Build Speakers "with Home Audio Speaker Kits!"

What have you read about building your own high end loudspeakers? Would it be too difficult?

I believe that building your own audio system is the best way to get system performance that will keep you singing for years to come.

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Speaker Manufacturers:

I want to point out that there are several very, very good speaker manufacturers in the marketplace. This article is not meant to claim otherwise.

A few of these companies are: Magico, Avalon acoustics, Goldmund of Switzerland, Thiel Audio, Magnepan planar speakers, Wilson Audio Specialties, Rock-port Technologies, and Sonus Faber of Italy. There are many others but those are the brands that jump out in my memory.

The problem- as you may have noticed, is that all of those loudspeaker companies sell very expensive speaker products.

My aim is to guide you into achieving similar performance, even superior performance in some cases- and for substantially less investment.

I will admit that this approach is NOT for everyone and the time invested is much higher than just going to a retail store and purchasing a product.

Home Audio Speaker Kits demand a time investment. You WILL NOT realize the full potential of any design without thought, reading, planning, and investment of time.

Pet Peeve:

They make it look like they are using exotic materials designed by Albert Einstein himself that was machined and assembled at zero gravity in outer space.

I understand why they do this.

They have to give the impression that their technology is vastly superior to all of the other companies with which they compete. And, that is a valid point… they also advertise as such.

They don’t want anyone to think that superior results could be achieved by assembling some random home audio speaker kits.

Consider Bose for example. How much of that hype is adding one bit of quality to the actual design that sits in your listening room?

How much of that hype makes your experience with music and movies more enjoyable?

Why don’t they just give the engineering specs for exactly why the sound is so good? (Or Bad in this particular example...)

Or are they hiding something? They either -don’t want you to know what is involved, or they don’t want their competitors to know.

The truth is: Most of the parts on any given speaker are readily available.

And in most cases proprietary parts are not better than the mass produced parts that you can order from Parts Express or Madisound. To see more about Speaker Building - Build your perfect speaker with our parts and supplies from crossover components to full kits.

Those mass produced, high quality parts are made in massive quantities under strict quality control so that they are all very similar in measurement characteristics.

This also brings down the costs of the mass produced parts and speaker drivers so that manufacturers can manage to buy them.

This causes a trickle down effect and many home audio speaker kits are in fact made affordable.

Some proprietary parts are worth their salt, but don’t be naive and think they are appreciably better than the best drivers - speaker driver recommendations from a manufacturer you have access to.

Drivers and home audio speaker kits quality can be proven with measurements. Acoustics, distortion, pressure and electrical components can all be measured accurately.

If a manufacturer chooses their speaker drivers based on what they hear and by doing blind listening tests- please don't be fooled.

A Higher Call To Quality:

Goldmund of Switzerland makes all of their design plans only using accurate engineering and scientific information. They do not even listen to a design until it is completely built. Then they make final adjustments when/if necessary. Their website clearly states this as fact.

Guessing -in regards to speaker design is a complete waste of time especially considering the technologies now available.

Use drivers that are known for their low distortion and with Thiel/Small parameters that will complement well the other drivers in that system.

Think you can build them?:

Okay, it may not be easy...

...but it's definitely worthwhile. You CAN build a fantastic speaker system using home audio speaker kits or by creating your own design.

Keep in mind your success will largely depend on the thought that went into it.

In many cases you would be better off using a proven project design. But I still say, "If you think you can do it... go to Part 3: Best Home Speakers

Go to Part 4: Audio Home Speaker Testing

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