Hi, I could not find much in this forum on building mini-cabinets for portable minispeakers. I have a pair of 2-inch "fullrange" drivers (eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace) that I want to use as portable speakers for my desktop/notebook. Anybody would venture to advice a specific design for these?
Some people have tried mini BLH:
http://www.b-natural.co.jp/blog/archives/mini BLH naibu1.JPG
or little Fonken:
http://homepage.mac.com/planet10/forum/fonkenTriple.jpg
or spiral horns:
http://www3.sympatico.ca/crenaud003/Poiram/Spiral/Spiral.jpg
but would any of this work for a two-inch driver with neodymium magnet?
Peter
Some people have tried mini BLH:
http://www.b-natural.co.jp/blog/archives/mini BLH naibu1.JPG
or little Fonken:
http://homepage.mac.com/planet10/forum/fonkenTriple.jpg
or spiral horns:
http://www3.sympatico.ca/crenaud003/Poiram/Spiral/Spiral.jpg
but would any of this work for a two-inch driver with neodymium magnet?
Peter
You need to know the Thiele Small parameters for a driver before you can select the best cabinet type and optimise the design. You're flying blind otherwise. I would ask Arjen for the parameters (they're not on his listing). Then you'll get lots of recommendations and the usual scuffle (healthy debate).
Hi,
What do you know ? 145Hz Fs and 5W power handling, but
note power handling will be much less than 5W in the bass.
For any decent sized cabinet you'd be far better off adding
a helper woofer of any sort than fighting the driver specs.
Portable ? The designs you mention don't look very portable ....
Portable For a notebook ? Two choices - USB powered
for fully portable or just smallish and mains powered.
Trouble is without measurements you be just guessing.
The drivers are cheap enough, but a lot of work to use well.
See madisound for some better option for not much more,
(and in some cases quite a bit less), a 2" really should
not be used FR, 3"ers are generally a lot better.
Hard to say what you want but a class T amp with a
laptop style power supply and something like this :
Zaph|Audio - 4" Bargain Mini (reduced BSC option)
would likely be far more rewarding for the effort expended.
rgds, sreten.
What do you know ? 145Hz Fs and 5W power handling, but
note power handling will be much less than 5W in the bass.
For any decent sized cabinet you'd be far better off adding
a helper woofer of any sort than fighting the driver specs.
Portable ? The designs you mention don't look very portable ....
Portable For a notebook ? Two choices - USB powered
for fully portable or just smallish and mains powered.
Trouble is without measurements you be just guessing.
The drivers are cheap enough, but a lot of work to use well.
See madisound for some better option for not much more,
(and in some cases quite a bit less), a 2" really should
not be used FR, 3"ers are generally a lot better.
Hard to say what you want but a class T amp with a
laptop style power supply and something like this :
Zaph|Audio - 4" Bargain Mini (reduced BSC option)
would likely be far more rewarding for the effort expended.
rgds, sreten.
Hi sreten,
Actually, I am hoping to have something small to carry and listen to when reading outside in the garden. Most likely, the speakers will be powered by a tripath amp. In this price range, it is not really so much a question of money (I am willing to consider and buy new 3" drivers - or even two pairs of them - rather than using these 2" that I already have) but - as you wrote - if I spend time cutting wood and putting together cabinets, I would like the result to be rewarding.
As a happy owner of 4.5" Fostex fullrangers in my main system, I was also curious how much can be achieved with 2" drivers in a proper box. Do you know any particular 3" driver that might get me good results without adding a tweeter or crossover? I am willing to take a look at drivers who need some help by EnABLing them as I tried EnABL with other drivers with good results.
Peter
Actually, I am hoping to have something small to carry and listen to when reading outside in the garden. Most likely, the speakers will be powered by a tripath amp. In this price range, it is not really so much a question of money (I am willing to consider and buy new 3" drivers - or even two pairs of them - rather than using these 2" that I already have) but - as you wrote - if I spend time cutting wood and putting together cabinets, I would like the result to be rewarding.
As a happy owner of 4.5" Fostex fullrangers in my main system, I was also curious how much can be achieved with 2" drivers in a proper box. Do you know any particular 3" driver that might get me good results without adding a tweeter or crossover? I am willing to take a look at drivers who need some help by EnABLing them as I tried EnABL with other drivers with good results.
Peter
After some more search in the 3"-3.5" category, it seems uFonken103 with FF85K might fit the bill and people were quite happy with it:
http://homepage.mac.com/tlinespeakers/FAL/box-plans/microFonken-0v9-map.pdf
Still, it would not hurt to know if someone was happy with their 2" speakers...
Peter
http://homepage.mac.com/tlinespeakers/FAL/box-plans/microFonken-0v9-map.pdf
Still, it would not hurt to know if someone was happy with their 2" speakers...
Peter
Hi,
See the info here : Zaph|Audio
http://www.zaphaudio.com/smalltest/
There is no doubt at all Fostex fans ignore the pathetic excursions limits.
That Fonken vented at 100Hz will massively overload below 100Hz.
Small boxes with small drivers should be sealed, full stop.
rgds, sreten.
Best 3" for FR (i.e. no sub) is the Aura NS3 :
http://zaphaudio.com/archives.html see the link.
NS3's currently on sale at Madisound.
See the info here : Zaph|Audio
http://www.zaphaudio.com/smalltest/
There is no doubt at all Fostex fans ignore the pathetic excursions limits.
That Fonken vented at 100Hz will massively overload below 100Hz.
