First DIY project

[echosystm]

Hi guys,

I am after some 2-way speakers for mixing and producing music on. Being a university student, I have little money. However, I do more time than I know what to do with. These seem like good conditions for DIY! I am handy enough to follow a plan, but I'm not even going to think about trying to design or tweak them myself.

Requirements:

• Speakers and amp for under $700AUD
• Must have decent bass, like most 6-7" studio monitors
• Must be front ported or sealed
• Must be shielded
• Amp must have balanced inputs and take +4 level

I would prefer to buy the amp off-the-shelf, unless there is a very easy (but good) design I can follow. I definitely do not want a poor quality amp and I would like to avoid buying second hand.

Questions:

• In this price range, am I just better off getting a set of Behringer Truths or KRK RP6s?
• These commercial offerings will be bi-amped... Can a passive DIY XO with an OK amp be better than this?
• Recommend me some designs? I have searched, but this place is an ocean of information - I am drowning!

Thanks!

 

[mayhem13]

I don't know if the Onkyo M-282 is available to you, but it's about $200 U.S. and is impressive in it's output and SQ. I use one to power a set of Zaph SR71 and i spent about $700 U.S. including cabinet materials. Don't know if you can surpass the performance with active monitors, but it's a start.

 

[echosystm]

http://www.theloudspeakerkit.com/shop/productdetails.asp?ProductID=68&ProcessType=1

These are apparently quite decent. However, I am somewhat reluctant to pay $400AU, when the woofers cost $20US and the tweeters cost $16US. I could probably get the full set of woofers and tweeters for about $150AU, posted. Surely wood and XO wouldn't cost $250?

 

[echosystm]

I don't know if the Onkyo M-282 is available to you, but it's about $200 U.S. and is impressive in it's output and SQ. I use one to power a set of Zaph SR71 and i spent about $700 U.S. including cabinet materials. Don't know if you can surpass the performance with active monitors, but it's a start.

Thanks for your reply, but I don't think either of these are ideal.

This amp has only RCA in, from what I can see. I would like balanced TRS/XLR. I think this will limit me to amps like the Alesis RA line and similar. Also, the Zaph SR71 is rear ported.

 

[Moondog55]

Price the drivers and XO parts at www.speakerbits.com before you make up your mind, remember that there is no surface mail from the USA anymore and airmail rates are a KILLER.
Some very fine designs can't be made here as drivers are not available here or discontinued.
Look up Darcher Audio.
It can be done but will take time to find a design using drivers available in OZ

Balanced inputs are nice but really not needed, I detect no difference between my Alesis RA-100 and the new model, SQ noise or volume

 

[echosystm]

It can be done but will take time to find a design using drivers available in OZ

And then how good would that design be... Argh. Australia.

Maybe I'm best off just getting a kit from LSK or buying off the shelf? Do you think the LSK kits provide good value?

 

[Moondog55]

They represent value if your skills/time is limited.

Look up the pro-audio sites and see what is being used and then note the prices, add a zero to your budget if buying off the shelf.
Most pro gear these days is active, Bi-amped and driven from the mixer output

 

[echosystm]

So, bottom line, how would LSK M5s compare to something like KRK RP6s? They will work out to be roughly the same price.

I don't really see how LSK can provide a speaker which is on par with "commercial offerings that cost 2 to 3 times as much". The value proposition of DIY is that you cut out all the overheads. The only overhead LSK cut out is assembly, but they have the additional overhead of making the kits easy to assemble (eg. cutting the tongue and groove in the wood). Obviously they don't have the buying power of KRK, so one would think the benefits are almost entirely eroded?

Furthermore, everything I have read says that bi-amplified speakers are greatly superior to these passive types.

Can anyone clear some of this up for me? I don't really get it!

 

[Moondog55]

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=136635

In your situation i would think any decent small system would do, I can't comment on available speakers I haven't bought off the shelf in 12 years ( which is how old my HT system is ) but most of what I build is bi-amped 3-ways, and take ages to get "Right"

 

[Moondog55]

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=300-774&ctab=5#Tabs

If you could get suitable drivers for this little amp I'd be tempted to import a couple, about $350 landed I think

 

[Moondog55]

Just for fun I went into the order and calculated price and shipping for 2 plate amps.
$116.32 USD plus $119.76USD shipping
Total 236.06 at todays exchange rate equals $355.62AUD, my back of the thumb guesstimate was very close

 

[Moondog55]

Peerless 831916 bass / midrange (PD176A)
176 mm bass / midrange with one piece polycone and rubber surround. An excellent low cost 6.5" driver.
$121.42AUD a pair

Peerless BC25SC-55-04 tweeter (PD026B)
25 mm tweeter
$70.00AUD the pair

Makes some of those powered monitors look cheap doesn't it????

Add the cabinet, damping material and finishing and cabling, most of us start DIY under the impression we can save money, and at the very top end I do believe that is true and at the very bottom but this is a very competitive market and quality is reasonable ( for most brands )

I hope some-one can give you a heads-up comparison of the available selection

 

[Moondog55]

Here you go , courtesy of Sreten, if he thinks it's OK it must be worth a second look.



http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=137540

Just remember that all postage from the USA is by air, perhaps the new Prez will fix that as well