So finally my new ProAc Response 2.5 clone playing music. And how they play! I got myself a new Class-A amplifier to have something nice to drive them with. At first they sounded a bit short on the bass side, but now after about 20 hours of listening, the bass starts to improve. I’ve never believed in the “burn-in” of speakers, but I have to say I’ve been mistaken.
I invited some friends over for a music listening party. A lot of records and an even larger amount of beer made for a beautiful evening.
At the same time I ordered my new amplifier, I also ordered a new DVD player with DVD-Audio and SACD playing capability. So I rush out to get my hands on a SACD record, but the only one I could find was the slightly overplayed Dark side of the moon by Pink Floyd. But it was a good test record because I have two different mastering versions on cd, so comparing was easy. And to my surprise the CD (actually Flac played through my Squeezebox) sounded better than the SACD one! So I had to check that the player didn’t play the normal cd layer, but no, it played the SACD layer. The singing voices on the SACD sounded muffled compared to the Japanese pressing of the CD. Also the pinpointing of instrument placements in the stereo image was not as good an coherent from the SACD. The player a Pioneer 696 is a low budget player so it could be it. But I’ll crank up the manual and check so I haven’t done something stupid with the settings.
More testing tomorrow…
boje says
Hello, I am from Germany and I follow your projects since years now. I am very interested in the Proac clones. Do you still use these speakers? I am especially interested in the crossover design you are using and the insulation. Can you provide further details to me? Greetings from Frankfurt, Germany! boje
Jack Zimmermann says
Hi Boje! Yes, I still use the Proac clones and are very happy with them!
I used this filter http://web.archive.org/web/20091026162146/http://geocities.com/diyproac25/images/proac_response25_xover.jpg
I got the insulation from a speaker store in Stockholm and measured the weight so it was the same as the original. I found the bitumen at a car parts store.
They are absolutely worth building. And you can’t beat the feeling of making something yourself that sounds that good!
boje says
Hello, thanks for the crossover. I used this one to select my components: http://web.archive.org/web/20091026162146/http://geocities.com/diyproac25/Troelsmodifiedcrossover.JPG
I am not sure which one I should use now. What would you suggest? Have you tried different versions? What do you thin about the optional notch filter?
Can you please give me some more details on the insulation? Have you just used bitumen or any additional material? How much insulation have you used? Thanks for the help!
Jack Zimmermann says
I used the schematic with the notch filter. Here’s a link to the insulation I used. http://www.hifikit.se/tillbehor/akustikmaterial/dampmaterial
Jack Zimmermann says
I used a similar bitumen damper as this one (Swedish) http://www.biltema.se/sv/Bil—MC/Bil-tillbehor/Ljudisolering/Smaltfolie-Bitumen-4-st-369213
Jack Zimmermann says
I found out the weight of the insulation on the net (can’t find it now) and measured it to the same weight. You might find it with Google. No additional material.
After I finished building the speakers, I did a 1 meter measurement with a calibrated microphone and the diagram was very close to the one published in the Audiophile Magazine review.