Here are my three open baffle speakers. I think everyone should have a few, you know, to cover the waterfront
They all sound very different but I could probably live with any single one of them if that was my only option.
In terms of scale, the Big Betsy wins hands down. But the Tang Band/AMT/15A based speaker has a more open soundstage due to the skinny top baffle.
Bass hit also goes to the Big Betsy, but I was surprised how well I liked the 15A. For the price, a very good bass driver. I have a crossover with the 15A, but no additional amplification and it is plenty loud and full. I also have some Augies that I can run in these baffles to give it more ooomf and body, but they require additional amplification.
The Crystal 10, as its name suggests, is definitely the most clear and colorless sound. More details by far and the best spatial cues. The LO15 has the best low bass and bass definition by far, but requires additional amplification. I tried it with just a coil to cross it at around 100hz and while it sounded crisp, there just wasn’t enough body.
After listening to the Crystal 10, the Tang Band/AMT based speakers sounds a bit dark. I quickly adapted to it and enjoyed the music, but the contrast was pretty striking.
Costs are around $800 for the Big Betsy’s (inexpensive red oak stair treads and L15 driver), $1,200 for the Tang Band/AMT/15A and $1,900 for the Crystal 10s (although they are in a cheap baffle made from leftover Baltic Birch).
If asked to choose, right now, I would lean towards the Crystal 10. It opened up in the last several weeks and the spatial cues are really what I have been looking for. Combined with the sublime bass of the LO15 it’s a really great speaker.
The Big Betsy is really a great all rounder and its easy to fall in love with the scale and addictive hit of this speaker. Everything sounds good on this speaker. It is definitely the speaker which is easiest to listen to for long periods.
The Tang Band/AMT/15A speaker would be the only one leaving me really looking for something else – which is what lead me to jump on the Lii Audio based speakers.
Anyway, its been a fun project that I was able to fund by parting with some of my old equipment. My next project is going to be building some ICs but I will continue to work with these drivers in various configurations.