HT Speakers. Please help.

[jasonblackwood]

I'd like to build a set of 5 HT speakers (I already have the sub) The million dollar question is, whose design should I use? The variables involved in this project are as follows:

* budget - my funds are limited so I'd like to stay under $50/speaker if possible
* versatility - these will mostly be utilized for HT use although I'd like the option to use them as bookshelf music speakers down the road
* wall mountable - my floor space is at a premium, they would be mounted at most 6" from the wall

I was thinking about either the DHT Project speakers, or Curt C's TriTrixMT's.
If anyone has any thoughts or ideas, it would be greatly appreciated.

Jason B.

[unknownuser]

Ive heard both the MTM and the TM's. With the budget to performance ratio at a premium, I would go with Curt's design. He manages to keep to part count fairly low and still produces a quality speaker. The TM's will go a long way with a sub.
I havent heard the other design you mentioned but Curt is pretty much regarded an XO guru, and having heard a few of his designs (some he hasnt even heard)I wouldnt argue his statis.


(Originally posted by: new guy)

[Dirk]

> Ive heard both the MTM and the TM's. With
> the budget to performance ratio at a
> premium, I would go with Curt's design. He
> manages to keep to part count fairly low and
> still produces a quality speaker. The TM's
> will go a long way with a sub.
> I havent heard the other design you
> mentioned but Curt is pretty much regarded
> an XO guru, and having heard a few of his
> designs (some he hasnt even heard)I wouldnt
> argue his statis.

Ditto. I trust Curt's design work implicitly.

As I've done the "make the speakers wall-mountable" thing, here are a few things to try out:

Use .5" MDF for the speakers that need to be wall-mounted. Use a .75" front baffle, though. I figure this shaved a bit over a pound from the rear surrounds in my case. Use pine dowels for internal box bracing, and don't be afraid to seal & undersize the rears, especially if you're running them as "small" in the receiver anyway. Initially, you'd think the boxes would be very hollow sounding, but I think the relatively small size & a bit of bracing make things plenty stiff.

[jasonblackwood]

> Ditto. I trust Curt's design work
> implicitly.

> As I've done the "make the speakers
> wall-mountable" thing, here are a few
> things to try out:

> Use .5" MDF for the speakers that need
> to be wall-mounted. Use a .75" front
> baffle, though. I figure this shaved a bit
> over a pound from the rear surrounds in my
> case. Use pine dowels for internal box
> bracing, and don't be afraid to seal &
> undersize the rears, especially if you're
> running them as "small" in the
> receiver anyway. Initially, you'd think the
> boxes would be very hollow sounding, but I
> think the relatively small size & a bit
> of bracing make things plenty stiff.

Thanks very much gents, I think I'll go with the TriTrixMT. I also implicitly trust Curt's design work having built Curt/Robert's UNICC a couple of years ago with outstanding results.

I do however have a few more questions.
* Where should the holes for the drivers and port tube be placed?
* Where should I locate the binding posts? I was thinking of using the 260-302, would these work?
* Does this design use internal foam liner or stuffing?

Thanks again for the info. I'll be sure to post some pics when they're finished.

[johnastockman]

http://custom.smugmug.com/photos/107906123-L.jpg


> Thanks very much gents, I think I'll go with
> the TriTrixMT. I also implicitly trust
> Curt's design work having built
> Curt/Robert's UNICC a couple of years ago
> with outstanding results.

> I do however have a few more questions.
> * Where should the holes for the drivers and
> port tube be placed?
> * Where should I locate the binding posts? I
> was thinking of using the 260-302, would
> these work?
> * Does this design use internal foam liner
> or stuffing?

> Thanks again for the info. I'll be sure to
> post some pics when they're finished.

Jason, I'm building a pair of the TriTrix TM's...here's a pic to show driver placement (right) and on the left, the port location (top) and the hole for the terminal cup. If these are going to be fairly close to the wall, you could have the port on the front. Just keep the baffle width the same...by adding height for the port, you could adjust the depth to keep the same volume. I'm certainly no expert in this area, but I think that as long as the depth isn't too shallow, it won't affect the tuning...but Curt is the master (as I do the "I'm not worthy" bow), so I'm sure he'll speak up if I'm wrong. Those binding posts will work fine...I'm using a "cup" terminal 'cause I have some around that I'm not using. In my cabinets, there'll be a window-pane brace between the tweeter & woofer connecting the front, side and rear walls together. Some of that egg-crate foam will line the walls.

John A.

[johnastockman]

http://custom.smugmug.com/photos/115967261-L.jpg

[DougP]

Provided Link: My HT build (http://home.mchsi.com/~dpeterson/HT.html)


> Thanks very much gents, I think I'll go with
> the TriTrixMT. I also implicitly trust
> Curt's design work having built
> Curt/Robert's UNICC a couple of years ago
> with outstanding results.

> I do however have a few more questions.
> * Where should the holes for the drivers and
> port tube be placed?
> * Where should I locate the binding posts? I
> was thinking of using the 260-302, would
> these work?
> * Does this design use internal foam liner
> or stuffing?

> Thanks again for the info. I'll be sure to
> post some pics when they're finished.

I made Curts MT and MTM I went sealed and cross them over at 80 HZ to my subs. They sound really nice for music or HT. If you ever plan on using them without a sub go ported.

Doug

[curt_c]

> I do however have a few more questions.
> * Where should the holes for the drivers and
> port tube be placed?

There's not much real estate on the front baffle, so the short answer is: The only place they fit.
The tweeter was offset roughly 11/16" from the center, and the top of the tweeter flange, and bottom of the woofer flange is about 1" from the baffle edge.

The port tube s/b on the back behind the tweeter, with the binding posts below it at some aesthetically pleasing spot. If you are going to wall mount them, I see no reason you can't port them out the bottom.

> * Where should I locate the binding posts? I
> was thinking of using the 260-302, would
> these work?

These will work fine, although you will will have to drill a couple of half inch holes to allow for the nuts on the back of the binding post. I prefer the single posts with the long shafts that will reach through the MDF.

> * Does this design use internal foam liner
> or stuffing?

I’m not a big ‘line the walls’ guy. I think we took a small handful of uncompressed polyfill and added it behind each woofer.

> Thanks again for the info. I'll be sure to
> post some pics when they're finished.

Sounds like a great idea!

C

[jasonblackwood]

> There's not much real estate on the front
> baffle, so the short answer is: The only
> place they fit.
> The tweeter was offset roughly 11/16"
> from the center, and the top of the tweeter
> flange, and bottom of the woofer flange is
> about 1" from the baffle edge.

> The port tube s/b on the back behind the
> tweeter, with the binding posts below it at
> some aesthetically pleasing spot. If you are
> going to wall mount them, I see no reason
> you can't port them out the bottom.

> These will work fine, although you will will
> have to drill a couple of half inch holes to
> allow for the nuts on the back of the
> binding post. I prefer the single posts with
> the long shafts that will reach through the
> MDF.

> I’m not a big ‘line the walls’ guy. I think
> we took a small handful of uncompressed
> polyfill and added it behind each woofer.

> Sounds like a great idea!

> C

Thanks a lots everyone for all the info, especially Curt for the feedback and great design. I'm sure I'll be posting more questions during the construction process. Cheers!

Jason B.