$59 Vifa speaker kit at Madisound

[strider]

A guy on AudioCircle was kind enough to point out a pretty killer deal on a Vifa-drivered speaker kit at Madisound, figured I'd spread the word. $59 gets you 2 Vifa tweeters, 2 5.5" Vifa woofers, and a pre built crossover. You can also get a parts kits that gives you everything else you'd need to build them (except the wood) for an additional $29. Pretty cool if you need an extra set of speakers somewhere, or just want to get your build on.

Check 'em out:

http://www.madisound.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=8525

[Face]

One of those inductors needs to be flipped on it's side.

[GV#27]

One of those inductors needs to be flipped on it's side.
Yep or they will be talking to each other.



Looks like a great little kit for the money.

[RJaco]

This is all new to me so hope this isn't a dumb question. Would these work to hook up to a computer?

[AsSiMiLaTeD]

these are just the drivers and crossovers - you'd obviously need to actually build the speaker cabinets and then put connections on the back, and then of course have an amp to power them with, then sure you could hook them up to whatever you want

[RJaco]

How good of an amp. I was just hoping to build the cabinets and hook them up like the cheap speakers that came with my comptuer.

[Face]

What's your budget?

This would work: http://cgi.ebay.com/accurian-digital-audio-reciever-amplifier-wireless-NEW_W0QQitemZ360128704463QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_Def aultDomain_0?hash=item360128704463&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1234|66%3A3|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A13 18|301%3A0|293%3A1|294%3A100#ebayphotohosting

[RJaco]

Just got the idea, so no real budget other than as cheap as possible. That amp is in my budget.

[zingo]

Is that the deal of the century amp?

[Face]

Yes.

[RJaco]

I have more questions and will start a new thread.

[strider]

I screwed up when I posted about the parts kit for $29. I was looking at the list of recommended parts and skimming past the bottom of it to the $29 figure. The $29 ($29.50, really) was referring to the cost of driver/crossover kit for one speaker. There isn't a parts kit, sorry abut that.

[RJaco]

What is the inductor? I looked on pe and it looks like the brass colored flat wire but not sure. How hard it is to flip the inductor? Do I need to do one on each xover or just one? My kit will be here in a week or so. Thanks

[jcaut]

One on each x-over. Maybe this will help:

[mrbigbluelight]

^^^^ Nice pic, jcaut !

[RJaco]

Yes, thanks for the pic. Helps a lot.

[RJaco]

Got my kit today. It looks pretty good. The inductors glued down with epoxy. So don't think I can stand the one up. I hope they work alright.

[ShinAce]

Don't worry about the coils. It's not that bad. It's just not ideal.

I already saw in the pic that they are glued to the PCB. We all hope that 'product may not be exactly as shown' in these cases.

[RJaco]

Thanks ShinAce.They have a premium crossover for $40 per. Think I will pass. No better than my ears are, I bet these sound just fine. I hope to get the cabinets built pretty soon. Amp and terminals should be here next week.

[Midnite Mick]

should just be glue from a hot glue gun no?...should be able to cut it with a knife.

[RJaco]

Doesn't really look like hot gun glue. It hard, clear and all the way around. I am going to give it a try like it is.

[ShinAce]

It's probably epoxy.

Leave it as is.

If you're one of those super hardcore dudes, you could cut the board in half(without breaking any components), and use that to flip a coil. Of course, you'll need to repair the connections you just broke. Not my idea of fun. I'd much rather buy a new coil, snip the wires on the one in there, and mount mine at 90 degrees.

[GV#27]

It's probably epoxy.

Leave it as is.


Agreed, atleast it won't vibrate against the pc board.

[RJaco]

Here is a picture of one of my speakers. I think they sound pretty darn good but they do need more bass. I may build a ported cabinet sometime or a sub. Way better than the crappy dell speakers that came with it. The amp is almost too much. I have to turn the volume on the computer to about 25% and adjust the volume through itunes. If I ever get to where I can add an amp to my ht system, I will use this one and get something around 20 or 40 watts for the computer speakers. I want to thank everybody for all the help. I know me and my son are going to enjoy them. http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e47/okiejaco/speaker.jpg

[ShinAce]

Not so fast, bro.

That cabinet looks freaking great. Maple front, oak sides? Mulato or just different stains for the baffle vs the rest of the box? Did you miter or dado the edges? Spill the beans. I know GV will want the specifics too.

I see dowel pins. Are they real fasteners or just plugs? Too bad there's probably no metal in them. You could add magnetic grills later.

Nice work.

p.s. I assume you caulked the edges or have amazing woodworking skillz. Don't forget to add filling inside the box. Tearing apart a cheap(and hopefully new) pillow does the trick. Pack it in but not stuffed, just filled. You can also add rubber feet to the bottom. I'm using atripod arrangement on mine.

