I am a skilled wood worker and I know how to solder. I have built and helped friends build diy speaker kits before with great success. Those kits came with box dimensions and crossover schematics and part lists.
I have been scouring the internet for a while now looking for an open baffle diy kit that is similar to the PAP Trio15.
I haven't really found any kits per se, but I have found many people who have successfully built their own pair. I would like to use passive crossovers for mine. Unfortunately many of the posts I have found, people are using active crossovers such as the miniDSP. I do not want to do this. One, cost. Two, I already have a dedicated amp (emotiva xpa-2). And, three it seems most reviews say they end up sounding better with a passive crossover.
It appears many people are using these speakers for their diy builds:
1x Tang Band W8-1808
https://www.parts-express.com/Tang-Band-W8-1808-8-Neodymium-Full-Range-Driver-264-894
2x Eminence Alpha-15A
https://www.parts-express.com/Eminence-Alpha-15A-15-Driver-290-407
A lot of people also talk about using the Tang Band W8-1808 from Parts Express and getting the OB-A15Neo from PAP. However, it appears PAP is no longer selling the OB-A15Neo on its own. 🙁
Are people using the Eminence Alpha-15A as a drop in replacement to the OB-A15Neo? Could it be used as a replacement without crossover modifications?
If not, is there a replacement to the OB-A15Neo that can be sourced from someone else, since PAP is no longer selling individual drivers?
A user here, @PDRCanada, had a crossover schematic in his photobucket.
https://hosting.photobucket.com/alb...s over 100MF-100uF 33MF-33uF_zpswaualkg3.jpg
But, i am not 100% sure that is the actual correct crossover? And, if it is, can it be used with the Eminence woofer?
They also posted some photos of their crossovers as well:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...t-open-baffle-kits.300710/page-2#post-4958928
I am not skilled enought to be able to compare the photos to the schematic and know if I am looking at the same thing.
I have posted a follow up, asking these questions, but then I realized that this community seems to like when new threads are created, so that is when I created this.
Any help in getting me started on the right direction is greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
I have been scouring the internet for a while now looking for an open baffle diy kit that is similar to the PAP Trio15.
I haven't really found any kits per se, but I have found many people who have successfully built their own pair. I would like to use passive crossovers for mine. Unfortunately many of the posts I have found, people are using active crossovers such as the miniDSP. I do not want to do this. One, cost. Two, I already have a dedicated amp (emotiva xpa-2). And, three it seems most reviews say they end up sounding better with a passive crossover.
It appears many people are using these speakers for their diy builds:
1x Tang Band W8-1808
https://www.parts-express.com/Tang-Band-W8-1808-8-Neodymium-Full-Range-Driver-264-894
2x Eminence Alpha-15A
https://www.parts-express.com/Eminence-Alpha-15A-15-Driver-290-407
A lot of people also talk about using the Tang Band W8-1808 from Parts Express and getting the OB-A15Neo from PAP. However, it appears PAP is no longer selling the OB-A15Neo on its own. 🙁
Are people using the Eminence Alpha-15A as a drop in replacement to the OB-A15Neo? Could it be used as a replacement without crossover modifications?
If not, is there a replacement to the OB-A15Neo that can be sourced from someone else, since PAP is no longer selling individual drivers?
A user here, @PDRCanada, had a crossover schematic in his photobucket.
https://hosting.photobucket.com/alb...s over 100MF-100uF 33MF-33uF_zpswaualkg3.jpg
But, i am not 100% sure that is the actual correct crossover? And, if it is, can it be used with the Eminence woofer?
They also posted some photos of their crossovers as well:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...t-open-baffle-kits.300710/page-2#post-4958928
I am not skilled enought to be able to compare the photos to the schematic and know if I am looking at the same thing.
I have posted a follow up, asking these questions, but then I realized that this community seems to like when new threads are created, so that is when I created this.
Any help in getting me started on the right direction is greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Unfortunately, it is rarely possible to just “drop” a different driver into an existing design and expect the same results.
A good amount of the open baffle information you mention relating to the use of the Eminence Alpha drivers is most probably due to MJK’s work.
If you haven’t read his articles on the subject yet then its worth a look.
He has documented several open baffle projects.
One if the earliest uses a single Eminence Alpha in conjunction with a smaller fullrange. I believe he provides a passive crossover design.
He also did a bigger open baffle using an 8” Lowther fullrange and a pair of Acoustic Elegance bass units. I don’t recall what the nature of the crossover was.
http://www.quarter-wave.com/index.html
A good amount of the open baffle information you mention relating to the use of the Eminence Alpha drivers is most probably due to MJK’s work.
If you haven’t read his articles on the subject yet then its worth a look.
He has documented several open baffle projects.
One if the earliest uses a single Eminence Alpha in conjunction with a smaller fullrange. I believe he provides a passive crossover design.
He also did a bigger open baffle using an 8” Lowther fullrange and a pair of Acoustic Elegance bass units. I don’t recall what the nature of the crossover was.
http://www.quarter-wave.com/index.html
Thanks for the reply and info.
I checked out quarter wave and it is very interesting in deed. Above my pay grade as far as understanding the technicalities, but it in deed makes sense and gets me excited.
I just came across this post:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/upgraded-eminence-alpha15a-15-woofers.276225/
And, it looks like the Eminence Alpha-15A can indeed be swapped for the PAP OB-A15Neo with no crossover modifications, according to the post.
I am now taking a closer look at the crossover schematics I found and seeing if it all makes sense.
Could anybody take a look at these schematics and let me know if it looks like it would work with the Tang Band W8-1808 and Eminence Alpha-15A?
https://hosting.photobucket.com/alb...s over 100MF-100uF 33MF-33uF_zpswaualkg3.jpg
The photos look like Mundorf caps and resistors. With maybe Solen inductors.
