I have had most of my equipment for several years. Bought the Mesa new. Just bought the Scoutmaster from a great seller on Audiogon. I know my pieces don't match up so good, but the sound is pretty magical......sometimes. One thing is for sure. I will build another speaker. It is the most frustrating thing I know of, and the most rewarding thing. The real trick seems to be getting everything to sound reasonably good on "all" recordings, and then really good on the music I really appreciate. I have an idea for a speaker that will produce better, tighter bass, but this black speaker with Scanspeak Revelator Tweeter, Scanspeak carbon fiber midrange, and Eton woofer, is the best I have done, in 15 years of trying. (This look with crossovers all over the floor is normal....and yes....my friends do laugh at me.)
some caveats, I don't want a numbers matching car, too expensive, and too afraid to drive. I want to buy a Tempest or LeMans (have actually done it before, but sold the cars off before the modding began), and put a new LS engine in out of wrecked Vette or GTO. Willwood brakes, AirRide suspension. So new technology in a beautiful old body.
Hey Ggg, thanks for the compliments. Have you ever called Mesa Engineering? Nice, and very helpful folks. I got brave and did some cap upgrades myself, with their help. If I recall correctly, those Wimas had very short leads and and were nearly impossible to install. I used V-Caps in the signal path. Learned how to use solder-wick to remove old solder. After that, installing new caps was easy soldering job. Nice to hear someone else likes the Baron. Something quite special about the midrange.
You built those speakers? Very nice! I would have guessed they were some high end jobs costing at LEAST $4,000.00 or $5,000.00 a pair! I have a Mesa Baron....nice amp, but kind of a bit prone to breaking down. Have the tri-tube mod, and will get the cap (Wima?) modification when I have it serviced at authorized shop. Right now its crapped out, but I'll never get rid of it since it sounds so good. Bought a Pass Labs x250.5 to use as I contemplate repairing the Baron. Though it too is a nice amp, it will go once the Baron is up and running again. Well, anyway, good luck with your speaker building....the ones in your pictures look very equivalent to my Alon 4s. I like them....very nice, as I noted before.
No Timrhu, walls are still uncovered. The room sounds so good I don't dare to mess with it. Thanks for the compliment on the speakers! I wish there was some magic way we could all hear eachothers systems as well as look at the pictures.
240zracer, Nice rig! I use to have a 66 goat tri power with 68,000 original miles but sold it a few months ago. I bought it from the original owner which was an older lady and this was her first and only car. It's amazing what these cars sell for in todays market!
Those speakers are absolutely gorgeous. Never would've guessed they were DIY. It's been a while since your last update, have you covered the walls yet?
Didn't strip it off, Dewald.....it was never there. Tell you what I would like though. I would like one of your gimbal ends for a tonearm! My brother works in a wood turning shop. I bet those guys could make a wonderful platter from some nice exotic hardwood. I'm quite certain I could make an arm. You are pretty talented, my friend.
I now see that you stripped off the plaster-panels from the walls. Why dont you take some black linnen and staple it to the 'open' walls? It will give you a psedo-studio effect... I have a box full of sound control panels in the garage just longing to be put up against the wall...
Alfred. Here is a site that I discovered after I built my speakers. www.edgaraudio.com. Take a look at the eVeII speaker. It is very similar to mine and this guy provides a lot of information on his box and crossover design. The Eton 11 inch woofer is very good, but there is now a Scan Speak 8" Revelator that is no doubt better. These are just suggestions, but that woofer with a Revelator slit cone midrange and the $270 tweeter, I think it is the 7100, would be pretty awful good. That will be my next speaker if I ever have the money, that is. You can email me about crossovers if you like, but bear in mind that I am just a hobbiest with ideas. They are not all good ideas and I can prove it:)
Thanks Dewald, I'm finally able to say that vinyl just might be sounding better than the Wadia. Just discovered some really good LPs made by Discwasher in the late seventies.....Climax Jazz Band and Paul Smith the Good Life. They should be on the coffee table with Alison Krauss Live. Speakers are like everything else....there is always room for improvement, but I would describe this pair as an in the park home run. I have built many foul balls over the years.
240, Great attitude- listen wherever it is best! As a speaker builder/designer, I'm sure you have great ears.
