[simoon]

I'm getting the bug to build some speakers, which I haven't done in quite a few years. And doing a bit of research, it looks like there are a decent amount of choices with some pretty high end kits and plans available.

I am considering spending somewhere around $1000 pair +/-, not including the MDF and having it cut. Good thing I have an old friend that will make the cuts for cheap, and I have no problems building the cabinets.

So, I'd like the opinions of those have built any of these, or have heard them, or even better yet, anyone that has them and lives in my area (Los Angeles) that would allow me to listen to them 

So far, I've found the following kits and plans that are pretty highly thought of:

Curt and Jim Holtz' Statements. Mini Statements and Statement Monitors are all considered quite good. All the parts are available through http://meniscusaudio.com

http://speakerdesignworks.com/Statements.html
http://speakerdesignworks.com/MiniStatements.html
http://speakerdesignworks.com/Statements_Monitor.html

Meniscusaudio also has another interesting sounding kit, they designate    
ER18MTM Ribbon:

http://meniscusaudio.com/er18mtm-ribbon-pair-p-1323.html

Clearwave speakers also has a kit called 4T SE, which is a bit more than I want to spend at $1360, but not out of the question:

http://www.clearwavespeakers.com/webapps/p/98515/300200/909459

Of course, there is also the GR Research OB series. The OB-5 looks great:

http://gr-research.com/obseries.aspx

There's also some kits from Madisound and Zaph audio that look like they have potential.

Please give me as much input and advice as you see fit. Again, reviews of any of the above would be appreciated.

[Pete Schumacher]

Going to toot my own horn here, but there are also kit versions of the Vapor Breeze and Stiff Breeze available, featuring the RAAL 70-10D in time aligned baffles with 4 component, 2nd order acoustic crossovers.

http://www.vaporsound.com/

We'll be at the Newport Beach show later this month with the Nimbus.

Stop by for a listen to what a Vapor system sounds like.

[simoon]

Thanks for the response!

I will be at the Newport show on Sunday, and I will stop in for a listen.

[neekomax]

For a mere $630 all in (plus whatever finish), this would be cool to build. The SEOS waveguide is an open source collaborative design. Love what these guys are doing.

http://www.diysoundgroup.com/waveguide-speaker-kits/fusion-series-kits/fusion12-kit.html

[simoon]

Thanks for the recommendation neekomax, but I'm not really a fan of horn loaded speakers. I've heard good things about these, but probably not for me,

I'd have to hear them for an extended listening session before I dropped the $$.

[wushuliu]

Thanks for the recommendation neekomax, but I'm not really a fan of horn loaded speakers. I've heard good things about these, but probably not for me,

I'd have to hear them for an extended listening session before I dropped the $$.

The SEOS are not traditional horn-loaded speakers. If you're thinking of the 'honkiness' and blare, these are very very different. Also The Tempest was also designed by Jeff Bagby who is *highly* respected (his kits at Meniscus are also worth looking at). I have built several of his designs and they are always smooth with an expansive coherent presentation. I doubt the Tempest would be any different.

In describing the Tempest vs. his other designs Jeff more or less said;

The speaker really surprised me and gave me one of the best sounding high efficiency (98 dB) speakers I have ever heard in my life. If I didn't have so many speakers already (and one set is a fairly high efficiency set of towers with Focal drivers and Scanspeak tweeter) I would seriously consider building a furniture grade set of cabinets and living with a pair of Tempests as my personal reference high efficiency speakers for many years to come. I still may. They way-out-performed my expectations, and I don't blubber over all of the speakers I design, because all of them have compromises, but these really sound great in my opinion.

I am not a SEOS/diysoundgroup fanboy - far from it - but I would build anything Jeff designs in a sec, with no doubts. So even if you pass on the Tempest, check out what he has at Meniscus to see if any interest you.

[TF1216]

In my opinion, for your first build I would consider designs where you can contact the designer in case you have questions.  I would start with Vapor Audio, Selah Audio, and DIYSoundGroup.  From there, consider what comes with the kit to determine what other expenses will be involved in the build.  Things like binding posts, damping, wire, parts to construct the crossover, etc. will add more cost.

Will you be building your own stands for a potential 2-way kit?

