Small two-way speakers with very good sound
Hello,
I would like to present one of my altogether recent projects, which arose from the need of the moment.
It concerns a small loudspeaker with a surprising sound.
Unfortunately, due to time, not everything was completely done correctly, for example the final measurements were missing, which I am not completely satisfied with.
- Idea:
The idea came about before Christmas, as a gift idea for a family member.
There wasn't much time and the requirement was a bit strange, but how practical - the whole thing had to fit into the main luggage to be flown on a plane
. As I live quite far away and the gift was intended for a resident of Poland. This determined the wattage, dimensions and type of speakers used.
- Why/why not?
The speakers were intended for a person who really enjoys listening to different genres of music and really listens and hears a lot of what he listens to. So far he had used various amplifiers and older Polish speakers, something ZgC, with as I recall GDN25/40, GDM and GDWK, kind of like a prototype of Altus. Then came the amplifier with the hope that more power and "effects"/additional speakers would improve something, there were even dummies in the form of a subwoofer. There was always something missing, something in the bandwidth was wrong, the bass somehow muffled, etc. This is where the idea of making these loudspeakers came in, to provide what is needed on 2 loudspeakers without dummies.
- Design:
I relied on the long-proven and, for me, wonderful Visaton "fontana" design, omnidirectional loudspeakers, have been in operation at my place for a few nice years and so far I have not heard anything better.
Because of the size and design, I had to choose slightly different loudspeakers that work well in a limited design. The choice fell on the Visaton W130s and DTW72s, they are not high end speakers but still very good for their price shelf.
- Construction:
I didn't keep too many photos, what remains I attach:
1) construction details of the main cabinet:
2) assembled enclosure, on the right the hole for the woofer/midrange speaker, on the left you can see the BR and connector holes
3) almost finished column after the first paint jobs, tweeter mounted for test but no woofer
4) construction details of the cone/diffuser,
It is/was glued together from several (4 circles of appropriate thickness) and sanded to final shape.
You can't see it on the pictures, but due to the fact that the BR is facing the floor, the columns stand on 5 cm legs.
Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the final product, but for those interested I can ask the owner for such pictures.
Interested in the details of the construction, please contact me, there are a few difficult places here, but everything is manageable for a person with tools and able to use them.
- How do they play?
I carried out listening tests at home, unfortunately standing next to large fountains, they do not present themselves in any outstanding way. However, it was enough to listen to them, just like in the originals, everything is balanced, nothing stands out or colouration. There is enough bass and surprisingly you can really hear the instruments playing in the lowest octaves, the sound is quite detailed.. In general, these are loudspeakers for people who do not have too much space (although I tested in rooms from 15-40 m²) and want to enjoy the full sound. Tests at the current owner's house can be compared to a huge surprise (that these are such small constructions) combined with a long moment of silence (that they are so small and have so much to offer).
Maybe as a summary let us say that all other speakers were practically "thrown away" within a few days, the owner returned to the stereo amplifier without a subwoofer and claims that he no longer misses anything in the sound. With the amplifier "cranked up" they can play really loud, I even surprised myself how loud for such small speakers.
- Costs:
When I bought the speakers, they cost me 35 and 17 euros, plus about 10 euros for the connectors and crossover components. The wood I had in 'home stock', the glues, paint, diffuser mounting parts were an additional 20-30 euros.
Finally, it might be worth putting a bit more work into the project and enjoying the final result, rather than encasing something weak with dummies. These are not speakers for those who want to listen loudly and the bass must make the glasses vibrate.
Greetings
I would like to present one of my altogether recent projects, which arose from the need of the moment.
It concerns a small loudspeaker with a surprising sound.
Unfortunately, due to time, not everything was completely done correctly, for example the final measurements were missing, which I am not completely satisfied with.
- Idea:
The idea came about before Christmas, as a gift idea for a family member.
There wasn't much time and the requirement was a bit strange, but how practical - the whole thing had to fit into the main luggage to be flown on a plane
. As I live quite far away and the gift was intended for a resident of Poland. This determined the wattage, dimensions and type of speakers used. - Why/why not?
The speakers were intended for a person who really enjoys listening to different genres of music and really listens and hears a lot of what he listens to. So far he had used various amplifiers and older Polish speakers, something ZgC, with as I recall GDN25/40, GDM and GDWK, kind of like a prototype of Altus. Then came the amplifier with the hope that more power and "effects"/additional speakers would improve something, there were even dummies in the form of a subwoofer. There was always something missing, something in the bandwidth was wrong, the bass somehow muffled, etc. This is where the idea of making these loudspeakers came in, to provide what is needed on 2 loudspeakers without dummies.
