Great Clarity - Fun Project for a DYI

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I just finished building my self a set of the DYI Ed Frias speakers. I followed Ed’s instruction including his recent modifications that he posted on this forum on 12/12/2002. I had a friend of mine build me the speaker cabinets out of solid Oak, and he used MFD for the grill covers, as well as the front and back panels. They LOOK and SOUND wonderful to my wife and me. I am by no means an audio hifi expert, and would love for an expert’s opinion on how they sound, if anyone lives in the RTP area of NC please send me an email and I would be happy to let you listen to them. Just like everyone else who has posted their comments here, I also emailed some questions to Ed, he was very helpful. I also wish to thank him for all of his help.

Similar Products Used:

20 Year Old 3-Way Realistic Speakers

Small size -Big sound!

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AudioReview.com DIY Kit Crossover Update It has been brought to my attention that some Do-It-Yourselfers out there have measured the AR.com DIY Speaker and found it to have a 3-4db dip in the frequency response at the crossover point (3khz). I was aware of this when I designed the kit but chose to let it go for the affect it presented, a little deeper and backset soundstage. Since some have requested to eliminate this frequency dip in the crossover, I am posting this notice to them as well as others who might want to increase the accuracy of the speaker. Replace the .15mh inductor on the tweeter with a .3mh (4 ohm DCR). The part number from MCM Electronics is 50-320. Also add a 1 ohm (10watt) resistor across the leads of the .4mh inductor on the woofer secondary circuit. Parts for both speakers should be no more than $6. Use only the recommended 5 ohm resistor rather than the 4 ohm as stated in the instructions, the 5 ohm is more natural with or without a subwoofer in the system. Success! Ed Frias EFE TECHNOLOGY Speakers EFESPKRS@aol.com

Nothing can match this speaker at this price point. Accurate, natural sounding, open, imaging is astounding.

None at this price.

The first thing I'd like to say in this review is more of a reflection/review on the designer of this amazing speaker, Ed Frias. What a selfless donation he has made to the audio world by making this information (DIY kit) public. Not to mention Ed's dedication to responding to all inquiries regarding this speaker and other topics. Helpful does not even begin to describe Mr. Frias. Okay, now for the speaker itself. I have not listened to a more natural and balanced speaker such as this under $1500. They play what the mic recorded. I would reccomend this speaker to all that seek after audiophile sound without breaking the bank. The directions for construction and assembly of the speaker are very precise and straight forward. Out of curisity I brought these speakers into a high end Audio shop to see how they faired against some very high-end bookshelf speakers. B&W,Paradigm,Dynadio, and the DIY on one shelf. The salesman could not believe the sound produced by this modest looking do-it-yourself bookshelf. After this demo it was my opinion that the DIY outperformed all three speakers and sounded the most natural and accurate. All from a kit costing 300 and change. Do I reccomend this kit? YES! Thank you Ed Frias.

Similar Products Used:

Paradigm Reference Studio 20's. M&K k-17's.

soundstage, natural uncolored sound, bass extension and accuracy, not fussy on location, perfom best with good source and amplification, and decent cabling

have to find the parts, or import them

These speakers are a gem. The bass is tight, musical and surprisingly extended for a medium size stand mounter, the midrange is clear, uncolored and presents a very accurate soundstage which extends beyond their physical location. Few "bookshelf" speakers have given similar or better performance, and I include B&W's CDM1NT or Energy "Veritas", in other words products in the over USD 1000 range. They certainly out perform ( in my opinion) the Dynaudio 52's I was planning to get.You can build these at half of the cost. They do need quality amplification to perform at their best, and will show good and bad recordings and equipment. As another Oz based builder getting materials was the hardest step. Ed was kind enough to forward a drawing of the box, but I eventually found a suitable premade box which solved that problem. The drivers are available locally from WES Components in Sydney, who can also supply Xover parts, or Speakerbits in Melbourne, but the tweeters have to be brought in ( Madisound). Good on all sorts of musical software, really smooth and natural on vinyl, jazz and even pink floyd.Certainly one of the better, if not best , speakers I own.

