Any interest for kits?

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Vapor Audio

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Any interest for kits?
« on: 25 Feb 2013, 03:53 pm »
We're considering offering the Breeze and Stiff Breeze in kit for.  Before we do, I was hoping to get an estimate of interest.

Breeze is the MT, Stiff Breeze is the MTM.  Included would be the RAAL 70-10D tweeter, 1 or 2 Wavecor BD woofers, the CNC cut baffle sealed/sanded and ready for paint, crossover components, wire, port tube, and binding posts along with a binding post plate.  Plans for a cabinet will also be included, but no finished cabinet. 

If we can put together any quantity of kits, price can come down to around $800/pr for the Breeze and $1050/pr for the Stiff Breeze.  If you've ever looked at the price of RAAL tweeters, you know what a deal that is!  And the Wavecor's are ~$150/each woofers as well.

So how bout it, any interest?

Breeze



Stiff Breeze


TRADERXFAN

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #1 on: 25 Feb 2013, 04:19 pm »
Ryan,

I really like kit option. Maybe one of these, but more interested in something further up the food chain... like Cirrus black or Arcus kit of parts, for those who could build a cabinet of proper baffle dimensions/airspace.  --  Understanding it would not be equal to the "real" thing as it lacks the engineering refinements you put into cabinets.

Charles Xavier

Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #2 on: 25 Feb 2013, 05:05 pm »
Can these kits work in the Dayton Audio cabinets ?

TRADERXFAN

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #3 on: 25 Feb 2013, 05:07 pm »
Yes, I think they were designed for that specifically...

roscoeiii

Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #4 on: 25 Feb 2013, 05:30 pm »
Whoa, nice option. I like that you provide the baffle.

Would the crossovers be assembled or just the necessary parts included?

Vapor Audio

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #5 on: 26 Feb 2013, 04:20 am »
Ryan,

I really like kit option. Maybe one of these, but more interested in something further up the food chain... like Cirrus black or Arcus kit of parts, for those who could build a cabinet of proper baffle dimensions/airspace.  --  Understanding it would not be equal to the "real" thing as it lacks the engineering refinements you put into cabinets.

The cabinets on all the stacked lamination designs are such an integral part of the design, I'm not sure selling them as kits would be the best way to guarantee customers are getting top performance.  It's something we'll consider, but no plans to sell anything other than the Breeze/Stiff Breeze as kits. 

Vapor Audio

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #6 on: 26 Feb 2013, 04:24 am »
Can these kits work in the Dayton Audio cabinets ?

Yes, the Dayton cabinets are what we use.  For a finished from us Breeze/Stiff Breeze, we modifiy the cabinets heavily ... they end up weighing almost 3x what they do in stock form.  If building from a kit you'd order your own PE cabinets, or build something the same size.

Vapor Audio

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #7 on: 26 Feb 2013, 04:28 am »
Whoa, nice option. I like that you provide the baffle.

Would the crossovers be assembled or just the necessary parts included?

The baffle is obviously a bit more than most DIY'ers can make themselves, and integral to the design.  It's what allows shallow LR2 crossover slopes, and time alignment between drivers.  So rather than risk DIY'ers not making their own baffles correctly, we'll include them, all CNC cut. 

Crossovers could be assembled, for us it would be a 10 minute job ... it's only 4 components  :wink:

standub

Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #8 on: 26 Feb 2013, 02:57 pm »
Well I do need some height and wide speakers to go with my Cirruses in order to pull off an 11.4 home theater. :green:

HT cOz

Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #9 on: 27 Feb 2013, 03:38 am »
Perhaps a high end open baffle kit that does not need a complicated box?

HT cOz

Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #10 on: 16 Mar 2013, 04:54 pm »
What about a stacked laminate kit?  I'm sure some people are up for a few hundred hours of sanding on their own.  I would like a project like that.

Vapor Audio

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #11 on: 16 Mar 2013, 05:07 pm »
Perhaps a high end open baffle kit that does not need a complicated box?

It's possible in the future.  The issue that immediately comes to mind is keeping the Vapor lineup cohesive from top to bottom, an OB speaker just wouldn't fit in.  I could put something together just as an AudioCircle thing and not list it on the website.  I have done 5-6 OB's over the years, so plenty of experience and ideas to draw from.

Quote
What about a stacked laminate kit?  I'm sure some people are up for a few hundred hours of sanding on their own.  I would like a project like that.

That would just be too sadistic of me, honestly you don't want any of that.  But if you're the kind of guy who could use more frustration in your life, PM me and we can talk. 

HiroPro

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #12 on: 30 Jan 2014, 03:16 am »
It's possible in the future.  The issue that immediately comes to mind is keeping the Vapor lineup cohesive from top to bottom, an OB speaker just wouldn't fit in.  I could put something together just as an AudioCircle thing and not list it on the website.  I have done 5-6 OB's over the years, so plenty of experience and ideas to draw from.

