Parts Express Orian DIY High Output 3-Way Bookshelf Speaker Review

The Orian 3-way bookshelf speaker is a high-output, coaxial design with a dipole midrange and an 8” bass driver, and it only costs $675/pair. How can it be priced so low? The catch is you have to assemble it yourself, and that is what we did. James Larson gives us a step by step process on building these speakers and goes over the measurement results and his sonic impressions.
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Recommended Headphones:
JBL Tour One M2: bit.ly/JBLTourOneM2-headphones
Focal Bathys: bit.ly/FocalBathyswireless
Focal Celestee: bit.ly/Focalcelestee
Mark Levinson 5909: bit.ly/MarkLevinson5909
Sony WF-1000XM3: bit.ly/SonyIEMs
Recommended Subwoofers:
SVS SB-1000 Pro: audioadvice.io/36Pea3a
SVS PB-1000 Pro: audioadvice.io/3sreeyk
SVS SB-3000: bit.ly/SVSSB3000Sub
Paradigm Defiance X12: bit.ly/ParadigmX12
Perlisten D15s: bit.ly/PerlistenD15s
Perlisten R212s: bit.ly/PerlistenR212s
Perlisten R210s: bit.ly/PerlistenR210s
Arendal 1961 1S or 1V: bit.ly/Arendal1961sub
Arendal 1723 1S Sub: bit.ly/Arendal17231Ssub
Recommended AV Separates
Trinnov Altitude 32: bit.ly/TrinnovAltitude32
Trinnov Altitude 16: bit.ly/TrinnovAltitude16
Trinnov Amplitude 16: bit.ly/TrinnovAmplitude16
Trinnov Amplitude 8: bit.ly/TrinnovAmplitude8
Recommended AV Receivers:
Onkyo TX-RZ50 ($1,599): bit.ly/OnkyoTXZ50
Denon AVR-X3800H 9.2CH AV Receiver: bit.ly/DenonX3800h
Marantz Cinema 50: bit.ly/MarantzCinema50
Yamaha RX-A2A: audioadvice.io/3ppWFg9
Sony STR-AZ5000ES: bit.ly/SonySTRAZ5000ES
Sony STR-AZ7000ES: bit.ly/SonySTRAZ7000ES
Denon AVR-X6700H 11.2CH AV Receiver: audioadvice.io/3HsdEou
Anthem MRX1140: bit.ly/AnthemMRX1140
Anthem AVM 90 15.4CH Processor: bit.ly/AnthemAVM90
Monolith M8250x 8CH Amp: bit.ly/8CHamp
NAD M23: bit.ly/NADm23amp
Recommended Powered Speakers:
Kanto YU4: bit.ly/Kantoyu4
Kanto YU6: bit.ly/KantoYU6speakers
Kanto TUK: bit.ly/KantoTUK
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Recommended Center Channels:
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Revel C208: bit.ly/RevelC208
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Polk R700 Tower Speakers: audioadvice.io/3C0TK2B
Heco Aurora 700: bit.ly/HecoAurora700spks
Heco Aurora 1000 Tower Speakers: bit.ly/Aurora1000
Arendal 1961 Monitor: bit.ly/Arendal1961Monitor
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Klipsch RP-8000F II Tower Speakers: audioadvice.io/3445l4A
Arendal 1723S Tower Speakers: bit.ly/Arendal1723s
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Sony SSCS5 Speakers:audioadvice.io/3td2O0w
SVS Prime Elevation Surround: audioadvice.io/35aZCdR
MartinLogan Motion XT F100: bit.ly/MartinLoganF100
MartinLogan Motion XT F200: bit.ly/MartinLoganF200
MartinLogan Motion F10: bit.ly/MartinLoganF10
MartinLogan Motion XT B100: bit.ly/MartinLoganB100
Perlisten S7t Limited Edition: bit.ly/PerlistenS7tLE
Perlisten S7t: bit.ly/PerlistenS7towers
Perlisten R7t: bit.ly/PerlistenR7t
Perlisten R5t: bit.ly/PerlistenR5t
Perlisten S3ic: bit.ly/PerlistenS3ic
Perlisten R3ic: bit.ly/PerlistenR3ic
Audioholics Recommended Cables:
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50ft 10AWG Speaker Cable: amzn.to/3DeMTT5
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[@ryanjordan6748]

Would love to see more DIY reviews!