Similar Products Used:

B&W, Whatmough monitors, Tannoy's MX,

Sound Stage and all else.

None so far. So, get a sub bass if you need that jolt.

Well, I wrote a review about 1.75 years ago after I personally auditioned these at the Frias studio. Now after some time has gone by since I built my own via the DIY instructions, I am sure of my review. SOUND STAGE. What else can be said? Of the many speakers that I have bought during this time, these still are the best especially for sound stage. The only speaker pair that I really like to listen to aside from my DIY is the Mitsubishi DS-50-CS floor standing.My other speakers are nice but the DIY stands out time and again. By the way third runner up are my Scott S-15 bookshelf system. Real smooth. So, these are tough contenders. It's the SOUND STAGE........... Well, sufice to say that these are worth while in a big way. They blow over larger more expensive 'esoteric' systems. Not all ,but lots. (see my first review) Hardware: Scott 380 tube receivers, McIntosh MA230 amp, Luxman L-480, Pioneer NS-5, Fisher 500, Technics,Sherwood 7100A, Yamaha CR820.....

Similar Products Used:

Mitsubishi, Scott, Allison 4, BIC Venturi formula 2, JBL 4401, KLH model 20, Fisher XP55, Boston Acoustic CR7,Fisher ST-440,Jensen.

Great sounding, and a fun and satisfying project. I haven't done anything "electronic" since high school, so I was ecstatic when I connected my first "Ed" into my system and it (1) worked, and (2) sounded great! Follow Ed's instructions, read the posts for other tips, and enjoy!

Shipping charges! UPS charged me $30 "brokerage" delivering the enclosures (after I requested the enclosures be sent via US Postal Service!) If you live near the border, try and find a US shipping company whose address you can ship to. For Vancouver residents, there are a couple of companies in Point Roberts that provide this service at a very reasonable fee. You still pay taxes coming over the border, but you save brokerage and extra shipping charges.

"Only in Canada, eh?" There isn't much I can add to the other reviews, the "Eds" are great bookshelf speakers ... plenty of detail, good workable bass, clean natural midrange. They aren't as good as the speakers I usually listen to, which are larger and more expensive (not that price is a sound determining factor), but having said that, I would be quite happy listening to the Eds if I didn't have my other "full size" speakers. And, it took about 10 seconds to determine that the Eds are way better than my other bookshelf speakers (Tannoy m1 Mercury). Many thanks to Ed Frias for his design and for his help vetting components. Living in Canada, I wanted to try and avoid shipping parts from the US, and Ed was kind enough to review the specs of what I hoped were equivalent parts available in Canada. For any other Canadians wanting to build these speakers, you can order a lot of what you need through Solen Inc. in Quebec (www.solen.ca). Following is a list of what I ordered from Solen. Binding Posts - I ordered RPT15GFS-G (76mm) but they were too large for the cut-outs in the Speaker City cabinets. RPT17GAS (50mm) is probably the correct size, you may want to get the enclosures first before ordering the binding posts to be sure. Peerless Mid-Woofer 850122 is Solen part #X176WR3308. Peerless Tweeter 812687 is Solen part #105DT2608. Capacitors - part #PA470 Resistors - part #MO1000J5R1 (5.1 ohms) Chokes - .39mH - part #S20.39 (use for .4mH); 2.0mH - part #S162.0. Solen does not have a .15mH choke with the resistance Ed specifies, so I ordered the .15 choke (and solder terminals) from MCM Electronics in Ohio. Speaker wire - Solen part #2/C 14GA Conductors can be used for internal wiring. I ended up using some rather pricey DH Labs 14G Hook-up wire I bought through Partsconnexion.com in Ontario. -Polyester Fiberflex 38mm x 12 x 60". This is a blanket about 1.5 inches thick. I split it in half to about .75 inches thick, then covered each inside surface except the front, and leaving space for the crossover on the bottom. I estimate total volume used as 276 cubic inches, or a cube of about 6.5 inches.