Cartridge adjustment is something that must be addressed. I'm on my 5th Lenco DIY and each time I must adjust the cart. Fun when it is "there." The Golden Tiger is equipped with an RB300/ Denon 103R. This combination has fantastic synergy which always hits the spot- tonal balance, soundstage, articulate bass, bloom... On friday night I gave the second Lenco in my system to a dear friend as a birthday gift. (I'm sniffling as I type.) Many comments among the party goers were "which CD is this, what'd you do to the stereo, I'm going to listen to more vinyl, I think I'll only listen to vinyl, didn't know it sounded so good". My buddy was very happy. The thread, Building high-end 'tables cheap at Home Despot II, is relatively new on the 'gon with lots of good information about the Lenco. It is referred to as the baby thread because for some strange reason, accident, or??? the original thread was deleted from Adgon database. It was the longest running thread in 'gon history! One day us Lenco maniacs turned on our computers and puff- it was gone! Conspiracy theories, anyone? Anyway, it is still a very good place to get and ask for information with regards to this fine machine. Be careful, though, you just might get bit.
Hummm, I bet those speakers would go great with a Lenco???
Oregon....I just peeked at your system. Very nice setup. I would bet that the sound is similar to my sound. Tell me more about the Lenco. What cartridge and phono amp are you using? I have a Clearaudio Wood that was boring until I discovered the stylus is tipped forward. Cartridge is now shimmed up at the front of it and tracks at the correct SRA and sounds really quite amazing. I haven't listened to a CD since I fixed the problem.
The room is the lower level of a walkout ranch and therefore the big windows. Nothing intentional as far as designing it for a listening room. No more dust than any other room in my house, but as I said, I make dust when I build speakers and that means I need to seal off this room when I am working.
I'm sure THE answer is a good sized and shaped, and well treated room. This is very simply the best sounding room in my house and I have not spent money on accoustic panels, bass traps, etc.
The lesson I learned is that an untreated drywall room has problems that cannot be overcome by system/speaker design. I'm no genius, Oregon, but I would listen to music in the attic if it was better up there :)
240, Congrats on your fine results with the speakers and the room. This is your basement? From your post that's my understanding, but the window has me confused. Again, was the no drywall intentional, or a nice surprise? Does it stay clean or attract dust, etc?
I listen to vinyl 80% of the time. I love the way it sounds on my Lenco (check out my system).
Your room blows me away- it's simple and probably THE answer.
Oregon, here is my story. I've had my equipment in almost every room in my house, with all the typical room problems, especially with bass. I never got around to finishing my basement and there was a pool table in this room for years. I sold the pool table because I was sick of it, but also because I wondered how this room might be for music. What a wonderful surprize! No more bass problems and I mean I can stand in the corners behind the speakers and the bass is not accentuated even in the corners. The other thing that is good is the cement floor. I no longer "feel" any part of the music, which I always found distracting. I build my speakers, in fact I build them on the other end of this basement, and that is a rather large problem. Not large enough to make me ever move the system though, and I would say to anyone who has such a room to just try it out. I mean who cares what it looks like. I work on a pair of speakers for months before I finally put the crossovers in the boxes and that is actually where I get my enjoyment and satisfaction. These speakers are tuned for a room that is not perfect, but is worlds better than an untreated drywall room. And now after 15 years of trying, I am finally listening to music instead of tweeking speakers in a hostile environment. I'm also discovering vinyl lately just to mention it. Funny thing, I like more kinds of music now days. "The Good Life" with Paul Smith produced by Discwasher is the best recording I've ever heard. Life is good in the ugly room.
240, A unique room it is! Serious question-Is it your intention to NOT use drywall? It never occurred to me, but the insulation might be a great way to control room sound wave artifacts. Most of us purchase rugs, drapes, aftermarket absorbers, psychotherapy to get the right sound, but by leaving out the drywall, this may be something to consider. Again, was this intentional/planned? Also, is it easy to keep clean, do you recommend it?
Mark....I just helped a friend build cabinets for the limited edition Fostex that came out a while back. Those cabinets with the curved horn in the bottom are a bugger to build and very heavy when done. He uses a 2.5 watt SET, and the sound is very open and detailed. I can't imagine building that curved cabinet out of Hickory. My router would be smokin. We used MDF :)
I am building my own speakers but with much less experence thay you. I want the pure single driver sound so I have a pair of Fostex F120A's. Sweet is all I can say. I don't do wood work so well so I am having some cab's built out of Hickory (rock hard and solid wood) We will see how they sound when I get them completed. DIY can be really fun.
Tboooe - the whole house is a man cave! Directly behind the listening area is a Powermatic table saw :) Seriously, my ugly room is By Far the best sounding room in my house. I can't afford a whole bunch of room treatments for upstairs. Kehut, I never raced the Z in events, but I have owned it since 1973, and restored it twice, 250,000 miles. Also restored a 1966 GTO tri-power, 4-speed. I get pretty good stereo from it too.
