# Is it worth it to build my own?



## Buggins (Jan 20, 2011)

I've been doing a fair bit of reading here and am interested in building a set of towers to complement my polk set-up.

What I want to know is, at my budget level, would the trouble even be worth it. I would like to be able to build something similar to the Polk RTI10 which are currently $250 a piece at future shop.

So if I went ahead and purchased all the drivers and materials, would I come out with a speaker that would be all that much better than the Polks? Or would it really be close to the same value?

I don't care about the labor/time cost, just drivers and materials.

I have been thinking that if I'm only looking to spend about $300-400 on building my own speakers, there might not be much of a cost savings at my low budget level.

Opinions?

And yes, another reason that I want to build my own is the pride factor. It would be nice to show off an excellent set of speakers and know that I built them myself.


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## Guest (Jan 24, 2011)

How do you want to complement your polks? Are you wanting to build rear speakers, replace your polks?

In your budget range, you are not going to be able to build as full range of speakers as the polks that you have now. What are you using your speakers for, or want to use the new ones for? HT, music, games? Are you using a sub, have a modern AVR?


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## Buggins (Jan 20, 2011)

Sorry, I should clarify.

I don't currently have the polk RTI10 towers (I'm using a pair of polk bookshelf that I want to move to my rear surrounds.) The reason I mention the RTI10s, is that I have listened to the and really like them, so I'm using them as a comparison. I'm looking to build a set of towers that would rival these for less money, or blow them out of the water for the same money.

I have a yamaha 6063 (7.1 90 watts rms) receiver. I have a polk csia4 for the center, and 4 polk m10s for the front and rears. 

I use this for about 50% music and HT.

I really want more bottom end from my towers as I like listening to music in 2 channel stereo and want something with punchy bass without having to use my sub all the time.


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## Guest (Jan 24, 2011)

What sub are you using? Really, I can't think of any DIY kits or plans in your price range that would have the low end that you want.

This is the cheapest full range speaker kit I know of. https://www.madisound.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=35_438&products_id=8691 You would probably want to use a external amp too, but if your wanting some really nice full range musical speakers, that should have you covered.

Your best bet would probably be to upgrade to a better sub, or setup so it blends in really well with your mains and you get better bass. Why do you not want to use your sub?

Another problem is, if you replace just the fronts, it won't match the center. It sounds like you might just be after better bass. No?


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## 1Michael (Nov 2, 2006)

I would test this http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/diy-speakers/18814-budget-8-dayton-classic-mtm-rocks.html against those Polks any time...


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## Buggins (Jan 20, 2011)

I definitely want more bass, but I don't want to sacrifice clarity and natural sound either. The reason I don't want to use the sub all the time is because I just find my sub too muddy sounding. I would rather upgrade my towers and ditch the sub entirely. At least until I want to get serious about building a nice sub.

Michael, that looks exactly like something I would be interested in building. I dig the two 8 inch woofers, that thing looks like it could really hammer. However, wouldn't you need a midrange to cover the full spectrum? Sorry for my ignorance, I'm new to this.

Also, would I have to build my own crossover, or are there any decent pre-made crossovers that would work in that setup?

Thanks


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## 1Michael (Nov 2, 2006)

Buggins said:


> However, wouldn't you need a midrange to cover the full spectrum?


No.


Buggins said:


> Also, would I have to build my own crossover,


Yes. That would be the Y in the DIY :T


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## Guest (Jan 25, 2011)

The problem with ditching your sub is, movies send information, only to your sub. I kind of looked at your AVR a little the other day. Does it even have an option to run in full range?

If you like the mids and tweets of your Polks, then a good sub will solve all your problems. If you just build a set of DIY speakers for the left and right, then it won't match your center. Now, if you can run full range out of your B speakers, you might enjoy that dayton classic project for music only, but you still have a sub problem. Your movies will be incomplete without one.


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Buggins, I think I would recommend sticking with the Polks. They should match the sound of your centre pretty closely, they have a good frequency response and should give you decent bass without a sub, plus they're nice looking. I'm a big advocate of DIY, but since you have speakers already that will match these, and it will be a challenge to beat them at that price while finding a similar sound, I think you should hold off and build a nice tight DIY sub when you're ready for your next upgrade. The RTi-10s get good reviews and should suit you nicely.


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