empty pro audio enclosures?

At the risk of being flamed for an already answered question, I post this since I have spent 3 days trying to search for it on WW and google. (Anyone else having problem with WW search? I can't get it to respond at all!!)
Is anyone out there selling unloaded enclosures that I can drop the Eminence drivers and HLCD's i have into? I found audioformz has enclosure to 7" but I have (4) 8" drivers I need to house on the tower. I have been playing with building my own fiberglass enclosures and have built a set of stainless enclosures too but I'm not thrilled with either. I like the HSE trident stuff (actually it was Jim that inspired my trying to build my own) but it doesn't look like I can buy unloaded ones. Anyone point me in the right direction? Many thanks... -James

james,

this is a hard one.. i think this is THE BIG distinction between diy and manufactures completed sets..

it is really ironic that the manufactured sets use the cheapest drivers and drop all the money into the enclosures/hardware..

if you do deceide to roll your own - check out b&c drivers and selenium hlcd's...not to much more than the eminence and so much better

James,

There some very effective off the shelf offerings from Community, Skylon, NVS and Wetsounds these days. As somebody that has done a few systems from scratch I don't think it's worth it anymore.

If you really cannot find what you want these guys can probably build you something: http://www.tidalaudio.com/


Club,

This is the third or fourth time I have seen this "B&C drivers and Selenium HLCD in NVS can" solution posted here and on PlanetNautique.

I would like to see you post your crossover specifications and the resulting performance curves from design? Please tell us how the voicing of the driver interface is kept accurate with your design? It would also be helpful to have some measured efficiency data.

Thanks,
Mike

http://www.diywake.com/shop/shopexd.asp?id=519

or

http://www.precisionmetalmachining.com/

Make sure you get the 8 inch cans and the binding posts for the speaker wire. They are not cheap, you can get the clamps from them too. You will have to cut the cans to 7.13 inch diameter so the Eminence drivers will fit. Use 8/32 stainless machine screws to mount them to the cans. You can get speakers grills from Parts Express.

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=260-424

Any driver bigger in diameter on the cut out will not work because there won't be enough lip to mount the drivers.

Here's another good site for projects already done, mine is posted under HLCD projects.

http://bierbower.net/diytower/home.htm

mikeski,

get real - i think i'll follow suite of the manufactures and POST NO DATA whatsoever...

the crossover is pretty easy, the passive crossover needed is for the horn and use the electronic crossover for the bottom of the driver from the amp...as you know i do have the crossover parameters from image dynamics.

It is possible to build a nice 4 speaker Pro Audio tower set right at 600 doing it yourself.
The set I built sounds great and looks decent.
I have not found anything for around 600 with 4 speakers that can match that sound.

Clubmyke,

The manufacturers (Skylon, NVS, Wetsounds) provide actual listening opportunities at local wakeboard gatherings, they provide input at local sound-off events, they sponsor this website, they are readily available at the local shop for listening as well. Some will even give you a demo ride to hear their systems. They also post non-proprietary specifications too. Are you planning on manufacturing a system and feel that your designs are proprietary? If not I don't see why you don't post up a build sheet and test results as I did for the benefit of everybody on this website, Sea Ray Dave's speakers shown above were the result of my posts.

Please help us understand your conclusions. Explain how you determined your your system is superior to anything any current manufacturer offers?

Image Dynamics makes tower speakers? I know that they had a hand in the design of the retired/failed Deafcon line from Skylon but I didn't know they had a current offering. Please post a link to their wakeboard tower product line.

