I present it here for comment and criticism by the professionals
and other readers.

For certain of the techniques in speakerbuilding there is
no "Methods of Work" archive that I have found... something
systematic in the manner of a FAQ for first time readers and
those ready to actually get out the hot glue gun.

The Craftsman Corner is the most logical place for this stuff
that I can think of but Wayne may have another suggestion.

It's my opinion that the good speakerbuilding book has not
been published yet. I enjoy David Weem's "Great Sound Stereo
Speaker Manual" but it lacks a lot of T/S details and information on the current box modelling software that is around today. Vance
Dickason's Cookbook leaves a lot to be desired for a first-time
reader IMO but I may be an isolated case.

• BR1 manual PDF

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There isn't much out there for the newby DIYer, and that's a big departure from 10-20 years ago. That because there was a lot of experimentation going on then in speaker design, but precious little now.

I write for AudioXpress magazine, which on average has two speaker projects per issue. That's a far cry from its pre-2001 predecessor, Speaker Builder, which during its late '80s early 90's heyday often had four or five projects per issue. The reason for the current lack of projects? A lack of people writing them.

If you're serious about DIY go to the AudioXpress site and see about getting back issues of Speaker Builder, most especially 1985 to 1990 or so. Most of what is considered cutting edge speaker technology today in fact appeared in Speaker Builder during that time period coming out of the home work shops of both professional and amateur builders.

Personally, I love rot rod car and audio magazines. I loved computer magazines too back in the 70's and 80's when they were into the nuts and bolts, schematics, source code and assembly language. It's great to be able to thumb through the pages, take it with you wherever you go, and keep it for ever and ever when you're done.

But now days, lots of people are on the internet and it has it's own advantage, being interactive. I was amazed to see how much activity there was on audio and automotive discussion groups when I first found them. It has definitely had an impact on printed media.

So there are cool things being published in both media. But the point I wanted to make here is about online media. There's a ton of stuff happening here, much more than a half dozen speaker projects a month. If you look around online, you'll probably find that many per hour. And I'm not talking about just cheezy thrown-together stuff either, I'm talking about serious, well-thought-out efforts.

Years ago people had less disposable income, audio was a far higher percentage of take home pay, and the range of choices was more limited than it is today. All this has combined to reduce the “necessities” earlier associated with DIY and I believe can be directly correlated with the decline in audio oriented publishing.

My collection of Speakerbuilder mags goes back to 1998 when
I discovered it by accident at the newish Barnes and Noble here
in Northeast Wisconsin. B&N also carried Glass Audio and Audio
Amateur.

And I think Ed Dell was right in combining those publications
under one masthead as _audioXpress_. But I still came in in the
middle of the party not knowing much about what was going on.

In a letter to Ed (email I think) I suggested that as a publishing effort, the best cue to take is from _Cooks Illustrated_ magazine.

_Cooks_ is what I'd call a "guys cooking mag." I subscribed to
it for a couple years... got about 2 years of it free for readers
tips I submitted. The thing about Cooks is that from issue to issue
they don't assume you know anything. Soooo, if they are talking about
frying chicken, there's a sidebar showing you how to cut up a
chicken _in every feature where cutting up a chix is required_. They
also have sidebars on "how food works" for the scientifically curious.

Where I'm going with this is that a style sheet approach and
archive of how-to articles has not been assembled or written by
anyone anywhere.

During the years since I first subbed to Speakerbuilder after
buying a few issues, I mostly looked at the pictures while understanding little of theory. To a great extent that is still the
case. But in recent times with the feedback and encouragement
available from AudioRoundtable and the Full Range Driver Forum I have actually assembled that first project described under the header
"boomtoobz". I am listening to the organ recital (Pipedreams,
Minnesota Public Radio) right now and am amazed at what I was able to make with a couple of closeout RS 1197s and some pretty long
lengths of PVC pipe. These look different than what I've linked
to as the inspiration for the boomtoobz. So far as I know it can
be considered something new.

That's a good feeling of accomplishment. But putting theory to
the project is a bit difficult even with Martin King's advice here.

I'm hoping that these things can come together so beginners such
as myself do not view the whole activity as the blindmen and the
elephant: one piece of info here and another some place else with the
critical bit in another place yet to be discovered.