[@bingdong8571]

I love diy! The internals are almost always better than commercial speakers. Diy has been my ticket into extreme infrasonic subwoofers. No way i could have afforded otherwise. I actually usually spend a lot more than i want but its pretty insane how much more you get for your money with diy. I would love to see more videos of diy speakers. Try those big horn home theater speakers from diy soundgroup.

[@johnminassian4887]

Wow, this is a great review. James is my favorite speaker reviewer. I'm impressed with the job he did on the Orian Speakers. I am currently building the CSS Criton 1-TDX with the upgraded crossovers. The CNC cabinets are Baltic birch. I haven't done woodworking since woodshop in high school. But I bought a router and did the roundovers on the front baffles. Then I veneered using paper-backed mahogany veneer. I now have to apply a finish. The crossovers went together without any problems. You can do this. You don't have to be an expert wood crafter or electronics specialist. I would love to see more kits reviewed, both speakers and electronics (amps, preamps, phono stages). I'm on my 20th diy audio build and I am never going back to commercially built products.

[@dilbyjones]

Yea great reviewer.

[@DonnieMulligan]

Watch out James, the DIY Speaker hobby is quite addictive. Take a look at some of the CSS Audio kits. Great designs and drivers and also have well marked crossover boards.

[@AKrumenacher]

Those came out awesome James! I would love to see you guys do some more DIY content. I built three “Cinema 10” speakers which were designed by Toid DIY (other KZbinr) as LCR’s for my new theater. Probably cost me around $300 each. It could have been less but I bought the highest quality crossover components available and I find the performance of the speakers to be amazing. So good that I can now never really see myself spending thousands of dollars on a speaker. Also, I just enjoy the process of building things and learning about woodworking, cabinet building/finishing, crossover design, etc. In the end, it’s been so much more fulfilling to build something that sounds amazing than it would have if I were to simply just plop down a bunch of cash for something that’s had a huge markup. Sure the speaker doesn’t have a prestigious name or company behind it (besides Celestion and Dayton) but the reaction I receive when friends see them and find out that I made them from scratch tells me I’m probably not missing much. Not to put down people who buy their speakers, but I can’t imagine I would feel better if I were to tell them that I bought them and they cost me $10k. I know not everyone has the ability to build their own or has the tools or the space for such an activity. It’s also led to a whole new world of suggested videos for me from the KZbin algorithm about tools, woodworking, etc. that I find really interesting. It would be great to see some crossover content with Audioholics and Nick from Toid DIY as there seems to be a lot of shared interest and he’s a really smart guy.

[@Artcore103]

Toid has a great channel and some great designs!

[@amb3cog]

I’m definitely into more DIY reviews. This one is really nice. And I would love to hear it. Seems like a great deal to me. And doing paint work takes time, but it’s not really hard to do. It does take experience to get it right though. ✌️

[@dilbyjones]

It’s cool to get into the numbers this way

[@gabrielpetkac8658]

When you said this speaker would be 2-3K retail I was amazed. That would mean I am much more interested in more of these in the future.

[@stevestrike]

Love the DIY angle as well as information about why speakers are designed the way they are. Trade-offs between different drivers and designs, how to read measurements, and the balance between a perfect measurement vs. what we actually hear. This is great content, keep it up!

[@Nightjar726]

Would be cool to see some ‘higher end’ DIY speaker kits like SBAcoustics has now. No one reviews those. Everyone shows the ‘ cheaper’ or ‘ not so serious ‘ competition DIY speaker kits. Would be super interested in how these higher DIY offerings perform. Those would kinda be ‘ game changers’, if they performed well. Cheers and great content!

