Thread: The Colossi

Nice. I'd be interested in your impressions after building some thing that, or maybe the Statements. Its really addictive and fairly cheap relative to commercial retail.

The reason I haven't built the Statements is that I do not need full range speakers. More like the mini statements or something else will get my attention. Those Colossi are extremely large!

You haven't been wowed because you haven't experienced the right thing for you.

I am a fan of very large speakers, that's not the problem. Its the full range thing, as I wouldn't get enough use out of the low frequency driver that I would feel a return on investment. Honestly, I just don't see myself using any other bass component than my THT. I may change my mind, but my next project is going to be front mains and center. I have researched so many that I've forgotten most of them now.

I do like the Auto-Tech Mumia speakers, but they aren't reviewed enough for me to feel comfortable throwing that much money at them. I thought about an Econowave design, but do not like the directivity factor considering I have 3 rows of seating with an optional 2 rows that can be arranged in less than 5 minutes. I want all seats to have great sound.

The Statements have really caught my eye, as have Pi speakers and the towers at P-E.

I think if you were to start with a MTM, using good drivers and I know you can build a nice enclosure, I'd be surprised if you didn't absolutely love them.

Where is the best place to buy from to even get all the parts? I have never even thought to build my own speakers and I'm not all that handy. I've built computers and such, so what's the degree of difficulty?

Originally Posted by caliberconst.

Well there can be many levels of difficulty there are some speakers from Parts Express and couple other companies, where you can basically buy the finished cabinet and all of the parts and just assemble everything yourself. Then there is building the cabinet and finding the correct drivers, tweeters, crossovers etc... and figuring out box volume and port size in order to achieve certain low frequencies. Ckone will be able to explain all of this a bit further, as it is something he has done much more research on than I.

Interesting. And is this version of DIY cost effective compared to mass produced speaker purchases?

There are many options at parts-express.com, grresearch, apexjr, Pi speakers, Danley Sound Labs, billfitzmaurice.com, DIYsoundgroup(up and coming site), Seaton Audio, and even eD and Hsu(I believe) sell parts and supplies.

Most of this stuff is built using designs from many audio engineers who offer their plans and expertise for free or very small fees.

There are forums out there that have a strong community, and many of these people extensively test commercial and DIY designs. Its mostly about improving products. The cost savings was merely a side effect.

Now, that's not to say there are no designs that cost more, as there are plenty that exceed many costs of mass mfg commercial designs. Remember this is about improvements. Hypothetically, someone decided that speaker A had a bad issue at X frequency, decided it was due to an flaw in the design, whether its an enclosure or driver thing, and after some modifications found that that issue could be resolved by doing something else. This is just an example. Some people just wanted a look or design that wasn't commercially available and engineered it or had it designed. Some wanted to increase efficiency. Whatever it was, the field is wide open now.

An MTM is just a mid-tweeter-mid design. There are many arrangements, but MTM is a popular style as it can be L/C/R using the same speaker.

I would start out with the Overnight Sensations, as its a simple mid and tweeter. Just to compare to your Paradigms. Its up to you whether you like them or not, but the cost is so little it wouldn't hurt as a first test.

I am into 2ch music, but in such a large room as I listen, I would need so serious woofer surface area to duplicate the bass. I have had full range speakers, and even pro speakers, but none sounded better than the THT so far. Very little movement creates so much sound. Very tight. When playing BF:BC2 and firing a mounted machine gun, the thudding in repetition is easily handled by the THT. This is a good test for anyone who thinks their sub may be muddy or sloppy it is a dead giveaway, as you can either feel the realistic sound of the Battlefield series or actually be distracted by a bad sound.

Another reason full range doesn't work in my situation is the dimensions. I have roughly 3.5 feet to the bottom of my screen, so anything taller will standout. I haven't found anything other than pro speakers that have a short but wide frame anymore. Old school speakers do, but the tweeters are usually too low.