DIY 3 Way Floorstanders design recommendations

[tuathal]

Hi Folks,

Looking to build 3 way floor standers for a large sitting room.

Anyone have any detailed plans they can pass on? Preferably using drivers/components that can be sourced in Europe.

I'm quite open to different designs including bi amping and building a active cross over - though a straight forward design with built in passive crossover may be better as a first project. I will hopefully have help from a furniture designer on the build so should be able to handle relatively complex builds.

One thing I'm not too hot on is overly bright high end. Clear bass and mids are more important to me.

Amplifier: Using a old BK ST 140 power amplifier. Also have a Arcam Alpha 8 which I can possibly also use.

Music listened to: Reggae, ELectronica, Folk

Budget - $300

Thanks in advance for any advice,

Tuathal

 

[Racket Scientist]

You might want to move this to the "Multi-Way" section as you specified you want a 3 way system.

 

[Cal Weldon]

Moved to Multi-Way

 

[picowallspeaker]

Ok.The argument is moved ,and now
threeeee wayyyy flooooorstanderss
Let's elaborate on this
For each cabinet there is the need of : one woofer ,one midrange and one tweeter. Components for crossover ,binding posts , good looking screws ; also wires and something for sealing the speakers (at least the woofer ,if the others have their own chamber ). Not mentioning wood and glue . Ooops.Forgot the fastons for proper attaching the wire to speakers' leads. This is the practical side ,then there is the real design of the project ,which you are looking for.
This side implies lots of study and technical knowledge ,and years in getting the hands dirty into it . It should be easy to argue why some good projects are not easily available for free .
In Italy there's is one great brand that makes good and at a quite reasonable price ,and there are some projects on its site
CIARE - Making speakers, woofer, tweeter, driver and car audio
which are presumably good and have passed the test bench.Just for an idea.

 

[giralfino]

I think you will have problems with a 300$ (200€?) budget.
Check also visaton.

Ralf

 

[Racket Scientist]

I think the budget is an issue as well. I'd suggest maybe a 2 way design - one less driver and a couple less crossover parts to buy.

 

[picowallspeaker]

That is what I wanted to say (across the lines ) . That is the budget requested for two woofers that may last many years . Choosing low cost / replacement woofers is better than nothing ,but often they're cheap even in the look (and materials )

I'm quite open to different designs including bi amping and building a active cross over - though a straight forward design with built in passive crossover may be better as a first project.

That may be THE project for that money . Since the signal is handled at low level ,everything need special care and after crossovering the parts are doubled Talking of a 2 way x-over ,where the mid and the tweeter use passive split .

 

[AudioSan]

300$ dont get you far.
my 3-way scan-speak project. set me back 2.000euro+.

 

[sreten]

Hi, checkout the links, a 2.5 way may be your best bet for $300, rgds, sreten.

undefinition
Zaph|Audio
FRD Consortium tools guide
RJB Audio Projects
Speaker Design Works
HTGuide Forum - A Guide to HTguide.com Completed Speaker Designs.
Humble Homemade Hifi
Click below to go to
Quarter Wavelength Loudspeaker Design
The Frugal-Horns Site -- High Performance, Low Cost DIY Horn Designs
Linkwitz Lab - Loudspeaker Design
Music and Design

 

[tuathal]

Many Thanks for all the replies!

 

[Charles Darwin]

On that budget I too would aim for a two way design.
If you really want deeper bass (and who doesn't?) I would now aim for a design with a fairly small mid-woofer and add a proper bass with a 10 inch or larger woofer when the finances allow.
That way you could eventually end up with a quite good 3 way floorstander.
If you are lucky you might actually find designs for a smallish 2way and a larger 3way using the same mid range in the links sreten and pico provided. You would just need to build a new xover and the bass could get its own cab so there'd be a minimum of waste.

 

[navin]

Amplifier: Using a old BK ST 140 power amplifier. Also have a Arcam Alpha 8 which I can possibly also use.
Budget - $300

On that budget I too would aim for a two way design.
If you really want deeper bass (and who doesn't?) I would now aim for a design with a fairly small mid-woofer and add a proper bass with a 10 inch or larger woofer when the finances allow.

One option is a 8" MTM 2 way. Using 2 8" cones would give you enough Sd to move the air you are looking to move. Dayton (from Parts Express) makes a 28mm dome tweeter (I think it is the RS28) that can be crossed as low as 1500hz and a 8" woofer (S225 or ST210) that can extend to 1500Hz too. You would have to strech your budget and DIY the cabinet from lumber to make ti work though. I would estimate the end cost to be about $500. $300 would cover only the drivers.