That would just be too sadistic of me, honestly you don't want any of that.  But if you're the kind of guy who could use more frustration in your life, PM me and we can talk.

Are these still offered as I couldn't find anything on the website.

I'm very interested!

HiroPro

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #13 on: 30 Jan 2014, 03:20 am »
The baffle is obviously a bit more than most DIY'ers can make themselves, and integral to the design.  It's what allows shallow LR2 crossover slopes, and time alignment between drivers.  So rather than risk DIY'ers not making their own baffles correctly, we'll include them, all CNC cut. 

Crossovers could be assembled, for us it would be a 10 minute job ... it's only 4 components  :wink:

Are those drivers custom?

How did you manage to get away with an LR2 with such low parts count?

Midwoofers custom wound to your spec?

If not I guess those two drivers just complement each other electrically/sonically dam near perfectly.

It's rare for DIY drivers to match like that.

SYNERGY!

BOY OH BOY

Am I interested!!!

Do you have an unsmoothed FR plot including off axis readings?

PS do you have a matching center?

Carl V

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #14 on: 30 Jan 2014, 03:29 pm »
interested...yes.
On the audition list to see & hear.

Pete Schumacher

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #15 on: 31 Jan 2014, 08:11 am »
Are those drivers custom?

How did you manage to get away with an LR2 with such low parts count?

Midwoofers custom wound to your spec?

If not I guess those two drivers just complement each other electrically/sonically dam near perfectly.

It's rare for DIY drivers to match like that.

SYNERGY!

BOY OH BOY

Am I interested!!!

Do you have an unsmoothed FR plot including off axis readings?

PS do you have a matching center?

Kits are still available.  We don't advertise them as kits on the website.

Drivers are not custom.  However, the Wavecor WF152BD06 is an exceptionally well designed driver with extended, smooth response on par with the Scanspeak Revelator of the same size.  That characteristic and the time aligned baffle makes the LR2 slopes possible.

However, we've recently re-done the crossover to LR4 to allow for greater power handling which also gives better off axis performance for a horizontally oriented "center channel" variant of the Stiff Breeze.  Either version can be made available.

We have done an off axis series but we typically don't display that information for general consumption.  Ryan might make that available to you.  Drop him a line and see what he says.

mresseguie

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #16 on: 11 Feb 2014, 01:08 am »
Geez. I almost missed this thread.

I have zero experience with making a DIY speaker. I'd need detailed instructions on how/where to make connections, and maybe a couple "Don't do this!" warnings.  :lol: I must admit an interest in a Stiff Breeze kit. I'd be even more interested if there is a center channel option (I think I understand it would need to be configured/voiced slightly differently??).

I've wondered how the Parts Express cabinet could be damped, and I have ideas on how to do it. Are such questions better handled via email or is it okay to discuss them here? (I'm not trying to get you to reveal secrets.)  I added sound deadening materials to my cars last year, so I learned a few things that I suspect might work well in a cabinet.

Put me down as tentatively interested in 1.5 SB kits if a center is available. I say tentatively because I'm not entirely certain I want to take on such a project. I may instead opt to buy a ready made set of speakers once I manage to get an audition or if I attend Axpona.

Vapor Audio

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #17 on: 11 Feb 2014, 01:18 am »
Geez. I almost missed this thread.

I have zero experience with making a DIY speaker. I'd need detailed instructions on how/where to make connections, and maybe a couple "Don't do this!" warnings.  :lol: I must admit an interest in a Stiff Breeze kit. I'd be even more interested if there is a center channel option (I think I understand it would need to be configured/voiced slightly differently??).

I've wondered how the Parts Express cabinet could be damped, and I have ideas on how to do it. Are such questions better handled via email or is it okay to discuss them here? (I'm not trying to get you to reveal secrets.)  I added sound deadening materials to my cars last year, so I learned a few things that I suspect might work well in a cabinet.

Put me down as tentatively interested in 1.5 SB kits if a center is available. I say tentatively because I'm not entirely certain I want to take on such a project. I may instead opt to buy a ready made set of speakers once I manage to get an audition or if I attend Axpona.

We'd prefer not to disclose how we modify the PE cabinets, it is a bit of a secret ... but we could share other ideas.  In stock form however they're simply not resonance free, and DO add coloration. 

With the margins as slim as they are on the finished speaker, you're not saving much on a kit.  The main savings with the kit is if you can put a good paint job on the baffles yourself.  If you have decent painting ability, you could save a few hundred. 

Oh, and yes there is a matching center channel option.  They're put into the square side cabinets and laid horizontally, then the tweeter is rotated 90 degrees so it's still upright.  No different voicing is needed. 

mresseguie

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Re: Any interest for kits?
« Reply #18 on: 11 Feb 2014, 01:23 am »
Ryan,

Thank you.

Just seconds ago I discovered the thread started by another fellow http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=122706.0

In it, Pete answered my question as well.  :)

Sometimes I feel as though I'm a child in a candy shop. There are just too many choices!