DIY Doesn't Save You Money

In this video, I build the Overnight Sensation Center Channel DIY Speaker kit. Or more simply, I build a badass speaker bar using a DIY speaker kit. And along the way we have a frank discussion about why building your own speakers isn't really a good idea if you're looking to save money.
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Shout out Paul Carmody for designing this speaker. You can find more of his work here:
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[@katzmosestools]

Super cool build.

[@chanslorvalorum6905]

I’ve only been building mine for 40 years. Certainly not a timesaver. One of a kind sound Check my crummy videos

[@vulcano911]

The cheapest kit from Meniscus Audio Group costs $500 USD., and just includes two 3" subwoofers and one tweeter.

[@Jeremy-fy1sz]

I have recently come to the opinion that DIY saves money not only because you can often create a better product for less, but also because it limits the rate at which you spend money. By spending a week on a project, you have occupied yourself for a week where you are not thinking about the next thing you can spend your money on.

[@petergoestohollywood382]

Agreed. And after finishing them diy projects often hold much more value to you so you keep being satisfied for longer... not feeling the urge to go on a shopping spree as quick again.

[@matenorth]

Diy saves you money only after a lot of projects having bought all the equipment and tools. If you build just one thing, its way more expensive.

[@adamperry7848]

Not to mention the care of the product because you built it and usually one of a kind.

[@randybobandy9828]

@@petergoestohollywood382 I agree...

[@randybobandy9828]

@@matenorth I never count the cost of tools in my diy builds.. tools are a investment and most last a life time.

[@spencerferguson2185]

Your videos are just unbelievably entertaining. They're so informative but you do an excellent job to not make all the technical stuff sound boring. Amazing work as always!

[@ZacBuilds]

Damn thank you Spencer! I try to keep things moving as best I can without skipping the important bits. Really appreciate the feedback man!

[@billymalogi]

Hey Zac. As a fellow Torontonian, wanna thank you for inspiring a heck load of people. I've been meaning to build my own surround system but was too afraid to do it. Not anymore. Continue to inspire a ton of 'em!

[@ZacBuilds]

Thank you so much Billy! Feedback like this is the inspiration I need to keep creating new content, so thank you for making this a 2 way street!

[@DasWauto]

Nice build and big props on the jumps you’re making in video production quality. Good intro, concise, informative and entertaining throughout the edit. Kudos.

[@carlotacrim]

Awesome looking speaker! I'm just worried about your receiver mounting ( even if I like its looks), as far as I know top should always be free for hot air moving out and not having overheating issues.

[@0L0FED]

Yea, there are multiple small issues with his setup. The heat will probably decrease the lifespan of the amp, but since he probably rarely pushes any significant amount of wattage it probably wont really be an issue(also highly depends on the efficiency/class of amp). The placement of the speakers is also a little bit problematic, or at least questionable. I dont really se the point of having the 3 way front system when the speakers are placed that close to each other. Also, calling this a surround system without any rear speakers is missleading. Angling the sound bar up a bit, placeing the R and L fronts on stands away from the TV along with building 2 rear channels would help this setup a lot.

[@imqqmi]

It's so much fun to diy speakers, and you can tweak them to your own tastes. I used a cnc router to make the box and came together pretty quickly. Everything was designed with adjustability in mind, box volume, swappable fronts so different speaker drivers could be mounted etc. Saves you building a new box every time. I started out with spade connectors to but found they can be glitchy, crackling sound with strong base put through them so soldered most connections in the end.

[@peterbronez1188]

Really appreciate your attitude towards the whole audio space. Speaker design is a crazy rabbit hole; your pragmatism is a great way to approach it.

[@grahamb7947]

For me, DIY isn't to save money... For me, it's for two things: 1) The satisfaction having completed a project, and the love for the resulting piece as a result of it being unique to you and your own needs... 2) Customisability. Making something yourself, your imagination is the limit of what you can achieve, and if you outgrow your creation, with a little thought, most projects can be easily adapted and/or extended, thus heightening your appreciation for your own work even further. Bonus: Since the bulk of the costs of DIY comes from obtaining the tools necessary to do the work, you can easily offset the cost of something you clearly enjoy, by turning it into a hobby by which you can actually earn A LOT of money, either by building custom furniture for others, or even restoring antiques. DIY is just awesome all around.

