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DYI Speakers. How good can they be?

Ive been doing alot of research into DYI audio. About 3-4 months ago i was getting kinda sick of my job and realized i dont want to do telecommunications my whole life. So what do i want to do? I love building things and i love Audio gear.

I recently went out and bought "Loudspeaker Cookbook", and "Designing Building & Testing your own Speaker System". I have recently ordered a book on electrostatic speakers and im looking at the local college for some physics, electronics, and mathematics courses. Im considering learning some metalurgy and taking some welding classes as well. It will be a while untill i can get all the tools i need, untill then i need to sharpen my most important tool for this task, my knowledge of speakers.

There is alot of complex stuff involved in these, but then again, my current job is extremly technical and complex. So i dont have any doubts of my ability to learn this stuff. It looks like ALOT of fun as well.

Im hoping that in 15 years or so i will be able to produce my own line of High-End speakers, but first i would like to complete at least 50 different speaker projects including electrostatic as well.I have been scouring the internet getting as many speaker recipes i can find, and i plan to build a speaker of every plan i can over the next 5 years or so. This will get my hands dirty and heelp me learn alot of the do's and dont's of speaker building before i start to design my own line of speakers.

Every now and then i think about Speakers from companys like Wilson, Vienna Accoustics, and such, and wonder if i could ever build something as refined.

Then i realised everyone who designs these things has to start at SOME point, and every line of speakers out there started as a DYI project.

I hope withint the next 10-15 years have a marketable product of my own design (of course) that will definatly have my personal sonic signature, and be something all of you will enjoy.

That being said, What are your experiences with DYI Audio? Have you ever run across a set of home-built speakers that put a good percentage of high-end speakers to shame? Im not looking for recipes, i'm just curious of anybodys experience with really well done homemade speakers.

I cant think of any job out there more satisfying than one that challenges you to think, requires you to use your hands, and shows significant progress or a finished product at the end of the day.
slappy
kchahoc
85 posts
 
The first thing your need to learn is how to design and implement digital crossovers and parametric EQ's. Soon designers are going to do transducer engineering from the standpoint that minimum distortion and maximum extension, over today's need for highly linear transducers. Check out the designs of Meridian and Infinity thought Meridian is so far ahead of the curve it is not even the same playing field.
Best of luck,
pragmatist
336 posts
 
Let me disclose that I'm one of those Magnepan nuts.
That said,I know that Madisound kits are more assembly than do it yourself but the "orignal" odins and the cygnets(sic),the only two pairs of Madisound speakers I've heard, are astonishingly good for the money.
ultrakaz
187 posts
 
DYI speakers can surpass commercial designs. I'm running a home brew rear loaded horn speaker using a single Lowther driver with supertweeters and a sub (sometimes two subs). These speakers sound better than any commercial speakers that I've had, including Quad ESL63s.

With regard to building speakers for a living.....
Finding a niche won't be easy, as the speaker market is overloaded with inexpensive and excellent designs. However, in the single driver arena there is room for a lower cost alternative to Carfrae, Beauhorn, Lamhorn and Rethm to name a few.

In the area of conventional multi-driver speakers it would take a massive advertising campaign to break into the ranks of B&W, Infinity, and Polk. Or for that matter Sony and Panasonic. As an example/experiment, buy a set of Acoustic Energy 2 speakers (excellent and inexpensive) and see if you can better it for one-fifth of its retail price (which is the standard manufacturing cost and retail price ratio). Take into account the labor it costs to build the cabinet, parts and assembly. Don't forget the little things like the box and packing it comes in. And advertising budget.

Lastly, as an aside (and I do not intend to discourage you), in the commercial speaker market, knowing how to advertise is more important than knowing how to make a great sounding speaker. Just remember: Bose.
mwilson
430 posts
 
They can't be anywhere near as good as DIY speakers.
slappy OP
903 posts
 
Ultrakaz, you bring up some very good points, and all of them are discouraging.

I would absolutly love to make loudspeaker construction a living, i cannnot think of anything i would rather do. However, the things you listed above are the reasons i have not quit work and applied for a business grant.
hahahahaha

i have a few ideas that i dont think i have ever heard of being tried before, that might give me a little bit of an edge, but it is true, marketing is about the most important aspect when it comes to revenue.

With all the loudspeaker companys and designs, i doubt i will ever see my stuff in best buy, but im not too concerned about it.

There was a time where word of mouth is how things traveled. With the creation of TV and Radio, that word of mouth came to a whole new level.

However, with the internet revolution going on, every now and then you will find yourself a part of a community where word of mouth still has an impact. Right now, audiogon is one of those communitys.

When i start building high quality products of my own design, who knows if audiogon or audio asylum will even be around? But there will be others that will replace it.

If i can make a successful living off of it, it will require a very good product, and alot of "Talk" about it. Even then i doubt i would get rich, but if im gonna set a goal for myself, im going to set it high.

Look at the Wright brothers for instance, bicycle mechanics working off a shoe-string budget while thier biggest rival had an army of engineers and vast amounts of funding. And you see who won.

Its things like that that let me know there is always a possibility, maybe not a big one, but sometimes it just takes common sence, dedication, and a different way of looking at things.

Even if only a few audiophiles buy and enjoy my equipment, then i would know i made something worth having.
Isnt that the piont of making something? :)
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