[@ck-sx4zz]

Sounds like great value for $$$ and the finished product looks great! Perhaps doing 2 of these a year would be great for us who are into DIY, thank you

[@albe23]

Totally interested in seeing more of these. I've built a pair of overnight sensations a while ago and that led to multiple builds over time. Super fun hobby and the savings can be great. However, the independent reviews are lacking. So this was great to see!

[@user-mz6lt2pr9s]

Great to see James again. happy new year! Always appreciate your reviews. Beautiful looking speakers great job!

[@gregkramer5588]

Having that circuit board is a huge plus! Even if you have a lot of experience.

[@miscreant1739]

Useful info. I think a lot of people wonder about these DIY kits and it’s great to see someone review them and it’s always great to see a video with Gene and James. Can we torture James by having him assemble some flat pack subs? Can’t wait to hear about his adventure hauling a GSG dual 21” or devastator out to a field to measure it!

[@losergamer04]

I’ve always wanted to do a DIY speaker, but wasn’t sure how thorough the kit was or how well they would preform. I’m no expert in the measurements, but your conversation provided great context. Thanks for sharing.

[@dtsdigitalden5023]

Extremely interested in these, from quality of parts provided to assembly / finishing difficulty and especially the measurements and listening impressions. This is unique, and great, content that would set you apart.

[@thecman26]

Yea, more videos like this! Even the pre-assembled Daytons! I just ordered towers, center channel, and bookshelf rear surrounds. An amazing value for all of that! Next I'm ordering a pair of wither 15 or 18" subs

[@anandshah71]

Thank you for letting us know of this Kit very interetesting will plan to make it. the point of having fullrange without needing a subwoofer is keen interest for me

[@buzzcrushtrendkill]

Thanks for the in depth review of the diy speaker. I built the Solstice tower spkrs from PartsExpress. Buying the Morel woifers and tweeters individually cost more then the entire kit, amazing value. Being able to use high quality parts throughout the build and the fun of a project to customize gives great statisfaction.

[@dilbyjones]

Really love the tuning of this one. A lot of my equipment would literally match perfect.

[@throwaway3756]

Yes, more DIY speakers please.

[@garrettlewis2845]

I would love to see more diy audio reviews!

[@purplerider2362]

I was wondering about this speaker. Thank u! 🙏

[@paulgyro]

Love the DIY content

[@Audioholics]

Thanks we will consider more to come in the future.

[@fonkenful]

Take a look at the CSS offerings.

[@Nightjar726]

@@fonkenfuleveryone has reviewed CSS. Would be cool to see other DIY . No offense

[@fonkenful]

@@Nightjar726 Fair enough, I just thought James might want to continue his DIY journey, and there are many commercial products Gene & crew have reviewed that others have as well- though few with as extensive measurements as seen here.

[@Nightjar726]

@@fonkenfulah yeah true man. Good point. There haven’t been any measurements on those . I actually dug those speakers from a DIY standpoint because they are ‘ higher end’. We always seem to see ‘ cheap’ diy reviewed and not the upper end ones. Know what I’m saying? Would be cool to see measurements from high end DIY to see how good they can get. Cheers man. Again no offense

[@charlesflute5737]

Great job James!

[@bloomerb4162]

Yes, I am very interested. Do more and include smaller ones to. Who wouldn't be interested if it can save you that much money.

[@Masterslessons]

Happy new years James and Gene 🍾 looking good 🔵

[@jacktough]

More diy/kits! Parts Express is my addiction

[@mrdavisdrummer]

Great video! Loving the DIY content.

[@anandshah71]

This is a great Kit if someone doesnt want a complex Seas KingRoy 3 way kit

[@bingdong8571]

My old def tech bp6s had those characteristics. Very enjoyable!

[@djg6015]

The other Orion is a Siegfried Linkwitz designed 3 way, open back mid, upfiring woofer. Parts Express has a mix of kits, some designed by well known DIY designers, some by anonymous PE staff. I've built a few from PE. The flat packs are very well done. It's a good way to get into DIY. Some soldering and basic tool knowledge is helpful. The hardest part, IMO, is getting a good finish on the MDF. As far as grills, you're on your own, PE does sell grill components not specific to any speaker. Audioholics should venture to the yearly Parts Express DIY speaker competition, it would make a very interesting KZbin video. Thanks for the DIY exposure.

