel are covered with a Dacron/Polyester acoustic cloth. I haven't put any fill in the cabinet at this point. It may be that I will need to add a small amount of stuffing if the cabinet bass reproduction isn't as good as it should be. Most folks I've talked with suggest that's it probably best to leave it as I have built them. Thoughts on this aspect would be appreciated.
Rear panel & crossover covered with
acoustic damping material
acoustic damping material
Pre fit of the rear baffle prior too lining
the cabinet with acoustic damping material.
the cabinet with acoustic damping material.
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Tanks Cal.
They are finished now and starting to be appreciated. The minister of finance also approves so that means they have very good WSF (wife satisfaction factor) 🙂
I'll add more to the process shortly.
They are finished now and starting to be appreciated. The minister of finance also approves so that means they have very good WSF (wife satisfaction factor) 🙂
I'll add more to the process shortly.
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Couple of questions. I see what looks like a roundover on the outside of the baffle, is that correct? If so, what was the thought there.
And second, I see the two coils in the XO side by side. Is that a premade XO and if so I wonder why they didn't re-orient them.
Anyway, I hope they sound good and I hope you get to enjoy them for a long time.
And second, I see the two coils in the XO side by side. Is that a premade XO and if so I wonder why they didn't re-orient them.
Anyway, I hope they sound good and I hope you get to enjoy them for a long time.
External Finishing.
With the building process now happily out of the way it was time to really get started on the finish. Not only must they sound great but the should look great as well.
In one of the photos previously you can see the front baffle with the first coat of stain applied. If you have ever seen the reddish English mahogany used in the manufacture of furniture you will know the red wine colouration of this wood. The trick here is to get this very powerful stain to colour the wood evenly.
I found some time back that's its best to put the first coat on quite liberally and the even it out but not remove any excess but rather let it all settle in. Leave this depending on weather for 3 or 4 hours if you can then come back to it. Rub down the entire cabinet with a clean cloth. I like to use old flannelette sheets for this as its a nice soft porous cloth. You will be surprised at how mush residue you get. Whatever you do dont sand between these coats or you risk making some areas too light in colour. At this point the cabinets should be sanded to a 400 grit finish prior to staining.
Repeat the process with the stain, rubbing off any reside left behind. Lightly sand the surface with 800 or 1000 grit wet and dry sandpaper. It is really important that this is done as it provides a very smooth finish for the gloss poly. Surface imperfections stand out something fierce with gloss coats. I like to leave it for 24 hrs after doing this as it lets any moisture present from the staining time to dry.
Once done I do a dust coat just to seal everything. Let it harden off for 3-4 hrs then lightly sand again with 1000 grit. Then its a case of fully spraying each cabinet and sanding with 1200 grit between coats, right up to the last coat. This is left to dry for 24 hrs before a light sand with either 1500 or 2000 grit. All we want to do is literally smooth off any minor residue or bumps. Then break out the furniture polish and buff with a wool buffer, either by hand or with a slow rotating power buffer.
The rear edges and the rear baffle are painted with a matt finish water based paint as well as the base.
As these speakers are destined for stands I selected some isolated rubber foot pads rather than spikes. As it turns out these are very efficient at what they do. The too are purchased from our local Jaycar shop.
The "Aria Pettite's" together with the current setup.
Note the reflection from the screws. I have black powder coated screws coming. Unfortunately they wern't in stock at the time of these builds.
And that's pretty much it. Job done, now its time to audition puppies.
With the building process now happily out of the way it was time to really get started on the finish. Not only must they sound great but the should look great as well.
In one of the photos previously you can see the front baffle with the first coat of stain applied. If you have ever seen the reddish English mahogany used in the manufacture of furniture you will know the red wine colouration of this wood. The trick here is to get this very powerful stain to colour the wood evenly.
First coat is quite dull and light.
You can see the natural
darkening around the woofer opening.
You can see the natural
darkening around the woofer opening.
I found some time back that's its best to put the first coat on quite liberally and the even it out but not remove any excess but rather let it all settle in. Leave this depending on weather for 3 or 4 hours if you can then come back to it. Rub down the entire cabinet with a clean cloth. I like to use old flannelette sheets for this as its a nice soft porous cloth. You will be surprised at how mush residue you get. Whatever you do dont sand between these coats or you risk making some areas too light in colour. At this point the cabinets should be sanded to a 400 grit finish prior to staining.
Second coat is much brighter and
more even in colouration
more even in colouration
Repeat the process with the stain, rubbing off any reside left behind. Lightly sand the surface with 800 or 1000 grit wet and dry sandpaper. It is really important that this is done as it provides a very smooth finish for the gloss poly. Surface imperfections stand out something fierce with gloss coats. I like to leave it for 24 hrs after doing this as it lets any moisture present from the staining time to dry.
