Show us your DIY speaker projects!
- Thread starter Dan ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ
- Start date
Thanks, i probably didn't need that many screws in the door, but at least i know she's tight.
Poultrygeist
Lunatic Member
Experimenting with 1950's Zenith Alnico wide banders in 3 way test OB's.
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PR Audio
Super Member
Tb tabaq
I did this project in two days, including painting, I still need to lacquer, but that will take a few days work, so it will wait. These TABAQ's is an easy project for 3" full range driver, there are a few Tang Band's and Fostex that work nice in this enclosure, you can always run the parameters and adjust dims accordingly. These were made for digital sources (PC, CDP, IPod) using a Dayton DTA-1 T-Amp to power them. The drivers are the TB W3-881SI that are no longer available, but when I purchased them they were $9.99/ea. at PE. I used 1/2" MDF for the enclosure, inexpensive binding posts cups, 4 oz. of Polyfill, and Cat5 pair of strands to connect the cups to the driver. Total project cost was approx. $75.00, including misc. items and having the lumber yard cut the different boards needed.
Very happy with the way they sound, I highly recommend them for an office or small room. They are meant for low wattage SS or tube amp, and the sound quality with digital sources is exactly what I wanted for everyday no-hassle listening.
Design Parameters and Build Plans
I did this project in two days, including painting, I still need to lacquer, but that will take a few days work, so it will wait. These TABAQ's is an easy project for 3" full range driver, there are a few Tang Band's and Fostex that work nice in this enclosure, you can always run the parameters and adjust dims accordingly. These were made for digital sources (PC, CDP, IPod) using a Dayton DTA-1 T-Amp to power them. The drivers are the TB W3-881SI that are no longer available, but when I purchased them they were $9.99/ea. at PE. I used 1/2" MDF for the enclosure, inexpensive binding posts cups, 4 oz. of Polyfill, and Cat5 pair of strands to connect the cups to the driver. Total project cost was approx. $75.00, including misc. items and having the lumber yard cut the different boards needed.
Very happy with the way they sound, I highly recommend them for an office or small room. They are meant for low wattage SS or tube amp, and the sound quality with digital sources is exactly what I wanted for everyday no-hassle listening.
Design Parameters and Build Plans
Attachments
dnewma04
The Healer
I hope this is real. Even if not real, but just a photo.
doucanoe
Registered Audio Abuser
That sounds a little more like your speed, Nate?
Can't help you there, Dave. I've never owned a pair of Minimus anythings and the pair of 511B's I owned lasted around here about 6 months.
How about a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 7.2's and tar filled Altec 1005's? I may be able to convince my wife to take a photo of me sitting on top of it for you.
RC
gusgranite
let the words flow
Inspiring work in this thread. One day...
PR Audio
Super Member
Start with an easy project, you'll get hooked.
doucanoe
Registered Audio Abuser
ofajen
Daddy-O-Daddy-O-Baby
I've made and remade a few speakers over the last 30 years or so.
Here are my usual studio monitors. Originally made 30 years ago with Peerless tweeter and Peerless PP woofer as a ported design. For the last few years they have seen more use in the studio as a pair of sealed speakers, since I replaced the woofers with new Peerless drivers intended for sealed designs and closed up the port. Of course, I should relocate the tweeter down right above the woofer, but they already sound good enough to track and mix with, so I haven't taken the time to do it, yet.
Here is one of my small, sealed mix cubes made with a 5" full-range Nippon America driver from electronix.com.
I've also made and remade some instrument amplification speakers. Most are cannibalized in some way from a pair of Peavey T1210 towers I bought about 30 years ago. Each column had three cheap Motorola piezo tweeters, two Eminence 10" PA-voiced drivers and two 12" Eminence guitar-voiced drivers.
One pair I made used the original tweeters plus one 10" and one 12" in a shorter version of the original, using the top half of the original cabinets. I sold those to a friend to use as PA speakers. I don't have photos of those.
Here are some photos of the instrument speakers I've made from the remaining drivers and the remaining portions of the original cabinet.
First is one of a pair of sealed cabinets with one of the Eminence 10" PA-voiced drivers. I use these a fair amount for electric guitar with one of the Traynor amps, though I've decided to live dangerously and leave the grills off both of them.
Here is an open back cabinet made from a lower part of one of the Peavey towers and using one of the Eminence 12" guitar-voiced speakers. This speaker sees a lot of use, not just for guitar, but also bass and synthesizer, because it has surprisingly good low end response.
Here is a sealed cabinet made from a Peavey combo amp. A local amp tech had removed the amp portion and was using the cabinet as a test speaker. I bought the cabinet from him and put in the other Eminence 12" guitar-voiced driver from the T1210s. It is good for guitar and sometimes useful for bass. Not as much low end as the open backed speaker.
OK, last one for this post. This is another lower portion of a T1210 cabinet, but converted to a sealed 2-way bass cab with an Eminence Delta 12 and one of the better Motorola piezo tweeters.