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...t-open-baffle-kits.300710/page-2#post-4958928
I know I am going to have some questions regarding the crossover assembly, but just want to determine if I am off on the right path.
Thanks!
I checked out quarter wave and it is very interesting in deed. Above my pay grade as far as understanding the technicalities, but it in deed makes sense and gets me excited.
I just came across this post:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/upgraded-eminence-alpha15a-15-woofers.276225/
And, it looks like the Eminence Alpha-15A can indeed be swapped for the PAP OB-A15Neo with no crossover modifications, according to the post.
I am now taking a closer look at the crossover schematics I found and seeing if it all makes sense.
Could anybody take a look at these schematics and let me know if it looks like it would work with the Tang Band W8-1808 and Eminence Alpha-15A?
https://hosting.photobucket.com/alb...s over 100MF-100uF 33MF-33uF_zpswaualkg3.jpg
The photos look like Mundorf caps and resistors. With maybe Solen inductors.
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...t-open-baffle-kits.300710/page-2#post-4958928
I know I am going to have some questions regarding the crossover assembly, but just want to determine if I am off on the right path.
Thanks!
I wish I could help you (Really!).
I don’t have the expertise and was in a similar situation as you several years ago.
There are plenty of members on here that are very knowledgeable that can offer help. You just need to be patient and show them you’re trying to learn.
The more I read about crossover design, the more confused I became (and my head hurt).
Crossover design is a rabbit hole for the layman.
I took the easy way out (relying on other’s genius) and found a good used First Watt B5 active crossover.
Then I just read instructions and started playing with switches until I got something I liked the sound of.
I actually have (4) lightly used original Alphas sitting in boxes in my storage closet that I never used myself.
I stumbled across an incredible deal on some Acoustic Elegance dipole 15 and 18 that I couldn’t pass up and never got to using the Alphas.
I am also interested in trying my own version of a PAP.
However, it will be based on Hypex amps driving and filtering the AE drivers. The high pass filtering will be done by a DIY Bi Amp crossover feeding one of my DIY First Watt amps.
I also have a pair of the W8-1808 that I lived with for a while.
If your interested in either the Alphas or Tang Band send me a PM.
Best if luck with your project.
I
I don’t have the expertise and was in a similar situation as you several years ago.
There are plenty of members on here that are very knowledgeable that can offer help. You just need to be patient and show them you’re trying to learn.
The more I read about crossover design, the more confused I became (and my head hurt).
Crossover design is a rabbit hole for the layman.
I took the easy way out (relying on other’s genius) and found a good used First Watt B5 active crossover.
Then I just read instructions and started playing with switches until I got something I liked the sound of.
I actually have (4) lightly used original Alphas sitting in boxes in my storage closet that I never used myself.
I stumbled across an incredible deal on some Acoustic Elegance dipole 15 and 18 that I couldn’t pass up and never got to using the Alphas.
I am also interested in trying my own version of a PAP.
However, it will be based on Hypex amps driving and filtering the AE drivers. The high pass filtering will be done by a DIY Bi Amp crossover feeding one of my DIY First Watt amps.
I also have a pair of the W8-1808 that I lived with for a while.
If your interested in either the Alphas or Tang Band send me a PM.
Best if luck with your project.
I
For anyone who is following this.
I have stumbled upon a series of You Tube videos that document the construction of some Trio Clones using the Tang Band W8-1808 and Eminence Alpha-15A (my correction they are using the Betas).
I have compared the crossover build from the videos (first seen in PART 2 around the 26:27 time mark) to the crossover schematics that I have found (linked in post #1), and they appear to be identical.
Here is a link to the You Tube video:
There are 4 videos in total - INTRO, PART 1 (assembly), PART 2 (crossovers), and PART 3 (listening).
I have stumbled upon a series of You Tube videos that document the construction of some Trio Clones using the Tang Band W8-1808 and Eminence Alpha-15A (my correction they are using the Betas).
I have compared the crossover build from the videos (first seen in PART 2 around the 26:27 time mark) to the crossover schematics that I have found (linked in post #1), and they appear to be identical.
Here is a link to the You Tube video:
There are 4 videos in total - INTRO, PART 1 (assembly), PART 2 (crossovers), and PART 3 (listening).
I built my set of PAP clones using TB W1808 and Eminence Alpha 15A. They do sound fabulous but I need to look for another amplifier as these are 4 ohm load. I have the SissySIT R3, Aleph J but seems like I may need good high current amplifiers. I use a FE22 preamp without any input/output caps.
I followed my build from here - https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/pap-trio-15-and-diy-discussion.6197/
Crossover as L1 = 4.7mH, R1 = 0.1/20w and C1 82Mf caps with no exotic stuff just parts express. Later will go with Mundorf per the thread. But this is a great start I would say nothing missing with PE parts. You will love these PAP and do let me know what amplification you are going to run as these are 4 ohm load. Just shoot me a PM if you need any more details.
Best of luck.
Thanks Sir -- I've checked out the thread mentioned in the past, I should go back through it. I have two different tube amps, an EL34 and a KT88, but may try a couple of Class D amps or a large Class A solid state - - really just depends on how they work with the tubes. I bought all the crossover parts from Parts Express as well and I know a couple of the parts will need to be upgraded at some point. I actually have 4 additional Alpha 15a's in case I want to modify them to the quintet style. The crossover diag I have is for the duet, from what I can tell. Have you considered a DSP?
Attachments
Good set of amps you got there to try out. Let me know the feedback especially with class D and A as I am not into any tube stuff. DSP yes I did consider MiniDSP 2x4 HD and going active with 2-4 amps but then its added cost of amplification as well as long learning curve. So went with the passive and a known crossover values and less hassle to make it sing.