Need help making my own speakers?

Question

ok, I am really into making my own speakers. I have done all the online projects with paper plates and plastic cups, but im ready for a bigger project. I have all the basics down, but i need help with the variables. For example, how does the angle of the speaker cone affect the tone? How does the resistance affect tone, and how do you change resistance in the first place? Do the materials of the cone and dust cap affect quality? what ranges of sound should I divide up between the tweeter, mid driver and woofer? Any other bits of advice? Answers are greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

these are good sites

http://www.partsexpress.com/speaker-buil...

http://www.partsexpress.com/resources/bu...

http://www.speakerbuilding.com/diy/

Answer 2

Bad idea. Since what you can make will pale in comparison to just about anything out there. Best leave the design of speakers to those of us who have the equipment and experience to make it happen.

Answer 3

Here are some tips for making your own speakers. I did it back in about 1983 and designed them roughly after the Klipsch Heresey's, except I used a tuned port bass reflex design instead of an infinite baffle.

1. Get quality components.

The woofers, midranges, and tweeters (drivers) should be from a reputable company. You can find all kinds of good drivers on the internet these days (try eBay). I used all Pyle drivers, because that's the best I could find at the time. I used 12-inch woofers, 3x9 horn midranges, and 2x6 horn tweeters (identical to the Hereseys). I also used a good cross-over - I don't remember the manufacturer. But, they were expensive at the time ($30 each in 1983). Also, use quality post-type speaker terminals. And solder everything together (don't use spade lugs).

2. Tune the enclosure to match the driver size, particularly the woofer.

To reaearch my project, I read a book called How To Build Speaker Enclosures (classic book from the 1960s - very hard to find these days). It talked about having a certain volume for the enclosure versus the woofer size, and the parameters of a port (hole in the front with a tube attached) to tune the cabinet to a certain resonance frequency. I built mine to be tuned to approximately 25 Hz. I then got woofers with a free air cone resonance frequency of 20 Hz. So, I got a lot of bass boost at about 20 - 25 Hz (this actually worked out really well).

3 - Use 3/4-inch medium-density fiberboard or plywood for the enclosure.

The cabinet itself should not have any vibration to it. So, you need a heavy, dense wood. When putting the enclosure together, install the back with a gasket and screws, such that it can be removed for construction and maintenance (such as replacing blown drivers). This also allows you to install the drivers to the inside of the front panel (the front of the woofer has a thick paper gasket on it). Use thin foam insulation strips between the faces of the cabinet to provide a perfect seal. Caulk on the inside corners is a good idea, too.

4 - Use fiberglass insulation inside the cabinet. This dampens the vibrations within the cabinet to prevent the wood from causing a boominess that you might not like.

The speakers I built took about 2 weeks. The only power tool I had was a drill - everything else was cut by hand. These ended up costing me about $300 to build. I still have them. And, the last time I listened to them a few years ago, they still sounded awesome.

Answer 4

All of your questions appear focused on dynamic moving-coil transducers, which as one might expect are extremely popular with DIY loudspeaker hobbyists. A moving-coil transducer, hereinafter referred to as a “driver,” is available in a wide variety of designs, sizes and prices. As important as the drivers are they are by no means the only important consideration when designing a loudspeaker system. You will also need to carefully consider the type of enclosure, (including materials, etc.,) the type of crossover (active, passive or combo,) the size and acoustics of the listening room, and the type of music or audio that you wish to reproduce. That said I will attempt to give you brief answers to your specific questions.



Q: How does the angle of the speaker cone affect the tone?



Not all drivers use common straight-sided conical diaphragms. In addition to conical diaphragms you will also find convex domes, concave domes, flat diaphragms (honeycomb or solid,) and curvilinear diaphragms. Also, when it comes to high frequency drivers, aka ‘tweeters,’ you have a few more ‘practical’ choices from which to choose: piezoelectric (unpopular with the audiophile crowd,) true ribbon, planar magnetic (a close cousin to the common moving-coil transducer,) and the Heil Air-Motion Transformer* (which has seen a great deal of interest as of late.) All have their strengths and weaknesses so you will have to choose carefully relative to your specific application, objectives and budget. The bottom line is that the angle of a straight-sided conical loudspeaker diaphragm is not a useful indicator of driver performance let alone an ‘intra-manufacturer’ option from which you the end-user may choose. Furthermore, diaphragm geometry data is almost never published by manufacturers.



Q: How does the resistance affect tone, and how do you change resistance in the first place?



Resistance, by itself, does not affect “tone.” However resistance is important in loudspeaker design, particularly when it comes to crossover networks and as a constituent of voice-coil impedance.



The most common methods used to passively alter resistance invariably entails the use of resistors, potentiometers or rheostats, any of which are found in various loudspeaker systems (though the better loudspeaker designers eschew the use of potentiometers and rheostats.)



Q: Do the materials of the cone and dust cap affect quality?



For a variety of technical reasons the type of loudspeaker diaphragm and dustcap material can noticeably influence the sound quality (as well as the cost of a driver.) You will have a multitude of choices when it comes to selecting drivers and driver materials. However until you have accumulated a great deal of experience and knowledge, along with the appropriate test and measurement equipment, your safest option is to simply determine what the better loudspeaker manufacturers are using and choose similar drivers.



Q: What ranges of sound should I divide up between the tweeter, mid driver and woofer?



There is no hard and fast rule when it comes to crossover frequencies. The choice of crossover frequencies will depend on the drivers and enclosure design you choose and—to a lesser extent—the type of music or audio that you wish to reproduce and your budget. The crossover is an extremely important element of any good loudspeaker design and, if you wish to use a passive crossover network, is best accomplished by using loudspeaker design software.



