danyman

iTrader: (1)

go custom xover or go active with the DIY setup.. and the daton setup sounds good.. heard my buddies system 3way diy all peerless and it sounds alot better than 1000$ car speakers and it was ruffly around the 200 250$ mark

danyman

iTrader: (1)

if u call up solen and tell them what u want to buy and how its gonn abe setup they can make u a xover just be prepared to pay a little.. 2way is around 200$ somewhere near there

sheathensemble

wow, thanks for the heads up Dany! but i was thinking more in the 20-60 dollar range lol. These stories of peoples success with DIY is really giving me the push to get it all sorted out.

Cheers, Sheath

Dukk

IMO go active. You have a 5ch amp so it's perfect for a biamped front stage and a sub.

Sinemeup

What kind of processors would you suggest Dukk for someone entering the active realm? (and possibly on the cheap)

sheathensemble

Hello again! So I took some time to do a quick write up about what i have selected for my 3-way setup, what I already have and my general blueprint. Please take the time to look it over. I understand this is child's play to most of you, but I am new at this and could really use any assistance you can provide!

Here is a list of what I already have:

- Rockford P3d412 12" sub running at 2 ohms off the pdx-5 mono channel.(small sealed MDF enclosure)
- clarion 7 band EQ (+ 1' rca cable)
- head unit: Kenwood KDC-MP745U
- standard car audio rca hook-ups
- 14 g speaker wire
- female to male Y- connects (for bridging)




Here's the details:

- running 3 ways in front stage (no rears)
- BRIDGED PDX 5 (specs read 150 watts rms [@ 4 ohms], but I have read that the amp is very underrated and realistically gives out 200 watts rms per channel while bridged)
- Going to go passive (reasons: it's cheap, simple and I am going to be running a 3 way system which would bring another amp into the equation.)




Components I am looking at using, including specs (prices listed aswell):


TWEETER:
Dayton RS28F-4 1-1/8" Silk Dome Tweeter ($49.75 ea)
SPECS: 100 watts RMS/150 watts max (with appropriate crossover) *VCdia: 1-1/8" *Impedance: 4 ohms *Re: 3.0 ohms *Frequency range: 1,600-20,000 Hz *Fs: 541 Hz *SPL: 88 dB 1W/1m


MID-RANGE:
Tang Band W4-1658SB 4" Midbass Driver ($72.56 ea)
SPECS: 45 watts RMS/90 watts max *VCdia: 2" *Impedance: 4 ohms *Re: 3.8 ohms *Frequency range: 55-6,000 Hz *Fs: 55 Hz *SPL: 87 dB 1W/1m *Vas: 0.26 cu. ft. *Qms: 8.84 *Qes: 0.41 *Qts: 0.39 *Xmax: 4.5 mm



POSSIBLE WOOFER CHOICES:
CHOICE # 1- Vifa NE180W-04 6-1/2" Full Range Woofer ($99.94 ea)
SPECS: 80 watts RMS/160 watts max *VCdia: 1-1/2" *Le: 0.08 mH *Impedance: 4 ohms *Re: 3.3 ohms *Frequency range: 40-4,000 Hz *Fs: 39 Hz *SPL: 89.8 2.83V/1m *Vas: 0.79 cu. ft. *Qms: 8.6 *Qes: 0.30 *Qts: 0.29 *Xmax: 5 mm


CHOICE #2- Dayton RS180-4 7" Reference Woofer 4 Ohm ($45.94 ea)
SPECS: 60 watts RMS/90 watts max * VCdia: 1.5" * Le: .51 mH * Impedance: 4 ohms * Re: 2.9 ohms * Frequency range: 40-2,200 Hz * Fs: 40 Hz * SPL: 91 dB 2.83V/1m, 88 dB 1W/1m * Vas: .86 cu. ft. * Qms: 2.66 * Qes: .62 * Qts: .50 * Xmax: 6mm



CROSSOVER:
Swiss-Audio-3Way-Pro-Crossovers ($39.99/ PAIR)

DETAILS: 3 Way Crossover Network
Input, Tweeter Output, Midrange Output
Power Handling: 200 Watts RMS, 400 Watts MAX
Crossover points: 2,200Hz Mid, 5,000Hz Tweeter
4 Ohm Impedance
Circuit protection wwith Poly switch anti-blow components
Mounting hardware included
Sold in pairs

My worries:

-So based on these specs, which woofer would be more ideal ?(given the crossover point is at 2,200 hz)

- Does the standard 3-way crossover split the power supply perfectly into the 3 speakers? (ex. 210 watts rms = 70 watts rms per speaker in the 3-way setup)

- The mid-range driver has pretty low power handling @ 45 watts RMS/90 watts max.


