Which DIY speaker would be better for newer, well-produced metal/rock (Periphery, Jinjer, Born of Osiris, Sevendust etc), the PE Amiga or DIYSG Helix Dome TM? The lows below 50hz will be crossed to a sealed HSU sub.
The "PE Amiga" is obvious to a US resident, https://www.parts-express.com/Amiga-MT-Tower-Speaker-Kit-with-Baffle-Only-300-7122
Only specification is +-2.5 db 35 hz to 20 khz
In questions area somebody said the cabinet version came with 3 braces. Useful. Somebody else said deep bass was impressive. I'd say the port length is impressive. In questions somebody said the woofer was 8".
DIYSG Helix Dome TM is probably https://www.diysoundgroup.com/helix-dome-mtm-kit.html
which does have specifications +-3 db 40 hz - 20 khz sensitivity 91 db 2.83 v@1m impedance 4 ohms 150 W max
Only the front baffle is available apparently.
Questions to answer 1 what is your room size? 2 how hard are the walls floor ceiling ? 3 what sound pressure do you want ? 4 what wattage is your amp and is it 4 ohm capable? 5 can you cut straight MDF sheets? for rest of cabinet? 6 Can you drill & tap holes for the mdf sides & back of the Helix Dome? 7 Where does your hearing roll off? (Most US males over age 12 have nothing left over 7000 hz due to too much loud noise).8 How long are you going to play it loud? (those low wattage woofers may heat up and sound different after hours of near full wattage)
Your choice of source tracks means you don't need an exceptionally smooth voice range. So a 2 way speaker is fine for that.
Only specification is +-2.5 db 35 hz to 20 khz
In questions area somebody said the cabinet version came with 3 braces. Useful. Somebody else said deep bass was impressive. I'd say the port length is impressive. In questions somebody said the woofer was 8".
DIYSG Helix Dome TM is probably https://www.diysoundgroup.com/helix-dome-mtm-kit.html
which does have specifications +-3 db 40 hz - 20 khz sensitivity 91 db 2.83 v@1m impedance 4 ohms 150 W max
Only the front baffle is available apparently.
Questions to answer 1 what is your room size? 2 how hard are the walls floor ceiling ? 3 what sound pressure do you want ? 4 what wattage is your amp and is it 4 ohm capable? 5 can you cut straight MDF sheets? for rest of cabinet? 6 Can you drill & tap holes for the mdf sides & back of the Helix Dome? 7 Where does your hearing roll off? (Most US males over age 12 have nothing left over 7000 hz due to too much loud noise).8 How long are you going to play it loud? (those low wattage woofers may heat up and sound different after hours of near full wattage)
Your choice of source tracks means you don't need an exceptionally smooth voice range. So a 2 way speaker is fine for that.
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Room is a small-medium open living room. They'd be sitting about 9 feet apart on a wall that is about 20 feet long, with the total area being about 20x15 with 9' ceilings. Normal sheetrock walls and ceiling. Hard vinyl floors but will have a big rug in the main seating area, about 9x12.
My NAD t757 is 4-ohm capable, and can put out over 100 watts in stereo. Loud listening sessions (95-100db) wouldn't last hours long - maybe an hour at most. Again, I will be using a 15" sub to cover everything from 50hz down. I may even cross at 60hz, but prefer not to cross above that due to localization.
DIYSG has flatpacks available for the Helix to finish them. I can drill holes for the tube and speaker inputs.
My hearing is normal up to 8K hz and starts to fall around 9K. Which is odd, because I'm constantly asking my girlfriend "what?" I think it's just her mumbling though. 🤣
I would also ask, are you going to be high passing the speakers at 50 hz? The Helix mt is 88 db, but it handles more wattage than the Amiga, and if you high pass it, you'll lessen the excursion to the mid woofer, clean up the midrange, and be able to push more power to it. Since you're using a sub, I would pick the Helix. Erich is waiting on flat packs, but the mt is listed as in stock. The mtm, at 91 db is not. Jeff, or Paul, either of them are ( were, RIP Jeff) designers that have earned high acclaim over a gig period of time. Glenn.
I did not hear any of those, but pure on the reputation of the designer, the Amiga is build by a rock musician (Paul Camody), the Helix by a Jef Bagby (R.I.P.) who is more into all kind of music and points his speakers more to a general good sounding than fit for rock. Both know how toe build speakers right, but Paul Camody tend to make it more coloured on purpose (but very subtile) to fit his style and Jef Bagby wanted them to be as neutral as possible.
What you prefer, i can't tell, some like it coloured some like it neutral.
Btw, for rock i like more big oldskool type of speakers, so big cabinets with big drivers like the Calpamof of Humble Home hifi or the Asathor. But those are way bigger and more expensive to build i'm affraid.
What you prefer, i can't tell, some like it coloured some like it neutral.
Btw, for rock i like more big oldskool type of speakers, so big cabinets with big drivers like the Calpamof of Humble Home hifi or the Asathor. But those are way bigger and more expensive to build i'm affraid.
