C-Note MT Bookshelf Speaker Kit Pair & Other kits

[emmettbrown]

I'm genuinely curious about this speaker.
Has anyone compared this to anything thats non DIY and commercially available ? Kef bookshelf ?

[Geoff Millar]

I haven't built this speaker, but the reviews are very good, especially considering the price. In Australia, even counting shipping - very expensive - these would be about A$220: the cheapest KEF speaker here is about A$500 per pair and to my ears they don't sound that good.

Apart from appearance, and you could get a kind cabinet maker to make and finish the cabinets for you, a well sorted DIY design will outperform a commercial speaker at the same price point, at least, in the Australian market where mark ups and shipping are relatively high. 'Budget' commercial speakers such as the Pioneer Andrew Jones series are about twice the price here as in the US.

Of course there is a hidden cost in DIY: your labour, but if you regard it as a hobby, your time is free

Geoff

[Waltzilla]

I have A/B my C-notes against some Klipsch R-15m. The C-notes put out higher SPL than the klipsch at a given volume setting. I felt the mids were cleaner and there wasn't the bass bump in the bottom end. My friend who was listening with me commented that the klipsch had "more bass". But to me they sounded boomy and not as clean.(the klipsch).

[emmettbrown]

Thanks for the feedback Geoff & Waltzilla.

Waltzilla, did you do the capacitor mod to your crossovers ? Do you find the sound fatiguing at all ?

[Waltzilla]

I did use the cap mod. I figured the cost was negligible and it was my first kit build. I don't find them fatigueing at all. With that said, I witnessed enough 70's arena rock and dive bar bands with 100 watt Marshall heads that my hearing is probably suspect. 😉

[Waltzilla]

[emmettbrown]

Thanks for the feedback Waltzilla.

[emmettbrown]

Has anyone found the break up of the aluminium mid bass driver to be an "issue" with the standard crossover ?

[ceiol]

Has anyone found the break up of the aluminium mid bass driver to be an "issue" with the standard crossover ?

No audible difference to me.

Here is the effect of the 0.22 uF capacitor

[emmettbrown]

Thank you Ceiol.

[JohnBooty]

Finally assembled mine last night and I am very, very impressed. Chris_Perez should take a bow!

The MDF cabinets are weighty, solid, and highly precise: up to PartsExpress/Denovo's usual excellent standards. The PDF instructions and YouTube video are a new high for PE.

Detail and neutrality are unheard-of at this price. While PE has chosen not to market them as studio monitors, these are studio monitors. They compare very favorably with the JBL LSR305s, with the only difference being that the LSR305s have fuller-sounding bass. In fact, bass is the only thing that puzzled me a bit about these. The claimed 43hz extension may be accurate but it still sounds rather thin on the low end. For recreational listening (as opposed to studio work) I'd say they borderline "need" a subwoofer.

When paired with a subwoofer, particularly when the C-Notes can be high-passed at 60 or 80hz, wow. With a subwoofer or two handling low-end duties they really shine! My wife and I thought they were clearly superior to our KEF Q100s.

Deciding between the C-Notes and the Overnight Sensations present a very interesting choice to buyers. The Overnights have that fat bass sound and more "fun" without a subwoofer for many types of music. I would call the Overnight Sensations the ultimate $130 party speakers, whereas the C-Notes deliver a truly neutral audiophile (or studio) sound.

Question for those that have built the C-Notes: Those woofers are fairy heavy; yet the woofers offer only four small screw holes. Did you do anything extra to secure the screws? I was thinking about adding a dab of wood glue or that threadlocker stuff. But maybe I'm being paranoid.

[Evan Steeves]

Finally assembled mine last night and I am very, very impressed. Chris_Perez should take a bow!

The MDF cabinets are weighty, solid, and highly precise: up to PartsExpress/Denovo's usual excellent standards. The PDF instructions and YouTube video are a new high for PE.