[@jameslarson2277]

We may be doing another brand-new kit this year.

[@michaeltaylor5451]

That binding post setup is a no-go for me. I'd be replacing that with something that doesn't look like an afterthought. Imaging is important for music. Since these don't prioritize that, I'd consider them for cinema only especially with that dipole design. Very cool product though, and great review.

[@BrianBolhofner]

It's love to see a review of the DIY sound group elusive 1099 kit

[@mattgiunt]

It would be a great feature if audioholics would do a video on what speakers are narrow dispersion and which are wide dispersion. If not a video than just an article or a list would be effective.

[@FOH3663]

open back ≠ dipole Multiple dipole references ... it's not a dipole, nor can it exhibit dipole behavior. I know, a bit pedantic, ... but terminology is important, and the hobby is teeming in mis-information and outright mythology. Audioholics has always done well dispelling mythology etc, as a guiding tenet ... and it's always appreciated.

[@horsepowerjunkie9040]

Love the DIY review. Would love to see a large GSG sub review.

[@FOH3663]

No need for review ... GSG is strong performers throughout the lineup!

[@careymacisaac9165]

I would love to see a floor stander or is there a kit from Parts Express that I could check out .

[@fonkenful]

Just a hint re finishing MDF; with a bit of practice, iron-on veneer with a clear top coat can take a lot less time than paint, and easily approach commercial level quality.

[@PhillioDoede]

Agreed, veneer is Infinitely less work than paint.

[@fonkenful]

@@PhillioDoede And unless you opt for some bizarre rare tropical hardwood, often far less costly.

[@gregjackson5426]

Love that blue color - great choice!

[@willbrink]

Two things that seem to be making a comeback are coaxial drivers and open baffle designs. "On paper" that's a good thing. DYI has been making steady progress in popularity also.

[@HaraldMacGerhard]

Thx a lot for doing these things guys, and breaking new ground. This is cool and very interesting. Is parts-express looking towards a renaming of the product? The Larson?

[@jameslarson2277]

A "Larson" speaker would be cool, but a better name for this one would be "The Perez" after its designer, Chris Perez.

[@NosEL34]

Very cool..I would love to see more of this content. I was impressed with the FR of these, especially the bass. Seems like the designer knew what he was doing..tuning the speaker for room reflections & not just a flat response on paper. Seen something similar recently where a speaker looked subpar in the bass region on paper but the builder claimed he purposely made it this way for close wall placement. I wanted to ask how close/far from the wall these Orians need for that Dipole to perform best? Maybe he mentions that in that written review? I know the sensitivity was measured at 1 watt but still low in my opinion, much like a lot of kits I've noticed. A little PEQ and these could probably be pretty good. Maybe even better if you upgraded that coaxial driver and replaced the back panel with a solid sealed panel. Though I'd like to hear that dipole effect before making that change. Great video..enjoyed.

[@FreudianSlipDK]

I would love to see a test of the parts express ultimax 18 sub kit

[@sandmanoseven]

I might be wrong. I believe Tekton gets its speaker drivers from Parts Express. I have a 2 12 sub from them. The amp broke and one of the people at Tekton told me to purchase a new amp from parts express. I never did, buy the amp, but purchased some Vandersteen speakers and stopped using my older gear.

[@jarodreddig63]

James is an A/V stud.

[@chinmeysway]

nice work on these. confused about the semi open baffle design. does boundary reinforcement smooth out the upper frequency issues? or does your testing just not involve enough mic captures to include the rear sounds or.. something. just seems w anechoic measurement you’d not want highs to roll off quite that much but yes is subjective. maybe they sound like in8 kali audio powered monitors. same dip issue around 8-10k per coaxial design (possible diffraction).