I'm not sure what the true definition of "high pass" is, but my NAD will be pushing everything below 50 (possibly 60) hz to my sub.
High pass would be a crossover for the mt section to cut the lower frequencies so that it didn't have to play them, and only the sub would be taking care of that. AVR's have large/small settings, and some have adjustable frequency control, but since you have the NAD, if it's two channel only, it would be sending the full range to the mt. I would still choose the Helix due to it being a higher sensitivity. I like my rock and metal louder than I do when I'm in a jazz mood. Does the NAD have tone controls?
I just looked at your model and it shows that you should have manual control on crossover options, so you should be golden, and sub and preamp outs, as well as tone controls. Out of the Amiga and the Helix, I, personally, would still go with the Helix mt for the drivers, and the higher sensitivity. Good luck! Glenn.
The Tarkus by Paul Carmody was built with electric guitar reproduction in mind, well worth a look at and drivers are surprisingly affordable. Lots of builds out there and his page gives a few options.
https://sites.google.com/site/undefinition/floorstanding-speakers/tarkus
If you want something a bit more modern and analytical/detailed with fast dynamic bass the have a look at the Bagby/Shadzi Ceramicos. These use the SB Aluminium ceramic drivers with two 8” woofers in a sealed enclosure plus the 6” mid and SB26CDC tweeter.
https://www.facebook.com/midwestaud...scus-audio-group-where-they/1250906558375154/
The final option if you need a stand mount speaker may be the Bagby/Shadzi Helios Common Man. Using the SB23NBAC woofer with a passive radiator and the SB26SDAC tweeter.
https://meniscusaudio.com/product/the-helios-cm-loudspeaker-kit/
https://sites.google.com/site/undefinition/floorstanding-speakers/tarkus
If you want something a bit more modern and analytical/detailed with fast dynamic bass the have a look at the Bagby/Shadzi Ceramicos. These use the SB Aluminium ceramic drivers with two 8” woofers in a sealed enclosure plus the 6” mid and SB26CDC tweeter.
https://www.facebook.com/midwestaud...scus-audio-group-where-they/1250906558375154/
The final option if you need a stand mount speaker may be the Bagby/Shadzi Helios Common Man. Using the SB23NBAC woofer with a passive radiator and the SB26SDAC tweeter.
https://meniscusaudio.com/product/the-helios-cm-loudspeaker-kit/
You should be fine with either. Happy shopping & building.
Both companies are in Ohio US & ship free over $100 so there is no difference there either.
Helios were great, but not the CM in my opinion.
Tarkus were great too.
To be honest, neither are right for metal of your selections.
You need a knockdown kit? How knocked down? No cutting of holes or anything required?
Tarkus were great too.
To be honest, neither are right for metal of your selections.
You need a knockdown kit? How knocked down? No cutting of holes or anything required?
I may be able to find someone local on the Nextdoor app or something who has more tools/experience than me to help me cut holes. Otherwise, I simply don't have the tools do build from scratch. I've built some furniture pieces here and there over the years, but they were meant to be a blend of rustic/antiqued, so not being perfectly square in every single cut wasn't a big deal.
In USA, Meniscus Audio has many good kits as well!
https://meniscusaudio.com/product-category/speaker-kits/
On the other hand, PE sells also pretty and good cabinets for their kits. Some are easy to mod for Meniscus kits.
https://www.parts-express.com/speaker-components/Speaker-Subwoofer-Cabinet-Enclosures
https://meniscusaudio.com/product-category/speaker-kits/
On the other hand, PE sells also pretty and good cabinets for their kits. Some are easy to mod for Meniscus kits.
https://www.parts-express.com/speaker-components/Speaker-Subwoofer-Cabinet-Enclosures
If smaller professional speakers for sound reinforcement would be suitable to listen to this kind of music at home, something like JBL EON (2 way horn) should be a good choice, I guess. Why dome tweeter?
To be honest, metal is best in 3-ways. It has to do with immediacy of the attack and dynamics. I would also recommend a planar/ribbon tweeter if possible.
I also feel subs are not the right answer. The tuneful tones of electric bass, 8-string guitars, and kick drum really need to have woofers to walk the range and be accurate. Don't discount the lower HD drivers for metal too, as cleaner reproduced metal sounds better like cleaner jazz does.
The Amiga has a threshold of output and can't go higher, but the highpass will help in your case. The Helix might be easier on the ears due to diaphragm materials.
I also feel subs are not the right answer. The tuneful tones of electric bass, 8-string guitars, and kick drum really need to have woofers to walk the range and be accurate. Don't discount the lower HD drivers for metal too, as cleaner reproduced metal sounds better like cleaner jazz does.
The Amiga has a threshold of output and can't go higher, but the highpass will help in your case. The Helix might be easier on the ears due to diaphragm materials.
Thanks Wolf. I had a pair of Martin Logan Motion 40's for a couple of years. I liked them, but the sweet spot was kinda small. I've been wanting to try DIY for a while so I sold them to help fund this project. What other recommendations would you have that may be better in the <$500/pair range?