[wushuliu]

In my opinion, for your first build I would consider designs where you can contact the designer in case you have questions.  I would start with Vapor Audio, Selah Audio, and DIYSoundGroup.  From there, consider what comes with the kit to determine what other expenses will be involved in the build.  Things like binding posts, damping, wire, parts to construct the crossover, etc. will add more cost.

Will you be building your own stands for a potential 2-way kit?

For the record, I think just about all the kits that he's mentioned and have been recommended so far have designers who are easily accessible and are very responsive. There are posts on the Statement series, etc. on other forums almost daily.

[TF1216]

For the record, I think just about all the kits that he's mentioned and have been recommended so far have designers who are easily accessible and are very responsive. There are posts on the Statement series, etc. on other forums almost daily.

You are right sir.  Thank you for elaborating on my post  I should have stated that.  Most all designers can be found on Parts Express' Tech Talk or HT Guide.  I find each one of them to be extremely friendly.

I like the idea of purchasing a kit where everything comes packaged together.  Going this route saves time and stress if one is the type to get hung up on component purchases.

[simoon]

The SEOS are not traditional horn-loaded speakers. If you're thinking of the 'honkiness' and blare, these are very very different. Also The Tempest was also designed by Jeff Bagby who is *highly* respected (his kits at Meniscus are also worth looking at). I have built several of his designs and they are always smooth with an expansive coherent presentation. I doubt the Tempest would be any different.

In describing the Tempest vs. his other designs Jeff more or less said;

The speaker really surprised me and gave me one of the best sounding high efficiency (98 dB) speakers I have ever heard in my life. If I didn't have so many speakers already (and one set is a fairly high efficiency set of towers with Focal drivers and Scanspeak tweeter) I would seriously consider building a furniture grade set of cabinets and living with a pair of Tempests as my personal reference high efficiency speakers for many years to come. I still may. They way-out-performed my expectations, and I don't blubber over all of the speakers I design, because all of them have compromises, but these really sound great in my opinion.

I am not a SEOS/diysoundgroup fanboy - far from it - but I would build anything Jeff designs in a sec, with no doubts. So even if you pass on the Tempest, check out what he has at Meniscus to see if any interest you.

I respect Jeff Bagby's speaker designs and opinion.

I wish I could hear them.

[simoon]

In my opinion, for your first build I would consider designs where you can contact the designer in case you have questions.  I would start with Vapor Audio, Selah Audio, and DIYSoundGroup.  From there, consider what comes with the kit to determine what other expenses will be involved in the build.  Things like binding posts, damping, wire, parts to construct the crossover, etc. will add more cost.

Will you be building your own stands for a potential 2-way kit?

It would be far from my first build. It would be my first build in over a decade.

But I agree, contact with the designers is a good thing.

If I end up building a stand mounted speaker, a DIY stand would be a possibility.

[smilach]

You may also want to consider the kits available from Selah Audio.  Rick is great to work with and can provide anything from drivers and crossover components to drivers, assembled crossovers, speaker cabinets with the front panels routed to accept your speakers.  The Vicino is toward the bottom of Rick's offerings and I am using a pair in my home office as nearfield monitors and their performance far exceeds the Von Schweikert VR-1 monitors I was using in the exact same application at the exact same distance.

Rick and Selah Audio are here on AudioCircle.  His kits can be found here: http://www.selahaudio.com/id268.html

[vanderstephen]

I'll put in another vote for Rick Craig of Selah Audio. I've bought a kit from him recently and am building the boxes now (currently being painted). He's been great to work with. He may have someone in your area to set up an audition with a local owner.

[hdspeakerman]

This is not life or death.  Pick one that looks good and build it.  Listen to it and go from there.  If
you are satisfied, stop.  If not pick a second and build it.  Only problem is after you get 20 or 30 pairs in
your room you will have to slow down.
Howard

[HiroPro]

Going to toot my own horn here, but there are also kit versions of the Vapor Breeze and Stiff Breeze available, featuring the RAAL 70-10D in time aligned baffles with 4 component, 2nd order acoustic crossovers.

http://www.vaporsound.com/

We'll be at the Newport Beach show later this month with the Nimbus.