[@peter2uat]

Having built over 45 different systems (including 4 Klipschorns for myself) for me, my friends and coworkers I can only agree - satisfaction over every finished project, from very small to 5 feet high. DIY rocks and gives you a lot of experience in building all sorts of stuff.

[@dineshdas8392]

For example : Gaming PC 😁

[@kevinwiley5325]

I'd love to see more speaker content like this. This was really enjoyable to watch.

[@Skarfar90]

Building your own speakers makes you appreciate the end result more. You can look at it and tell yourself that you made these, and damn they sound really good! Not only that. With DIY comes the perk of being able to customize the speakers to your own liking. I myself made a couple speakers that could just as well double as studio monitors. Incredible frequency response in a pretty compact design.

[@andrewlantz123]

Great build! They look amazing! I would caution you about putting your AVR right up against the cabinet. The top is vented so that is dissipates heat. You could potentially kill your AVR as a result!

[@jasonoliver3548]

actually, I was looking at it and thinking that he should take the feet off of it because it ruins the illusion that it's floating....so, maybe using them as spacers on the top could solve 2 issues?!?!

[@billcarson7548]

Your cabinet making skills are top shelf, beautiful work indeed!

[@ragtop63]

Mid-range consumer soundbars are priced around $600-$900 USD. If you spent about $300 (and even accounting for your time) on this build, it sounds like you still came out ahead. Also, when assembling a speaker box like this one, the best idea is to make the top or bottom panel the last panel you mount/glue/screw in place. This will give you access to everything inside the box without having to wire everything up pre-mount.

[@paulespino6462]

$300 for parts and your time. Then another $10k plus for tools and a workshop.

[@rahul38474]

I don’t think mid-range sound bars cost that much. I have an LG one that was about $300 and comes with a wireless subwoofer and it sounds good enough for me. Quick googling also shows that there’s a lot of name brand sound bars available in the neighborhood of $400. I’m not an audiophile by any means though so maybe our definitions of mid-range differ.

[@justingillette8287]

@@rahul38474 I would agree with Paul Espino on this one. when you say name brand, that means nothing about product quality, name brand usually means large budget on marketing/sales/advertising and less money on actual product. Good luck finding a solid wood speaker cabinet that looks as good as his does for twice what he paid first off, second, he and we for that matter know a little bit about the challenges of building sound equipment let alone engineering it. No offense intended, but that LG sound bar and subwoofer is a joke, if you were to pull it apart the internal components would be as cheap as possible. trust me i have ripped into a ton of speakers. The filter of most of that grade equipment is going to be first order, I personally doubt you have a two way speaker configuration in the sound bar anyway, it is likely full range drivers getting everything but a single cap set to block the 120hz and below. the sub is going to be a 50w 6.5in maybe 8" set up that rolls off fast below 60hz, again no offense intended but if your experience is with a sound bar like you describe the rabbit hole is a heck of a lot deeper than you know!

[@ragtop63]

@@rahul38474 $300-$400 is the high end of the lower end of sound bars. High end sound bars can go for well over $2000.

[@ragtop63]

@@paulespino6462 I can build this with a $30 jigsaw and a $20 soldering kit.

[@txmike1945]

A few years ago my son and I built a pair of ported tower speakers using those same Hi Vi woofers, plus a Hi Vi tweeter. We staggered them, from the top, one woofer, then the tweeter, then the remaining three woofers to avoid having a symmetric configuration. They sound great and it was fun designing and building the crossovers and the enclosures. BTW, a "crossover" is misnamed, it is better described as a "FILTER". The full range signal is routed towards both the woofer and the tweeter sections wired in parallel, but the high pass section protects the tweeter by not allowing low frequencies to reach it while the low pass section chokes out the high frequencies that would otherwise muddy up the woofer's output. The crossover frequency is simply the point where the falling output of the woofer exactly equals the rising output of the tweeter.

[@allenpost3616]

Nice looking build. A couple things I would have considered is with the crossover components and the placement of your Denon receiver. Spending the time to build such a quality cabinet I would've replaced those cheap crossover parts with good quality parts. Iron core inductors and sandcast resistors really hold back your drivers, muddying the sound. And man your Denon is roasting under that shelf like that. It needs room for heat convection. Amazing looking cabinets though.

[@CDP135Z]

Came here to say the same thing about that poor Denon!

[@petergoestohollywood382]

Don’t know much about audio snobs, but I consider my collection of audio KNOBS pretty impressive ;)

[@dvy6660]

Lmao

[@Keithnicity]

Fellow Canadian here... this dude really leans in on the classic “Canadian” accent people make fun of us for! Out and about! Lol The projects are dope and filming is next level!