Otto
Here are my usual studio monitors. Originally made 30 years ago with Peerless tweeter and Peerless PP woofer as a ported design. For the last few years they have seen more use in the studio as a pair of sealed speakers, since I replaced the woofers with new Peerless drivers intended for sealed designs and closed up the port. Of course, I should relocate the tweeter down right above the woofer, but they already sound good enough to track and mix with, so I haven't taken the time to do it, yet.
Here is one of my small, sealed mix cubes made with a 5" full-range Nippon America driver from electronix.com.
I've also made and remade some instrument amplification speakers. Most are cannibalized in some way from a pair of Peavey T1210 towers I bought about 30 years ago. Each column had three cheap Motorola piezo tweeters, two Eminence 10" PA-voiced drivers and two 12" Eminence guitar-voiced drivers.
One pair I made used the original tweeters plus one 10" and one 12" in a shorter version of the original, using the top half of the original cabinets. I sold those to a friend to use as PA speakers. I don't have photos of those.
Here are some photos of the instrument speakers I've made from the remaining drivers and the remaining portions of the original cabinet.
First is one of a pair of sealed cabinets with one of the Eminence 10" PA-voiced drivers. I use these a fair amount for electric guitar with one of the Traynor amps, though I've decided to live dangerously and leave the grills off both of them.
Here is an open back cabinet made from a lower part of one of the Peavey towers and using one of the Eminence 12" guitar-voiced speakers. This speaker sees a lot of use, not just for guitar, but also bass and synthesizer, because it has surprisingly good low end response.
Here is a sealed cabinet made from a Peavey combo amp. A local amp tech had removed the amp portion and was using the cabinet as a test speaker. I bought the cabinet from him and put in the other Eminence 12" guitar-voiced driver from the T1210s. It is good for guitar and sometimes useful for bass. Not as much low end as the open backed speaker.
OK, last one for this post. This is another lower portion of a T1210 cabinet, but converted to a sealed 2-way bass cab with an Eminence Delta 12 and one of the better Motorola piezo tweeters.
Otto
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TrrR
Speaker of the House
There are people on here with humbling talent. I am very impressed with the work I see cruising through this thread. I've built a few sets of speakers over the years but they have not approached the quality that I see here.
This thread prompted me to drag out a pair I built about 15 years ago, that have been carefully stashed in a closet for about 5 years. They were thrown together with some RS components that I had laying around. The tops and bottoms are double laminated pine project boards but the boxes are MDF, braced, screwed and glued at every seam and they are rock solid. The base posts are integral, made out of aluminum railing post and plates, painted flat black. I wrapped them in burlap mostly out of convenience and never really finished the wood. It's developing a "dry" patina.
The tweeters are the RS 40-1375 Leaf Tweeters and the mids are RS 40-1281 soft domes (fabric). The 8" woofer....well I can't remember for the life of me but it's got good excursion and reaches fairly low. I believe they're crossed over at 1200 and 5000.
These are not high quality drivers but they have a very engaging sound and I've fallen in love with them again. Backed up with a good sub, they are richly detailed with a three dimensional sound field I haven't heard in a long time. The dispersion is excellent. With your face right in front of the right speaker, you can clearly hear the mid and high end of the left speaker, 10 feet away. They bring out interesting nuances in music that I've never heard before. The higher attack of a string bass in a Chris Deburgh tune that I didn't know was even in the song, or the softly decaying rattle of the snare springs in "One Headlight". And they don't seem to have any of that undefinable fatiguing rasp that many other lesser speakers have (including the Mach 1's in the background - they're awesomely loud - good for when you're in a mood but not for relaxed listening enjoyment).
They may not have the beauty that many of the projects displayed here have but I'm happy with them!
This thread prompted me to drag out a pair I built about 15 years ago, that have been carefully stashed in a closet for about 5 years. They were thrown together with some RS components that I had laying around. The tops and bottoms are double laminated pine project boards but the boxes are MDF, braced, screwed and glued at every seam and they are rock solid. The base posts are integral, made out of aluminum railing post and plates, painted flat black. I wrapped them in burlap mostly out of convenience and never really finished the wood. It's developing a "dry" patina.
The tweeters are the RS 40-1375 Leaf Tweeters and the mids are RS 40-1281 soft domes (fabric). The 8" woofer....well I can't remember for the life of me but it's got good excursion and reaches fairly low. I believe they're crossed over at 1200 and 5000.
These are not high quality drivers but they have a very engaging sound and I've fallen in love with them again. Backed up with a good sub, they are richly detailed with a three dimensional sound field I haven't heard in a long time. The dispersion is excellent. With your face right in front of the right speaker, you can clearly hear the mid and high end of the left speaker, 10 feet away. They bring out interesting nuances in music that I've never heard before. The higher attack of a string bass in a Chris Deburgh tune that I didn't know was even in the song, or the softly decaying rattle of the snare springs in "One Headlight". And they don't seem to have any of that undefinable fatiguing rasp that many other lesser speakers have (including the Mach 1's in the background - they're awesomely loud - good for when you're in a mood but not for relaxed listening enjoyment).
They may not have the beauty that many of the projects displayed here have but I'm happy with them!