Stop by for a listen to what a Vapor system sounds like.

I'm interested in the Stiff Breeze but there is no information on the page.

If you have a DIY kit available does it come with the front baffle?

Nice wares BTW!

I bet the Nimbus White is just amazing!

[Captainhemo]

hey simoon

Can't comment on  the other kits mentioned as I haven't built any,  but I have  built 3 of Danny's (GR Research) kits Help/support is always available  by either calling Danny direct or  posting in his circle.  There are always lots of folks (including Danny) there willing to help answer questions or  offer suggestions,  some great build threads there too !!

Danny has some new designs coming out , hopefully won't be too much longer.
If you  post something here  http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=99243.0  you  may find someone near you  who is willig to let you have a lsten to  one of his  kits you  might be interested in.

I've been more than happy with  the kits I've built (E LS Enocres (stock pre0-assembled c/o's)  for my neice,  N3TL's (upgraed with Sonicpas /Mils resistors)which my folks  now have and are absolutely loving them,  and  OB7's(added platinum bypass caps, a Sonicpa GenII bypass n the mid circuit, upgraded  M130X woofers in bass section) which  are here with me .  If I were to redo any of the kits I'd only add platinum  bypass caps  to the tweeter circuit in the N3's I just love  the  Neo 3 tweeter and feel the  platinum bypass caps  took them to the next level They are extremely natural, clean, and detailed but not the least bit fatiguing.

-jay

[johsti]

What kind of music do you listen to and at what volume?  How big is your room?  Would you consider adding a sub or two?

I just recently built the Continuum kit designed by Jeff Bagby.  The kit is available on Meniscus Audio.  http://meniscusaudio.com/continuum-pair-p-1324.html  The kit would come in under your budget and leave room for a sub or two.

I used finished Parts Express cabinets, but you can build your own if you prefer. 

You can by a finished pair from Salk and they have a good description and specs on their site.  http://www.salksound.com/continuum%20-%20home.htm

There is quite a bit of info on the Parts Express Tech Talk site including details for a matching subwoofer or building them in a TL enclosure for greater bass response.

The Continuum's sound great with vocals and the midrange is fantastic.  Acoustic instruments and piano sound very good.  I use a pair of subs to fill in the low end and they sound like a full range speaker.  With the subs they can do a good job with rock, electronic, reggae/dub etc. at moderate volumes.    They image great and have a very wide soundstage when setup properly.  Definitely worth looking into IMHO.

[sjh500]

I would check out Troels Gravensen's website. All he does is DIY speakers with measurements and extensive testing. Probably the most thorough DIY website I've ever seen, and he has everything from basic two-way monitors to world class full range stuff. It's worth your while to check it out. Good luck.

[yeldarb]

My first kit was a pair of Speakerlab .1, which I used with an M and K Bottom End passive sub.  Then, I built a pair of Madisound MDY3, which are a time aligned sloped face monitor with Dynaudio drivers.  Every improvement I made with my system was audible.  Imaging, soundstage and depth of field is excellent.  I used them with a Parts Express Titanic 10" active sub, as they are bass shy.  Still have them, though they are not being used.  Then, I built the Madisound Fostex front loaded horn with the Fostex 165 and supertweeters.  These are sitting on top of PE Titanic subs and powered by a Norh SE9.  This is a knocked down CNC kit, made of Baltic Birch.  Lots of clamps, and then you have to sand and finish. Some have compared to Cain and Cain speakers.  Break in takes a miserable long time, but eventually, they sound very good.  And a version is still available.

Obviously I like my kits.  I have yet to get rid of any.  Perhaps I value them too highly.

[rajacat]

For a mere $630 all in (plus whatever finish), this would be cool to build. The SEOS waveguide is an open source collaborative design. Love what these guys are doing.

http://www.diysoundgroup.com/waveguide-speaker-kits/fusion-series-kits/fusion12-kit.html

+1 

You can get sub woofer flat packs at bargain prices too. If one wanted to add a distributed sub woofer system to their bookshelves, four of these would be a very economical option.

http://www.diysoundgroup.com/subwoofer-flatpacks-2/sealed-subwoofer-flatpacks/1-5-sub-flat-pack.html