DIY Speaker Project PAD

It's always something... not having a subwoofer output on that Yamaha is going to make this a little tricky. I don't think that receiver has a preamp outputs either, but it looks like it does have what's basically a "Tape 2" output, and I think you can use those for your subwoofer's plate amp, but I'm not exactly sure how?? Maybe someone here could chime in on that.

You did end up getting this Yamaha receiver, right? http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-R-N301BL-N ... aha+r-n301

I'm curious if a MiniDSP might be the route you want to go, and use that to cross your subwoofer to your Blues. More expensive yes, but you would've spent more than the cost of the MiniDSP if you went with a receiver that had a subwoofer output than you will on the MiniDSP, and you'll have a lot more options with the MiniDSP than you would've with a subwoofer output. The question is... How do you integrate a MiniDSP with that receiver? Hopefully someone here can answer that better than I can. I think "Line 3's" output will work, but I'm not positive on that. If you click the link above, there's a picture of the inputs on the back of the receiver. Line 3 has both "playback", and "record" RCAs.

Another option is... what is the customer satisfaction return policy on that receiver? Possibly return and find a receiver with a subwoofer output, but that will cost more money.

Cool thanks for the help, another option is my parents are going to give me some money to make a speaker kit for my little brother so maybe I could let him have my current receiver (the one you recommended) and then use some of the money to help buy myself a receiver with a subwoofer output. (It looks like there is a yamaha one for 499) Honestly the bass has been sounding really good on the blues so maybe I don't even need a subwoofer. Maybe I should just make myself another set of monitors for a four channel.

At this point I am really just looking for another project to do/trying to learn more about how everything works. At this point I am more concerned with practicing/learning than having a perfectly optimized system.


I will look into the mini DSP though.

pleppink wrote:At this point I am really just looking for another project to do/trying to learn more about how everything works. At this point I am more concerned with practicing/learning than having a perfectly optimized system.

This I completely understand. Just a warning, speaker building is an insatiable disease . As far as the Blues go, I would definitely give them a little time before I made any decisions, because the more they loosen up, the better the bass and midrange depth gets. Hopefully you've been giving them a thorough workout . One track I was listening to the other day on my Blues MTM towers was Megadeth's song Trust, sounds incredible. But I also understand with a TM monitor (the one's you built) that you might want to add a subwoofer to give you some additional bottom end. Plus, adding a sub and cancelling the lower bass frequencies in your Blues will make them play insanely loud and still be crystal clear. I'd definitely add a sub before I added another pair of speakers if I were you.

If you're interested, here's a YouTube link to that track I was talking about...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivqKTwmCmks

Cool, If I got a receiver with a subwoofer out would I be golden as far as the networking goes? Maybe I will just invest in one of those and give my brother my current receiver. I might rather do that than try to figure out how to network with my receiver.

Depends on what kind of networking you want to do. Most of the receivers that'll have the subwoofer output as well as a highpass filter for your Blues will be home theater receivers. For example, research this Pioneer SC-07 receiver. This will do everything you want as far as sound and connect-ability go, but I think being a mildly older receiver (new in 2008-2009) it'll lack in some of the network capabilities. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pioneer-Elite-S ... 3cfe1f31ab

That's an awesome receiver none the less, and either that or a SC-05 would be a good choice. You can use those in 2 channel stereo, but you'll have features for home theater too if you ever wanted to go that route. It really wouldn't be lacking anywhere in terms of output that I can think of.

It also depends on what you're referring to when you say "networking". Pandora? In the end, there's always something missing on all of them

Edit: Just FYI, if you're patient and you watch for either the Pioneer SC-05 or the SC-07, you can usually find a really nice used one on eBay for around $300.

Something else to consider... With this Danibos Bluetooth receiver, and Tidal's music app on my Samsung S5 phone, I have near CD quality from my armchair and I can control the volume and track selection with my phone. You can use whatever music app you want (like Pandora, Slacker, etc) for free but the sound quality isn't as good. Tidal's hifi version costs $20/month.

Hey Matt, I am starting another set of Blues bookshelves (this time a gift for my younger brother)

Thanks for all of your help last summer! They still sound great!

I will let you know if I have any questions. I am planning on doing everything the same except I am doing 45 degree joints instead of butt joints. (Dont worry internal volume is maintained) and I am going to do veneers instead of paint.

Good to hear! Glad you're enjoying them and I hope your brother does as well

Hey Matt, I finished the second round of Blues! They sound really good. And I definitely improved my craftsmanship this time around. I used veneers to finish them (it was my first time using veneers but overall I am happy with how they turned out.)

Now I am finally gonna build that subwoofer to go with them!

pleppink wrote:Hey Matt, I finished the second round of Blues! They sound really good. And I definitely improved my craftsmanship this time around. I used veneers to finish them (it was my first time using veneers but overall I am happy with how they turned out.)

Now I am finally gonna build that subwoofer to go with them!

We need pics... or this^ never happened

That TM looks great ! What does the sound compare to in a store bought speaker ? Is the MTM much different in sound quality ?