# Fancy some DIY speakers? Go open baffles



## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

Hi Folks,

I am new to the DIY scene and have just built some speakers for the very first time. I have gone for open baffle due to the following reasons;

1. Little or no woodworking skills.
2. Minimal tools required.
3. I have a small garage with no work bench.
4. My wife likes speakers to be unobtrusive and contemporary looking - without dominating the room.
5. We both have good ears and can tell a bad speaker from a good one.
6. Limited funds and little experience in the field of speaker building.
7. I need speakers that are clear and non fatiguing - with little or no crossover required.

With these things in mind I decided to source the drivers first and the style of speaker second. 

I am amazed by the results and surprised myself at how good they sound - and all for less than $800 a pair. (I had been prepared to pay up to $3000 for the right models).

My two channel stereo system was first off the blocks. 

I have put about 250 hours of listening on the speakers so far and what strikes me is the clarity in the midrange. The sound is different to the usual but it's addictive. My previous speakers were KEF IQ 30 bookshelf models with dual concentric drive units (6.5 in drivers) These were clear but not as clear as the present combo. 

I will wait for a couple of weeks to see if they are producing enough bass for my tastes. Some DIY'ers have said they take a while to bed in and then the bass comes good. However, so far so good. Very easy to listen to with imaging that is getting better day by day. 

Due to the balanced presentation, I am experiencing no fatigue listening to them especially with quality reproduced music like Jennifer Warnes '' The Hunter '' or Mark Cohn's '' The Rainy Season ". They do reveal poor recordings though, but that is the recording process on some discs, which is exposed by the speakers mid/top end clarity.

I have used drivers from two well known suppliers of open baffle speakers 

a: Hawthorne Audio - Silver Iris 10'' coaxials with compression drivers 
b: Audio Nirvana - Cast Frame full range Super 12' units

Both are supported at the lower end by a 12'' enclosed passive subwoofer driven by a 230 watt dedicated sub amp. 

The playing system is:

Yaqin SD32A HDCD player with tube outputs
30 watt Triode/ Ultra linear Class A tube amp with Mullard EL34's

Together this system is the best sounding I have ever had in my life. I am sure surprised at the speakers though, open baffle bass is different but addictive.......I can never go back to box speakers!

I have some pictures of my system and speakers.

Kind regards Harry Potter


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## jamesfrazier (Jul 24, 2011)

harry potter said:


> Hi Folks, I am new to the DIY scene and have just built some speakers for the very first time. I have gone for open baffle due to the following reasons; 1. Little or no woodworking skills. 2. Minimal tools required. 3. I have a small garage with no work bench. 4. My wife likes speakers to be unobtrusive and contemporary looking - without dominating the room. 5. We both have good ears and can tell a bad speaker from a good one. 6. Limited funds and little experience in the field of speaker building. 7. I need speakers that are clear and non fatiguing - with little or no crossover required. With these things in mind I decided to source the drivers first and the style of speaker second. I am amazed by the results and surprised myself at how good they sound - and all for less than $800 a pair. (I had been prepared to pay up to $3000 for the right models). My two channel stereo system was first off the blocks. I have put about 250 hours of listening on the speakers so far and what strikes me is the clarity in the midrange. The sound is different to the usual but it's addictive. My previous speakers were KEF IQ 30 bookshelf models with dual concentric drive units (6.5 in drivers) These were clear but not as clear as the present combo. I will wait for a couple of weeks to see if they are producing enough bass for my tastes. Some DIY'ers have said they take a while to bed in and then the bass comes good. However, so far so good. Very easy to listen to with imaging that is getting better day by day. Due to the balanced presentation, I am experiencing no fatigue listening to them especially with quality reproduced music like Jennifer Warnes '' The Hunter '' or Mark Cohn's '' The Rainy Season ". They do reveal poor recordings though, but that is the recording process on some discs, which is exposed by the speakers mid/top end clarity. I have used drivers from two well known suppliers of open baffle speakers a: Hawthorne Audio - Silver Iris 10'' coaxials with compression drivers b: Audio Nirvana - Cast Frame full range Super 12' units Both are supported at the lower end by a 12'' enclosed passive subwoofer driven by a 230 watt dedicated sub amp. The playing system is: Yaqin SD32A HDCD player with tube outputs 30 watt Triode/ Ultra linear Class A tube amp with Mullard EL34's Together this system is the best sounding I have ever had in my life. I am sure surprised at the speakers though, open baffle bass is different but addictive.......I can never go back to box speakers! I have some pictures of my system and speakers. Kind regards Harry Potter


