Carrera vs Adelphos

I don't have any complete speakers to sell, I'm sure I have some satori woofers and tweeters and probably a set of the scan mids but no spare hiquphons. I meant to do a shootout on my own with many of the top diy speakers but it means making a ton of cabinets etc and the latest thing is always more exciting. have fun whatever you decide, this probably not be the last set of speakers you build.
 
Example cabinets: Adelphos drivers plus a 12" side woofer.

Best sound from both a sealed midrange in 0.3 - 0.4 cuft volume and a sealed 12" woofer in 2 - 2.5 cuft volume.

Putting the center of the tweeter at 34" - 36" uses a 38" - 40" high cabinet with 0.75" - 1.0" edge bevels for reduced diffraction distortion.
 

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Example cabinets: Adelphos drivers plus a 12" side woofer.

Best sound from both a sealed midrange in 0.3 - 0.4 cuft volume and a sealed 12" woofer in 2 - 2.5 cuft volume.

Putting the center of the tweeter at 34" - 36" uses a 38" - 40" high cabinet with 0.75" - 1.0" edge bevels for reduced diffraction distortion.

I'm sure that these sound great, but just too big and visually overpowering for my room. I need something much shorter and smaller in order to be able to enjoy it.

I already tried some speakers that were about 14" wide and 40" tall. Too big for me regardless of the sound quality. I imagine that some people are not as concerned about the visual aspect as I am. But it's very important to me.
 
That's an interesting size and shape, but I'm not aware of any DIY kits that match it. Would be glad to know about any kits like that if you have some examples.

My recently completed EMP fits that bill. I wanted to make a smaller tower with really clean HD for the cost, and capable of packing a whallop in terms of sound. They are really dynamic, and orchestral stuff sounds great on them.

Kit? Not really. You'd need to source your own parts, but free for non-commercial use.

Ports would be 2x 1.6" diameter, tuned to 40-42 Hz range. The 650uF cap is not a typo. The method I used were computer-grade 1000uF polarized back to back, followed by 200uF of poly, came out measured to 648uF.

The FR/HD were taken before I added the 1 ohm resistor to the tweeter, so that is not shown in measurements.

See attached, please,
Wolf
 

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3-way. SB29RDC... MW16P-8... SB29NRX75-6(on side)
H=38" W=10" D=14"

The 10" SB29NRX75-6 woofer produces -F3 = 43Hz in a 1.3cuft sealed volume, and would be a better size for your small room. Same philosophy... sealed midrange and sealed woofer... just a better cabinet size for your room. Beveled edges on 1.5" thick(2-ply) front baffle will reduce distortion.
 
And which one is the best in your opinion? I might try to find it on Idagio and listen to it.


This is a cop-out but I like them all. Best sound by far is the Julia Fischer, it's also the set I play the most for that reason. There's an airiness and warmth to the sound which isn't there in Hilary Hahn's recording, for example. But the Grumiaux is marvellous too, they all have their merits. Perhaps my least played is Viktoria Mullova but it's still very enjoyable.


One of my nieces plays with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and she prefers Janine Jansen's recording.



If I really like a piece I'll get 5 or 6 versions!


Geoff

:violin:
 
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This is a cop-out but I like them all. Best sound by far is the Julia Fischer, it's also the set I play the most for that reason. There's an airiness and warmth to the sound which isn't there in Hilary Hahn's recording, for example. But the Grumiaux is marvellous too, they all have their merits. Perhaps my least played is Viktoria Mullova but it's still very enjoyable.


One of my nieces plays with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and she prefers Janine Jansen's recording.



If I really like a piece I'll get 5 or 6 versions!


Geoff

:violin:
Have you listened to the Issabelle Faust recordings on Harmonia Mundi?
Might be my favorite and the sound quality is excellent!
 
There are several good 8" woofers that will run well in a sealed 30 liter box.

A pair of cube-like boxes, each with an 8" woofer.

A miniDSP 2x2 HD. An IcePower 200W amp for each woofer.

Position the satellites for best imaging and 3D stereo effect. Position the two woofer cubes for best bass response.

Cross from the satellites to the woofer at 150 Hz to start, probably LR2, but experiment with BW3 and LR4, and other frequencies. Employ bass EQ as needed.

LineSource is providing some good options, but consider the above if you really want to minimize the visual impact.
 
I agree with hifijim here. This is a great way to go regardless of what speakers you choose. I use a similar setup in my bedroom which is 14'x16' and I have the subs stashed so you cant even see them, 2- 12" cubes are easy to hide.
 
Have you listened to the Isabelle Faust recordings on Harmonia Mundi?


Yes, that's an excellent set too: I gave it to my father for his birthday but forgot to put it on my iPod. The Fischer is a great test for tweeters, by the way: any grit or roughness in them will be very obvious.

I should have mentioned that my niece is an excellent violinist and also plays in a professional quartet. She really knows her music.

Geoff
 
Example cabinets: Adelphos drivers plus a 12" side woofer.

Best sound from both a sealed midrange in 0.3 - 0.4 cuft volume and a sealed 12" woofer in 2 - 2.5 cuft volume.

Putting the center of the tweeter at 34" - 36" uses a 38" - 40" high cabinet with 0.75" - 1.0" edge bevels for reduced diffraction distortion.

Thanks, LineSource. This looks like a great idea and is similar to what I've been thinking about. I'd keep the height down to the minimum. No more than 38". Maybe even a little less.

First step though is to build the Adelphos as stand mounts just as they are currently designed. That's all I want to tackle at the moment. Then later either rebuild them into cabinets like this or simply just add a bass cabinet underneath.

In any case I've decided on the Adelphos rather than the Carrera or any of the other options that have been presented here. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions, but I think the Adelphos is the way to go for me at this point.

Next decision is Baltic Birch plywood versus solid oak or maple.
 
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That decision was purely based on aesthetics and had nothing to do with sound.

I just don't want to look at the slanted baffle of the Kairos. Jeff was wise enough know that other people would feel the same, which is the reason he designed the Adelphos to begin with. And I'm very glad that he did.

As I said earlier in this thread, the speaker appearance is very important to me. I know it's not as important to some others, but I just can't ignore it.
 
yes, no argument here, should make yourself happy. This is a hobby after all! My builds rarely make it past ratty plywood boxes. I do have a few nice speakers that both look and sound great to compare my caveman builds to.
have fun!
 
Hi ktks1,

I changed my mind about putting bigger speakers in my rather small listening room and so I didn't build the Adephos after all. I think that they would be a great speaker choice, but just too big for my current room.

I'm still using the Piccolos and think that they are excellent in terms of sound quality and imagining. As usual, the room itself is a very big factor and in this case I think I've already optimized what can be done.