[@thaejsooriya3313]

Also Canadian, maybe thats why I didn’t notice anything😂

[@djoka_grk]

Im watching this 2 years later and its great still...

[@Defyant123]

Amazing build Zac these lil drivers are by far my fav to build with

[@robertoszym2]

You need to drill one or two holes to allow sawdust to escape when drilling big holes. This way you will not burn the material next time.

[@nubie1100]

This is the way

[@Halostarrer78]

LOOK AT THE CUTE LITTLE DOGGY !!!!!! ROOF ROOF !!

[@1pcfred]

That's one way to do it. I just make a pin jig for my router for cutting holes for speakers.

[@timothywewege6651]

This is really the most beautifully put together system and the colour is drop dead beat amazing

[@Topher_Guy]

I did something exactly like this 6 years ago, also have a Denon 7.1 system. Audio snob confirmed, welcome to the club

[@rpals5412]

1:30 I love the honesty ! You just earned a ton of respect before you even started building anything

[@ZacBuilds]

Thanks man! I try to be as transparent as possible with these vids

[@williamfosnaugh3293]

DIY is often about getting what you want the way you want it, because commercially available products are either junk, or don't meet your requirements. So send more and get what you want, better quality one and what you want= less expensive the replacing junk or upgrading later to get what you want.

[@Arterexius]

I agree, but it's only ever true for those of us who do a lot of DIY. If you just do a few things it will be way more expensive to DIY than to buy

[@Grasshoppa65]

Hi From Australia. Love your videos. The speaker bar is gorgeous, as is everything you make.

[@ZacBuilds]

Thanks Luke!

[@SpencleyDesignCo]

Sick job on the speaker man! LOVED the edit!

[@TheNightstalker80]

I knew that before even watching this but it's a good point. We, the DIY people don't do stuff our own because we want to save money, I think everyone who ever did something on her/his owen immediately realized that it won't save you any money or time. But also everyone will absolutley agree that it will give you something you'll never get from a bought piece... Most people only think about material cost, you can save plenty on paper but as soon as you come home with some bare wood boards you realize that there's (much) more about building somthing on your own ... But there are situations where you just have to DIY because you can't get a part that fits where you like it or you have some special applications where noone has created a off shelf solution yet. Beeing creative and make things the way YOU imagine and plan it is absolutely priceless!

[@RemmikRotus]

@Zac Builds -Great video and great looking speaker(s). Nothing like being proud of your own DIY builds like that. I went with Klipsch black vinyl series so hard to DYI that look. The center channel is two 5" speakers and a center horn. I think that is a great size and combo for center channel audio. You would be surprised at how big the audio is coming from the center channel. Just wanted to say (and I'm sure you realize this) but It's crazy blocking the top air vents of your receiver like that. I didn't like how my 2020 receiver didn't have any internal fans. You would think by now they would incorporate fans and dust filers but of course they would rather see these die prematurely. I purchased a specialized fan device that somewhat matches the look of a audio component but fairly thin. It sits on top and senses heat out put, turning on it's 3 fans when it gets to a certain temp. Mine vents to the top but they have some that vent to the front. Hard mount this to the receiver and then under shelf mount it like you have it now.

[@Grommet2007]

Baffle size also makes a difference as well. If you used thicker panels to make the speaker, but you aimed to keep the same net volume, the baffle size will end up a bit larger. Also for thick baffles, DIYers tend to chamfer out the back of the driver cutouts as the midrange can be negatively impacted otherwise. And MDF and plywood are normally used for speaker boxes for dimensional stability (they don't usually expand or contract due to slight moisture chances, which could result in split seams). But hey, if the speakers sound and look great, that's really all that matters! Just don't get a mic and use REW to measure them - you don't want to disappear down THAT rabbit hole, LOL.

[@puglicelli]

Nice Job! Well done! That speaker cabinet looks amazing. I've been a fan of those Hivi's since when I bought my first pair in 2008. Enjoy!