Theses are absolutely beautiful! I love the sleek contemporary design. Your speakers look like they came with your in a package along with the rest of your house furnishings. I've never actually heard and open baffle design, or seen any that look like these. ( I have done zero research on open baffles ) 

Tell me, how is the sound?! How does it compare to original box designs? I'm very curious as these just look so cool to me.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

+jamesfrazier 
Harry Potter, they sure don't have rigs like that in Hogwarts! Well done. Beautiful.


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

Hi James and Willis,

Thank you for the positive comments. 

I am quite pleased with my efforts so far....but it is a work in progress. The speakers came about after I read an article by Darrel Hawthorne from Hawthorne Audio, this man has the best way of making difficult technical jargon sound like English. His thoughts are that box speakers colour the sound, at both extremes. 

I tend to agree and he and I believe the best sounds come from within the mid range. This is confirmed by all the open baffle specialists out there (and there are thousands). The speakers need some small low level support on all but the most bass heavy tracks like reggae. But if you like jazz, female vocals and simply miked stuff then they are a treat.

David Dicks from Audio Nirvana has similar views. 
They all seem to say less is more eg full range speakers = less drive units, mid range c larity with brilliant top end and REAL BASS in simple designs with maximum flexibility of room placement.

So,being no expert I decided to give it a go with Hawthorne Silver Iris 10'' coaxial drivers and high compression tweeters. My first pair were bit rough and ready but I posted pictures of them on the Hawthorne Audio website forum and everyone went off at how cool they looked and I was bombarded with replies. 

This gave me the incentive to try again and now I am hooked.

It is the sound that is so captivating - both sets of speakers.........the bigger the driver the better (more low end) have amazing clarity and depth, superb imaging and are not too fussy about room placement or amp power. They are 95% plus efficient and work from the smallest number of watts, solid state or tube.

The first two pairs were made up from the following and take literally a few hours to build over a weekend. 

Each pair consist of :

1. 3 cupboard doors from IKEA
2. 2 aluminium garden posts
3. 2 angle brackets
4. Assorted rubber bungs and stoppers
5. Assorted screws, bolts and spikes
6. 2 cupboard door handles
7. In case of the Hawthorne Silver Iris speaker drivers : 2 x 10'' speakers with a 1'' compression driver attached to each. Total cost: $725 US 
8. In the case of the Audio Nirvana set, the same as above but the drivers from Audio Nirvana were cheaper : 2 x 12'' Super Cast frame full range units. Total cost : $675 US 

You can get all the door colours under the sun from IKEA, such as gloss red, black, matt white with relief patterns etc.

I am totally into this now! Not only do they sound amazing but my wife loves the look so much she has had me make three pairs and she has paid for the materials as she loves the look and sound. I have made a pair for my friend down the street and he loves them!

If you want more info, then just drop me a line.

I am one satisfied customer! It must be magic!

Kind regards Harry Potter


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## studiotech (Apr 27, 2009)

Your whole system and room looks fantastic. Nice job.

Greg


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

*DIY Open baffle speakers - some thoughts and feedback*

Hi Guys, 

Thank you to all those people who made encouraging comments about my first attempts at speaker building. Here are some thoughts about my current speakers.

I have two pairs - one pair for Home theatre: Hawthorn Silver Iris 10'' co-axials with compression drivers and one pair for stereo listening - Audio Nirvana Super 12'' cast frame full range.