- Design:
I relied on the long-proven and, for me, wonderful Visaton "fontana" design, omnidirectional loudspeakers, have been in operation at my place for a few nice years and so far I have not heard anything better.
Because of the size and design, I had to choose slightly different loudspeakers that work well in a limited design. The choice fell on the Visaton W130s and DTW72s, they are not high end speakers but still very good for their price shelf.
- Construction:
I didn't keep too many photos, what remains I attach:
1) construction details of the main cabinet:
2) assembled enclosure, on the right the hole for the woofer/midrange speaker, on the left you can see the BR and connector holes
3) almost finished column after the first paint jobs, tweeter mounted for test but no woofer
4) construction details of the cone/diffuser,
It is/was glued together from several (4 circles of appropriate thickness) and sanded to final shape.
You can't see it on the pictures, but due to the fact that the BR is facing the floor, the columns stand on 5 cm legs.
Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the final product, but for those interested I can ask the owner for such pictures.
Interested in the details of the construction, please contact me, there are a few difficult places here, but everything is manageable for a person with tools and able to use them.
- How do they play?
I carried out listening tests at home, unfortunately standing next to large fountains, they do not present themselves in any outstanding way. However, it was enough to listen to them, just like in the originals, everything is balanced, nothing stands out or colouration. There is enough bass and surprisingly you can really hear the instruments playing in the lowest octaves, the sound is quite detailed.. In general, these are loudspeakers for people who do not have too much space (although I tested in rooms from 15-40 m²) and want to enjoy the full sound. Tests at the current owner's house can be compared to a huge surprise (that these are such small constructions) combined with a long moment of silence (that they are so small and have so much to offer).
Maybe as a summary let us say that all other speakers were practically "thrown away" within a few days, the owner returned to the stereo amplifier without a subwoofer and claims that he no longer misses anything in the sound. With the amplifier "cranked up" they can play really loud, I even surprised myself how loud for such small speakers.
- Costs:
When I bought the speakers, they cost me 35 and 17 euros, plus about 10 euros for the connectors and crossover components. The wood I had in 'home stock', the glues, paint, diffuser mounting parts were an additional 20-30 euros.
Finally, it might be worth putting a bit more work into the project and enjoying the final result, rather than encasing something weak with dummies. These are not speakers for those who want to listen loudly and the bass must make the glasses vibrate.
Greetings
Comments
Add a commentI used to be curious to see how these types of kit played. Well, some designs captivated me, i.e. their appearance. As for the sound, it was different and I was not impressed by any of them. I do not... [Read more]
Hello I can only refer to my constructions, I have already made a couple of them, from simple 2-way through 2.5-way, classic 3-way, but there was always something missing, so I ventured into omnidirectional... [Read more]
"Large" Montanas also have a smaller diffuser for the treble (photo left bottom) https://obrazki.elektroda.pl/7907030700_1715491092_thumb.jpg In your speakers too? My impression is that without... [Read more]
Hi Yes, both of my fountains have two diffusers, and you correctly noted that the sound would be "impoverished" due to the different way the sound propagates and builds up the panorama. I'll look for... [Read more]
All right, but how about stereo space? Is it well enough defined or does it blur across the room? Doesn't it sound like it's coming through the fabric or off the wall? [Read more]
Hi The stereo base is very good, (I can only refer to my design), everything is very detailed (but here there is a big influence of the speakers themselves), as I mentioned with directional/traditional... [Read more]
Congratulations on the idea, but I would nevertheless choose something better in the 'middle'. :) . [Read more]
You made the columns in the shape of a quadrangular box. The originals were octagonal in horizontal section. Did you not think to make the enclosure a cylinder? You can easily get a 'tube' made of plywood.... [Read more]
Hello My home big fountains are octagonal/valley, these as I mentioned had a bit of construction and transport constraints, that's why there was a forced shape and size. I personally like Visaton speakers,... [Read more]
I suspect that the phrase: something better "inside" means, according to the previous speaker, better components (speakers). Let him explain it himself. [Read more]
Hello, Please explain maybe what you mean, is it the midrange or the components? As I mentioned in the case of these small "fountains" there were some design limitations, hence the specific choice of... [Read more]