Archive
Tone Buck Two’s
The Tone Buck Two’s were built with the intention of having nice home entertainment speakers. I wanted a aesthetically pleasing good sounding set of speakers. I prioritized SPL and size. With my typical listening in mind I was not very worried about low frequency extension.
Goals
- Aesthetically Pleasing
- Flat frequency response
- Low distortion
Drivers
- Tweeter:SB Acoustics SB26CDC-C000-4
- Midwoofer:SB Acoustics SB17CAC35-4
- Subwoofer:RSS265HO-4 10″ Reference HO Subwoofer
Measurements
Horizontal2&Vertical3
On axis frequency response (pink), 30 degree off axis (Blue) 60 degrees off axis (yellow)
Scary Stereo
Scary Stereo was born from my wish for big scary tower speakers. I wanted nice home theater speakers for my living room as big as I could possibly get them. When thinking of how to use all the surface area, I decided to paint them with chalkboard paint. As these speakers are for listening forward I prioritized low-frequency extension with the large size of the cabinet as well as 15″ subwoofer drivers. My subwoofers pair with my mid and tweeters to make a transparent sound stage reaching above 20k.
Goals
- Bass Extension
- Transparency
- Pleasing to the ears
Drivers
- Dayton Audio RSS390HO-4 15″ subwoofer
- SB Acous)cs SB17NBAC35-4 6″ midwoofer
- SB Acous)cs SB29RDAC-C000-4 tweeter
Specifications
- F3 below 20 Hz
- +/- 2dB mid/highs
Measurements
Full Tuned Speaker Frequency Response
Integrated Frequency Response
Subwoofer (green) and port (blue) Frequency Response
Model: BOSSA NOVA
Construction and Tuning by Aidan Conrade
These are assembled realizations of the Samba MT Loudspeaker Kit, found on Parts Express. After going through what I wanted out of a loudspeaker and how much money and time I had to work with, I was approved to choose a solid knock-down kit with drivers and a passive crossover to build! I built them to be flexible since I want to do many things with them, so they can handle mixing, instrument monitoring for my bass guitar, and a good listening experience for music and television. They are a manageable size since I wanted them to be easy to fit anywhere I need them to be, as well as be easy to move with. I eventually want to hit them with a layer of primer and some nice burgundy water-resistant paint to make them look nice. While they are speaker kits, I wanted to be able to connect with them more and give them a name, and while I was finishing my work on them I came up with the name Bossa Nova, since the original name was Samba MT, and while Bossa Nova is my favorite style of jazz to play it was also derived from the roots of Samba, much like this speaker was derived from the kit I purchased at the start of this adventure!
The Dayton Audio Reference Series drivers carry the performance of the loudspeakers with their consistent frequency response at a budget price. Each speaker kit cost $165, including all of the parts for the passive crossover, and with the fact that I already had cables and an amplifier that could handle them, I only spent ~$350 on them, with a surplus of $20 going to a kind person on eBay who designed PCB’s for the crossovers in these speakers and sold them in pairs with mounting hardware for the board and wire terminals for your cables so you can easily replace cabling inside of your speaker. For those interested in purchasing this kit for yourself, be aware that they do not come with a circuit board for the crossover like the Dayton C-Note kit.
Specifications:
- Dimensions- 15″ x 8.5″ x 11.25″
- Frequency Response-
- ± 3 dB from 60 Hz – 1.2 kHz, a shallow dip from 1.2-4 kHz, and a boost from 4-20 kHz that stays back in the realm of ± 3 dB
- Port gives extra bass extension down to 30 Hz
- Drivers-
- Dayton Audio RS180P-4 7″ Reference Series Paper Cone Woofer
- Dayton Audio RST28F-4 1-1/8″ Reference Series Fabric Dome Tweeter
- Sensitivity- 90.8dB @ 1m
- Power Handling- 60W per cabinet
- Max Power Handling- 90W
- Crossover Frequency- 2.4 kHz
Selected Measurement Graphs:
Technical Paper:
This paper still needs some work and I ran into some tuning and measurement issues so I hope to update this page at a later date and make everything look nicer!
The Short & Sweets
By Izzy Waldie
By Izzy Waldie
These are called the Short and Sweets because they are short (:o) and I went into the project with the goal of making the song “Short and Sweet” (by Brittany Howard ‘reimagined’ by Bon Iver) sound awesome on them. These are meant to be easy listening speakers for my small apartment, with the listening axis at the perfect level for sitting in a bean bag.
The 8 inch woofer provides impressive low end for the cabinet size, and the planar tweeter provides an insanely crispy high end.
The design is pretty straight forward, just a 2-way speaker with a vent on the bottom (hence the cute little feet), crossover is at 2kHz. I originally intended to use a 2 inch port tube, but testing revealed that leaving the port hole with no tube yielded the best response. One fun thing I tried was adding wedges on the inside of the cabinet to make the sidewalls non-parallel from each other. These wedges are the height and width of the side walls, and are 1.5″ inches thick at the bottom and taper to nothing at the top (this seemed an easier solution to a trapezoid shaped interior without having to do wacky joints). These wedges are glued and screwed to the inside of the sidewalls, doubling as bracing for the enclosure (and adding to the weight for a total of 52 lbs)
Specs:
- +/- 3dB 30-20kHz (with slight smile curve)
- 8″ woofer
- Planar tweeter
Drivers:
- Daytion Audio Reference Series 8″ Woofer
- GRS PT2522C-4 3-1/2″ Planar Tweeter
Final Boss
The Final Boss speaker set is designed for use in casual environments. While primarily meant for music performance, these will more likely be used for listening to music and watching videos/ video gaming.
