[sapphiremodena]

Personally, I've heard good things about:
Energy
PSB
Mission
Paradigm
Acoustic Research
Acoustic Energy
JBL
Axiom
Yamaha
B&W

Those are all I can think of right now....

I haven't heard anything bad about any of the speakers mentioned in this thread.

 

[frankclone]

Skippy,
any info on how to go about making one's own speakers?
I suppose enclosure proportions, proper matching &placement of
tweeter/woofer, & other consideratios...
One reason I'm "into" cans is environmental sensitivities--
the formaldehyde used in press board of all speakers I've seen.
So I would use solid wood, or veneer the yucky pressed stuff
inside & out & all edges...
a.k.a. Franko (I miss headwize)

 

[skippy]

for some DIY kit's you can try www.zalytron.com . they sell cabinets too. my first step into hi-fi was through a zalytron kit i made in a high school speaker building course.

 

[bpm2000]

if you dont know about crossover design etc.. the obvious path to making your own speakers is from kits.
www.zalytron.com
www.adireaudio.com
www.madisound.com
www.partsexpress.com
www.audioc.com
I believe Madisound will do crossover design for you as well.
Ive heard good things about the Emeralds from ACI, the kits 281/81s from Adire, which should fit your budget as well depending on how you finish. My friend just built the kit81s and they sound very nice, good imaging and bass response.

 

[rickcr42]

To frankclone

try 3/4 inch birch veneer plywood

very dense and takes a nice finish

 

[BenG]

I have these, very similiar in balance to my 580's , although the 580s are smoother. If you're a listener who values neutrality over warmth(like me) than the 1.5s are great.

Another great option are the Maggies new at $500, though look for secondhand ones. They probably sound the most like senns, though you won't have the bass extension and impact of some speakers - they are of the magnetic/electrostatic breed, and you will need a good amp to drive them. But they are hands down one of the best in the price range, or at any price, for that matter.

For $250 (if you don't end up building an amp) nothing beats the Audiosource Amp Two. You can use it as an integrated amp too, it has input controls. Many people in AR reviews say they use it to drive maggies, and with great success. I have an Amp Three with NHTs and I am very satisfied. Check J&R.com

If you need a pre, then go with a passive like the Creek OBH-12. It's only like $200, and it adds almost no coloration. I'm going to get one soon.

Hope that helps

 

[skippy]

rat shack used to have a couple of good books about speaker building. there are alos lots of on-line resources. check out hi fi heaven's list:
http://www.hifiheaven.com/diy-speakers.htm
there's lots of stuff to absorb.

solid wood is used for instruments because it colours the sound, which is quite unwanted for speakers, hence the use of fiberboard. i'd suppose veneering the fiberboard may be the way to go.

 

[rickcr42]

talk about dirt cheap !

check out these babies

http://f18.parsimony.net/forum31999/messages/13584.htm

They use radio shack 8 inch full range cones that cost $20 !!!!!!!

The builder sold his vanderstenns after building them,amazin'

*(I get 'em for $15 hehehe ) ,total cost would come in way below $100

50 to 18khz from a single cone ! I like that , keeps the sound together kinda like headphones

power handling is 15 w rms/30 w peak.Also suits me , my amp is 10 watts of pure class A

I get the time I gotta build these

then maybe the radio shack 1197 in a smaller TQWT for the rear channels , and a new DIY subwoofer-talk about cheap surround

 

[Paradigm]

Get KLIPSCH, I promise no other speaker sounds like them, they have a unique sound. What kind of music do you listen to, it's important when desciding on what speakers to buy.

 

[Voyager]

Every speaker brand has a unique sound, not unlike the Grado sound, Sennheiser sound, etc.

 

[thomas]

i listen to literally every type of music, other than pop. That's why i prefer neutral stuff, colouration sounds good for certain types of music, and terrible on others. Neutral speakers sound fine for everything...

rick-hmm, nice speakers, look very simple to build... too bad i can't get those drivers here...

 

[MacDEF]

Every speaker has a unique sound. While Klipsch are decent mid-fi speakers, they are far too bright for my tastes.

 

[chych]

thomas, you don't necessairly need radio shack speakers for the Voigt pipe speaker... I was looking around and found a few sites such as http://indigo.ie/~walton/voigt.html and http://www.users.qwest.net/~nocturne/VOIGT.html

So, you can use different drivers... I mean, radio shack drivers aren't exactly the best out there...

Now if only I had a good saw I'd build it...

 

[thomas]

lol same position here...though rickcr42 suggested taking wood to home depot for $2 per cut.

cool, i try to check out those sites. I think i'll wait on the DIY stuff, rather have a good working pair of speakers for now, then fool around with woodworking later on...

 

[skippy]

yum! i always wanted to build a pair of single driver speakers, and those look very tantalising. what kind of eq circuit does it use (if any)?