They were both built in my garage with the following minimal equipment;

- A two speed drill
- 2 clamps
- a hacksaw
- a small electric jigsaw
- a small tool kit - hammer, pliers, spirit level, screwdriver, set square, ruler, etc 
- a small folding picnic table
- assorted nuts and bolts, rubber grommets and washers and plastic grills

The materials are from various sources:

- IKEA - Assorted coloured kitchen door cupboards and handles ($30 per door)
- 2 black aluminium fence posts from the hardware store ($30 each)
- 2 black angle brackets ($15 a pair)
- 4 pieces of high density foam, cut with the jigsaw ($17 a piece)
- 2 plastic gutter leaf traps ($15 a pair)
- 10'' OB speakers from Hawthorne Audio - $258 a pair - including high compression drivers and minimal
crossovers
- 12'' OB speakers from Audio Nirvana (Common sense Audio) $250 off E Bay (normally $328 a pair)
- assorted nuts, bolts, spikes, cupboard bolts, washers and rubber grommets - $100

Each speaker takes about 5 hours to assemble from scratch and you can be listening to them that evening.

The sound..............let's talk about how good they sound!

1. The bass ! OB bass is way better than box bass. It sounds more real and is full sounding like a real 
instrument. It goes deep enough with a 10'' speaker driver for jazz, female vocals, small ensembles etc but
likes support for heavy tracks like dub, and reggae. Here I supplement the 10'' with a 12'' passive non vented
sub. This fills in the bottom end and the bass is then awesome - with great impact.
2. The midrange! This is where the OB's are really excellent. They produce the most realistic voices and
diction. They are non fatiguing and I can listen to mine for hours. They are particularly good with jazz and 
and piano and bass instruments. The soundscape is tangible, if using them as point source monitors.
3. The top end is sweet, clear and non brittle with both sets of speakers and is integrated into the mix very 
well. I would say the are an overall excellent way to listen to music. They do not get louder when you turn up
the volume........the sound just gets bigger!

You may feel that I an going overboard about these speakers but I must say in 30 years of buying expensive hi fi equipment, These are my best buy ever. Plus, it also feels good to make something that actually lives up to it's expectations.

Open baffle sounds are exactly what people said they should be (the best source of info on the subject without doubt is Darrel Hawthorne - of Hawthorne Audio)

A few words of caution - they need to be tweaked.

- My pairs both sound better on spiked stands, tilted back 7-10 degrees
- the tube stands and are filled with sand and all the fittings are rubber mounted very tightly
- they like to be toed in a little
- they sound great at about 9-10 feet apart, pulled out from the back wall at least 15'' and side walls about a
metre

But apart from those few issues they are fit and forget..............and the more you play them the better they sound.

I wonder why I have not done this DIY thing before!!!!!

Regards Harry Potter


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Best parts list ever! Good impression notes too. Almost like I can hear them.


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## Marksas (Sep 11, 2012)

Great job! Looks fantastic and they are very inspiring. Would love to know more about the construction of these which leads to a couple of questions…

1) what components are in the crossovers for a specific speaker pair? Also, why is a crossover needed for a single driver system? (i'm fairly new to building)

2) what's the purpose of the high density foam? I've never seen that on OB's before.

3) how did you tilt the speakers back using the metal frames? are they adjustable in some way?

4) if you could choose 1 pair to do both stereo and home theater, which would it be and why?

Also, you said you built 2 pairs but it seems like there are more iterations than that. Again, great work and love your total setup.


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

Hi Marksas,


The single speaker system can be confusing.

I found out after I ordered the 10'' co axials from Hawthorn audio, that there were actually two speakers in the package. One was the big driver and another was a small compression driver. The big driver does all the mid range and bass and the small driver does the treble or high frequencies.

