Open source speaker project - Part II

Design Goal

  • Classic -Amp Friendly- Hi Sensitivity (92db+), Higher Bass Ext (f3 40-45Hz), Cabinet Size 60-80

    Votes: 18 17.8%
  • Classic -Bass Friendly- Deep Bass (f3 35-40Hz), Lower Sensitivity (88db+), Cabinet Size 80-110

    Votes: 10 9.9%
  • Classic XL -Amp and Bass Friendly- Hi Sensitivity (92db+), Deep Bass (f3 35-40Hz), Cabinet size 100+

    Votes: 12 11.9%
  • Tower -Amp Friendly- Hi Sensitivity (92db+), Higher Bass Ext (f3 40-45Hz), Cabinet Size 60-80

    Votes: 13 12.9%
  • Tower -Bass Friendly- Deep Bass (f3 35-40Hz), Lower Sensitivity (88db+) , Cabinet Size 80-110

    Votes: 21 20.8%
  • Tower XL -Amp and Bass Friendly- Hi Sensitivity (92db+), Deep Bass (f3 35-40Hz), Cabinet size 100+

    Votes: 27 26.7%

  • Total voters
    101
  • Poll closed .
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I would say it seems this qualifies for a Tower XL and a Classic style Amp friendly compact design...?

Maybe if we can keep it to less than 150 liters, and pending on the design some of the Tower Bass Friendly crowd will also be happy?
I doubt it. Very large tower speakers are limited to people with large rooms and no issues with the presence of very large boxes in those rooms. With a few exceptions this is likely to mean a man cave/room rather than a shared living space. One or two DIYers might have this luxury but it will be a small number.

A link to a similar(ish) group project I posted a couple of times earlier also ended up voting for a very large speaker. It didn't seem to get designed or built even though the OP bought the drivers. People voting on polls like this are expressing an interest and it is the same interest that determines what gets reviewed in audiophile, car,... magazines: big high performance stuff that appeals to enthusiasts but will get bought by very few.
 
I would say it seems this qualifies for a Tower XL and a Classic style Amp friendly compact design...?

Maybe if we can keep it to less than 150 liters, and pending on the design some of the Tower Bass Friendly crowd will also be happy?

The vote will tell us what type of speaker most people want to see developed here. That will help the design team to make the their choices in order to design something that will appeal to many builders. However, I would be surprised if the whole design team would fall in love with the speaker type that received the most votes, and no one is obliged to follow the outcome of the vote. Part of the design team might even go on and design something else.
 
I doubt it. Very large tower speakers are limited to people with large rooms and no issues with the presence of very large boxes in those rooms. With a few exceptions this is likely to mean a man cave/room rather than a shared living space. One or two DIYers might have this luxury but it will be a small number.
Mine are going in the living room. My kids and wife are excited, they think big speaker look cool and they get to listen to them too. The brain washing was not difficult. ;)
 
I would say it seems this qualifies for a Tower XL and a Classic style Amp friendly compact design...?

Maybe if we can keep it to less than 150 liters, and pending on the design some of the Tower Bass Friendly crowd will also be happy?

I doubt it. Very large tower speakers are limited to people with large rooms and no issues with the presence of very large boxes in those rooms. With a few exceptions this is likely to mean a man cave/room rather than a shared living space. One or two DIYers might have this luxury but it will be a small number...

if we can meet the criteria and still manage to make it within a smaller form factor I do not see the point of going larger of course, not sure how would that happen tho.


The vote will tell us what type of speaker most people want to see developed here. That will help the design team to make the their choices in order to design something that will appeal to many builders. However, I would be surprised if the whole design team would fall in love with the speaker type that received the most votes, and no one is obliged to follow the outcome of the vote. Part of the design team might even go on and design something else.

Agreed,
 
How long will it last?
Mine is an all out, long term strategy. I spent years making the wall where the speakers go a messy eyesore. The new giant speakers and cleaned up area will be vast improvement. I have also been doing unsolicited kind acts, yesterday a pair of new shoes for one child, a LEGO set for the other and some wool fabric for my wife.

