Hi fellow DIYers,
I am beginning a new project with components I currently have and some I will be purchasing. Any thoughts or comments are appreciated.
Do you see obvious any weaknesses?
Crossover - active Mini DSP 4x10
Amps
High - Line Magnetic LM-210IA 300B
Mid - Yaqin MC-13S EL34
Mid Bass - Krell KAV-150a
Sub - ICE amp undecided maybe Bel Canto, Red Dragon, DIY
Speakers - none purchased yet.
High - Scan Speak D3004 or Aurum Cantus Aero Striction in dipole
Mid - Scan Speak 15M vented 5.5" chose over peerless NE149W due to sensitivity
Mid Bass - Peerless NE265W-08 Sealed 10" Qtc .7 tuned 37hz
Sub - Peerless NE315W-08 12" Bass Reflex tuned to 20hz
Crossover slope
80 - 220 - 2200
Thanks in advance for any input! I will post pictures of the build as I progress.
I am beginning a new project with components I currently have and some I will be purchasing. Any thoughts or comments are appreciated.
Do you see obvious any weaknesses?
Crossover - active Mini DSP 4x10
Amps
High - Line Magnetic LM-210IA 300B
Mid - Yaqin MC-13S EL34
Mid Bass - Krell KAV-150a
Sub - ICE amp undecided maybe Bel Canto, Red Dragon, DIY
Speakers - none purchased yet.
High - Scan Speak D3004 or Aurum Cantus Aero Striction in dipole
Mid - Scan Speak 15M vented 5.5" chose over peerless NE149W due to sensitivity
Mid Bass - Peerless NE265W-08 Sealed 10" Qtc .7 tuned 37hz
Sub - Peerless NE315W-08 12" Bass Reflex tuned to 20hz
Crossover slope
80 - 220 - 2200
Thanks in advance for any input! I will post pictures of the build as I progress.
You could go for smaller mid basses. A single 12" subwoofer in a vented enclosure will not play 20 Hz at a high volume, so there is no requirement for a mid bass capable of high output. Another point is to look at multiple subwoofers - not just for output, but primarily for a more even bass response across the room.
Enclosure tuning of the mid bass isn't necessary when you shape the response with a DSP. A small sealed enclosure is fine.
Midranges work best in a sealed enclosure, a vent is not useful when the driver is high passed at 220 Hz and only leaks midrange sound.
Even though a 5.5" midrange + 1" dome tweeter is a popular configuration, I would use something else. Their directivities do not match at the crossover frequency. You could either go for a wide dispersion and pick a 4" mid or go for a slightly narrower dispersion and use a waveguide tweeter. Then a larger mid makes sense, to maintain constant directivity down to a frequency as low as possible.
Enclosure tuning of the mid bass isn't necessary when you shape the response with a DSP. A small sealed enclosure is fine.
Midranges work best in a sealed enclosure, a vent is not useful when the driver is high passed at 220 Hz and only leaks midrange sound.
Even though a 5.5" midrange + 1" dome tweeter is a popular configuration, I would use something else. Their directivities do not match at the crossover frequency. You could either go for a wide dispersion and pick a 4" mid or go for a slightly narrower dispersion and use a waveguide tweeter. Then a larger mid makes sense, to maintain constant directivity down to a frequency as low as possible.
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Thanks for the input! My original concept was a Focal Grand Utopia layout MB - T - M - SW using a higher sensitivity mid range instead of the MTM.
I did consider using 2 sealed 12" sub-woofers like the Magico Q7 layout but the costs and size began to limit me.
I was modeling the mid off of what Wilson does with the same driver or what Jim Holtz did with the finalists using the Peerless mid. But sealed might make things easier.
I have considered the Scan Speak 12MU...I think a member is selling a pair too. They don't have as high sensitivity and I was worried the 35w tube amp might not be enough.
Thanks for your input much appreciated!
I did consider using 2 sealed 12" sub-woofers like the Magico Q7 layout but the costs and size began to limit me.
I was modeling the mid off of what Wilson does with the same driver or what Jim Holtz did with the finalists using the Peerless mid. But sealed might make things easier.
I have considered the Scan Speak 12MU...I think a member is selling a pair too. They don't have as high sensitivity and I was worried the 35w tube amp might not be enough.
Thanks for your input much appreciated!
My recommendation is to abandon the BR subwoofer.
Since you use minidsp, it is very easy to make a closed box and a 12-15" driver (stereo pair) to give better room response and lower GD without the phase rotation of the reflexed output. Room modes and pressurization usually help quite a bit below 40Hz! Closed bass takes much smaller box volume!
Also, please try LR2 around 120-150Hz for lowest xo. With delay set right, LR2 sounds much better to my ears, the punchiness and depth of bass gets a new solid quality!
Since you use minidsp, it is very easy to make a closed box and a 12-15" driver (stereo pair) to give better room response and lower GD without the phase rotation of the reflexed output. Room modes and pressurization usually help quite a bit below 40Hz! Closed bass takes much smaller box volume!
Also, please try LR2 around 120-150Hz for lowest xo. With delay set right, LR2 sounds much better to my ears, the punchiness and depth of bass gets a new solid quality!
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^Linkwitz-Riley 12dB/octave acoustic crossover topology. Instead of the much more common LR4 (24dB/oct)
Linkwitz-Riley Crossovers: A Primer
Linkwitz-Riley Crossovers: A Primer
While you can still purchase high quality wood....
Wood Envy.... A Life Time speaker.
Taipuu Speakers in Finland showcases solid wood cabinets. Taipuu has a 4-way design using Scan Speak drivers which is well documented on their website, and the VituixCAD2 cadtool website also models this speaker.
Taipuu Speakers - Taipuu Speakers
Taipuu Speakers DSP active speakers - Taipuu Speakers
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For DIY you can select an audio signature created by cones of paper(natural), plastic(smooth), or aluminum(detailed). A medium cost aluminum build might use SB_Acoustics drivers plus a bottom side-side pair of 12" Dayton subwoofers, all drivers in sealed volumes.
tweeter: 1" dome SB26ADC-4
midrange: 5" SB15NAC30-4
woofer: 8" SB23NACS45-4
side-side subwoofers 12" Dayton RSS315HFA (4 or 8 ohm)
Wood Envy.... A Life Time speaker.
Taipuu Speakers in Finland showcases solid wood cabinets. Taipuu has a 4-way design using Scan Speak drivers which is well documented on their website, and the VituixCAD2 cadtool website also models this speaker.
Taipuu Speakers - Taipuu Speakers
Taipuu Speakers DSP active speakers - Taipuu Speakers
===========
For DIY you can select an audio signature created by cones of paper(natural), plastic(smooth), or aluminum(detailed). A medium cost aluminum build might use SB_Acoustics drivers plus a bottom side-side pair of 12" Dayton subwoofers, all drivers in sealed volumes.
tweeter: 1" dome SB26ADC-4
midrange: 5" SB15NAC30-4
woofer: 8" SB23NACS45-4
side-side subwoofers 12" Dayton RSS315HFA (4 or 8 ohm)
Attachments
Have you sketched your room + speakers, or used free speaker placement room analysis tools? Would speakers with a 90-degree or 60-degree horizontal polar pattern remove early reflections from near side walls?
Horn Controlled directivity.... 18" wide cabinet... $600/speaker in parts
Attachments
Admittedly I have not done any research on placement in my listening room. I do have the luxury of high, 10 foot ceiling but my room is wide about 20 feet but shallow 15 feet.
Do you have any suggestions when dealing with shallow rooms where the speaker is 12 to 14 feet from the listener? Thanks!
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