Detail and neutrality are unheard-of at this price. While PE has chosen not to market them as studio monitors, these are studio monitors. They compare very favorably with the JBL LSR305s, with the only difference being that the LSR305s have fuller-sounding bass. In fact, bass is the only thing that puzzled me a bit about these. The claimed 43hz extension may be accurate but it still sounds rather thin on the low end. For recreational listening (as opposed to studio work) I'd say they borderline "need" a subwoofer.

When paired with a subwoofer, particularly when the C-Notes can be high-passed at 60 or 80hz, wow. With a subwoofer or two handling low-end duties they really shine! My wife and I thought they were clearly superior to our KEF Q100s.

Deciding between the C-Notes and the Overnight Sensations present a very interesting choice to buyers. The Overnights have that fat bass sound and more "fun" without a subwoofer for many types of music. I would call the Overnight Sensations the ultimate $130 party speakers, whereas the C-Notes deliver a truly neutral audiophile (or studio) sound.

Question for those that have built the C-Notes: Those woofers are fairy heavy; yet the woofers offer only four small screw holes. Did you do anything extra to secure the screws? I was thinking about adding a dab of wood glue or that threadlocker stuff. But maybe I'm being paranoid.

Great review, thanks! Since I use these mainly as surround speakers (and I do 5ch mono for parties) I didn't notice any lacking bass since my Amiga towers take most of that duty (no sub built yet) but I have to agree on the clarity and great midbass sound (like you said above about 50-60Hz)

As for your question, despite being heavy, I have experienced no issue with these drivers secured using only 4 screws. They have been built for about 8 months and are still as solid as the day I built them. Also, since they are mounted with screws facing horizontally, the actual MDF will be taking most of the load. Since tolerances on the hole are pretty tight, I really don't think you have anything to worry about.

Happy listening!

[Millstonemike]

As for your question, despite being heavy, I have experienced no issue with these drivers secured using only 4 screws. They have been built for about 8 months and are still as solid as the day I built them. Also, since they are mounted with screws facing horizontally, the actual MDF will be taking most of the load. Since tolerances on the hole are pretty tight, I really don't think you have anything to worry about.Happy listening!

The woofer is only 2.75" deep from face-plate mount to the back of the magnet. That limits the "torque" applied to the driver from gravity.

Any future issues ... my go-to solution is to fill the hole with wood glue and let the mdf absorb it for a few minutes. Then install the driver and screws and lay the speaker on its back for a day. The glue dries rock hard and creates a "threaded" hole that matches the screw. And since it's wood glue, the screw can be readily backed out (unlike epoxy, etc.).

Very useful when a driver is installed and removed several times such as experimenting with stuffing.

[flyinglotus1983]

Hi, I just purchased the C-Note kit. This is my first bookshelf / indoor speaker project (I come from the world of car audio). I'm pretty excited about this build, but had a quick question. What damping material, if any, should i use between the speaker enclosure and my desk? It seems that most people that have built C-Notes or Overnight Sensations don't install any hardware on the bottom of the enclosure. No feet, spikes, rubber pads, felt pads, etc. Wouldn't this create audible resonances and annoying noises? Or am I over-thinking it?

[Jeff F.]

Hi, I just purchased the C-Note kit. This is my first bookshelf / indoor speaker project (I come from the world of car audio). I'm pretty excited about this build, but had a quick question. What damping material, if any, should i use between the speaker enclosure and my desk? It seems that most people that have built C-Notes or Overnight Sensations don't install any hardware on the bottom of the enclosure. No feet, spikes, rubber pads, felt pads, etc. Wouldn't this create audible resonances and annoying noises? Or am I over-thinking it?

I always use rubber feet on the bottom of my speaker cabinets. I use different sizes based on the cabinet size/weight. I used these https://www.parts-express.com/penn-e...31-h--260-7706 on my OS's and I think they would work for the C-Note's too. I usually look for a low profile height, I don't want my speakers looking like they are on stilts.