[@Kami84]

I have a question about an unrelated topic. I just bought the Rel T9x after auditioning the SVS 3000 micro, SVS SB 2000 pro, and Rel HT 1205 mk II at home. I thought all were good. The Rel T9x is the best with not making its presence known at all until bass is present but it doesn’t hit as hard for movies and doesn’t go to 20 hz. The 1205 was second place for integration but was very very slightly muddier with details than the T9x. The SVS subs sounded great for music but I felt like it made the midrange slightly boomier especially with male voice. I got the Rel because I want something that will not be a compromise for music at all and will be a match for more expensive speakers if I upgrade. I just bought the marantz cinema 50. If I use dsp/paramedic EQ can I fix the issues with the less expensive subs? If you EQ 2 subs to graph the same, will they sound the same? I hate wasting money. My room is 5000 cubic feet and use the system for 50/50 music and movies. I live in a town home and don’t need to hit reference levels of bass. I also prefer smaller subwoofers for aesthetics.

[@erichill5328]

Hi James and Gene, Do you think these sound better than the RSL CG25 that you tested in the past? Kind regards, Eric

[@SwirlingDragonMist]

The DiY kit content isn’t very interesting to me, but more conversations about concentric drivers are. I also learned the hard way that paint has an optimal drying temperature, painting in the cold can lead to bubbles and rough textures. Most hobby and industrial workshops I’ve been in are poorly insulated and have dismal heating solutions. Just an interesting observation, I wonder at what scale of manufacturing does a product get manufactured in optimal conditions, the solder, paint, and dexterity of fingers all being influenced by the cold. I once spent an hour with a soldering iron in a cold garage trying to loosen a single spot. Likewise a good manufacturer will take care not to let the components get exposed to sub freezing temperatures, at about 16-19F capacitor electrolytes start to gel and are never quite the same again. This is drifting off topic, but I can see temperature being compromised at any scale of manufacturing, as larger facilities have more cost to heating they may skimp, and smaller operations may just be skimping in every respect. Which I think has a lesson in scaling, where it’s worth holding back the scaling to ensure that the finer details all get done very well. Going with a smaller facility that’s better fitted. I imagine employee retention and all it’s associated damages and training costs, would be influenced by those subtle factors. A thing as simple as having a busted up towel dispenser in the bathroom can really erode moral, especially when someone already has some other workplace frictions on their mind, that towel dispenser just pushes them over the edge, next thing you know they’re throwing boxes they used to set down gently.

[@creampuff442]

i am a woodworker and would love to tackle a project like this. i dont understand any of the graphs and i dont need to, but what speaker would you compare it to bought new from a manufacturer. for instance it is the same as an R3 sorta right? coax above a woofer. does it sound like that??????????

[@PhillioDoede]

Would love to see more DIY designs come through. I remember when this one came out... I'm glad it performs well but man, such an odd design and frankly ugly combination of drivers. The Amiga would be a good one to take a look at it, sleek modern looking tower from a legend in the DIY community using a Dayton RS woofer and Vifa tweeter so it should be around for some time. It would also be cool to see some of the higher-end kits that Madisound carries. I know they have some factory designed SB Acoustics, and Morel designed kits available.

[@jedi-mic]

It is very similar to the studio seas kit King Ro4y mk3 with its famous metal 10-in subwoofer built in and a plate Hypex amp of 250w or 500w with dsp. you should do a review spectacular Speaker One thing you should never have a woofer in the center of the cabinet move it down 2.5 inches would be better it doesn't need to be close like that to the mid-range driver and will be better sounding. Another thing you don't need to cut the fancy back dipole like that just get a hole cutter and drill five holes I suppose you couldn't make the centre one square but really not necessarily

[@Echo-jg8is]

The USA in the 90s developed the "double down amplifier" to specifically combat this problem of going from measuring 4ohm speakers at 1W @ 1M to 2.83V @ 1M... Think it was someone like Krell or Bryston...some amplifiers and almost all AVRs don't deliver any real power gains when going from 8 to 4 ohms, so you effectively run your 4 ohm speakers @ - 2 to - 3dB from their manufacturers sensitivity rating... Hence why people with 4ohm speakers always complain about their AVRs lacking power...