After a final sand and rub down the
colour is less pronounced and more even.
colour is less pronounced and more even.
Once done I do a dust coat just to seal everything. Let it harden off for 3-4 hrs then lightly sand again with 1000 grit. Then its a case of fully spraying each cabinet and sanding with 1200 grit between coats, right up to the last coat. This is left to dry for 24 hrs before a light sand with either 1500 or 2000 grit. All we want to do is literally smooth off any minor residue or bumps. Then break out the furniture polish and buff with a wool buffer, either by hand or with a slow rotating power buffer.
The rear edges and the rear baffle are painted with a matt finish water based paint as well as the base.
As these speakers are destined for stands I selected some isolated rubber foot pads rather than spikes. As it turns out these are very efficient at what they do. The too are purchased from our local Jaycar shop.
Sitting on temporary stands
Along side their big brothers.
Along side their big brothers.
The "Aria Pettite's" together with the current setup.
And that's pretty much it. Job done, now its time to audition puppies.
Yes you are right. Its a round over edge. The speakers are recessed into the front baffle from inside the cabinet. When I looked at the flange I could see that it really wasn't made for a front mount flush fit. It wasn't very large and trying to apply a good foam seal didn't look all that good. I looked at the arguments for and against this style of mounting and it seems that in reality there isn't any huge reason not to do so. Gives the whole setup and interesting look to. Kinda old skool 🙂
Yup pre-made unit. These are actually pretty good crossovers and deliver a good consistent sound. Got a little more to add to the story regarding crossovers.
Audition Time
This was the bit I was kind dreading.
Everything I had read on-line suggested that the vented system was far easier to screw up so I really wasn't sure what to expect.
I have a pretty broad range of musical taste, and I have plenty to choose from. I thought it Prudent to start with classic tracks I know really well.
I have a really expensive set of Sennheiser headphones that have very good sound imagery so I know what the tracks should sound like.
I started off with Neil Young's "Hey Hey" as it strong on acoustic guitar and a lot of highs and mids in the track. I have a pretty good ear for acoustic works so I know what to expect.
OMG!!
I really wasn't prepared for what came out of those little boxes. If I hadn't of know better I would swear Neil Young was sitting in front of me. You can hear each string vibrate as he plays, as well as the harmonica rubbing up against the mic stand. I'd never noticed that even in the headphones. Ok so this has gotta be a fluke right? Just one of those tracks.
Next up, Neil Young again, but this time "Out on the Weekend", which has nice thumpy kick drum and percussion. Again same thing as before. Really nice sound-stage and pretty good detail & accuracy too so far.
Okay time to up the tempo a bit.
Dire Straits "Industrial Disease" sounding excellent, nice and bright and cheerful.
Next up Sting & The Police's "Wrapped around your finger", nice bass extension here, no discernible muddiness, but I was beginning to notice that there were occasions where the tweeter was getting quite "shouty".
Next up Level 42's "Dune Tune" If you want to check bass extension and control this is the track to use. Cranked up to 40db on the amp and let rip. Got a very nasty vibration audible when I did that.
Restarted the track a couple more times before I figured out it was the insides of the big gas heater at the back of the room vibrating. PHEW!!
The bass really doesn't get going until you give it a track to work with and a bit of volume. I will put this down to very stiff cones at the moment.
Next up was my favourite Prince track "Cream" Excellent bass with great vocals and a shrieking guitar. Just right for testing these speakers. Again it was sounding a little shouty and strident in the upper registers. No doubt you might have guessed why by now.
The shouty upper registers weren't unexpected. I knew that with the tweeter being 95 dB & the woofer at 90 dB there's was going to be a high end mismatch. I wanted to hear them for a while like this so I could tell just how much they were off. As I haven't any testing equipment this was going to literally be done by ear. Actually I trust my ears first anyway.
I had already checked the design prior to the first audition, and had bought the components to make an lpad for the tweeter. This has now been made and installed and I spent 5 hours yesterday listening to them
I always feel that if you are listening to music for an extended period and don't feel tired doing so then the speakers are doing their job properly.
The Lpad works as required and calmed the top end very nicely. Add to that the amount of hours they have been running and there is a warmth to them that's becoming more evident.
The sound image from these is nothing short of amazing, I'm running them with no toe-in and it doesn't seem to matter where you sit the sound is well balanced, kinda like sitting inside a really nice set of headphones.