[@jbarelds78]

You are absolutely right. DIY audio is not cheaper than store bought equipment. I know, as I myself am a DIY enthousiast, having designed and built quite a few sets of speakers. I do it because I like to make things, and when done knowing I built them myself is just way more rewarding when listening to them. Although most of the time a next project has already been started again. :)

[@1pcfred]

DIY costs what you let it cost. If you design with the goal in mind to make a project economically then it will be. If you prioritize other goals then your final price will reflect that instead. It really depends on what you do. If you buy the most expensive crap you can get your hands on then sure it can cost. Big surprise there. Right now I am listening to a speaker that did not cost me a cent to make. Not a single penny. For it to be cheaper you'd have to pay me to cart a speaker away! I'm sure an enterprising individual could work that deal out somehow.

[@wadimek116]

It is cheaper by a lot. You can't resale it later tho if you get bored

[@caljucotcas]

You shoud have few millions subs.. amazing work!

[@ShantanuSharma]

The more you get used to quality audio the more "audiophile" you'll become. That's what happened with me.

[@saheltaja]

You start to notice the little things you didn't know were there, and thus didn't know to miss.

[@justingillette8287]

Its a blessing and a curse really. It is like test driving a good sports car or luxury car then driving home in a busted hooptie. Once you hear good sound you can never go back. the bar is permanently raised after your ears are exposed to better quality sound. the problem is it gets expensive real quick and you enjoy concerts, cinemas, dances etc less and less because of the often bad sound quality presented. Even in a good theater, the best sound quality is not always present, most big brand cinemas only have low frequency extension to about 50hz, that is sub par you ask me.

[@bigcrackrock]

@@justingillette8287 And when you see people using the built in speakers on their TV you want to cry. Especially when they spend all kinds of money on media and are missing half the experience. They were never that good but TV speakers now days are complete garb-o. Just a hundred dollar pair of powered Edison speakers are going to be leagues better. Of course it likely wont only be 100 dollars because you'll catch the disease and be buying a surround sound system next.

[@dirtyminerapparel]

I have a pair of overnights. Got the flat packs on Parts-Express and they sound sick! So much bass and clarity from such a small package. Also used the Hi-Vi and Vifa to build and mod my SB Pioneers Bookshelf’s. What a difference. Phill made the crossover for them.

[@Dheazzo]

Me I don’t care whether money is saved or wasted, I’m just a hobbyist of DIY as it makes me feel joy as I’m listening to my own creativity

[@heybeter8880]

Duuuuuude i thought you had 1.5mill subs until someone mentionend you didnt, looooove this. Moving into an apartment when moving school and thinking of making a lot of my own furniture

[@JonthaLinks]

That build looks 🔥🔥! And thanks for using our song

[@ZacBuilds]

Thanks and my pleasure! I had your song saved in my Epidemic Sounds playlist since it first came out. I was just waiting for the perfect video for it. Keep up the good work!

[@theelichtje3]

Some great stuff here! You've got a new follower :)

[@SIlverwolf-fy8ci]

Whats the song called. Sounds good. Any place where i can purchase it?

[@raghavan_4]

@@theelichtje3 yo bro me too. Pretty real words that ya used in the vid

[@JonthaLinks]

@@SIlverwolf-fy8ci thanks! it's called Pretty Carolina, it's available on most streaming platforms! And we have a music video here on KZbin

[@oldowl4290]

I arrived here because I have a full wood shop and a lot of excess oak board that would be perfect for making speaker cabinets. I'm in need of some for my custom built desk / wall unit and would be using them with my PC. But after pricing out various 4"-6" speakers, Polk, JBL, etc, both new and used on eBay, and adding up the time it takes to build nice boxes, router the edges, sand them, then stain or paint, then install, wire, and solder up the speakers, I can 100% agree that just buying speakers pre-made, even good used sets, will always cost a lot less in time, labor, and materials. Generally speaking I only build those things that I can't get decent quality items cheaply and fast and speakers definitely fall in the cheap/fast category. PS - Every hole saw I own is thrashed too, they all suck. It's weird.

[@ilikemyrealname]

Amazing project and demonstration! Try this for a noticeable difference..decouple your speakers from the surface they are on. A lot of their energy is being absorbed into the TV stand.

[@Smedleydog1]

I've got to ask, how does your receiver/amp dissipate heat since you have it mounted up against the bottom of a shelf? Most of the heat normally goes up through the top of an amp.

[@lorsheckmolseh3345]

Wood and heat (i.e. of blowing components, because of missing cooling) aren't a good combination.

[@sampsalol]

@@johnkarapita437 Definitely not good enough.

[@iankphone]

@@sampsalol Correct. That thing is cooking under there. Looks cool.