The real reason is that I'm very tolerant of my wife's hobbies which are many. Right now we have large buckets of indigo dye in the kitchen and three sewing machines in the family room, giant bundles of flax by the garage door.
We're a chaotic household, but fun and busy.
 
<snip> People voting on polls like this are expressing an interest and it is the same interest that determines what gets reviewed in audiophile, car,... magazines: big high performance stuff that appeals to enthusiasts but will get bought by very few.

That is the problem with polls and surveys for product design. What interests and excites people isn't always what they buy.

The classic example of this for me is Scion cars. They made quirky little reasonably priced cars that sold pretty well. When they updated them they listened to their customers who said more power and more room would be nice. That ended up with the cars being more like everything else on the road so the customers that bought them because they were less expensive and quirky weren't interested.

The other issue is how many people that like one of the design choices are in the market for speakers in the short term. How many of those will still be in the market once the price is attached? I voted for the first option but since I'm not looking to replace my main speakers these would be a fun sort of project to probably use in another room so the price could get out of range pretty fast.
 
I doubt it. Very large tower speakers are limited to people with large rooms and no issues with the presence of very large boxes in those rooms. With a few exceptions this is likely to mean a man cave/room rather than a shared living space...

Yes, but my personal suggestion was to build the smallest AND the largest design with the most votes, it is not that much more work to do two designs when you got the ball rolling.
 
Code:
The real reason is that I'm very tolerant of my wife's hobbies which are many. Right now we have large buckets of indigo dye in the kitchen and three sewing machines in the family room, giant bundles of flax by the garage door.
We're a chaotic household, but fun and busy.[/QUOTE]

Mordikai,
I have adopted about the same approach. My wife loves to hit yard sales and thrift stores and I don't say a word to her about being a pack rat.:D But, when winter rolls around and I get the itch to build something she doesn't mind at all. The only complaint she has mentioned is cabinet finish or lack thereof. I prefer Baltic Birch to be left natural without staining and she dislikes that look and prefers dark wood tones. Seems like an easy compromise to me.:D Dark it shall be. Maybe go with Mahagony veneer stained Espresso. That should work!

Best Regards,
Rich
 
I doubt it. Very large tower speakers are limited to people with large rooms and no issues with the presence of very large boxes in those rooms. With a few exceptions this is likely to mean a man cave/room rather than a shared living space. One or two DIYers might have this luxury but it will be a small number.

What you say is probably true, that is why we see so many tiny speaker projects that one or two people make with some of the popular ones being built by many. This however does not negate the need for a few large projects for the few that want them.
 
I voted for option #5. Mainly because there is not much difference between the 'Classic' or 'XL' in regards to overall footprint. If it is required to place the 'Classic' on a stand to achieve optimum sound quality at the listening position why not just build the tower version then?

Best,
Rich
 
Mordikai,
I have adopted about the same approach. My wife loves to hit yard sales and thrift stores and I don't say a word to her about being a pack rat.:D But, when winter rolls around and I get the itch to build something she doesn't mind at all. The only complaint she has mentioned is cabinet finish or lack thereof. I prefer Baltic Birch to be left natural without staining and she dislikes that look and prefers dark wood tones. Seems like an easy compromise to me.:D Dark it shall be. Maybe go with Mahagony veneer stained Espresso. That should work!

Best Regards,
Rich

Last time I asked her about the looks of the new speakers I ended up covering them with sheets of "rotten" brass. Had to leave the brass in the garden for a few months to get the right level of oxidation. Aurichal | HiFi-Bau Brennwald
 
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Last time I asked her about the looks of the new speakers I ended up covering them with sheets of "rotten" brass. Had to leave the brass in the garden for a few months to get the right level of oxidation. Aurichal | HiFi-Bau Brennwald

that actually turned out pretty cool, I like it a lot, always good to see different design approaches, I would use a darker (black) color for front baffle to have a contrast and make the sides shine :D
how did you glue it to the speaker body ? contact cement ?
 
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