If I were to make a second set of these I would use something like the Vifa Tweeter, but would have no hesitation using these kelvar drivers again. They have a great sound and presence. In the size lounge we have they don't appear lost and seem well able to fill the room without having to be run too high or hard.
All in all I'm well pleased, and hopefully as time goes by even more pleased.
Cabinet info
Size: H390mm X 225mm W X 280mm or 15.35" X 8.85" X 11.0"
Finished weight: 10 Kilos (22lbs)
Port length 191mm or 7.5"
Port tuned @ 48.5
F-3 = 47.67
11.2 litres or 683.47 cubic inches
Cheers
Ralph.
This was the bit I was kind dreading.
Everything I had read on-line suggested that the vented system was far easier to screw up so I really wasn't sure what to expect.
I have a pretty broad range of musical taste, and I have plenty to choose from. I thought it Prudent to start with classic tracks I know really well.
I have a really expensive set of Sennheiser headphones that have very good sound imagery so I know what the tracks should sound like.
I started off with Neil Young's "Hey Hey" as it strong on acoustic guitar and a lot of highs and mids in the track. I have a pretty good ear for acoustic works so I know what to expect.
OMG!!
I really wasn't prepared for what came out of those little boxes. If I hadn't of know better I would swear Neil Young was sitting in front of me. You can hear each string vibrate as he plays, as well as the harmonica rubbing up against the mic stand. I'd never noticed that even in the headphones. Ok so this has gotta be a fluke right? Just one of those tracks.
Next up, Neil Young again, but this time "Out on the Weekend", which has nice thumpy kick drum and percussion. Again same thing as before. Really nice sound-stage and pretty good detail & accuracy too so far.
Okay time to up the tempo a bit.
Dire Straits "Industrial Disease" sounding excellent, nice and bright and cheerful.
Next up Sting & The Police's "Wrapped around your finger", nice bass extension here, no discernible muddiness, but I was beginning to notice that there were occasions where the tweeter was getting quite "shouty".
Next up Level 42's "Dune Tune" If you want to check bass extension and control this is the track to use. Cranked up to 40db on the amp and let rip. Got a very nasty vibration audible when I did that.
Restarted the track a couple more times before I figured out it was the insides of the big gas heater at the back of the room vibrating. PHEW!!
The bass really doesn't get going until you give it a track to work with and a bit of volume. I will put this down to very stiff cones at the moment.
Next up was my favourite Prince track "Cream" Excellent bass with great vocals and a shrieking guitar. Just right for testing these speakers. Again it was sounding a little shouty and strident in the upper registers. No doubt you might have guessed why by now.
The shouty upper registers weren't unexpected. I knew that with the tweeter being 95 dB & the woofer at 90 dB there's was going to be a high end mismatch. I wanted to hear them for a while like this so I could tell just how much they were off. As I haven't any testing equipment this was going to literally be done by ear. Actually I trust my ears first anyway.
I had already checked the design prior to the first audition, and had bought the components to make an lpad for the tweeter. This has now been made and installed and I spent 5 hours yesterday listening to them
I always feel that if you are listening to music for an extended period and don't feel tired doing so then the speakers are doing their job properly.
The Lpad works as required and calmed the top end very nicely. Add to that the amount of hours they have been running and there is a warmth to them that's becoming more evident.
The sound image from these is nothing short of amazing, I'm running them with no toe-in and it doesn't seem to matter where you sit the sound is well balanced, kinda like sitting inside a really nice set of headphones.
If I were to make a second set of these I would use something like the Vifa Tweeter, but would have no hesitation using these kelvar drivers again. They have a great sound and presence. In the size lounge we have they don't appear lost and seem well able to fill the room without having to be run too high or hard.
All in all I'm well pleased, and hopefully as time goes by even more pleased.
Cabinet info
Size: H390mm X 225mm W X 280mm or 15.35" X 8.85" X 11.0"
Finished weight: 10 Kilos (22lbs)
Port length 191mm or 7.5"
Port tuned @ 48.5
F-3 = 47.67
11.2 litres or 683.47 cubic inches
Cheers
Ralph.
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Congrats Ralph looks like a fine effort there...
For me a bit of Pink Floyd never goes astray for testing speakers, and Joe Satrianai's Always with me, always with you. If your tweeters sound right after playing it you know you have a winner.
For me a bit of Pink Floyd never goes astray for testing speakers, and Joe Satrianai's Always with me, always with you. If your tweeters sound right after playing it you know you have a winner.
Thanks Screamer, BTW I love that user name.Conjures up all sorts of movie moments I've seen 🙂
Pink Floyd's on the menu for tonight, I'm thinking "Money & Time" plus some from "Wish You Were Here" as well.
