Hi guys,
It may be a dumb question, but i don't know much ... Beginner here
I have this combo in my room atm :
3 way columns, Davis Acoustics Maya (80w, 91dB, 45Hz-21kHz, 300/300Hz, 7" low, 7" mid, 1" tweeter, unknown volume)
Onkyo TX-NR906 amp
Using it for music and movies, hopefully will get a complete 5.1/7.2 some day, but that's not the point atm
My question is, would it be possible to get better columns with a 500$ limit ? DIY, obviousbly !
Should i go 2-way to reduce costs and, in the end, get a better result ?
I don't really know anything, it's quite confusing for me, so i'm hoping to get some help / hints on what to do !
It would be my second project, but first columns. I have a pair of 2-way bookshelves on the way, for my desk.
So, not afraid of the complexity !
Thanks guys
I hope the post in the right place.
Regards,
Laurent
It may be a dumb question, but i don't know much ... Beginner here
I have this combo in my room atm :
3 way columns, Davis Acoustics Maya (80w, 91dB, 45Hz-21kHz, 300/300Hz, 7" low, 7" mid, 1" tweeter, unknown volume)
Onkyo TX-NR906 amp
Using it for music and movies, hopefully will get a complete 5.1/7.2 some day, but that's not the point atm
My question is, would it be possible to get better columns with a 500$ limit ? DIY, obviousbly !
Should i go 2-way to reduce costs and, in the end, get a better result ?
I don't really know anything, it's quite confusing for me, so i'm hoping to get some help / hints on what to do !
It would be my second project, but first columns. I have a pair of 2-way bookshelves on the way, for my desk.
So, not afraid of the complexity !
Thanks guys
I hope the post in the right place.
Regards,
Laurent
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Competing with commercial products at relatively low price points is difficult.
Some pictures of the inside of your speakers: Davis Acoustics Maya
I see two compromises in the Davis speaker which you could improve:
1) A 7" mid is used up to 3 kHz, at which it beams. Then it transitions to a 1" dome tweeter with wide dispersion. Therefore the dispersion is not constant with frequency. A solution would be to use a smaller mid or to use a waveguide tweeter. It would need a redesign of the crossover to work.
2) The crossover is simple with only five components and therefore likely to be prone to improvement. Filtering appears to be:
- woofer: 1st order low pass - does not suppress cone resonance at 4.5 kHz
- midrange: 2nd order low pass (no high pass which could explain the high low frequency distortion)
- tweeter: 2nd order high pass
Despite the simplicity it appears to be well tuned, within the limitations that five components allow.
You could design a new crossover. For this you would need a measuring microphone and a decent soundcard. Learning how to design a crossover has a steep learning curve so you might opt for a different route.
Some pictures of the inside of your speakers: Davis Acoustics Maya
I see two compromises in the Davis speaker which you could improve:
1) A 7" mid is used up to 3 kHz, at which it beams. Then it transitions to a 1" dome tweeter with wide dispersion. Therefore the dispersion is not constant with frequency. A solution would be to use a smaller mid or to use a waveguide tweeter. It would need a redesign of the crossover to work.
2) The crossover is simple with only five components and therefore likely to be prone to improvement. Filtering appears to be:
- woofer: 1st order low pass - does not suppress cone resonance at 4.5 kHz
- midrange: 2nd order low pass (no high pass
which could explain the high low frequency distortion)- tweeter: 2nd order high pass
Despite the simplicity it appears to be well tuned, within the limitations that five components allow.
You could design a new crossover. For this you would need a measuring microphone and a decent soundcard. Learning how to design a crossover has a steep learning curve so you might opt for a different route.
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Thanks for answer, TBTL !
The idea here is to replace the Maya, not improve them ..
I mean, i could, but the "analysis and theorical" part is not my favorite part !
I'm much more into woodwork, painting, assembly, and enjoying.
And it would involve hardware I don't have, probably expensive (as i won't ever use it again), and lots of knowledge.
I'm not a great listenner, and my room is ... pretty bad (in an accoustic way)
It's far more for the challenge of building them, than really getting the perfect speaker.
I mean, at this price tag, i can't dream of getting anything "incredible"
So, in this way, it's a lost cause to you ?
(seems fair, 500$ diy speakers vs 750$ commercial speakers ... but, who knows !)
The idea here is to replace the Maya, not improve them ..
I mean, i could, but the "analysis and theorical" part is not my favorite part !
I'm much more into woodwork, painting, assembly, and enjoying.
And it would involve hardware I don't have, probably expensive (as i won't ever use it again), and lots of knowledge.
I'm not a great listenner, and my room is ... pretty bad (in an accoustic way)
It's far more for the challenge of building them, than really getting the perfect speaker.
I mean, at this price tag, i can't dream of getting anything "incredible"
So, in this way, it's a lost cause to you ?
(seems fair, 500$ diy speakers vs 750$ commercial speakers ... but, who knows !)
This crossover network is a perfect reason to modify it and the best place to sharpen your skills in designing a new one with the least amount of financial risk. I'd keep the original filters in case of a sale. Otherwise, the alternative is to find a kit, and there is plenty of solidly designed 2 way's.
I see.
Building something youself for the performance of the end product indeed does not make sense to me, if you are going to make a conventional (cone + dome) set of speakers. As you mention you have bad acoustics, you could however try a DIY horn speaker. These are not commercially available at this price point because they are large.* Their sound is more direct and less influenced by the room. Some people prefer it, some do not, so it is a gamble. At least it will sound different and you have the joy of building it. I think one of the Econowave variants or DIY Sound Group kits will fit your budget.
* I mean hi-fi ones that maintain their pattern down to at least 1 kHz.
Building something youself for the performance of the end product indeed does not make sense to me, if you are going to make a conventional (cone + dome) set of speakers. As you mention you have bad acoustics, you could however try a DIY horn speaker. These are not commercially available at this price point because they are large.* Their sound is more direct and less influenced by the room. Some people prefer it, some do not, so it is a gamble. At least it will sound different and you have the joy of building it. I think one of the Econowave variants or DIY Sound Group kits will fit your budget.
* I mean hi-fi ones that maintain their pattern down to at least 1 kHz.
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Agree with TBTL. So often posters get talked out of what they have asked advice on. The Davis Maya is clearly a solid product which has an underfunded crossover for pricing reasons but it won't address the fundamental issue of the room's acoustics no matter how much better (expensive) the filter upgrade. So if he can diy a mid-high horn 2-way then go for it!
Thanks guys !
Help is greatly appreciated
I'll keep my Maya's !
About the horn speakers, I don't really like the look .. but they're intriguing me ... I could give them a try ! DIYSG HTM looks great and is pretty affordable.
Great feedbacks too, so it'd be a shame to say no without even trying.
But I've a few questions :
- are these for HT use only ? Or are they suited for music too ?
- should I use them with a sub ? (I don't have one ATM)
- do you know any European suppliers of such kits ?
Many thanks guys
Help is greatly appreciated
I'll keep my Maya's !
About the horn speakers, I don't really like the look .. but they're intriguing me ... I could give them a try ! DIYSG HTM looks great and is pretty affordable.
Great feedbacks too, so it'd be a shame to say no without even trying.
But I've a few questions :
- are these for HT use only ? Or are they suited for music too ?
- should I use them with a sub ? (I don't have one ATM)
- do you know any European suppliers of such kits ?
Many thanks guys
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