Small boxes with small drivers should be sealed, full stop.
rgds, sreten.
Best 3" for FR (i.e. no sub) is the Aura NS3 :
http://zaphaudio.com/archives.html see the link.
NS3's currently on sale at Madisound.
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Hi sreten,
these are both interesting links with a lot of work done in comparing small drivers. Thank you for those.
Peter
these are both interesting links with a lot of work done in comparing small drivers. Thank you for those.
Peter
Why Why Why I've written my longest post and I didn't save it before forwarding it !!!
What did I say so much important that has to be re-written ???
Nothing at all !! just my 2c
For me it's important to have almost a flat line in frequency , and of course most of the bass can't be reproduced by a 2" ,nor a 3" ,it may start with a 6" ...well ,talking about cheap or average drivers ...those that guarantee high excursion are to be paid a little more.
But from my little experience ,a little fullrange can be paired with a woofer giving great (sonic) rewards . Something like Sequerra Met 7.7 Mk. IV
I've also tried succesfully a little 3/4" , the ones (boxed) that are inside multimedia monitors , with a waveguide , paired with a 7" woofer . Making of the crossover network
is very easy ,and also forgiving for the not-so-experienced DIYer .
That's all !!🙂
What did I say so much important that has to be re-written ???
Nothing at all !! just my 2c
For me it's important to have almost a flat line in frequency , and of course most of the bass can't be reproduced by a 2" ,nor a 3" ,it may start with a 6" ...well ,talking about cheap or average drivers ...those that guarantee high excursion are to be paid a little more.
But from my little experience ,a little fullrange can be paired with a woofer giving great (sonic) rewards . Something like Sequerra Met 7.7 Mk. IV
I've also tried succesfully a little 3/4" , the ones (boxed) that are inside multimedia monitors , with a waveguide , paired with a 7" woofer . Making of the crossover network
is very easy ,and also forgiving for the not-so-experienced DIYer .
That's all !!🙂
+1 re sreten and pico.
I am playing with tangband w2_800sl, they are neo magnet and fs around 160hz. I have 1 driver loaded in a popular potato snack tube 😉
imperfect solution but good enough to know that bass is out of the question, a sense of lower mid 'warmth' is the best youll get. Even with 3inch drivers the bass is neither deep or vaguely loud. 3inch drivers fullrange as a pc speaker used at 1metre is about the best i believe possible. The 2inch tbs are great, but as a mid tweeter, pc speakers or an array.
Extended range would be a better term imho.
I am playing with tangband w2_800sl, they are neo magnet and fs around 160hz. I have 1 driver loaded in a popular potato snack tube 😉
imperfect solution but good enough to know that bass is out of the question, a sense of lower mid 'warmth' is the best youll get. Even with 3inch drivers the bass is neither deep or vaguely loud. 3inch drivers fullrange as a pc speaker used at 1metre is about the best i believe possible. The 2inch tbs are great, but as a mid tweeter, pc speakers or an array.
Extended range would be a better term imho.
Don't forget Mark Audio Alpair 6.2 or Audience A3 which are both WAY more refined than the (very good) Aura (at a price of course)
And Sreten, i think you would be quite surprised with what an FF85k can do in a uFonken. Scott has some if you want to swing past for an audition.
dave
Hi Hebrer,
I'm also considering building small fullrange speakers. What I have in mind is something like this (to be honest I want to build a copy of these). ACRYLIC SEE-THROUGH HORN SPEAKER
I'm also considering building small fullrange speakers. What I have in mind is something like this (to be honest I want to build a copy of these). ACRYLIC SEE-THROUGH HORN SPEAKER
I recently knocked-up something similar for fun using some Bandor 50mm drivers I have. These only require 1.5litres of sealed box, and I found a suitable pair of laminated bamboo utensil pots in a closing-down sale (Habitat!). These got stuffed with dense mineral wool batt offcuts and a front bafle added; enclosed volume about 1.7litres.
Tiny box trial fit:
Dwarfed in situ
These sound better than they have any right to for the minimal amount of effort invested. The spectrum rolls-off top and bottom in a very well-balanced way giving tremendous presence and clarity (and bass down to around 100Hz but with the impresion is they go lower - bass pitch definition is very good indeed). They are almost criminally insensitive, somewhere around 78db/W I reckon, and a lot of fun to listen to.
Tiny box trial fit:
Dwarfed in situ
These sound better than they have any right to for the minimal amount of effort invested. The spectrum rolls-off top and bottom in a very well-balanced way giving tremendous presence and clarity (and bass down to around 100Hz but with the impresion is they go lower - bass pitch definition is very good indeed). They are almost criminally insensitive, somewhere around 78db/W I reckon, and a lot of fun to listen to.
Hi,
I might be ....
But a 0.5mm excursion driver versus a 5mm excursion driver is a no contest.
You would only be interested in the former if very low power is involved.
With any sort of power the latter will go far louder cleanly.
rgds, sreten.
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/misc/bandor4.jpg
very nice flowerpots! id try the same with my alpair5 but i don't think they'd be happy in that volume....That and the fact I haven't seen a Habitat shop north of Hampshire, if at all for several years.
very nice flowerpots! id try the same with my alpair5 but i don't think they'd be happy in that volume....That and the fact I haven't seen a Habitat shop north of Hampshire, if at all for several years.
Not really a horn (more like a poorly thot-out TL), and althou pretty, really hard to get excited about from a (theoretical) functionality POV.
dave
Now that you mention it, I see you are right.
It's a shame, it really does look great.
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