Parts Express-Samba MT Bookshelf Speaker Kit with Knock-Down Cabinet

RS Steve

RS Steve

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Anyone else try one of these speaker build kits? I finished the Overnight Sensation kit and enjoyed the process and like how they turned out. I figured I'd try this kit since they seem to be a perfect fit to replace my AR-18's I let go of recently that were in my work place. Just curious if anyone else tried this kit and what was the impressions for the final product.

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The Sambas were designed by the late Jeff Bagby. They get very good reviews from those who have built the kit. Jeff was kind enough to assist me in designing the crossover for my current speakers and I couldn't be happier. Based on my experience, I think you would be delighted with the Samba kit.
 
homebrew said:
The Sambas were designed by the late Jeff Bagby. They get very good reviews from those who have built the kit. Jeff was kind enough to assist me in designing the crossover for my current speakers and I couldn't be happier. Based on my experience, I think you would be delighted with the Samba kit.
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Thanks, the specs looked great and the size is just what I was looking for, lucky me they are currently on sale too!
 
I started on the cabinets today and have them all glued and clamped. My plans are to sand and prime the heck out of these, then paint a black finish on them. I'm looking to see if I have enough perf board to assemble the crossovers on, I prefer that over just having them attached to the cabinet.

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It's a bit tight but I can make this work for the crossovers. I had these binding posts from some parted out JBL speakers so they should do nicely. On to crossover assembly and then sanding and priming duty.

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Looks like there is exposed end grain and butt joints on the top of the cabinet. Those joints will need to be primed with a high build primer. Even if you do, they may show through anyway.. If you're going to paint the cabinets, may I suggest covering the tops with a closed grain veneer like maple to hide the joints. Then prime as you would normally.
 
homebrew said:
Looks like there is exposed end grain and butt joints on the top of the cabinet. Those joints will need to be primed with a high build primer. Even if you do, they may show through anyway.. If you're going to paint the cabinets, may I suggest covering the tops with a closed grain veneer like maple to hide the joints. Then prime as you would normally.
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I will prime and seal them, possibly use some filler on the joints. I'm not really trying to make them too pretty since they are going to my work shop, I'd do veneer if that was the case.
 
Ugh! Went on to assemble the second crossover only to find they sent the wrong parts kit for this speaker. The woofer, tweeter, and crossover components are all wrong. :mad: Guess I will have to wait on the correct ones for a few days, guess I will focus on the cabinets for now.
 
On the right side, they will more than likely tell you to keep the wrong parts.
I ordered some jacks and plugs and got some nice cables instead. They apologized, said keep the cables and sent the right parts. It does suck though when you get the wrong parts.
 
Lavane said:
On the right side, they will more than likely tell you to keep the wrong parts.
I ordered some jacks and plugs and got some nice cables instead. They apologized, said keep the cables and sent the right parts. It does suck though when you get the wrong parts.
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No, not this time, guess the parts are way too expensive. I had to give them a card number so they could charge me if I don't send the wrong parts back. They provided a shipping label though and I will send it off tomorrow.
 
Received the correct parts to get going on the second crossover, finished them up yesterday. I decided to mist the cabinets with some black I had laying around so I could see all the imperfections. I will install the crossovers and drivers, hook them up and test them before filling, priming and painting the finish coats.


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So I was able to get one of the speakers together this afternoon and have it playing in mono hooked to my Marantz 2252B. Impressive bass for it's size is the first thing I notice, but once I get the second speaker complete I will do final assessment. If I'm happy with them at that point, i will work on putting the final primer and finish coat on the cabinets. Drivers are easily removed, figured I'd avoid scrapes and dings doing the assembly before final finish.

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Finished up the second speaker and have them both singing now. I'm very impressed, not only is it a fun little process, but these will compete with some higher end speakers of this size. Bass is very punchy and strong for only a 7" woofer, great balance and very smooth (not overly bright) highs. The kit came with adhesive back padding for the inside of the cabinets, but I decided I would use the white sound dampening material I had saved from a set of parted out AR9LS's. So far I think that was a great choice for helping the bass response. Anyone looking for a fun DIY project should give these a go, you can go all out on the cabinets if so desired. Next I will try them with my Fisher KX-200 tube amp and see how they do, I have a feeling it will pair nicely.

Specifications:
• Power handling: 70 watts RMS/140 watts max
• Frequency response: 40-20,000 Hz
• Impedance: 4 ohms
• Sensitivity: 87 dB 1W/1m

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onwardjames said:
Poor guy, just devoid of any quality gear.

This is sarcasm, ya'll.

Now I wanna build a set of these, and have just about as much need of them as RS Steve.
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I have a shortage of any small speakers, these will replace the AR-18's I parted with that were at my work shop.
 
I didn’t think you had a shortage of anything. Learn something new every day.

How do you think these would do for a nearfield set up? Desk top-ish?
 
Yeah I thought they would be a little on the large size but they seemed like a better speaker overall than the overnights. I haven't heard either, though, and people seem to like both. Checking Parts Express I see the overnight sensations are specifically described as a nearfield monitor. I also see the Sambas are bigger than I thought they were.

Nice project. Thanks for sharing the build and insights.
 
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