Similar Products Used:

Tannoy m1 Mercury

Everything. Best in class for the price - period.

Given the price, NOTHING

THIS IS A CORRECTION OF MY EARLIER POST! After building these and wondering why the highs were rolled off, I spent considerable time chasing down the problem with Ed's help. Turns out my supplier sent an incorrect 4ohm version! Now corrected, all I can say is that they are way better than expected. I had Brian King of CA build the correct cabinets, including a properly flared port and 1" MDF, internally braced and recessed drivers. He can make you a much better cabinet than Speaker City and Ed's design calls for a rear PORT, which SS's cabs. did not include. I agree with the folks at Madisound: properly built, you cannot get a better speaker for the money - period. I build a LOT of kits, mostly Dynaudio/ScanSpeak/SEAS stuff and these DIY's tower over ANYTHING for the price.

Similar Products Used:

Various Dynaudio, SEAS, Morel, Scan Speak kits

Very clean highs, great soundstage, easy to drive, , easy on the eye, very detailed mid

I can't hear any

To say I was pleased with these speakers would be an understatment, they have proved to be a fantastic, fun project that has turned out to be a great sounding speaker at a great price. Living in Australia I was a little apprehensive about the logistics, but no problem. The drivers were not available in Aus so I ordered them from Madisound in the States, very smooth transaction. The cabinets I made myself from mdf and a couple of coats of paint, instructions are on the net. Ed Frias has been a great help and is very obliging, answering any questions you may have. I am so pleased with the sound, highly recommended

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Aaron, Kef concerto,

Easy build, strong bass for the size. Great sound for the $$.

none.

Looking to get better sound without spending a small fortune, and being someone who enjoys "projects," I decided to try my hand at building these speakers. I am farily competent with tools, but hadn't done much soldering. Still, the entire build was simple - I'd say a 5 on a 10 scale. Start to finish was about 6 hours. Listening - The sound is very clean with good solid bass. Definitely a full sound when compared with my 15-year old Yamaha bookshelf speakers, which I'd been happy with for years. The DIY speakers pointed out the gaps and took my listening to a higher level. The old speakers now had overdone highs, empty mids and weak lows. the DIY's were accurate through the whole spectrum (as much as a small speaker can be). Silence is empty, bass is clean, voices are quite realistic. they seem to be sensitive to correcct positioning. I listened to a variety of music. Lyle Lovett's voice and guitar sounded nearly as if he were standing in the room. They reveled subtleties in Paul Simon's "Graceland" that I hadn't heard before, and the sound from John Lee Hooker's "The Healer" floored me. If the recording is of poor quality, you'll hear it. With good stuff, you'll find yourself listening to each instrument or voice, although the blend is very well balanced. I feel like I've taken a baby step into audiophile sound quality. My my setup is a Yamaha CD player into a 16-year old Pioneer receiver that puts out a clean 70wpc. This is adequate, but I think these speakers would really open up with 100+ watts. I hope to get a real amp next year to drive these as they should be.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha and AR bookshelf speakers.

Crystal clear highs.

None really.

These speakers are incredible. I bought them fully assembled from SpeakerCity for $330. I don't think you could find a better speaker for three times that amount at a retailer. The highs are crystal clear. Bass is very tight - not totally enveloping like some larger speakers, but still very strong. For those that want booming bass, these speakers should match up well with a good sub. I got the cherry finish cabinets which are constructed very well and they look great. Good speaker stands gave a definite improvement in sound. For the first week I had the speakers sitting on some chairs until my stands arrived (studiotech - highly recommended). When I put them on stands, I noticed a definite improvement in sound (especially bass). Buy these speakers - unbelievable bang for the buck.