Noobie looking for advice on first speaker build.
After significant research, I have decided to build small 3 way speakers for my 14x14 bedroom. I have narrowed my search down to the following 2 speakers:
Phiharmonic Audio BMR speaker Kit - Meniscus Audio
The Travelers Loudspeaker Kit - Meniscus Audio
Is there anyone who has heard both of these speakers? If not, does anyone have any advice on how to determine which will be the better speaker?
My current (but possibly incorrect) assumptions on each:
BMR: Perhaps better sounding RAAL tweeter on axis, but much narrower sweet spot. Premium 7" Scanspeak woofer is great, but will probably not match the 8" woofer in the Travelers. No idea what to expect from the BMR mid in comparison.
Travelers: Wider tweeter dispersion with the 3/4", but maybe not a nice sounding on axis? Better bass with the larger woofer and cabinet. Again, no idea how the mids compare with the BMR
The key is how the mids and highs play together, but I just know how to wrap my mind around the differences in each's sound. Thanks in advance for any and all help!
After significant research, I have decided to build small 3 way speakers for my 14x14 bedroom. I have narrowed my search down to the following 2 speakers:
Phiharmonic Audio BMR speaker Kit - Meniscus Audio
The Travelers Loudspeaker Kit - Meniscus Audio
Is there anyone who has heard both of these speakers? If not, does anyone have any advice on how to determine which will be the better speaker?
My current (but possibly incorrect) assumptions on each:
BMR: Perhaps better sounding RAAL tweeter on axis, but much narrower sweet spot. Premium 7" Scanspeak woofer is great, but will probably not match the 8" woofer in the Travelers. No idea what to expect from the BMR mid in comparison.
Travelers: Wider tweeter dispersion with the 3/4", but maybe not a nice sounding on axis? Better bass with the larger woofer and cabinet. Again, no idea how the mids compare with the BMR
The key is how the mids and highs play together, but I just know how to wrap my mind around the differences in each's sound. Thanks in advance for any and all help!
My understanding is that a 3/4” dome has better dispersion than 1” dome. I know very little about ribbons, but I understand they are fairly limited on vertical dispersion. Of course I am no expert.
I might take you to task on "better" in the hope of furthering this. The smaller dome should radiate wider at some higher frequencies, this could mean in this case it is more consistent across its band.
Is this better? It's hard to say.. On one hand, wider dispersion could (potentially) lead to reflected energy that goes against imaging quality. Another thought is that in a smaller listening environment you are sitting closer and this increases the relative direct sound contribution.
Is this better? It's hard to say.. On one hand, wider dispersion could (potentially) lead to reflected energy that goes against imaging quality. Another thought is that in a smaller listening environment you are sitting closer and this increases the relative direct sound contribution.
That makes sense, and I appreciate the explanation. Between these tweeter/mid combos, do you prefer the idea of RAAL/2” BMR or 3/4” dome/5” ceramic?
Feel free to take me to task on anything aspect. I am here to learn.
You will hardly get wider off axis performance from BMR Philharmonitor
Source: Philharmonic Audio BMR Philharmonitor Bookshelf Speaker Review | Audioholics
Source: Philharmonic Audio BMR Philharmonitor Bookshelf Speaker Review | Audioholics
So that means you have a 30' listening angle expanding out from the speaker, right? That seems reasonable as long you are off axis far enough away (I want it to sound good when we are in different places in the BR, including standing or laying down, but laying down will be the furthest away).
Thank you for taking the time to explain. Do you have any other thoughts on these speakers?
The data used in post 6 shows very good results, response and sound power.
Not all speakers perform so well, it indicates the designer paid some attention to this, the BMR/ribbon combination helps with this horizontal dispersion. That said it is not an absolute indication of how well they will sound in your room.
Both designs look interesting, can meniscus help you make a decision?
You have possibly misinterpreted the results +/- 15 degrees vertical means you will hear good sound outside of this angle, just not as loud.