[@aveen1968]

Solution would be to open it up and put in some PC fans(receivers are generally vented on the side as well) not ideal but better than cooking =)

[@sixstringsdown1]

@Simon Mwangi It was a DENON, no?

[@charlesgi5058]

Also great intro. Really went the mile for the sunrise. Nice...

[@ZacBuilds]

Thanks! Had to wake up at 5am to do that sequence but it was worth it!

[@jonjonr6]

I built a 5.1 set, consisting of 4x 4" mid bass and 2x 3" extended range mid/tweeters in each front speaker lcr, mounted in-wall in bake boards made of poplar stained with danish oil. The rear use half as many of the same drivers. Custom crossovers. Each component was inexpensive, but the number of drivers and capacitors and inductors needed drive the price way higher than just buying a nice set of in-walls. They do sounds very good, but I'm feeling like I should have chosen midbass with stronger punch, or used boxes as I originally planned. I'm also considering building a seemless flush-in kit or maybe a vintage styled grille.

[@jeffreytackett3922]

The title is absolutely true. I didn't want to spend $1,500 on a good quality Telecaster, so I went the DIY route and built one for just under $7,000. Now, though, I have essentially a complete luthier's tool set and enough wood to build 4 or 5 more.

[@bugginnick80]

You have a really nice setup! The one thing you may want to think about is your receiver placement; having it mounted like that can cause quite a bit of heat to build up in it. Maybe add a USB powered computer fan to the side of the receiver to aide in cooling.

[@kyakfsh]

That's what caught my eye, too. Do you receiver a favor and allow the heat to escape. Otherwise you'll be replacing it sooner rather than later.

[@Torbox1]

Your speakers look great, my only concern is the receiver placement. They dissipate a lot of heat and most goes up through the top, I have mine with about 3 inches of space above it and it still heats up quite a bit. It looks like you have maybe 1/2 inch of space above yours. I would definitely suggest making a proper floating shelf below it and lowering it a couple inches at least.

[@bomcalister7252]

My question is this....been building speakers for years and going home media systems and business systems. How can you say that DIY speakers cost the same as pre made? Not hating on you by any means but I can build speakers that out perform and out last their counterparts for a fraction of the price and have been doing do for years. You really need to do a lot more research before saying anything like that. Plus while your a/v mounting was cool it was no where near practical or good for your equipment. You seem to have a great knowledge for building but definitely need more of an electronics background before doing anything like your home set up again.

[@estebanp6391]

I was going to comment exactly the same. Need some clearance up in the receiver.

[@JFRGarcia6]

@Zac they're awesome!! I was thrilled... I want to build my own. :) Like you said... it's not about saving money but enjoying building it.

[@kvaks3000]

Well done! Great-looking speakers and a well-produced video.

[@TerenceMurrayWolf]

It also depends on what country you live in.... for those living in third-world countries whom have no resources, then creating furniture, tech, etc...you’d be shocked. Here’s an e.g. the new 2tb cellular 12.9 iPad costs a whopping 2400.00 US$ = 4800.00 BD$ + 2400.00 Customs robbery = 7200.00 final cost. Most of us can’t build an iPad, however I have built a raspberry pi pad.

[@TempoDrift1480]

I bet a dog would have a hard time building a speaker cabinet like this too.

[@sparkeyjones6261]

It definitely depends on which country you're in. That same iPad in Vietnam, Thailand, or China would be a fraction of the cost. In Barbados, you may have access to hardwoods like mahogany at much cheaper prices. How much are the tariffs for imported components?

[@TerenceMurrayWolf]

@@sparkeyjones6261 It's supposed to be 17% VAT however, the customs officerrs here hit you harder for non-essential items sometimes as much as 50% especially when they don;t know or understand the tech... those reapberry pi units I ordered took a month in the bonds cause they didn't know what they were.

[@mixup2216]

I think that quote from Wall-E sums it up " I don't want to survive; I want to live"

[@TheGreatBooger]

Awesome video. Just came across it. I planned on building a entertainment system with built in center and shelf speakers out of oak and walnut. Lover the copper klipse speakers cause they’d match the walnut nicely. Now I know where to get the speakers I’ve been looking for. And the rest of my systems speakers as well.

[@DATApush3r]

It's funny how many times I come across your videos of all different types and they never disappoint. Love your content man!

[@ScottWalshWoodworking]

Missed the premiere but enjoyed the build! Cheers!

[@ZacBuilds]

Thanks Scott! Much appreciated man

[@keithbailie3014]

Love the look!