Thanks,
Mike

mikeski,

i think you are taking this thread a bit too personal and wwwaaaayy too far..

it is in regards to enclosures and someone trying to find something nice other than off the shelf..i made a driver suggestion- call the police..

i think it great the manufactures are out here doing grass roots promoting - btw, i have heard all three (and more) except the 485...

in regards to "build sheet" and "your sound off" that you did a while back. you really dont want me to pick apart that crappy comparison you did..please dont !!! that was anything but scienctific, consistent, or valid in terms of a pragmatic speaker test....if you want to go there, i would be more than happy to accomadate a friendly, insightful, meaningful discussion (ie rip into the sound off- there are a lot of holes in it).

i'm a end user- not a manufacture. i care more about how it sounds, looks, and works over the long term....i see somethhings where there is room for improvement as mentioned in other post- i think all the manufactures offer a very good product and it's great there is a choice.. however, there is still room for improvement(a lot of room) and the most OBVIOUS is drivers..

all the tower speakers are designed around a "price point", there has to be be certain profit margain so a company can make money (this is a good thing- local economy, make a living etc...)... the real question is will the market pay more for a better product ? that is yet to be seen- i suspect the next generation of tower speakers will have better drivers or manufactures will offer upgrades...

specs- the most important specs imo, no one publishes...simply because they havent done their homework..it's a little bit more than "nominal" impedence, power handling, and sensitvity.

i do have a couple idea's that i am keeping to myself just because they are pretty good and would make a pretty big difference and if they never come to market, so be it, the world will go on....

in regards to Explain how you determined your your system is superior to anything any current manufacturer offers? .... dont put words in my mouth....this is not my system. nor did i ever say it was..you are assuming..

with that being said, it will be my next project as soon as i am done relocating..it is pretty obvious to anyone who has been around audio that the drivers used are the bottom of the barrel (no disrespect to anyone, this is just a observation.)

chances are you havent heard a b&c, phl, rcf etc driver...they are very good in all regards and have no short comings except they cost more...with that being said, they far out perform the eminence and the made in china crap hands down...

there is a reason why european drivers dominate the marketplace.. they make a better driver in all regards, fidelity, power handling, sensivity, and material (construction)...

in regards to image dynamics, cant say a whole lot here with respect to confindentality agreement that i signed with eric... lets just say, image dynamics is doing well and both companies parted ways..

mikeski,

btw, i would be more than happy to do a sound off (dont know how it will turn out, but it would be fun anyways).

if a manufacture would be willing to provide the cabinets to my specs- i willing to buy the drivers, make the crossovers , and tune it...

otherwise, you'll have to wait till i get around to modifying my deafcon 4 setup..

Clubmyke,

James asked about enclosures, I gave him an appropriate reply with a source that should be able to provide a solution to his needs. He didn't ask about drivers, he even mentioned that he already had the Eminence drivers. Did you even read his question? It's kind of like he asked where he could get a hamburger and you told him what kind of Soda you like (gotta give you at least one lame anology to pick on, each go round).

"European drivers dominating the marketplace"??? Which marketplace? Based on what I saw at CES a couple months ago it appears that China has clear dominance in the speaker manufacturing market (maybe you didn't notice the "made in China" stickers on your Image Dynamics speakers). Most things are designed in the US or Europe and manufactured in China.

As for your super secret electrostatic speaker tower solution, go for it, I would love to see something more creative than swapping out drivers made in US or China to drivers made in Europe. Although electrostats have been abandon by most people because they are not cost effective. Not sure how they would last in the marine environment anyway.

Thanks Mikeski, you are correct. I wish I had all the money in the world to spend on the greatest drivers ever made, but I don't and I do have 4 Eminence drivers sitting here brand new in a box. So, for now, I'd like to put those into something and mount them on my tower (which currently has 2 outdoor type garden area speakers with a single 4" driver!!!) So yes, as much as I'd love to drop $$$ on drivers, I really am looking just for an enclosure to put these drivers I have into. It might not be tuned or balanced or anything, but I bet it will blow the heck out of what I have now!! Thanks for trying to bring this thread back on track. sea ray dave has a nice simple setup, that's more along the lines of what I was originally after. Thanks all for you insight. -James

mikeski,

it was a suggestion - take it for whats it worth...

funny my idq speakers are made in usa...

in regards to pro audio drivers - the majority are made in europe.. not to mention a lot of other drivers are made in europe..like b&w, dynaudio,kef,scanspeak,peerlees...etc..

no electrostatic...just a couple little tweek's

James, Check these out. I made some fiberglass enclosures for 8" speakers. I'm in the process of making two more as we speak. I haven't really thought about making them for other people (been there, done that) but if your interested, maybe we can work something out. They are a little dirty, but you get the idea.

