Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

[BeeTL]

OK, my post #1 on this forum will be a doozy!

I have an enclosure design concept that is different enough aesthetically and economical enough to build that I'd like to give speaker building for resale on a small scale a go.

I don't expect to net much at this, at least initially, but I think it could be a nice sideline to my fledgeling guitar company, www.lowecustomguitars.com.

Initially I'm thinking a powered 3" full range satellite/8" sub for computer/iPod/small TV use powered by an internal amp like this, and a 2-way bookshelf style, using something like the Overnight Sensations driver and crossover package.

The cabinet design and finish will be the differentiator, but I'd like the sound of the bookshelves to be on par with my Polk RTis.

Since I mentioned the OS, it looks like Paul Carmody does some speaker design/crossover consulting.

Anyone else I should consider reaching out to?

[Wolf]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designer recommendation?

So- you want to take someone else's design and sell it as a side business?

Not really a good form.

If you have an idea you want assistance on and pay royalty rights for usage, then it shouldn't be an issue.

Just trying to figure out what direction you're heading...

Later,
Wolf

[domwilson]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designer recommendation?

There are ALOT of knowledgeable people on this forum. Curt C., Wolf, Johnny Richards are just a few of the many who could help. Perhaps, with enough reading and asking questions, you could come up with your own designs. Most everyone is very helpful and offer very good advise and/or suggestions.
Welcome to the forum.

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designer recommendation?

So- you want to take someone else's design and sell it as a side business?

Not really a good form.

If you have an idea you want assistance on and pay royalty rights for usage, then it shouldn't be an issue.

Just trying to figure out what direction you're heading...

Later,
Wolf

I think you misread the thread title...I've now capitalized the "ER".

And yes, I am willing to pay a design fee/royalty.

There are ALOT of knowledgeable people on this forum. Curt C., Wolf, Johnny Richards are just a few of the many who could help. Perhaps, with enough reading and asking questions, you could come up with your own designs. Most everyone is very helpful and offer very good advise and/or suggestions.
Welcome to the forum.

Thank you, and I see Wolf has already posted.

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

So, my original idea was a small footprint, modern-design powered-speaker setup that will be equally at home at the gaming desk or in a small home theater.

The satellites would use banana connectors and could be incorporated into a 5.1 setup as well.

I was thinking about using something like this for power:

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-772

...and this for the satellites:

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=264-819

The problem is that plate amp is not readily available.

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

Here's the design concept:



It's completely scalable, up to a 12" sub.

The gray is an aluminum perforated grill, and the blue is tempered glass.

On a side note, I think I need to learn to use CAD/CAM and/or Adobe design programs.



Another thought...if I ended up doing a few different models, I imagined the Dayton RS series of components might be a good line to build around.

Is there another line that's more highly regarded, maybe Tang Band?

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

A friend on another forum suggested the Sure amps from PE would provide a good option for the 2.1 setup.

They are cheap and if I used the 15 watt/channel model, the power supply is also cheap.

He suggested I'd have better luck moving an all inclusive design that simply required 120 volts and an eighth inch stereo input, giving a true 100 dB desktop speaker system with a very nice frequency response.

He also suggested I design and build my own XO from components and use a 4th order bandpass sub-enclosure so I only need to high pass the tops, yielding a cost from PE of about $115 per set.

If I sink another $50 in construction materials I could can sell them at $200 for a tiny profit and compete head to head with the Logitech Z-2300 with a package that looks nicer.

He also suggested it would be nice to get a hold of a real time analyzer to help dial in the crossover.

[Chris Roemer]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

A friend on another forum suggested the Sure amps from PE would provide a good option for the 2.1 setup.

They are cheap and if I used the 15 watt/channel model, the power supply is also cheap.

He suggetsd I'd have better luck moving an all inclusive design that simply required 120 volts and an eighth inch stereo input, giving a true 100 dB desktop speaker system with a very nice frequency response.

H also suggested I design and build my own XO from components and use a 4th order bandpass sub-enclosre so you only need to high pass the tops, yielding a cost from PE is about $115 per set.

If I sink another $50 in construction materials I could can sell them at $200 for a tiny profit and you're competing head to head with the Logitech Z-2300 with a package that looks nicer.

He also suggested it would be nice to get a hold of a real time analyzer to help dial in the crossover.

Looks like you might have your first employee?

That TB 3" can't go very low (not low enough, in my book), and if it did, it would run out of excursion. Maybe a 3" AURA (or ND90) would be better.

[fusseli]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

A well executed DIY costing $160 in parts should smoke a $200 commercial offering. Not expecting much profit is probably realistic. Good luck with your business plan! Sounds like fun.

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

Looks like you might have your first employee?

Employee? No.

Consultant? Perhaps...

That TB 3" can't go very low (not low enough, in my book), and if it did, it would run out of excursion. Maybe a 3" AURA (or ND90) would be better.

I'll look into those.

Is there a single line that offers a "perceived high value" across the board for the consumer, or is mix-and-match the norm in DIY?

A well executed DIY costing $160 in parts should smoke a $200 commercial offering. Not expecting much profit is probably realistic. Good luck with your business plan! Sounds like fun.

On the guitar front I'm finding I enjoy the design and woodworking aspects the most, but I need to improve my electronics skills.

On finishing, I have an HVLP spray rig and have done quite a few basecoat/clearcoat finishes to date.

The speaker-building project looks like a fun sideline, but I need to get the design fundamentals down.

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

I'm re-focusing on the idea of doing a satellite/sub with a 2.1 amp and quality components first, maybe Dayton RS series drivers like the 4" full range and 8" subwoofer.

That was my original plan before I joined the forum and that keeps the project parameters very simple.

I'd prefer to use the Dayton 2.1 plate amp, but it's on backorder so I may try the Keiga KG3100 to start....we'll see how the timing works out.

The Sure Amp/Crossover suggestion came specifically from the lack of availability of the Dayton amp.

I have downloaded WinISD and hope to finalize speaker selection and develop box parameters soon enough.

Assuming that makes sense, where I know I will need help is on crossover design and testing, and that won't likely happen until I start working on a stand-alone two-way design.

[DanHine]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

Here's the design concept:



It's completely scalable, up to a 12" sub.

Looks familiar.

[BeeTL]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

Looks familiar.

Where was that?

That's the first cylinder I've seen that wasn't an extension of the speaker frame, and I've looked for a while.

EDIT:

Found it.

Too funny...probably got the idea there a while back, then forgot about it.

[GranteedEV]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

at the very least, i'm glad you decided to offset the driver on the cylinder, but really a full ranger is rarely a good idea if you want it to appeal to hi fi people that aren't already DIYers.

I would recommend getting in touch with an OEM from whom you can source a driver designed something along the lines of these:

http://reconingspeakers.com/products-page/woofers-3-5-9/kef-kht-3005se-system-4-5-center-coaxial-woofer/

And I would recommend softening the edges on the cylinder where possible.

[domwilson]

Re: Building to resell - speaker designER recommendation?

Start here for the learning...http://techtalk.parts-express.com/sh...d.php?t=219617