If for any reason you find yourself overwhelmed or lacking in tools or resources I recommend that you give serious consideration to purchasing a well-designed loudspeaker kit (even if it only consists of the drivers and crossover networks, which you can then complement with your own custom enclosures.) Doing so is an almost foolproof method of constructing your first DIY loudspeaker system. Also, do not forget that the listening environment always plays a significant role in the quality of sound reproduction and must be taken into consideration when purchasing or designing loudspeaker systems.



Nevertheless I suggest that you read as many loudspeaker reviews as possible from the leading audio review magazines – both online and hardcopy. If you can find a library that has them in their holdings I recommend reading the back issues of both Speaker Builder magazine as well as Audio magazine. Above all, before you purchase any drivers or materials, start by purchasing a copy of the Loudspeaker Design Cookbook by Vance Dickason.



## LOUDSPEAKER COMPONENTS & PARTS SUPPLIERS ##



http://www.e-speakers.com

http://www.madisound.com

http://www.partsconnexion.com

http://www.partsexpress.com

http://www.solen.ca

http://www.speakercity.com

http://www.zalytron.com



Acoupower Subwoofer Drivers

http://www.acoupower.com



AuraSound Loudspeaker Transducers

http://www.aurasound.com



*Precide SA - Heil Air Motion Transformer

http://www.precide.ch/eng/eheil/eheil.ht...



####### RESOURCES #######



Loudspeaker Design Cookbook

http://www.audioxpress.com/bksprods/prod...

Bullock on Boxes

http://www.audioxpress.com/bksprods/prod...

audioXpress (Old Colony) Loudspeaker Reference Books

http://www.audioxpress.com/bksprods/BKSL...



Linkwitz Lab - Loudspeaker Design

http://www.linkwitzlab.com



Arthur C. Ludwig’s Sound and Audio Website

http://www.silcom.com/~aludwig/contents....



Klippel GmbH - Application Notes

http://www.klippel.de/download/group.asp...

Klippel GmbH - Publications - Papers

http://www.klippel.de/pubs/papers.asp



D. B. Keele, Jr. - Papers and Publications

http://www.xlrtechs.com/dbkeele.com/pape...



JBL Professional Technical Library

http://www.jblpro.com/pages/tech_lib.htm



ALMA - The International Loudspeaker Association

http://www.almainternational.org

________________________



http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/s...

http://www.diyaudio.com

http://www.speakerbuilding.com

http://www.avsforum.com



####### LOUDSPEAKER DESIGN SOFTWARE #######



WinISD Pro (freeware)

http://www.linearteam.dk/default.aspx?pa...



mhSoft Online HiFi Speaker Design Tools

http://www.mhsoft.nl/spk_calc.asp



Free Audio Software and On-Line Enclosure Design

http://www.audiogrid.com/audio/



LspCAD Software (Free demo download is available)

http://www.ijdata.com

LspCAD U.S. Distributor

http://www.audioxpress.com/bksprods/SOFD...

Drawings of common loudspeaker enclosure designs modeled by LspCAD software:

http://www.libinst.com/LspCAD.htm



BoxCAD and SoundEasy Software

http://www.interdomain.net.au/~bodzio/

(I recommend downloading and reading the BoxCAD Manual)



SPEAK Loudspeaker Modeling Software

http://www.gedlee.com/speak.htm

(Includes Acoustic Lever™ design simulation)



LEAP - Loudspeaker Enclosure Analysis Program

http://www.linearx.com/products/Products...



### ELECTROACOUSTIC MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS ###



CALSOD

http://www.users.on.net/~audiosoft/

The CLIO System

http://www.audiomatica.com

MLSSA by DRA Laboratories

http://www.mlssa.com

Klippel GmbH - Transducer Diagnostics

http://www.klippel.de



####### MEDIA AND PRESS #######



http://www.6moons.com/archivelibrary/lou...

http://www.audio-ideas.com

http://www.theaudiocritic.com

http://www.avguide.com

http://www.boundforsound.com

http://www.hifichoice.co.uk

http://www.hificritic.com

† http://www.hifinews.co.uk

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com

http://www.iar-80.com

http://www.positive-feedback.com

http://www.sensiblesound.com

http://www.soundandvisionmag.com

http://www.soundstagelive.com

† http://www.stereophile.com

http://www.stereotimes.com

http://www.uhfmag.com

http://www.ultimateavmag.com



####### ADDITIONAL RESOURCES #######



http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...



####### RECOMMENDED READING #######



“Subwoofer Performance for Accurate Reproduction of Music”

Benjamin, E. and Fielder, L.

JAES, Volume 36 Number 6 pp. 443-456; June 1988

http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib...



A Day at the NRC With Paul Barton of PSB Speakers

http://www.soundstagelive.com/factorytou...

Audio Science in the Service of Art

http://harman.com/wp/pdf/AudioScience.pd...

The Art of Speaker Design

http://www.nutshellhifi.com/library/spea...

The Family of Direct Radiators

http://www.nutshellhifi.com/library/spea...

Introduction to Dynamic Loudspeaker Design

http://www.theory.physics.ubc.ca/341-07/...

B&W - Development of the B&W 800D

http://www.bwspeakers.com/downloadFile\t...

B&W - Development of the Signature 800

http://www.bwspeakers.com/downloadFile\t...



The Listening Room - Part I and Part II

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/Magazine/ma...

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/Magazine/ma...

“Loudspeakers and Rooms - Working Together”

http://www.harmanaudio.com/all_about_aud...

”Maximizing Loudspeaker Performance in Rooms”

http://www.harman.com/wp/pdf/MaximizingL...