Like all of us the sound in your room will also be modified by the room and furniture etc.
Not all speakers perform so well, it indicates the designer paid some attention to this, the BMR/ribbon combination helps with this horizontal dispersion. That said it is not an absolute indication of how well they will sound in your room.
Both designs look interesting, can meniscus help you make a decision?
You have possibly misinterpreted the results +/- 15 degrees vertical means you will hear good sound outside of this angle, just not as loud.
Like all of us the sound in your room will also be modified by the room and furniture etc.
Thanks for you feedback! I had a good conversation with a couple of guys at Meniscus, but neither have heard both designs, and wouldn’t weigh in on them (I don’t blame them). They actually suggested going out to the forums.
I may have misunderstood the results on the dispersion- I understand that loudness decreases, but that the concerning part is that it is usually not uniform- meaning maybe the miss and bass are still strong but the tweeter’s dB has lowered at a greater rate, so the driver balance/integration is somewhat lost.
If your listening area is huge and you are several metres away you could run into a loss of the high frequencies being noticeable.
Listen to your current speakers in the locations you mention in your post. I am sure you can discern how much the sound changes when sitting on the floor lying down or standing up.
Interestingly what speakers are you listening to now.
Listen to your current speakers in the locations you mention in your post. I am sure you can discern how much the sound changes when sitting on the floor lying down or standing up.
Interestingly what speakers are you listening to now.
I have Bowers & Wilkins 705s2's (continuum cone, with decoupled tweeter on top), but I was looking at upgrading to 805d3's. I struggle with the price of the 805's when they are still just 2 way bookshelves. That, it led me to my researching DIY speakers, thinking maybe I can do better for cheaper.
The listening area is not that large (14'x14'), but speakers platform is 44"up, so the sound does noticeably change between standing and laying down, with standing sounding better.
Do you mean the BMS 2.5" disc radiator vs the SB15CAC30?
Do we know the crossover frequencies? If we work out whether these are each being used correctly, would anyone that hasn't heard them know the difference?
The BMR is supposed to go bending mode at some point. The review suggests this is different to breakup, which makes me think they are using it this high.
Zvu has shown a polar plot for one speaker, if there was one for the other we might be one step closer.
Do we know the crossover frequencies? If we work out whether these are each being used correctly, would anyone that hasn't heard them know the difference?
The BMR is supposed to go bending mode at some point. The review suggests this is different to breakup, which makes me think they are using it this high.
Zvu has shown a polar plot for one speaker, if there was one for the other we might be one step closer.
Have you seen this review, it looks like Zvu's information came from here;
Philharmonic Audio BMR Philharmonitor Bookshelf Speaker Review | Audioholics
There is a second page showing the measurements.
It is a pity you cannot get to listen to both designs you are considering and listen to the music you like.
Philharmonic Audio BMR Philharmonitor Bookshelf Speaker Review | Audioholics
There is a second page showing the measurements.
It is a pity you cannot get to listen to both designs you are considering and listen to the music you like.
They say this for crossover frequencies and slopes:
"The woofer crossover to the midrange driver is at 600 Hz, and the midrange driver crosses over to the tweeter at 3.5 kHz, using 4rth order Linkwitz-Riley filters in both sections."
Judging by the measurements from Hificompass, the crossover frequencies are (regarding distortion and directivity) spot on.
Tectonic TEBM46C20N-4B | HiFiCompass
ScanSpeak 18W/8545-01 | HiFiCompass
"The woofer crossover to the midrange driver is at 600 Hz, and the midrange driver crosses over to the tweeter at 3.5 kHz, using 4rth order Linkwitz-Riley filters in both sections."
Judging by the measurements from Hificompass, the crossover frequencies are (regarding distortion and directivity) spot on.
Tectonic TEBM46C20N-4B | HiFiCompass
ScanSpeak 18W/8545-01 | HiFiCompass