I'll have to get some of Joe S. I've often seen specials of Joe's albums but never thought to get any.
However I do have some very nice Santana that will tell me if I have it right (hopefully).
The JS albumn I have is "The electric Joe Satraniani an anthology"
From the Pink Floyd side of things I use "Time" from dark side of the moon SA-CD to define how natural all the clocks sound, and to see how well it handles the multiple sounds simultanously.
To test bass I use "When the tigers broke free" off the Echoes album (it is a well recorded CD) the earlier in the song you can hear the bass the better. You can almost use it as a bench mark for changes Vs the time on the CD counter, as the sound gets prgressively louder.
For clarity I use "learning to fly" off the same album, where it goes into the section in the cockpit, the better I can make out the dialog the better the top end.
From the Pink Floyd side of things I use "Time" from dark side of the moon SA-CD to define how natural all the clocks sound, and to see how well it handles the multiple sounds simultanously.
To test bass I use "When the tigers broke free" off the Echoes album (it is a well recorded CD) the earlier in the song you can hear the bass the better. You can almost use it as a bench mark for changes Vs the time on the CD counter, as the sound gets prgressively louder.
For clarity I use "learning to fly" off the same album, where it goes into the section in the cockpit, the better I can make out the dialog the better the top end.
Cost
Forgot to add this earlier.
Total build costs without allowing for labour was $220.00NZD
Which also meets with the wifes approval.
I wonder if I should tell what I've got in mind for the next build 🙂
Forgot to add this earlier.
Total build costs without allowing for labour was $220.00NZD
Which also meets with the wifes approval.
I wonder if I should tell what I've got in mind for the next build 🙂
i have to say that is some georgous looking wood, it is of such beauty that i now have to have to make my new speakers at least vaneered in ply that looks lovely.
i have to be honest though i liked the apperance of this speaker, you crafted; far more before you stained it. but each to his own, i would have just waxed this, and kept the natural beauty of the wood
i have to be honest though i liked the apperance of this speaker, you crafted; far more before you stained it. but each to his own, i would have just waxed this, and kept the natural beauty of the wood
To be honest I liked the look of the natural wood as well, and was going to simply spray it with a clear poly, but my son said I should do it as shown to see how well the wood would look with a different tone. Its weird but its really hard to get a good photo of this as the gloss makes it quite reflective.
He's now asked me to make a three way set in the same wood and colour which should look really good.
He sells B&W and Kef speakers as well as other brands but has decided that we can in fact produce as good a quality sound at a much more affordable price.
I have to say that wasn't expected as he has a very "Fussy" ear when it come to good audio.
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Last night we gave them a serious work out. We played bits of this and that until we settled on "Frankie Goes to Hollywods" " Relax" at almost full power for these speakers, or at least on the threshold of what I could stand 🙂
We also played some newer works he uses in the shop. They are mostly 320k or higher rated Flac recordings and are very clean. A couple of tracks go basically subsonic in the bass and the speakers never missed a beat. One of the cool things with bass reflex systems is watching how the woofer performs. You can actually see it working and maintaining the cone extension with some of these tracks, no distortion or going muddy.
I am a huge "Echoes" fan and know that album well, same applies for the "Dark Side of the Moon", and "Momentary Lapse of Reason".
Time sounds amazing. You can literally hear all the clocks bells and chimes as if they were in the room with you. Bass extension is excellent on this track as well.
One thing we noticed was that with late model recording (Flac's) there was some high end clipping. I have a feeling I may have been too aggressive with the Lpad. I dropped 5dB to match the system, but think in hindsight this has reduced the tweeters efficiency too much. I'm thinking of redoing it but only dropping 2 or 3 dB.
Any thoughts on that would be appreciated.
After testing for a while I noticed my son was grinning away and asked him what was up. We were playing "Mumford & Sons" "Timshel"
His reply confirmed my own opinion. He said it sounded just like having a very big pair of headphones on, that's how accurate the sounstage is, which is a very accurate description if you are sitting directly in the middle of the speakers.
So apart from the odd track clipping in the upper register they really are starting to take on some character. Certainly encouraging enough to think about a 3 way set.
As a foot note to this, once we sort the upper register issue out , my son is going to put them in the shop and see what happens, at this point he feels they should be a reasonable match for the Kef 300's, which I love listening to. Personally I think they are the best small speaker they have produced to date.
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Didn't start doing kung fu and try kill the prime minister did you?
(for those that haven't seen Zoolander - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Sound like a good night was had by all. Glad your happy with them.
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