This picture was requested by other people on Audiogon. By no means is what I have great and not to be compared to any systems on this forum. It is what I could afford. IT is my last system before I age out. I did not give a full picture because the room is not all mine. It also belongs to my wife who has her $200 stereo in the same room. IT would be an embarrassment. So my conditions are much less than ideal for an "Audiophile" which I do not qualify. Does my system sound good? Oh yeah, to me and others. Where I do qualify is I love music, Stereo equipment, and sharing my knowledge as an Electronics technician and speaker builder, enthusiast. The picture shows one of my two speakers. I am a 65 year old guy not competing and showing anything off because I am outclassed by income. I hope Audiogon is more than that. A place where ideas and experiences are shared by people that love music and electronics.
I suspect that a very very small percentage of us "audiophiles" could build speakers that look as beautiful as those, and which must also sound great, particularly given your description of the meticulous construction process. I agree with what David said, you're overqualified for being an audiophile. Thank you for posting.
Your diy speakers look similar to the Paragon Regent from the late '90s except shorter and wider. The Paragon's were a transmission line speaker with Dynaudio drivers and sounded fantastic.
Thank you so much for the kind message. It is not easy building speakers. The box is 1" MDF. The design is a Paragon Acoustics knock off from the late 70s,80s. My internal design is different. Some high end manufacturers throw 3 or 4 fiberglass bricks at the bottom of the speaker. My first though was cabinet reflections, cancelations. I have padding through out. I tried 3 types of dampening material before I got the right sound. Thickness matters too. 3M thinsilate was the right product for me. I routed all cables glued to the inside case with 3M spray adhesive. Then stuck the thinsilate on top. Many details. Also these have an internal resonant port with padded chamber. The case has slight venting in the main box for soundstaging. More venting in the back for the port bass. Everything hand made. I chose formica for durability. I could always veneer walnut,cherry if I wanted but this pattern blends in well to our home decor. There are so many details when you build. With an audio oscillator I clearly hear 30HZ and it gently rolls off from there. You can feel enough lows. I got a free BIC F12 sub. The 8" towers go at least as low but more clear detail. The woofer is a woven Carbon Fiber rubber surround, 5" spider, 3lb manet vented, 70WPC, The mid is a Daton Audio 2" Aliminum dome driver. Pretty flat from 500hz to 5,000hz. The tweeter is an Emanence titainium compression horn with a buttcheek 90 degree x 90 degree dispersion. Go to 20khz. Both mid and tweeter have infinite adjustment. I have 100hrs in them. My last pair! These weigh in at 85lbs each. Too much work if you don't love building, tweeking, and details. Thank you again for the complement!
Your work looks beautiful. I bet it sounds good, too. I think this place has a wide range of tastes, and of systems that match the budgets of its varied members. You are over-qualified...