:edited multiple times:

[GV#27]

Wow, very nice work.


I was tempted to buy 2 pairs of these and do some experimenting with bipolar design.(dispersion not disorder).

[strider]

Man, you really banged those out. Nice work!

[RJaco]

Thanks. Not bad for computer speakers. lol Maple baffles with just tung oil, no stain. The cabinet is oak with Special Walnut stain. I ripped to the depth I wanted. Then I used a table saw to miter the corners. Those are just plugs on the baffle. I didn't glue them, so I could always take them out later and add some magnets. I did caulk everything but the baffle and stuffed it with fiber fill. I didn't pack it in, just filled it up good. Did I do right? I am a trim carpenter by trade, so the cabinet part was easy for me. I had the oak and a friend gave me the maple. On the baffle, I just 45 the edge. I thought about using a 1/2" roundover on it but like this look better.

[Ender]

Here is a picture of one of my speakers. I think they sound pretty darn good but they do need more bass. I may build a ported cabinet sometime or a sub. Way better than the crappy dell speakers that came with it. The amp is almost too much. I have to turn the volume on the computer to about 25% and adjust the volume through itunes. If I ever get to where I can add an amp to my ht system, I will use this one and get something around 20 or 40 watts for the computer speakers. I want to thank everybody for all the help. I know me and my son are going to enjoy them.

Don't lower your digital volume so much. iTunes and the computer volume control distorts music pretty bad. Keep them at 100% and change your volume with the amp. I have the same situation with my Heed Canamp and K701 headphones. My Heed's volume POTs barely moves (maybe 5%) and already the volumes at a bit higher than I can manage. However, the sound is not distorted. If I try to keep the volume low on the amp and change the volumes on my computer, I always can hear the distortion.

[ShinAce]

For me it's the opposite. I have the amp at 100% all the time and have the master volume on my PC anywhere from 1-20%.

If I do it the other way around, there's a lot of noise amplified by the PC's sound card. This way it is quiet.

Try it out and see what sounds best to you.

[Ender]

For me it's the opposite. I have the amp at 100% all the time and have the master volume on my PC anywhere from 1-20%.

If I do it the other way around, there's a lot of noise amplified by the PC's sound card. This way it is quiet.

Try it out and see what sounds best to you.

Hmmm... What soundcard do you have? Also, I'm guessing you don't have an external DAC...?

[RJaco]

Don't think my amp (Adcom 535 II) has a volume control. Do you guys leave your amp on all the time or do you turn it off when not in use? I have been turning mine off.
I don't hear any distortion but my ears aren't the best. My son listened to them and he said they didn't have any distortion. I have about $100 in the speakers, so a pretty cheap speaker build. I am glad I did it. I had a little smile when I first turned them on and they worked. Guess I was afraid they wouldn't. Now I just need to build a sub.

[nikolas812]

Nice Job!






Nick

[ShinAce]

Don't think my amp (Adcom 535 II) has a volume control. Do you guys leave your amp on all the time or do you turn it off when not in use? I have been turning mine off.
I don't hear any distortion but my ears aren't the best. My son listened to them and he said they didn't have any distortion. I have about $100 in the speakers, so a pretty cheap speaker build. I am glad I did it. I had a little smile when I first turned them on and they worked. Guess I was afraid they wouldn't. Now I just need to build a sub.

I've gotten into the habit of turning my stereo off before killing the PC.

I've installed a line filter(or EMI filter) into a box with power outlets. It's a 7 amp filter so I use it for the 2 amps and a fan. There's a sub amp and a fan for it, then the 2 channel amp. To turn my system on, I boot the PC and use the one power switch that's installed on the line filter. Guess where I put the filter? Correct! Close to the power switch on the PC.

There's nothing really wrong with leaving the amp on. You'll get pops when you turn the computer on and off, but usually it's not a speaker destroyer. You also risk losing the amp if there's a lightning strike or other voltage spike on the lines.

[RJaco]

Any way you get take a picture of your setup? I might want to do something like that.

[ShinAce]

Basically, I have a custom built power bar laying across the top of the PC. Instead of turning on the amps(up to 3 sometimes) and fans, I turn on the power bar. Honestly, I could hack my PC with a relay and have everything turn on after the PC, even the monitor. The truth is, sometimes I move the stereo to another room, so I haven't bothered to go fully automatic.

There's even better options, like:
http://www.smarthomeusa.com/ShopByManufacturer/Bits-Ltd./Item/LCG5/

This way you don't ever have to touch the stereo.

[RJaco]

Thanks, I will check in to it.