Building L/R Speakers (1 Viewer)

[Brian Bunge]

Use a kit for crossovers? The crossover has to be designed specifically for the drivers chosen and the exact enclosure they will be used in. If you don't have measurement equipment anything you design will probably not sound any better than a $300/pr. speaker from Best Buy. If that good.

 

[TimForman]

I built the 281's using Adire's ported design. In room low frequency response was in the mid-40's. 80 Hz was easy. I had to back off the subs to compensate.

 

[Anthony_I]

whats to be sorry about?? if i didnt want opinions from those more knowledgable than me, i wouldnt be here
Im not sure how well they would work but a surplus store in my area (that carries everything...seriously) has passive crossovers that are meant for going into speaker boxes.... im guessing that something like this wouldnt be worth while?
there only like $5
they've got 1 2 and 3 way that ive seen.

 

[Anthony_I]

Looking around, i think the HE 10.1 might work well with my system, it says the speakers range is from 50Hz - 20kHz (the eminence site lists it as 35Hz - 20kHz)

what do the kits include exactly? everything? (except the box which it clearly states?)

 

[Michael R Price]

All the parts except cabinet materials, really. And I was about to point out what the others are saying - your first custom design could be pretty terrible compared to a professionally designed kit.

So I think the HE10.1 or 12.1 would work out for you. In comparison the Kit281 is not as loud, has a brighter sound and it has a little more low bass.

 

[Anthony_I]

so your saying that i should not get the 281?? and what is "bright" sound? and what other types are there

plus can you really get full range sound from the 10.1??
i mean just one speaker with a tweeter in the cone (i dont doubt it, ive just never seen anything like that) cause if thats the case then why do people even bother buying floor standing models etc?

also, not that it makes a difference im sure, but why do the speakers look so.... old, or not as high quality as some others?

 

[TimForman]

why do the speakers look so.... old, or not as high quality

Perhaps it's time to let go of some preconceptions.
Check this.
Or perhaps this.

 

[Michael R Price]

It's just a matter of taste. Some people prefer the Kit281 and some prefer the HE10.1. By "brighter" sound I meant the 281 has (relatively) more high frequency output. Both speakers can go really loud but the 281's sensitivity is lower so it takes a lot of power to reach the limits.

There are a lot of other good kits too. You can do a search for GR Research, or Stryke, Zalytron, etc.

 

[Brian Fellmeth]

what do the kits include exactly? everything? (except the box which it clearly states?)

Actually, this varies. Some "kits" are really just properly tweaked plans- specifications for the cabinet, driver choice and crossover circuit diagram. You just follow the recipee purchasing the drivers and crossover parts from a supplier. Check out this site for some projects in this catagory. Although this designer is not a "professional", his designs are world class performers.

Dennis Murphy's speaker site

I would also like to pile on with what has be said several times in this thread- building 3 or 4 way boxes has much more downside than upside. Highquality modern drivers can easily handle 60 to 20,000 HZ with two units (5-7 inch mid woofer and a tweeter)- meaning there is only one problematic trade off (crossover) zone. Any advantage to narrowing the band played by each driver is more than nullified by problems caused in the additional crossover points created. So, make a good sub for

 

[Anthony_I]

So an HE10.1 would suit my needs for a mains perfectly?

 

[Anthony_I]

I cant remember if i mentioned it anywhere in the thread, but its not that im looking for better bass, as this one creates a lot of bass very well (at least to my ears) being that i havent heard alot of speakers.... only a couple of actual commercial HT subs (even these were nothing like ive seen on this board) knowing what they've sounded like (good for the most part IMO) and that they usually only had an 8" or 6" woofer, i was looking to build a sub that could create more bass than those, not to build the worlds best.
I wanted to make my sub look a little more flashy however, and i managed to find a speaker that sounded good to me compared to 3 or 4 others that i heard, it also had the right amount of "flash" to it.

L/R speakers i really know nothing about I just want something that will handle the higher bass that my sub doesn't/shouldn't. I will eventually buy a kit, i just haven't found one that i liked that was of a reasonable price, considering the system im getting the speakers for, But i also don't know where to look for other speaker kits than the ones mentioned.

 

[TimForman]

Have you checked out the HTF Marketplace? Sometimes people sell off kit parts that they're not using at a discount.

 

[Brian Bunge]

Check out one of the 3-way designs that Wayne J. has on his www.speakerbuilder.net website. IIRC, there's one using dual 10's, a 2" mid and a tweet. One version uses a somewhat expensive ribbon tweeter and the other uses either a silk or metal dome 1" tweeter.

Also, since it's a free design, you only pay for the actual parts themselves. Most "kits" that you buy complete have design costs, etc. added in.

 

[Michael R Price]

Except that the Adire kits cost less than the sum of their components!

 

[Brian Bunge]

Michael,

There are exceptions to every rule!

 

[Paul Spencer]

Anthony,

The idea of a kit sounds promising, but I'd suggest another alternative. Do you like the idea of doing some of the design yourself?

There are a lot of good DIY speaker on the net. One option is to copy somethat that has been done. Or pull together different parts of different projects that you like, and make some design decisions that are within your limits. eg. one person took the popular ME2 designed by Lynn Olson (designer of the Ariel) and combined it with a Peerless woofer in a vented enclosure - effectively a 3 way.

With a little discernment and input from people on forums like this, you could still do some design, but keep it simple, don't try to use too many drivers and make changes that are safe!

cheers,
Paul