I have been looking at building a pair of horn speakers for a while now. Like most things in audio, the more I research, the more confused I become : P
I grew to love horn speakers by listening to wetsern electric, altec, and the nicer klipsch stuff. Horns are very interesting because if they are done right, they sound effortless, smooth, and inviting. If they are done wrong, they sound shouty, hollow, and almost echo-y. When people say that horns have too much coloration it just means that the horn was implemented incorrectly IMO. This is the reason I am kind of gun shy to try building my own pair because there are just so many things that can go wrong very quickly.
My goal is to build a medium small vintage inspired horn speaker. Ideally I would like it to be two channels. 1 altec styled horn, 1 10-15" alnico paper cone woofer, and a port. I don't want to go crazy with multi way horn speakers because generally speaking the crazier the horn system, the less I like it. The simpler the design the better it sounds.
What are your guy's thoughts? Is this project folly? And if it isn't, does anyone know where I can source good paper cone woofers?
I grew to love horn speakers by listening to wetsern electric, altec, and the nicer klipsch stuff. Horns are very interesting because if they are done right, they sound effortless, smooth, and inviting. If they are done wrong, they sound shouty, hollow, and almost echo-y. When people say that horns have too much coloration it just means that the horn was implemented incorrectly IMO. This is the reason I am kind of gun shy to try building my own pair because there are just so many things that can go wrong very quickly.
My goal is to build a medium small vintage inspired horn speaker. Ideally I would like it to be two channels. 1 altec styled horn, 1 10-15" alnico paper cone woofer, and a port. I don't want to go crazy with multi way horn speakers because generally speaking the crazier the horn system, the less I like it. The simpler the design the better it sounds.
What are your guy's thoughts? Is this project folly? And if it isn't, does anyone know where I can source good paper cone woofers?
The Cornscala Style D is a popular 2-way design using a 1.4" compression driver horn and a 15" woofer.
You will find similar diy designs using all Faital speaker drivers.
You can construct cabinets similar to the Altec M19 if your favor a classic appearance.
Cornscala Style D | Critesspeakers.com
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TOO BIG? There are SEVERAL diy designs which use a 12" woofer and a 1" compression driver horn. The Cornscala-12 is one example of several "EconoWave" style constructions. Visit diysoundgroup.com for kits
Crites CS-1 And CS-1.5 Speaker Project | Critesspeakers.com
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At a higher tech and higher price point, the $550 BMS 4594Nd is a 1.4" coaxial compression which covers 500-20kHz. You will find diy designs using 15" woofers with both rectangular and round horns on the BMS 4594Nd.
You will find similar diy designs using all Faital speaker drivers.
You can construct cabinets similar to the Altec M19 if your favor a classic appearance.
Cornscala Style D | Critesspeakers.com
=========
TOO BIG? There are SEVERAL diy designs which use a 12" woofer and a 1" compression driver horn. The Cornscala-12 is one example of several "EconoWave" style constructions. Visit diysoundgroup.com for kits
Crites CS-1 And CS-1.5 Speaker Project | Critesspeakers.com
========
At a higher tech and higher price point, the $550 BMS 4594Nd is a 1.4" coaxial compression which covers 500-20kHz. You will find diy designs using 15" woofers with both rectangular and round horns on the BMS 4594Nd.
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Since this is DIY, give a look at Dave's Fastlane audio wood horn kit ( Eliptrac-400 ) and build a pair- cost $299 + shipping. The kit is all CNC cut and easy to put together and finish the way you like--good down to 400hz. Dave took down his site but will still the kits--do a search. These horns have a 2" throat so you will need an adapter for a 1"driver. You can then use any of the "classic" bass, mid bass cabinet designs from Altec, JBL, EV etc. You could also add a fostex or similar tweeter if you like later. Good luck.
Since this is DIY, give a look at Dave's Fastlane audio wood horn kit ( Eliptrac-400 ) and build a pair- cost $299 + shipping. The kit is all CNC cut and easy to put together and finish the way you like--good down to 400hz. Dave took down his site but will still the kits--do a search. These horns have a 2" throat so you will need an adapter for a 1"driver. You can then use any of the "classic" bass, mid bass cabinet designs from Altec, JBL, EV etc. You could also add a fostex or similar tweeter if you like later. Good luck.
I like folded horn speakers.
Must have built about 10 in my time.
The best is probably the Fane 15-300TC driver in a Fane folded horn box.
Must have built about 10 in my time.
The best is probably the Fane 15-300TC driver in a Fane folded horn box.
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I think this or something similar is what I will end up doing. After a few hours of searching late the other night, I saw that JE labs has a speaker like this and I have always liked his stuff. Heck most of my amps and other things are JE labs equivalents or inspired by his designs.
Plus I have heard the 414 driver before and really liked it. Over all this design just seems to be a perfect match.