Please, fill me in if you see a flaw with combining these components. If you know of a driver that you feel would compliment this setup more than the ones I have selected. Let me know and provide links if possible.


Thanks guys!

danyman

iTrader: (1)

i would do more between 500 and 800 and then 5000 for the tweet..

and 200 watt ish per side is plenty of power.. it devides yes


btw if u take the vifa midbass let me know how it sounds... its on my shortlist of midbass i would like for me next set along with the peerless HDS

JohnVroom

You have an interesting assortment of current and future purchases. For the speakers my question is "have you heard one of them? Do they sound similar (proper timbre), do they have similar output (not important in an active design), your 3 way crossover (does it maximize what each speaker does well and mitigate what they do poorly)? I have never heard a Dayton driver and not that particular Vifa or TagBand (though I like the product lines)

And do they fit your car, do you have to make mounting plates ... and are they going to be too deep?

This post should give you an uncomfortable feeling unless you have done your homework (those graphs that come with DIY speakers is a good start to get comfortable). I just keep a lot of speakers handy... fools and money

EDIT: I just read tour post on another thread you have some audio background I am not being condescending or a negative Nelly. Have you done the homework? I am a fan of mixing and matching speaker brands but that is with drivers i am familiar with. for the inexperienced I would recommend a constant brand (similar sonic signature) and their crossover optimized for their drivers. If you feel comfortable carry on, I try to be an 'Audio Cheapskate' or a "avoid my errors" kind of guy!

sheathensemble

Good to hear about the watts! That's one less thing to worry about, Thanks Dany!

John, I haven't heard any of these speakers. The Output reads similar in the specs for the tweeter and both woofer selections. Once again it's the mid range woofer that looks out of place to me as it is a few db lower.

As for the mid/tweet xover 5k should be good, RIGHT? But as Dany has advised, The xover for the low/mid should be lower.

As far as fit goes, I have measured my doors and drawn out some ideas for the mounting plates. I will have to modify my door panel (the plastic cover thing). Which btw I am totally willing to do. I plan on cutting holes in it and mounting speaker grills for cosmetic and defensive purposes. I am going to make the speaker mounts out of mdf most likely. I think it would be a little harder to get that 7" dayton woofer to fit, so i am leaning more towards the vifa (although it is twice the price). I am a DIYer, so I am really looking forward to the modifying and fabrication parts of this project.

The component that is really making me scratch my head is the Mid-range... it's power handling and spl specs don't line up with the others as good as i would like. So if anyone has a 4 ohm driver suggestion for mids, please share.

When i get everything done i will post my results, and a quick review of the w/e drivers i end up going with.

Cheers!

zoomer

iTrader: (3)

Those daytons are fine choices. However you may find it hard to mount the tweeters Most home tweeters are pretty big compared to car tweeters.
You may want to look thru the tweeter list and find something a bit smaller

Also look at www.solen.ca they have may choice for car tweeters or woofers also.
There is also zaphaudio.com lots of woofer and tweeter tests and reviews.

Just a comment: many of the high end car audio systems are made by the same big names that make home audio speakers. such as Morel, ScanSpeak etc. So the quality is indeed there. Also dont hesitate as a first install to go for a midrange car audio component set complete with crossover. At least you will have a good baseline and from then you can play all you want.
If you are into pro or home audio, then your knowledge and experience can be applied directly to car audio with the caveat that the car is a tough environment. While 3 way for home is good, the difficulty in properly placing 3 ways in a car for good imaging and soundstage often outweights the on paper advantage of 3 way. Most award winning cars are 2 way.
One of the key things about installs is, especially for mids and tweets, is to experiment with the placement for best imaging and stage BEFORE you cut door panels!



enjoy!