That's why I show links from other sites' links and projects. At this time there seems to be no archival site for simple schematic
reading, board assembly, component gathering nor a style sheet for
for preparation of articles.

lon@athenet.net

It is true that DIY is on the decline. Witness the removal of Rat Shack from the genre. Sure, Parts Express and MCM are booming thanks to the net and mail-order, but the local sources for DIY have dried up. A good deal of that has to do with the maturity of T/S theory; in the 80's Speaker Builder printed project after project using the relatively new T/S parameters. Now the attitude there is 'been there,done that, how many ways can you build a vented box?' Now what you mostly see there are the two box types still not commonly available at Circuit City: TLs and horns. I expect line arrays will start showing up regularly. As noted before, they'd love to print a lot more projects, which they pay for, if only writers would submit them.

Personally I see that this could turn around, though not for the best of reasons. From Wunhuanglo's comment I can see that he doesn't work in retail management. Disposable income is on the decline, not the rise, for the average American. If you don't believe it, check and see who the largest employer is in your state. Chances are like mine it's Walmart, followed by MacDonalds and Burger King. Not exactly where one gets rich quick. Manufacturing jobs are heading to China, and they're not coming back. The good news is that thanks to Chinese manufacturing you can go to Walmart and buy an air conditioner or TV for 77 bucks; the bad news is that while our retail costs for manufactured goods are down so are average incomes. Family income is holding, but only because both mom and dad have jobs. People that used to get health benefits as part of their package now have to pay for it. Yes, those at the top of the heap are doing quite well. But the top of that heap is getting to be a smaller place with every passing day.

While Chinese manufacturing also means that there will still be plenty of $29.95 speakers at Best Buy there will also be a demand for better quality goods at prices less than that of the average SUV, and that's where the resurgence of DIY could take hold.

Going back to the original question, I think that Dave Weems book belongs in every DIYers library, and probably Vances as well. Consider mine perhaps; though I've rendered most of the projects in it obsolete compared to my subsequent efforts, there's still a lot of value there for the newbie. There are lots of others as well, all it takes is a bit of effort to find them.

I think two parent incomes are a fact of a new attitude as much or more than necessity. When we were growing up (and until my father retired about 1986) there was one TV, one “stereo” and one car. There were no computers, CD players, DVDs, no Internet provider, no cell phones, no Disneyland vacations. The median cost of a new home continues to increase as does the median square footage. Home ownership is at an all-time high (most people in my grandparent’s generation rented unless they were on a farm).

We have far greater expectations about what constitutes “necessities” today, and we work many more hours to obtain them. Those extra hours are the ones that at one time might have been DIY time, but no more.

As to the cummuters going from NH to Mass, it's not because they want to, it's because they have to. They can't afford to live where they work. It's the same as those who spend 4 hours a day on the LIE. It's not because they enjoy traffic, it's because at $3000 a month for a walkup studio who can afford to live in Manhattan? 'Joe Millionaire' maybe, but certainly not 'Average Joe'.

My mother never worked. She never had to. In the sixties my father never made more than $10k per year, and we had a big house in suburban Boston, a summer home and a boat. My wife always has worked, and not to support our need for toys. She carries our health insurance that takes 1/3 of her pay. When I went to college my total expenses senior year, 1971, were $1500. My daughters senior year, 1999, cost $32,000.

I just had some surgery, spent 11 days in the hospital. The tab came to $60k, and half was for drugs. What happens to the poor schmo who doesn't have insurance?

Retail stores are popping up all over, and they all share one trait: low wages and minimal benefits. I know. I manage a 3 store retail chain. The platinum card carrying SUV driving people of means are doing very well, and aren't afraid to spend. But at the other end of the spectrum people are hanging tight; if they aren't scared of not having a job at all in 2 months they just don't have the spare income to spend on anything beyond the necessities. Ours sales of high end goods are booming. Middle priced goods are only selling at a mediocre pace, though, and the lowest priced are hardly moving at all. The gap between haves and have nots is widening. That's why I see DIY coming back, because better to DIY than DW (do without).

Most people up here also have newer cars and own homes. That's mostly because interest rates are so low that almost anyone can afford a house or a new car. It's also because you can't find an affordable apartment and with labor rates at $50 per hour no one can afford to keep fixing their old cars. Oh, and it's not the mechanics making that money, they're lucky to get $15; it's the shop owners that make the profits. I know. They're the ones who come into my stores dropping two or three grand at a pop. They used to be the exception, with most sales being in the $300 range. Now they are the rule; we don't see many mechanics any more.

If you really want to see how well things are going for the working stiff take a drive to Walmart, or any other retail store, and look in the parking lot. Not the one out front, the one out back, the employee lot. Count how many Lexus and Infinitys you see. Then count the KIAs and Hyundais. When you discount the high priced stuff that belongs to management you can do what I do everyday and be thankful that you don't have to get along on what they make.