My only wish is that I could get some other cheap 12 inch driver to use for testing and experimentation. The horns are cheap and robust enough that I won't be too concerned when working with them. But I have played around with some older altec paper cone stuff before and they will just disintegrate if you aren't careful.
the "Mini-punch" (2x12" - short front horn reflex hybrid) might be a fun project - Kappa 12a would probably work. It could be cut in half
for a tiny speaker with mild midrange gain over a direct radiator 12
retro vintage modern hi-fi: JWC DIY Mini Punch Kit From Fast Lane Audio
for a tiny speaker with mild midrange gain over a direct radiator 12
retro vintage modern hi-fi: JWC DIY Mini Punch Kit From Fast Lane Audio
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
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A pair of vintage 414 woofers in good condition will be your best bet. Personally I prefer a Jensen P15LL over the 414 so that’s another option.
One new GPA 414-8B Alnico speaker sells for $1230. (ebay)
Researching NdFeB vs. Alnico speaker motors, plus researching a couple "best new tech" designs could help an informed purchase decision.
You know......you might be able to help me figure this one out.
YouTube
I have been trying to figure out what those woofers are.
I know they are jensen, and I am like 99% sure they aren't M18s or anything crazy like that, but one thing that throws me off is that they have smooth cones. A lot of the new jensen drivers are ribbed. These are my dream drivers. I used to go to this store all the time and I loved these speakers. If I can make a mini me version, I wouldn't know what to do with myself.
That price for a GPA 414 can’t be right. I bought a pair of 414 speakers from GPA with Alnico magnets back in 2009 or so for $640. Surely they haven’t gone up 4x since then.
In any case, a well-used but good condition vintage 414 can be purchased on EBay for less money and may sound better as well.
In any case, a well-used but good condition vintage 414 can be purchased on EBay for less money and may sound better as well.
Re the YouTube video, I am afraid I can’t help you with identifying the particular woofer used in those DejaVu Audio speakers. I don’t believe I ever heard or saw those particular speakers. My guess is that video is at least several years old since Vu’s recent speaker efforts have used open baffles for the woofers.
Afraid so, I wasn't kidding when I posted they would be a 'bit pricey' as it's my understanding that he wasn't making enough $$ to continue and recently sold out/got new pardners? that shot pricing up to what they believe the core market will bear [Asia, affluent 'baby boomers', etc.]. Not this 'baby boomer'!
There's as good or better performing drivers available at reasonable prices; and by reasonable I mean the so called distributor net Altec prices I paid many decades ago once adjusted for inflation, i.e. right at GPA's pricing up till the other week, some literally within pennies.
FWIW/YMMV, a little 'birdie' recently mentioned to me that he/they? are not interested in the restoration business either, though not sure about selling parts.
Bottom line for me is that for a variety of reasons I still don't recommend buying any brand used/[un] restored vintage [horn] drivers unless one is personally knowledgeable WRT its history or can measure/audition it and now no longer recommend GPA except in passing to make folks aware of them.
GM
Interesting.
I used to live in VA and went to this store all the time. I remember Vu saying a few times that open baffle stuff wasn't that great.
His tastes seemed to have been changing over the years.
Anyways, does anyone have any information on the Jensen P15LLs? Any tips on finding a good pair on ebay (things to look out for and avoid)?
Tips for buying P15LL woofers: look for tears in the cone; original cones are less of gamble than reconed because you don’t know if NOS cone was used; details re origin of speaker may help to establish condition of speaker as well as credibility of seller; P15LS appears to be same as P15LL.
I have two pairs of P15LL woofers, one pair that was reconed and one with original cones. They are all well matched and sound great. The stock woofers are in a DejaVu open baffle with YL Acoustic midrange horn and driver. The other set are in a vented box with Altec 32 and 802-8G driver.
I have two pairs of P15LL woofers, one pair that was reconed and one with original cones. They are all well matched and sound great. The stock woofers are in a DejaVu open baffle with YL Acoustic midrange horn and driver. The other set are in a vented box with Altec 32 and 802-8G driver.
Many newer compression drivers, horns, and low Le woofers have good performance specs. The 1.4" Faital HF146 compression driver generates adequate high frequency response for most listeners, and supports an 800Hz crossover which produces a smooth polar response to curve-linear cone 15" MidWoofers like the ($260)Faital 15PR400 or ($350)Acoustic Elegance TD15M. The "bevels and rounds" of a low diffraction cabinet can be hidden behind a grill cloth, or displayed like the Geddes Summa. This presents an opportunity for high quality audio in a cabinet size and shape which best fits your room.
The woodshop cabilities often sets the design direction.
----$570--------Faital T-M (1.4" CD + 15") Drivers
FaitalPro 15PR400 woofer (Fs=35Hz, Mms=72g, Le=0.7mH, Qts=0.32) $260
FaitalPro HF146 1.4" Neo Compression Driver Plastic dome $250
FaitalPRO LTH142 1.4" 60 x 50 Elliptical Tractrix Horn 4-Bolt. $60
PLUS: crossover ~ $90
===Bargin Big 3way===$450 for 3 drivers+horn====
18" Peavey woofer $215
12" Eminence Midwoofer $155
1" Peerless CD $65
1" PRV/B52 waveguide $15
PLUS: crossover ~$100
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