I decided that there would not be enough new loudspeakers to audition at Decware Fest 2019 ..... so I created one more to have some "variety" .....

The only way to add a 12" Eminence driver to a standard size Betsy baffle is to mount the drivers diagonally.



I had been thinking about doing this for a long time and came across a pair of pre-finished Baltic birch cutouts in my stash that weren't being used for anything.

This is a "passive" design with an inductor on the 12" driver ..... so no plate amp / subwoofer amp is needed.

I am extremely happy with the sound and will be curious to get some input from the Decware Fest attendees.

Larger photo here.

Happy listening,
Randy

They couldn’t look any better. Really like the off axis visual.

They look nice Randy.  Looking forward to hearing them at the Fest.  The listening room is going to be jammed with all these new speakers!

Based on what I have heard with the crystal 10 and AE LO15, it would likely be a good combo but $$$$.

Hi Randy,
Having a special order list in your catalog sounds interesting!

On a separate note, It was you who first welcomed me to the Decware forum in February 2001. I don't think I ever said thank you. I am grateful for the friendliness you extended to me then.

Best wishes on your speaker building enterprises.
Brian

Kinda fascinated by this concept.  Realize I'm resurrecting an older thread, but I have some questions:

1) Anyone have any other experiences with this Betsy & Buck?  I'm preparing to diy some standard Betsy's, but seems like a really good move toward filling in the bottom end.
2) Can the 2.3 watt Zen power the B&B in a smaller (12x12) to reasonable listening levels?
3) Any idea if the Alpha's would still be the preferred driver for this, and what the coil value would be/targeted low pass point target?  Maybe proprietary info...
4) Would a slightly larger baffle to utilize the Alpha 15 improve it in any way?  

Thanks for the reply!  I may end up doing that regardless of responses here.  Intrigued by this combo.

Nice!  Thanks for responding Randy.  Looking forward to seeing how they turn out.

Hi Tom,

Because of the issue previously mentioned about the small section of wood between the two drivers "cracking" on hardwood baffles, I only offered the Betsy & Buck baffles in plywood.

Since I am no longer offering plywood baffles, all speakers will be single driver only.

The Lii Audio 12" drivers are close enough sonically to the Betsy & Buck that I think this will be a very good replacement.
Because of the increase in efficiency and the single driver format, they are actually superior in some ways.

As soon as I receive the shipment of drivers, I will post some information about them and add them to the price list.
They will be 100.00 less than the Lii 15 baffles in the equivalent species of hardwood(s).

On the plywood topic, it seems that the manufacturers are now able to make the top veneer layer so thin that trying to sand out blemishes without burning through the veneer is nearly impossible.

I had several situations where I had spent a couple of hours making a pair of baffles and then found a blemish that caused me to "scrap" the speakers .....

It wasn't all that difficult to make a decision to discontinue the plywood baffles since I much prefer to work with solid hardwoods ..... and the pricing is not that much higher for the hardwood baffles, considering what a customer is getting for their hard earned money .....

Honestly, orders have actually increased since the change .....
I consistently have six to ten orders in the build queue and shipping on new orders is currently at four weeks.

So much for "retirement" .....

Best wishes,
Randy

I used to read a lot of HP Lovecraft. It's off topic, but I just wanted to say to ElderGod, I am amused by your forum name, and really like it.

Brian

Steve wrote .....

Quote:


Hi Steve,

Many thanks for the positive comments on the Caintuck Audio loudspeakers and the encouragement over the past few years .....

I have owned several versions of the Decware Zen amp and every updated version has been a "step up".

The information for the SE84UFO states -
"a signal-path featuring a mere 2 resistors and 1 capacitor"

Albert Einstein made a very interesting (and correct) observation about simplicity which explains the amazing sonic performance of the Zen amplifier.

I think that the same thing applies to the Betsy baffles ..... as well as all of the other speakers I am offering.

Single driver, no crossover components ..... just get out of the way and let the music into the listening room .....

What a great hobby .....

Happy listening,
Randy