DIY Speaker Kits, a good idea?

I built a speaker for the same reason I build amps — to understand better how they work. At the same time, I’ve been pleasantly surprised how well they work. I’m talking Pass diy electronics and a Parts Express-sourced speaker. All the Pass diy stuff is fairly low power, from 8 watts to about 15 watts. That meant the diy speaker needed to be high sensitivity, and I went with a full range driver rated at  just under 95 dB, then put it in an appropriate box that came as a precut flat pack. I’ve done woodworking, but I can’t match CNC machinery precision. You can find everything you need regarding internal volume, ports, resonance, stuffing and other specs online or in one of the speakers building books. A member of our local audiophiles club has the X-Otica speaker kit from GR Research and it is outstanding, not to mention a beauty. (He had it painted Ferrari red — just the paint cost more than my speaker project!), Finally, a word about Mark Audio. Nelson Pass himself is a diy speaker maker. He has designed a small EQ circuit aimed at fullrange drivers aimed at improving frequency response, and I use it. But in a post on DIYAudio, he noted that if you’re using a Mark Audio driver, don’t bother with EQ. They don’t usually need any help, he said. Quite a compliment, I’d say.

Hello kennyc!  By all means build a kit! If you choose an open baffle kit,you don't even need to build a box!  In a "bought in a showroom" or from a catalog speaker, you are paying for the finish, the labor, the shipping, the dealer mark up - all those considerable expenses. About 20%. if you are really, really lucky, is for the parts that make the sound. There is an ad running in the back of the audio mags: XXXROGX speaker, kit $350   Built $2800. That speaks volumes. It costs more to get that "piano black finish" than it does to buy the drivers (at wholesale - large quantity prices). I have built the Pluto, LX Mini, LX 521-4 kits from Madisound. No conventional cabinets, easy-peezy! Truly excellent performance. Buy the best crossover parts (get them fully assembled if you can't solder). It will make a big difference. You may have heard that manufacturers tend to skimp on crossover parts. I'm always on the lookout for discarded speakers in the trash (in good neighborhoods) and thrift stores. The owners might not have thrown them out if they had high quality  parts in them. The best drivers in the world cannot make beautigful muisic if the music never makes it to the driver!  Use at least Mudorf KRP capacitors and 14 gauge copper open air inductors. There are better parts but a $200 capacitor does not sound 4X better than a $50 capacitor (but it might sound twice as good). I bought the same driver (5" coaxial, $175 each) used in a very well regarded speaker (reviewer said "the best small speaker I ever heard" - $3500/pair), got the manufacturerer's suggested plans for a suitable cabinet (free), got the crossovers assembled with the best parts ($110/each, Madisound), spent less the $100 for plywood and had a better sounding pair the $3500 would buy (my crossovers were better) with a painted cabinet for less than $700. 'Nuff said? 

On the assumption that this thread addresses DIY speakers in general, and apologies if I am slightly off-subject:

Has anyone here dabbed in a DIY kit for Electrostatic Speakers? I am tempted to build one, but have never built any DIY speaker yet, conventional nor ESL. I'd like to hear of which ones were built and the building experience as well as the sound compared to commercial ELS speakers.

When one builds designs that are the creations of others, what they are building is another's take on what a frequency range and distortion is to be like for a particular audio device.

I have EE friends who have built and measured audio devices and friends adept at building audio devices that have built items that have been measured. Where the results of the measurements taken, strongly suggest the critical areas of sound production that relates to audio fidelity are not produced as a result of the design, not an issue with the actual build of the device.

The same is also known for Off the Shelf Branded Audio Products. Reports in the media have been made showing certain measurements but not all. Suggesting if all measurements that could be taken had been taken and shown, for those who read data with a good understanding, a product would have been identified for their not aligning to what is considered as having audio fidelity.

I like to think my choices I make with audio devices are tightly aligned to what is considered meeting the fidelity of an audio design, being how accurately sound equipment reproduces the original source, whether it's a master recording or live sound in a studio or concert hall. High fidelity (Hi-Fi) implies a high degree of accuracy in sound reproduction, with minimal distortion and a focus on clarity, precision, and realism 

I am not keen to have a design that produces a sound that come from a bespoke  circuit design which is not entirely conforming to attaining audio fidelity.    

KennyC

If I had the guts to attempt it, my number one choice would be the Linkwitz LX521, and this looks to be a complete kit with the wood flat pack for $5,350 https://linkwitz.store/product/lx521-kit/

The completed speakers are $16,500, so if the kit is complete it's a huge savings. I may give them a go sometime next year

GR-Research's NX-Otica are open baffle and look really interesting as well for $,3850 with the upgraded caps and foil inductors. I'd love to hear the NX-Treme, but I am not buying 7' tall speakers