They came with instructions which said attach the small driver to the big driver by screwing them together - thus creating one speaker. The crossover came on a framed block of wood already to be attached to the new paired speaker. I did not build the crossover, it came with the package and was simple to install by connecting the leads. The instructions are simple too. In effect it is a single speaker.

The second pair of drivers came from Common Sense Audio - Audio Nirvana 12'' Super's. Now these are single speakers - no crossovers because they are full range from high treble to low bass all in the one driver - amazing and truly a single driver.

Both pairs look as if they are one speaker however, so it can be confusing. The only way to tell, is that the 10'' co axials are deeper at the rear and stick out more at the back of the baffle.

Both speakers are brilliant - however I would choose the co axials for home theatre and stereo as they are more robust and can handle massive amounts of power as they are based on professional drivers. However, my next pair will be 15'' models as they produce more bass without a sub woofer.

The baffles are covered with foam at the back so as to reduce any vibrations in the frames. Open baffle speakers radiate both forwards and backwards and any stray frequencies can be absorbed by the foam. This stops the speakers from smearing the rear radiation, and tightens up the sound.

The frames are tilted by attaching bolts or spikes to the metal feet. These spikes are adjustable using nuts and bolts. The front of the speaker base has large spiked /bolted feet and the back has small ones. The are then covered in rubber stoppers to stop damage to the floors. (if you are on carpet you take the rubber covers off so the spikes can pierce the carpet)

Hope this helps

Kind regards

Harry Potter


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## Marksas (Sep 11, 2012)

Thanks for all the info!


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## studiotech (Apr 27, 2009)

IKEA hacks! Yes, I love this. I was wondering how you got that glossy, grey finish. Now that you mention it, I saw those cabinet doors last time I was there. Great use of preexisting materials. I may copy you for a project.

Greg


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

Hi Greg,

Of course you can. Would you like some of my ideas, simple diagrams and measurements? They are not fancy but they seem to work. 

To make the 10'' co-axial's look and sound better the white front baffle is a piece of matt acrylic plexiglass 
(plexiglass is inert and does not store any energy or create ringing) In other words provides a very 'dead' platform for mounting a speaker)

It was originally a turntable support table that was sitting in the garage, unused now I do not have a record deck.

I enclose some of my earlier attempts at OB's, using these materials.


Cheers Harry


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

*Open Baffles........early attempts Harry Potter*

Hi Greg, 

as I promised.....some earlier efforts of mine.

Feel free to use anything you like

Cheers Harry


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## orion (Sep 18, 2009)

Those are some real nice looking speakers. . I never really considered open baffle for a project but i am curious as to how they would sound for hometheater .


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

*Open Baffles for Home Theatre*

Message for Orion,

Harry Potter here,

I use my Hawthorne 10'' open baffle co-axials for home theatre as front speakers and they are brilliant. I am presently designing an open baffle centre speaker which will contain an 8'' full range speaker to match my 10'' OB driver. 

I have open baffle speakers in the ceiling as rears and they sound great also. I support the open baffles with a sealed enclosure 10'' active sub woofer driven by my Sony Home Theatre receiver.

They are very efficient and go very loud as they are drivers based on professional type speakers. They can produce an amazing sound stage and sweet highs and deep lows. They are great for speaking and diction, much better than boxes. I have replaced a very respected set of Home Theatre speakers from KEF with my open baffles, which are way better at one third of the price to build.

I am selling all my box speakers and moving to OPEN baffles for stereo also.

Regards HP


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## fschris (Oct 31, 2009)

Amazing build... wish I could hear them. Your listening space looks remarkable. Is this going to be featured in a magazine somewhere


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## harry potter (Mar 1, 2015)

Message for fschris,

I am very flattered that you like my humble system. I have a nice home, but nothing special and the two rooms I use are the living room downstairs for stereo (see pics) and an upstairs room for home theatre. I have OB speaker systems in both rooms.

The sound is quite addictive and I will never go back to box type speakers. As for appearing in a magazine article....now that would be interesting, but probably a pipe dream!

Cheers Harry


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