[@andrealbertvonwielligh]

Exactly ... D.I.Y isn't cheaper (most of the time) but it is awesome building your own, getting of the couch, away from the screen and net . Nice build, Nice video, Nice commentary ♡

[@fusobotic]

Love the look of it! It’s positioned a little low though, might want to angle it up somehow or put it right underneath the TV so that it’s aimed at your head and in line with the left/right channels

[@kanedNunable]

oh i could smell the burning MDF on the hole saw bit :p

[@yttean98]

"DIY Doesn't Save You Money" may be true in some instances, one advantage of DIY is it allows you to TUNE the output sound to your satisfaction, and then you change it(freq curve or drivers or etc) when your mood or sound impression changes.

[@m4db4t]

The speaker really looks amazing! The reason you dont want hardwood isn't so much because of the resonances, you actually don't want ANY resonances or "reverbaration" in your cabinet. It's more because hardwood has movement and it will get leaky over time. In a cabinet this size panel resonances won't be much of a problem anyways.

[@1pcfred]

When you knock on a speaker cabinet it should be dead like you are knocking on a rock. Wood is just too lively. It's good for musical instruments but not good for reproduction gear. If you want the look then you need to vernier the cabinet.

[@filiprandom]

Dude has a great point there about audio snob. I got into custom keyboards a bit over a year ago, and after building my own lubed linear mechanical one I REALLY notice if I am using something else

[@HomerJade]

oh man that speaker looks awesome!! being an audio snob doesn’t sound half bad honestly haha.

[@SophieMaudeB]

EXCUSE ME THIS EDIT 🔥 AND THE SPEAKER!

[@ZacBuilds]

Thanks Soph! :)

[@agoodballet]

My audio system in my house and all 3 of the vehicles I drive regularly are custom built and DIY’d. You definitely start to appreciate quality audio gear when you start hearing things you never could before and feel the music louder than sitting inside one of those speakers at a desert rave back in high school.

[@Atheistic007]

I've built both the Overnight speakers and the centre channel. Great speakers!

[@MayanAudioTeam]

Just watched your video and awesome build, just a small FYI, whenever you use natural wood for an enclosure, it helps to pour fiberglass resin onto the inner part, let it coat all the sides and pour out the rest. This helps seal any non-dense areas and seals the inner chamber better. Hope it helps.

[@LBCAndrew]

It will crack with or without the fiberglass resin. Speakers shouldn't be made out of hardwood like this.

[@ModernRemade]

I would love to do a project like this for my desk. I only have speakers on my monitors and they're about as good as a tin can on a string 😂 Awesome video!

[@robertlevy3191]

Great job producing and building, enjoy the good sounds.

[@glengatt3941]

Really nice something you made with your own hands its rewarding,I always wanted to do something like that I need all the tools when they took my garage all the tools disappeared I looked away for a few hours

[@glassd]

Why is your amp mounted like that? It needs the top open to radiate heat.

[@ghubensg7314]

the speakers look mint AF 🔥🔥

[@1pcfred]

Speakers are made to be heard and not seen.

[@TopHatCat1989]

I actually use a pair of home built speakers my dad made over 20 years ago with 6inch drivers. It was part of a 5.1 sound system he built in our old house, but he had to take it apart when we moved. He still had a spare driver so I built myself a centre channel speaker, a single 6inch driver, you don't need anything more complicated and I saved a fair amount of money reusing old parts that still work.

[@JZStudiosonline]

If you want to density match wood you can take a scale and weigh the boards, provided they have a similar moisture level. When we made wood propellers we really had to dig through the stock of wood supply at the depot to make sure the weight per volume was consistent so the propellers would be evenly balanced and wouldn't cause a wobble. Although I think density mismatch for speakers is probably less important than the change in density between walnut and MDF which would effect transmission and reflection. It's too late now, but these denser woods like Walnut, Mesquite, and especially Ironwood you can sand up to ~800 grit and they will be baby ass smooth and actually start to shine on their own. You can probably straight polish them going higher up the chain, but I've only gone to 800 before oiling.

