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My DIY speaker journey

Great thread. I’ve dabbled in speakers builds for a few years now. My first was the Lampizator P17 which were remarkable given the roots of the drivers. I currently have a pair of Troels 164/2, which sound superb despite the drivers being very reasonable in cost. Lovely open, room filling sound, easily better than my big ProAcs which are sulking in the spare room.
I’m looking for someone to build cabinets for the his TL2, I really don’t have the necessary skills or time to build them ( cabinets ).
 
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fraser. said:
Some great looking builds! It would be interesting to hear how they stack up against the SCM40s, for those who you've owned simultaneously.
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That's what I always like to find out - some are brighter and more forward, some leaner in the bass and some ridiculously close.

The ATCs are a class act - midrange dispersion is excellent and the blend of drivers is top notch. They go very loud without distress and vocals are really natural.

For me every speaker has is drawbacks and it's positives. None have been awful.

Only last weekend I was messing around and had the Tributes and the ZD5 in the lounge swapping around with the ATCs. We're contemplating a changearound and I was trying different setups in different rooms.

The closest sound to the ATCs are the Zaph ZD5. Switch between the two and it's so close. Only when you turn the wick up does the ATC pull forward. For me the ZD5 has the edge on clarity though, dialogue is so easy to follow on films. That Revelator driver is a thing of wonder and although small they can punch.

I've been very impressed with the Tributes - the SB Acoustics MFC midbass was used in the Ayra but I prefer it's sound in the Tributes. Really clear and such good value for money. I think these have the deepest soundstage of anything in the house at the moment. Makes them interesting to listen to. That projection really suits the space they are in and they seem quite happy on the end of the little NAD.

Although they're no longer here I enjoyed the Peerless 164s they were efficient and matched well with the NAD. I'd wanted to build them for ages. I preferred them over the Ayra but that's subjective. I still get to visit them at my friend's place and it's always good to hear them and see the pleasure that something you've made can give to someone else.

I want to revisit the larger Revelator driver at some point - the Rediscovery 2 was punchy and fun but for me didn't have the seamless blend of driver that some of the other designs have had. I've swapped messages with Mike Chua at Ampslab as he has a pair now and I'm looking forward to seeing what he makes of them.


Must though finish those Bromo first...
 
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Mosquito said:
So I have built a set of Ergo 1X loudspeakers designed by James, Lord of the Ergo's. What a nice set of speakers. https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/thr...-e-ix-mini-monitor-loudspeaker-system.112905/
I have been talking to James about the Ergo VII's which he did some years ago. This speaker DIY game becomes very addictive very quickly. So far we have been looking at re-engineering the speakers . They run Scan-speak 18W/8535-00 and 2905/9300000 drivers with a crossover designed by James. So far I have knocked up a set of boxes and then off we go. https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/my-7th-loudspeaker-building-adventure-maxikan.13806/page-9
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I really liked the sound of my carbon fibre drivers - I was really pleased with my build using those but off they went to a new home and the money was used to reinvest in the new driver merry go round.

James design looks great and I bet sounds great too. Be sure to let us know how you get on.
 
Hooch500 said:
Great thread. I’ve dabbled in speakers builds for a few years now. My first was the Lampizator P17 which were remarkable given the roots of the drivers. I currently have a pair of Troels 164/2, which sound superb despite the drivers being very reasonable in cost. Lovely open, room filling sound, easily better than my big ProAcs which are sulking in the spare room.
I’m looking for someone to build cabinets for the his TL2, I really don’t have the necessary skills or time to build them ( cabinets ).
Click to expand...
I did investigate going to the newer version of the 164 - has a lower crossover point I seem to recall than the original but my mate prised them away from me before I got that far. The original sounded good and Troels seemed pleased with the updated crossover so I bet yours sound great.

I don't think I could deal with the looks of the TL2 although I would like to hear some.
 
Manimal said:
I really liked the sound of my carbon fibre drivers - I was really pleased with my build using those but off they went to a new home and the money was used to reinvest in the new driver merry go round.

James design looks great and I bet sounds great too. Be sure to let us know how you get on.
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The Ergo IX's which I made sound really nice and this is what inspired me to look at a slightly larger version for the main lounge. 20L vrs 9L
 
I'd just have to caution that the E-VII and E-IX don't sound the same. For a start, the E-VII is designed to be positioned well away from walls. The dispersion characteristics are different too, so the portrayal of stereo imagery won't be the same. Sonically, the E-VIIs will go deeper and play louder. But the main strength of the E-IX is its seamless coherence, which makes listening effortless and engaging.

That being said, the E-IX play bass surprisingly well for a small box. Remind me @Mosquito, do you have the free-space or wall-mount version of the E-IX?
 
Manimal said:
I did investigate going to the newer version of the 164 - has a lower crossover point I seem to recall than the original but my mate prised them away from me before I got that far. The original sounded good and Troels seemed pleased with the updated crossover so I bet yours sound great.

I don't think I could deal with the looks of the TL2 although I would like to hear some.
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Indeed they sound very good, especially after a little crossover tweaking at the top end. He knows what he’s doing without a doubt.
 
James said:
I'd just have to caution that the E-VII and E-IX don't sound the same. For a start, the E-VII is designed to be positioned well away from walls. The dispersion characteristics are different too, so the portrayal of stereo imagery won't be the same. Sonically, the E-VIIs will go deeper and play louder. But the main strength of the E-IX is its seamless coherence, which makes listening effortless and engaging.

That being said, the E-IX play bass surprisingly well for a small box. Remind me @Mosquito, do you have the free-space or wall-mount version of the E-IX?
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Wall mounted at the moment. I am in the process of ordering the free space crossover components and moving them into the lounge. 6.25m x 4m to fire down the length, they are currently in the snug which is 3 x5 again down the length.
 
James said:
I see the baffle is recessed. Are you planning on a grille of some description?
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So the plan is to play with the fronts. I was intrigued as to how difficult it was going to be to make the fronts as you originally did but in Birch ply with the exposed laminates on display. I suspect difficult to get them perfect. I have made 2 sets of fronts which I will play with. I anticipate that I can then move the fronts forward to be flush or even slightly proud as in your original design. At the moment I am thinking a fairly simple cabinet drawing as photographed which I think most DIY pink fishers could make using only a circular saw and a router. I get that potentially it will not be as ultimately good as radiused fronts but I suspect many would be put off by the more complex angled / radiused fronts.
 
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Mosquito said:
https://flic.kr/p/2ptFyoz
the plan is to play with the fronts. I was intrigued as to how difficult it was going to be to make the fronts as you originally did but in Birch ply with the exposed laminates on display. I suspect difficult to get them perfect. I have made 2 sets of fronts which I will play with. I anticipate that I can then move the fronts forward to be flush or even slightly proud as in your original design. At the moment I am thinking a simple cabinet drawing as photographed which I think most DIY pink fishers could make. I get that potentially it will not be as ultimately good as radiused fronts but I suspect many do not possess the skills to tackle the more complex angled / radiused fronts.
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I had a small bit of ply to play with to look what the front edge might look like
https://flic.kr/p/2ptFyoz
 
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