These speakers were made from the TriTrix MTM Bookshelf Kit on Parts Express. The only thing I had to do before putting them together, wiring, and tuning was drill a hole for my binding posts (I forgot to buy them and they didn’t come with my kit).
Woofers: Dayton Audio DC130BS-4 5-1/4″ Classic Shielded Woofer 4 Ohm
Tweeters: Dayton Audio DC28FS-8 1-1/8″ Silk Dome Shielded Tweeter
Cabinet Material: MDF
The Copperheads
The Copperheads are a 2.5 way tower speaker system that are a multiuser speaker system for movies, mixing and more. These may not be the best speakers on the planet but with the parallel wiring design and large cabinet the build process taught me a lot about speaker building.
765PAs
This is the system I built for the 2023 Fall semester of SND4120 @ MTU
I made PA’s with the main purpose of using them for DJing and Live Music, they are meant for use both outdoors and indoors. They utilize a panel amp so they can be easily transported and quickly set up. They make use of split 1/4″/XLR inputs as well as True Wireless Stereo Bluetooth, making them exceptionally easy to connect too. I used a 12″ woofer, and a compression driver from the SB Audience Bianco series for this system, as well a Dayton Audio Plate Amp with built in DSP
Roger, Rick, and Veronica, A 2.1 System
Roger (Left), Rick (Right), and Veronica (Subwoofer) together make a 2.1 mix monitoring bookshelf speaker system. This system is primary functions through the use of a DSP, to keep the crossovers and frequency response clean and even. With an max output of 108 dB, these will have ample headroom when mixing at proper safe levels.
The process to build these was buying pre-cut boxes and then drilling the hole for the ports, binding posts, and the selected drivers. This helped cut down on build time while still having to redo the faceplate for the Subwoofer because the hole came precut to the wrong diameter. The top boxes were originally going to have a passive crossover but because of them already planing for a DSP, it was scraped in favor of having a lot more control over the response of the system.
Specifications:
- Tweeter: Dayton Audio RST28F-4 Reference Series
- 5 in. Woofer: SB Acoustics SB15NBAC30-8
- 10 in. Subwoofer: Dayton Audio MX10-22
- Cabinet Material: MDF
- Dampening Material: Rockwool
Overall Response, 60dB range:
*with some floor reflections
Top Box Off-Axis Response, 60 dB range:
*In Air, 0 orange, 30 Red, 60 Purple
MF 2.1 System
Designed by Matthew Fisher
The MF 2.1 System is designed for music listening and enjoyment. It consists of a pair of Dayton Audio C-Notes and a Dayton Audio 12″ Ultimax Subwoofer, all of which were purchased as kits off of Parts Express. I decided to bypass the passive crossover portion of the C-Notes and design this system as a fully active system to allow for the most efficient and accessible form of control during tuning and playback. I also wired the subwoofer as 2+2 ohm setup, again allowing for greater control over each voice coil.
The construction process was straightforward because these were kits. The decision to design a fully active system removed the necessity for installing passive crossovers and saved on construction time, which allowed for more tuning time. The tuning process focused on a flat response with extended low end to enhance both music listening and mixing. Unfortunately, the limited high frequency response will impact mixing usage, but the overall frequency response works well for enjoyment purposes.
Specifications:
Tweeter: Dayton Audio ND25FW
Woofer: Dayton Audio DSA-135A
Subwoofer: Dayton Audio UM12-22
Cabinet Material: MDF
Dampening Material: Rockwool
Overall Frequency Response:
Overall Horizontal Off-Axis Response:
Documentation:
Thunder and Lightning
Designed and built by Chris Wilson
Gonçalo alves is a Brazilian hardwood. It is sometimes referred to as tigerwood — a name that underscores the wood’s often dramatic, contrasting color scheme, that some compare to rosewood. It is considered one of the most beautiful of tropical woods, has a tough reputation, too. Strong and durable, it’s used for construction in its homeland and secondarily for fine furniture.
I wanted my speakers to be different. So I built a Lichtenberg machine and burnt Lichtenberg figures into the front side of my baffle. Finished by filling with blue glow-in-the-dark resin, I think I fulfilled my goal.
Since I invested so much time into the outward appearance, sound quality would have to be top notch. That is why I bought ribbon tweeters and ceramic woofers for the desktop monitors. The combination of those two provided the widest possible range (55Hz-22kHz) while having the flattest response. The subwoofer had to go as low as possible while still being inconspicuous and out of the way. The final design follows closely the form-factor of the footrest that is beneath my desk and is painted black. With its 10″ subwoofer and sealed cabinet design, it can get as low as 28Hz.
Design Goals
- Visually appealing in a unique way
- Flat response
- Full range
- Relatively Portable
Key Features
- Unique lightning bolt effect
- Beautiful wood grain with hand-rubbed oil finish
- Sealed enclosures for increased transient response
- Flat tuning
Specifications
- Measured F3 of 28Hz
- +/- .7dB from 100Hz – 22kHz
- Sealed box including sub
- Fountek Neo X 1.0 ribbon Tweeter
- 6″ SB Acoustics SB17CAC35-8 ceramic woofer
- 10″ Dayton Audio RSS265HF-8 subwoofer
- Desktop monitors 8.5” x 11” x 14”
- Subwoofer 15”H x 15”D x 20”W with integrated legs
Overall Frequency Response
The subwoofer and desktop monitor were placed on a tall stand to simulate anechoic conditions. Because of this, the subwoofer is not receiving the 3-6dB boost from the boundary effect from the floor.
Horizontal Off-Axis Response – 0º, 15º, 30º, & 60º off axis
This measurement was taken closer to the floor. The flat frequency response is being affected by floor reflections. The main data points to look at are above 5kHz.
Overall Waterfall Plot
Impulse Response
Tech Speakers 