[@gasgiant7122]

Beautiful speakers Zac & great tutorial video, my own opinion is that you mentioned $300 I think you would pay way more than that for the same quality solid walnut speakers with decent drivers plus you can enjoy that kinda smug feeling knowing that you created them yourself & nobody on the planet has the same, win win, well worth the time & money you spent minus the income from your excellent video’s 👍🇬🇧🇺🇸

[@sparkeyjones6261]

He would pay 10x that to even look at a speaker constructed with solid walnut ;)

[@ZitoVino]

Hey man, great video. I've never heard of that CV glue so you really helped me out with that. I have my receiver mounted similarly under my desk. I have noticed that quite a bit of heat comes off of it, so I changed my mount to add a couple inches of gap between the top and the wood. You might want to do the same to extend the life of it.

[@rolliekelly6783]

These also make great porch speakers. I have built two pair , one for my daughter and another for me. Paul is not only a great speaker designer, he is an all around good guy. Thanks Paul.

[@sparkeyjones6261]

You put center channel home theater speakers on your porch? In pairs?

[@rolliekelly6783]

@@sparkeyjones6261 yes,they seem to produce a wider stage.

[@robertsoncletokoerner7012]

Muito obrigado. Belo trabalho e ensinamento. Parabéns. Robertson (Brasil)

[@pieterlotter1817]

How is that AV receiver not overheating it cools by natural convection, needs some space on top for escaping hot air. maybe not a problem with a light load but low impedance speakers plus high volume will heat that puppy up. Nice Video.

[@JohnB-ws4ge]

I'd argue there is no way you'd get a similar product for anywhere near that cost.

[@Arterexius]

You won't, but how much does it cost in materials to get to such a level where you can make these products? It's only really ever the tools that are investments. Everything else are expenses and unless you frequently work with solid woods and higher quality materials, then they'd be hideously expensive for a single project. That's why DIY doesn't save you money. For creators who love to build stuff it will eventually, but for those who just want to make a few things because they think it's cheaper. They will end up paying far more than if they just bought it. DIY hand crafting cannot beat mass production in terms of price per piece

[@thomaskletzl6493]

@@Arterexius i dont know if this is true you dont need many thinks you can do it with a table saw some glue and thats it a router would be nice but not needed these thinks you can buy for 300 dollars

[@JasonGrissom]

9:59 . I'm not sure truer words have ever been spoken. Another great video Zac!

[@ZacBuilds]

I like it so much I just picked up a third for my latest video that should be out in a week or so!

[@c.a.villanueva112]

Huge inspiration! Glad to have come across this channel

[@NICKJONATHON]

The new addition and setup looks great mister! I run a Denon Reciever as well (love it) but if yours puts off as much heat as mine you might run into problems with the clearance you have on the top of your Reciever. I know your running a separate powered sub so you’re likely not needing too too much power but just food for thought if you run into any over heating problems in the future. Thanks and great video!!

[@3dnutta]

Came here on that point too, nice job tho!

[@NegussugeN]

You're suffocating that poor receiver. :(

[@linnemeyerhere]

Excellent job, couple of helpful hints. Air space around amps even if it looks passive it's generating heat and you ideally want to have air space to create convection. Then investigate and DIY custom interconnects and speaker wire running things down with purest copper you want to afford. Yes I'm a audio nerd but I run pure copper with silver over the wires and other than pure silver enjoy the sound but more over the process is also interesting as at every turn you have choices. The point is much like what you've done it up's the sonic impact while enhancing the visual or clean wiring. Cheers you have a great looking set up far from audiophile but hugely above entry level !

[@joshhearn2877]

So cool man! Love to see more

[@masonrisner7205]

Liked the video before watching. Your content is great. Sick intro

[@ZacBuilds]

You're the best Mason, thanks! Glad you liked the intro too, I had to get at 5am to shoot it haha

[@stoneyswolf]

I told my wife I was gonna make one of these. She was questioning why it was gonna cost $2000000.

[@juliusheigl1015]

Super nice video, great project and great message! Loved it!

[@roachwerks3043]

For any sound quality concerns, you can layer 1/2” mdf with whatever wood you choose on the outside, or use 3/4 or 1” hardwood and line most of the Interior with something like a self adhesive damping material. You’ll get some Audio snobs that disagree but form+function right

[@StraightWhiskey9]

Great video as always 👍. I aspire to one day be at your level of production. Keep it up brother!

[@tobyratcliffe4534]

I bought and built my OS MMTMM center channel speaker from Meniscus a little over 2 years ago. I then proceeded to replace my standard OS speakers with the MTM OS kit, and then finally with the OS dipole surrounds. I topped off the system with a car audio sub and behringer amp and now it is hard for me to go to a movie theater because my home sound is far superior. The OS series is a cheap kit for the sound they produce. Very little tuning needed for the room they are in.

