# On the edge - Need a little push.



## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

Well I've decided I have some immediate DIY needs.

My front room has ZERO speakers - a 47'' LED TV and Bluray player. I have walls and windows galore. The speakers in this room will mostly be for music and the occasional movie (I have a small dedicated HT room as well that I'll be building for later).

I'm looking at an easy DIY for fronts and subs for now then centers and monitors...amps...yadda yadda yadda. I'd prefer to make this one large project. Purchase all the material, kits, amps, etc. Keep in mind - I don't even have a receiver yet. So this is a "from scratch" fun living area project.

I'll take any recommendations you fellas/ladies have. I'm not too concerned with shaking the house off the foundation, I just want a nice clean sound with a little bump. 

I've been eyeing the TriTrix MTM TL Speaker Package as maybe my first shot at speaker building..but I'm open to your ideas.


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## Lucky7! (Jan 7, 2008)

valdeztke said:


> I'm looking at an easy DIY for fronts and subs for now then centers and monitors...amps...yadda yadda yadda. I'd prefer to make this one large project. Purchase all the material, kits, amps, etc. Keep in mind - I don't even have a receiver yet. So this is a "from scratch" fun living area project.


Unless you are interested in learning electronics don't bother building amps. Just buy a nice AVR and maybe a separate poweramp for the sub if you need it.



valdeztke said:


> I'll take any recommendations you fellas/ladies have. I'm not too concerned with shaking the house off the foundation, I just want a nice clean sound with a little bump.
> 
> I've been eyeing the TriTrix MTM TL Speaker Package as maybe my first shot at speaker building..but I'm open to your ideas.


The TriTrix has a good reputation and the kit seems very reasonably priced. I've not heard it so I can't give a personal rec, but I do encourage you to roll your own speakers.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

valdeztke said:


> Well I've decided I have some immediate DIY needs.
> 
> My front room has ZERO speakers - a 47'' LED TV and Bluray player. I have walls and windows galore. The speakers in this room will mostly be for music and the occasional movie (I have a small dedicated HT room as well that I'll be building for later).
> 
> ...


I think the project is a great idea. You could pair it with a Dayton Reference sub build.


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

lsiberian said:


> I think the project is a great idea. You could pair it with a Dayton Reference sub build.


I think I'll order those as mains for now. Not sure on the sub - need to read up more. I'm not too concerned with the lower end of the scale - Like I said, most of this will be music, but I want to have the option of doing movies down the road.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

valdeztke said:


> I think I'll order those as mains for now. Not sure on the sub - need to read up more. I'm not too concerned with the lower end of the scale - Like I said, most of this will be music, but I want to have the option of doing movies down the road.


TLs like the TriTrix tend to have very good extension. So you can probably get away with going sub less. Though a sub build is a little bit simpler than a speaker one. I built a speaker first myself. 

Do you have the tools yet? 

How are you planning to make the cuts, glue, solder, etc?


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

lsiberian said:


> TLs like the TriTrix tend to have very good extension. So you can probably get away with going sub less. Though a sub build is a little bit simpler than a speaker one. I built a speaker first myself.
> 
> Do you have the tools yet?
> 
> How are you planning to make the cuts, glue, solder, etc?


Thats the tricky part. I have the budget and space to purchase most of the tools I need - I'm just not sure if I'll get all the tools and decide that I'm no longer interested after failing on my first - haha. 

My other option is that I have full access to a fully staffed wood working shop on the military base. They have more tools than I could even dream of owning. Not to mention the place is always crawling with woodworkers. 

I sent some plans for a 6.5 Horn setup to a local woodworker and he wanted $120 to make the cuts for me. 


I'm explain more what I'm looking for in non-audiophile terms. I like punch bass as I have friends over to jam out and listen to music in the living room. I was thinking of maybe one nice sealed 12'' sub and two very clean mains. 

I'm open to any and all ideas. With the help of the fellas on post - I'm sure I could get anything built. The less complicated the better though.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

valdeztke said:


> Thats the tricky part. I have the budget and space to purchase most of the tools I need - I'm just not sure if I'll get all the tools and decide that I'm no longer interested after failing on my first - haha.
> 
> My other option is that I have full access to a fully staffed wood working shop on the military base. They have more tools than I could even dream of owning. Not to mention the place is always crawling with woodworkers.
> 
> ...


Well I use a 

Bosch cs10 7 1/4" circular saw with a Forrest Woodworker I(exceptional blade)
Bosch 1617 Plunge Router with various bits. 
Bosch 1191 Drill with Hitachi wood bits, 
Self clamping straight edge and about 8 bar clamps and 8 corner clamps. 

I used their ebay CPO store(cheaper) 

Tools aren't cheap and must be operated with the utmost respect. Safety needs to be preached for all of us because losing a finger in our society is a big deal(typing is very hard with 9 fingers) 

Building stuff is a lot of fun and is very good for your health assuming you wear eye protection use a dust collection system of some kind(I use a shop vac and connectors for my tools).


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## 1Michael (Nov 2, 2006)

What is the budget, and how big of a speaker can you handle?


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

buggers said:


> What is the budget, and how big of a speaker can you handle?


I haven't measured my space in either my HT or my front room, but I'll make sacrifices for the sound to be good. Budget - 
I have a spot in the front corner that is about 24''x24'' that I could stick a nice subwoofer. 

As far as budget - I'd use the SVS PB12-NSD subwoofer at $599 as my price point.


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

As far as the subwoofer goes - How does a 

Tempest-X2 

Dayton SA1000 or a Dayton HPSA500 500W 

What could I expect from something like this stuffed in the corner sonotube vs a small cube-like ported box?


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## JBL Fan (May 1, 2010)

TriTrix MTM TL Speaker Package as maybe my first shot at speaker building..but I'm open to your ideas.


I have been eyeing the same one, go for it I say. I've been interested in the 1/4 wave length thingy for some time...Very cool package and a fair price..


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## 1Michael (Nov 2, 2006)

The Tritrix is an excellent deal. On the sub, go with the ported.


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

buggers said:


> The Tritrix is an excellent deal. On the sub, go with the ported.


Thanks. 

What do you guys think about picking this up to just get me going? 

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ele/1724477933.html


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## JBL Fan (May 1, 2010)

Go for it but demand to see it played and played loud. The old rule of "there's no replacement for displacement" is true. That's a bad @ss driver.


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

JBL Fan said:


> Go for it but demand to see it played and played loud. The old rule of "there's no replacement for displacement" is true. That's a bad @ss driver.


I asked the seller that if it all checked out (hooked up and turned up) I'd be happy to dish out $200 for it.


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

valdeztke said:


> I asked the seller that if it all checked out (hooked up and turned up) I'd be happy to dish out $200 for it.


Guy sold it for $300.


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## valdeztke (Apr 17, 2010)

Well the TriTrix are on backorder at PE.


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