How the heck do you make a crossover? (1 Viewer)

[Mike_Ped]

I've been looking into building some DIY towers ever since I finished my Sonosub, but the only thing that has stopped me is the crossover. So, how the hell do you build a crossover? Is there some sort of reading material I need to invest in before I attempt this one? Thanks in advance!

Mike

 

[Patrick Sun]

You can make a crossover network look as pretty or as ugly as you want, it's just a matter of commitment and dollars.
Mine is closer to the ugly end of the spectrum, but since it'll never be seen by prying eyes...
crossover pic
I tend to build my crossover networks pictorially, meaning they are wired up as they are drawn up. Some people are fancy and are able to conserve board space in wiring up thei crossover networks, but it's tough to tweak and replace parts with this approach.
The left hand side is just the inputs for the amplifier (mainly it's hooked up in parallel to appear to be the same point electrically speaking.
The bottom right side is the output section that's connected to the individual drivers within the speaker enclosure. For this crossover, there's 3 drivers being used in the speaker.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

I would have to say mine is along the "ugly" side as well... gobs of solder and such. I've found a piece of perfboard from Radio Shack helps me lay stuff out.

If it's crossover formulas you are looking for.. I have a list of formulas that I printed from a now defunct website for 2-way crossovers. It goes all the way up to a 6th order crossover.

If you need it, I can post it for you.

 

[Mark Hayenga]

I decide on the physical layout (usually divide the board into sections for each driver) and determine inductor orientation. For physical construction, I cut a piece of 1/4" HDF to the dimensions of the board I want. Resistors and inductors get mounted with hot glue, capacitors get mounted with Liquid Nails for Small Projects (works quite well). I then wirenut the parts together and make sure everything sounds OK. Then, I solder it all together. Keeping your tip clean and heating the joint properly will make the soldering go much smoother.

If you are talking about designing a crossover, well... a post on that would need to be MUCH longer.

 

[Hank Frankenberg]

First, read all the literature you can. Stir in a year or two of study, apply resistors, capacitors and inductors liberally, add a dash of good soldering skill, then voila!

(I assume you are talking about designing as well as building) If you are new at it, consider having a design done for you. Madisound is one source. Maybe Mark Hayenga or Patrick Sun would cut a deal with you.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

FYI
Okay.. I re-typed the crossover formulas into an HTML doc. It's an exact copy of the one I printed from the "Speaker Building Page".
You can find it Link Removed.

 

[Mike_Ped]

Thanks a lot all!

Pat, I thought yer crossover looked fine. If that is considered ugly, I'd hate to describe mine once its done.

Thanks for the diagrams Dave, I just bought a book that has a considerable amount of info on crossovers, so onve I understand all that stuff your picture will definitely provide good reference.

Thanks again!

Mike

 

[Duncan Barth]

Slightly off topic, does anyone know of a crossover design service? I'd really like to build a set of two way speakers, and have most of the design down, but the crossover is really stumping me. I'd rather go with a crossover based on the measured characeristics of the drivers, and not just pull a generic design out of a book.

Hank mentioned Madisound has a design service, but they will only create designs based on speakers that they sell.

 

[NikhilC]

If you haven't already, try Speaker Workshop - currently free software that you can use to measure your drivers and prototype different crossover networks with the measured data. You'll need to build a few little devices to make the program really useful - a testing jig, mic preamp, mic. Instructions on building these is available from Link Removed. Total cost should be between $40-$50.

 

[Duncan Barth]

NikhilC, wow, that sounds exactly what I've been looking for a while. Thanks for the links!