The All Purpose Advice Thread

I thought we were supposed to get a speaker advice thread (to clean up the speaker area from all the rando advice threads). Anyway, I'm still on the fence for the midrange/treble configuration for my planned DIY OB speakers. I'm pretty set on the Eminence Beta 15 for the bass however. 1 or 2 per side depending on the efficiency of the drivers. Analog crossover, none of that digital shit. I know how to measure impedance and use software to design crossovers. Would prefer to go as simple as possible but the Beta15 has a pretty nasty voice coil inductance.
My room seems pretty well suited for OB speakers as it's fairly long (7m/23ft), but not very wide (3m/10ft). The speakers will be driven by my Ragnarok.
Anyway, tagging @Marvey, @shaizada, @OJneg. I'm sure there are others who can help me too.

Right now I have the following drivers on my shortlist. I had my eyes on a few others but they all went for one reason or another:

• Accuton C173-6-090
• Lowther DX3
• Moth Cicada

The C173 is super expensive. I know the choices are very different and it's basically a question of philosophy, wide bander or not?
I would want to use one of the Accuton tweeters for it. Currently looking at the C30-6-024 and C25-6-013 as the impedance seems well suited for a 1st order crossover. Not sure I'd want to run the smaller driver near its limits tho.

Marv essentially already wrote down his thoughts in the High End 2016 thread.
In the end this is a very personal choice and not one that someone else could make for me.

I really want my HD800 plankton but I also need smooth, extended treble with no or only very minor resonances. I fear that the Lowther will distort too much at high volumes. I'm also strongly considering getting a tube amp in the future (if money permits; after the TT ), so I would like at least 93db sensitivity and not too low an impedance. The C173 has a DC resistance of 6.61 Ohm which I think should be high enough. If the Accuton is clearer, less colored, smoother and images better it could make up for a difference in absolute resolution to me. I won't be running any of the drivers without a crossover anyway. I'm pretty sure I will end up with some kind of EQ circuit for the Lowther anyway. The Cicada listing on US audio mart just expired. I'd also not feel comfortable paying more than 500$ for a driver that used to be $120/piece or so 10 years ago. I'd also feel bad for not getting the super sexy Cicada cabinets (that fit the red Utopia magnets quite well).

The speakers have to be very neutral in the midrange, as they will be my neutral reference for quite some time.

Other drivers:
The C90-6-724 was also pretty high on my list, but it's lower sensitivity and weird FR to the back make it seem less suited for my needs. Also @shaizada now seems to prefer the Marten Coltrane Tenor over the other offerings with the CELL drivers, but I'm wondering how much of that is due to the challenges and tradeoffs associated with 1st order crossovers. The C90 with a notch filter seems very well suited for a 1st order crossover.
There are also other full range drivers which are potentially very interesting, like the AER. I would also like to hear the Etheraudio driver. All of these drivers are at the very end of my budget or above. I wouldn't want to spend more than 2500€ on drivers alone.

I'm wondering if I should just wait until after the November meet. I might have to wait anyway depending on how much I spend on the flight. I don't think there is any other opportunity for me to listen to what I'm looking for and the best way to decide would be to just buy 2 drivers or more and then sell the losers at a loss.


Anyway, I hope someone can offer some more thoughts on this. I know I've asked a few of you already. Sorry for this long rambling post.

 

@Serious , those are some very different kind of drivers you have listed. What this tell me is that you have some more legwork that needs to be done so you can narrow your choices even further. Accuton drivers sound different from the Lowther DX3/Cicada drivers. Single driver speakers tend not to work best with very loud driver excursions, yet are magical within their limits.

Likewise, Accuton drivers can sound amazing AND sound like crap depending on what the designer is able to do. Further, even if a designer is accomplished, he might not always get it right with the Accuton drivers. I haven't fallen in love with most of the Accuton implementations out there (Kharma, Tidal, Gemma Audio, and even CURRENT generation Marten Speakers using the 1st order crossovers).

For you to seek fulfillment from ANY of your above choices, you will need to understand what appeals to you internally first. Then seek designs and drivers you can put together to achieve that target. This is not easy at all. I have a friend who bought the best Accuton drivers, and played around with crossovers for years and STILL could not get close to a well designed 2 way Marten Speaker. Its just NOT that easy to do in my honest opinion. However, if your goal is to learn and get good at it, you can definitely pull it off.

My only advice would be to be critical of yourself when you sit down to listen. Every design has compromises, so see which compromises you can live with and which you can't.

For a high quality DIY return on effort invested, I would look into single driver speakers. They can be magical and truly rewarding!! Good luck.

 

Also interested in this. I've got a massive collection of CDs just sitting in storage. Though for me, I'd probably want to keep it under $400.

 

I would have put this in general advice but I wanted to do a poll since I've narrowed down to some specific setups so I hope this is acceptable.

Jotun is not an option because I MUST be able to switch to a 220v wall wart due to an upcoming move overseas in a year or so (also I don't think I could get together 500 for amp+DAC anyway). *edit* After that I will be returning to the US for several months at a time so I must be able to switch back and forth between voltages. I don't anticipate having more than $350 or so max to spend. Most listening is through AKG K7XX.

So these are the options that I've come up with. I appreciate a quick vote.

Here are my music preferences as seen in my profile page:

 

What do you have now? Maybe saving for a year, then going Jotun 230v + Modibit would make more sense.

 

I am considering the new Dragonfly because it is so small and versatile. Line out for speakers, amplifier or headphone and done.

 

If you search the used market:

Modi MB + Vali2 = $350 ($200+$150 give or take)

Modi MB + Vali = $300

 

Maybe one of the Geek Out v2s?

 

The only DAC/Amp I have now is Fiio Q1. As you can see this is an urgent need.

If I do go with a mobile solution it will probably be the Leckerton since it seems to be so universally praised but in the end I probably won't be going with a mobile solution because this is for listening at my computer.

 

I haven't heard either the new dragonfly or the new meridian but the original explorer beat out the original dragonfly by quite some margin to my ears.

https://www.meridian-audio.com/products/computer-audio/explorer2/

 

There is one obvious thingy missing from the list, and you need 500$.

 

GOV2 would actually be a great option IMO. If you aren't gravitating towards the desktop mini-stack look (which I totally get).

 

I assume you're talking about Jotunheim. Unfortunately it simply does not meet my need to be able to transport back-and-forth between 110 and 220v countries.

This requirement is non-negotiable.

 

So the GOV2 will offer equally good SQ as any of the other options I listed?

 

It's punching in that weight category. Maybe slightly shy. But highly portable...that may come in handy...

 

The DAC won't sound as absolutely great as the Modi Multibit, but it's close if you're using the balanced output. The GO2a is better than the GOV2 and should be out soon. Or check if Bill-P's GOV2+ is still available, he had an incredible price on that unit and with the + you get the benefit of the built in battery.

 

Im picking up the Fender Squier today

 

Squier Vintage Modifieds are a pretty safe bet. That Jaguar-body looks great too! Quality in chinese guitars and basses is quite good these days. Please post your impressions.