Paul

Paul- nice job on your cans. Best thing about making your own (besides pride and knowledge) is that you can use ANY driver size.

James, those eminence drivers work great- you will be happy with the results. I sent you some info to help you with what I learned. Recently, another WW person just finished his using this info. He wrote me that he was shocked at how good they sound and how loud they are. For around 600 and your time, there is nothing available right now to compete with that 4 speaker set up. Let us know how things progress and your feedback when you are done. I personally know you will be happy.

Credit really needs to be given to Duane at NVS as he's the one who sparked my interest to DIY. Also to mikeski for sharing his HLCD project. Duane summed it up best when he wrote "don't get caught in analysis paralysis". He was right.

BTW, I am using Hifonic amps- they are made in China, built to USA specs and design. They are cheap and sound great. A ZXI6006 on those tower speakers will drive them to their limits with the amp turned up a little over half. I am also using a Hifonics class d on my subs and I am also VERY happy with it.

There is a lot of arguing going on here about drivers, amps and manufacturers. I must speak out and say if you have something that works or an idea, show it or shut up. Most amps, speakers and electronics are assembled or made in China, Korea or Taiwan. It is ashame that we cannot make them here due to our labor and process costs. We can ship the material to China and then back here, as a finished product, cheaper than making it here. I guess they want to work there and more important- the quality is there! Just look at any car audio contest- Hifonics, as an example, and other made over there equipment, are the preferred brands and winners in most of the catagories. <--- food for thought.

Those pics don't do Paul's cans justice..... and you call yourself a tech guy. The color isn't even the same in person.

He is using the eminence stuff, similar, if not the exact same as the tyrant/proaxial models so you know what they sound like....

sea ray dave- there is a lot of made in china going on..in fact most of zapco's gear is (all but the c2k and some others)..very few amps are made in the usa any more...i do find it interesting that some older made in usa amps command top dollar vs the new gear (i thinks they used better parts too)...

the post i made to made in china was in reference was to pro audio drivers and not meant to be extrapolated to amps or other components..i think made in china gear can be good if the qc is really looked over, however in terms of pro audio drivers and other high end drivers- the europeans still lead the way on this one..

The Europeans also lead the way in terms of price. 300 or more for one 8 inch driver is out of most peoples reach. I would really like to hear the German or Italian drivers next to a 60 buck Eminence driver using the same amp/cabinet. My thoughts are simple. Boating is not a sound proof testing room environment with computers used to test signal reproduction quality. Therefore, I suspect and believe the drivers in a marine or outdoor environnment would be difficult, at best, to distinguish. Plus considering the cost differences, which are miles apart, for example, if you blow one those high end drivers, you will spend more to ship it back to Europe than just calling Parts Express and ordering another new one, that will be there in a few days or less.

i dont know about $300...i have yet to see a $300 8" driver.. the phl marine drivers are the most expensive i have seen to date (about $175 each) and the beyma 8g40 for $150 (really nice drivers)

Parts Express have the B&C 8PE21 8" MIDRANGE for about $100 (reasonable imo)...

Price: $95.66 EA (1-3)
Price: $88.00 EA (4 +)

if one of them blows (rated at 200 rms) i would suspect it was from the amp clipping rather than the design/qc of the driver. btw, b&c does offer rebuild kits on some of their drivers (the b&c's are a italian made driver)

the BIG difference between the emminence and the b&c beside fidelity is simply the capability to keep it together at higher volumes)..

(Message edited by clubmyke on March 11, 2007)