[@fonkenful]

A bit of a generalization, but yeah when all channels of modern class AB AVRs are driven, many have power supplies that choke on the total load. There are of course exceptions, such Emotiva’s MR series with class H power supply design. Not exactly double the power @ 4 ohms with all driven, but certainly not as constrained.

[@fonkenful]

@@Echo-jg8is Have there been any independent lab tests to verify the published specs of 11x100@8ohms & 11x130@4 ohms, 20-20K, @

[@XBootlicker]

Blue Paint has a horrible drying time. BLACK dries the fastest. Thats why all model T's were Black

[@ratloko]

😂

[@bobbymccourt6794]

There appear to be several good reasons for the choice of black as the color of the paint. First, black color varnish paints tended to be more durable than lighter colored paints. Authorities on paint in the 1920's noted that black paint tended to last longer than paints with lighter colored pigments. Second, as mentioned above, the addition of Gilsonite improved the damp resisting properties and the final gloss of the paint, but also resulted in a very dark colored paint. The range of colors that asphaltum paints can have is quite limited. The dark color of the Gilsonite limits the color of the final paint to dark shades of maroon, blue, green or black. Cost may also have been a factor. The carbon black pigment used in these paints is probably the least expensive pigment available; almost any other pigment is more expensive than carbon black. One often cited reason for the use of Japan black on the Model T was that it allegedly dried faster than any other paint. However, there is no evidence in either the Ford engineering records or the contemporary literature on paint, to indicate that that was the case. The drying time of oven baking Japan black is no different from the drying time of other colored oven baking paints of the period. In short, Model T's were not painted black because black dried faster. Black was chosen because it was cheap and it was very durable. And: The claim that black was chosen because it dried faster than any other color is not supported by the Ford engineering documents, the contemporary literature, nor by the first hand accounts of Ford Motor Company employees.

[@djlee688]

James 👍

[@bingdong8571]

I drew a blue duck because I've never seen a blue duck. Billy madison

[@leerichards3422]

Parts express shipping to Australia is outrageous prices for a tiny ribbon tweeters it's $400 dollars why.

[@frankr8271]

High output @ 85 db???

[@thomaslutro5560]

You're thinking of the Linkwitz Orion?

[@Audioholics]

Yes!

[@aaronao1]

why is perlisten s4B not on reccomended list? were we just running out of space because too many perlisten speakers? :Di would ahve thought S5M should be there for sure.

[@Audioholics]

Only so much text available in the description field.

[@aaronao1]

Thank you. JTR RS2 vs RS1 vs D215S. Which would you pick? @@Audioholics

[@Audioholics]

@@aaronao1 If you want the absolute lowest distortion sub that you can proudly display in your room and don't mind its enormous size, the D215s. If you don't care if the box is pedestrian looking and you still want great performance and high value, the RS1. Don't have experience with the RS2 though I'm sure it's a good unit. I'd rather have 2 RS1s and 1 RS2 for multi-sub benefits.

[@aaronao1]

Thank you. I'm based in the UK so the insane value JTR offers isn't available to us as we get stung on the import fee. If the If the choice is 3x RS1 or 2x D215S &and maybe a D15S, which would you pick or suggest? @@Audioholics

[@Audioholics]

@@aaronao1 Perlisten for the win.

[@richarddortch6122]

The woofer is the Dayton DCS165-4 which is a 6.5" not an 8".

[@jameslarson2277]

DCS205-4 8" Classic Subwoofer 4 Ohm driver. The one you cited were from the instructions, but that is an error.

[@richarddortch6122]

@@jameslarson2277 So the product page on Parts Express is not correct?

[@jameslarson2277]

Most of the specs are correct, just not the instructions that specify the 6.5" woofers. @@richarddortch6122

[@Novilicious]

What a deal for those who are handy. I can barely make ikea furniture so not for me 😂

[@ericwichmann9536]

Heathkit style , very nice kit thanks for sharing.

[@scarylanding]

Yes I very much would like to see more of this kind of review. Great job!