[@NBC_NCO]

I do the scenic route all the time. Mostly bc I'm lazy. Then the other is finding the correct shims for the thickness you want. 3/4" material can actually vary quite a bit. Very nice looking, center channel. I like the industrial look of your entertainment center. Everything that you can go to the store and go purchase nowadays, just looks so much like plastic... like nobody touched it was assembled by machines and given a fake woodgrain vinyl sticker. From my portable Bluetooth speaker box with two 4inch drivers and 3/4" tweets... Your system sounded very good.

[@cesarcaro6767]

These really are very good-looking builds. In addition to the concerns about receiver ventilation, my other concern from a sonic perspective is interference from the lip around the baffle. You do a good job of placing the speakers at the edge of the shelf, rather than recessed, but the lip of wood around the baffle will cause early reflections that prevent smooth dispersion and good imaging. They do look nice, though. Further along the same lines, having the face countersunk to allow for flush driver mounting also makes a difference, but definitely adds a hurdle of difficulty.

[@joshhyyym]

You could probably improve the sound quality significantly by mounting the drivers closer together (particularly the centre drivers to the tweeter to reduce interference near the crossover frequency), rotating the second air core inductor 90degrees on the crossover (to reduce the inductive coupling) and by flush mounting the baffle to the front of the box instead of using a dado (to reduce diffraction from the edge). Looks like a really nice build.

[@nathanblanchard8897]

It sounds like you know a ton more than I do, but he did mount the speakers in the way suggested by the kit 🤷🏼‍♂️ not sure how much testing they did to make sure it was the best way to do it or how much sound quality they gave up in favor of aesthetics, but it’d be interesting to see how much your suggestions would help!

[@cesarcaro6767]

I had the same thoughts. In my opinion, the edge diffraction will by far be the biggest drawback, far bigger than inductive coupling.

[@chefbennyj]

Yup! He's done it again. Really nice stuff. Impressive 👍

[@vocalpro]

Great job!!! Also, you can unscrew the feet off your amp for an even cleaner look! (I'm into clean lines also)

[@Jenkanzz]

that 17:45 moment was AWESOME, great editing, great build, great video!

[@theblower069]

Hello Zac A great Video loved how they came out in the end the choice of wood and how they looked then the sound very good. well done.

[@seafarer440]

Love your hiding of your other gaming units and the mounting of your reciever Top Shelf Building Ideas

[@ZacBuilds]

I hate clutter and love simplicity haha

[@CraigSchubert]

Stunning looking speaker! :-) I did a similar thing... I used to work in demolition and we came across a whole office that had Corian acrylic counter tops. (Corian is even more dense than MDF and these sheets were a speckled black.) I salvaged enough to build hopefully 4 or 5 cabinets for the VAF Research I-91s. Needed a mate to help me build the first two, and have the kits and Corian sitting there to do two more when I get around to it. The build quality wasn't quite up to yours, but I think they look great, and they sound amazing!! (I would hope so though - they sell for over a grand each from the shop!)

[@ZacBuilds]

Thats awesome! I've done some Corian in custom homes for clients and you can shape that stuff in some really interesting ways! I never wouldve thought to use it for a speaker though, thats such a cool idea

[@CraigSchubert]

@@ZacBuilds Cool! Yeah, I thought of it after finding that VAF used to sell their speakers as fully assembled, kit with cabinets, and kit with plans. I spoke to them and they agreed to sell me the kit with plans for their top of the line bookshelf I-91s after being able to salvage the large amount of Corian. :-) After I built them (well, vaguely assisted my friend in building them) I took one in and they measured it as being practically identical to the kits they build.

[@jonathansturm4163]

@@CraigSchubert Phil Vafiadis’ speaker designs are awesome. My DC-Xs were assessed as “good as speakers costing $AU5-6,000” by a visitor who wrote for hi-fi magazines. The kit cost me $AU1,300 and saved me $AU300 in return for about 3 hours’ work soldering and screwing. The output is only 3dB down @ 30 Hz so no subwoofer needed. I saw a pair on Gumtree a couple of years ago and they quickly sold for $AU1,000.

[@Hitokiri_Ace]

Good video. :D Fun to watch, and informative and well done. It's too late for me, I've already gotten bit by the DIY bug. A few 1099s and a couple VBSS units later.. and I "think" I'm done for now. :) Good luck to ya on future builds!