Puget Sound Speaker Contest 2010!

[Kevin Haskins]

I'm posting this for my buddy TerryO who has been responsible for organizing this event every other year. If you are anywhere in the Pacific Northwest and have any interest in speakers, this event is a bash. Nobody ever regrets coming and Terry does a bang-up job of running a blind listening panel to judge all the speaker designs. You don't have to worry too much about getting skunked because Terry enters a speaker every year and captures the "worst of show" award. ;-)

Anyway.... make a spot in your schedule in August and come out for a day that is an absolute blast.

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"The Puget Sound! DIY Speaker Contest" is once again being sponsored by the Pacific Northwest Audio Society (PNWAS) and will be held on Saturday, August 28th. In the coming days and weeks, I'll be posting information as to location, rules and how to enter. The event is free for attendees, although there is an entry fee for contestants to help defray costs of the facility rental.

If you're interested in DIY speaker building, or just Audio, this is a great way to meet and connect with others that are of a like mind. Come for an hour, or spend all day, it's interesting and a whole lot of fun. While spectators aren't allowed in the evaluation/judging room, we usually have an similar, or nearly exact, system set up in a separate area, in order that the public can listen to the various entries.

If you're new to speaker building, this is a chance to talk to the contestants about speaker design and Audio in general. I believe that you'll be astonished by the quality of sound that these home-built speakers are capable of.

If you have been working on a speaker design that you'd like to enter, this contest may serve as an incentive to finish it up. In the past, all entries have received a printout of the frequency response of their speaker as well as being able to talk to real experts and audio professionals.

Best Regards,
TerryO

[cjd]

Hey Kevin! Want to build a pair of Ansonica to take to the show? :P Or maybe 2 pair, one of each network to see if folks have a preference...

Heh.

[Kevin Haskins]

Hey Kevin! Want to build a pair of Ansonica to take to the show? :P Or maybe 2 pair, one of each network to see if folks have a preference...

Heh.

Ha! I'm either one of the judges or the "technical adviser" so it is probably best if I don't bring anything.

This is first and foremost a DIY event so in that spirit I do my best to encourage keeping commercial interest out of it. It ruins the spirit of the event to overemphasize the competition. Mostly this is for guys having fun building speakers and sharing in the experience.

We will also have a measurement setup on site so that participants can get a quick on-axis FR & Z of their design.

[owdi]

Most excellent. I haven't been to a diy event since Adire Audio held their last event, this will be fun.

[cjd]

Ha! I'm either one of the judges or the "technical adviser" so it is probably best if I don't bring anything.

You didn't mention that before. I agree with you on this one.

Though I'd still be curious to have a good blind A/B of series vs parallel

[David Meek]

Well, I've never been to a DIY event and I can promise I won't have an entry (my wife would skin me if I diverted onto another project with the house un-finished), but are interested neophytes welcome?

[TerryO]

Most excellent. I haven't been to a diy event since Adire Audio held their last event, this will be fun.

The last Adire Audio event was one of several that I help organize for Dan Wiggins.
Those were a lot of fun! :B

Was this the one?

http://speakers.sub-optimal.net/thumbnails.php?album=16

Best Regards,
TerryO

[Kevin Haskins]

Well, I've never been to a DIY event and I can promise I won't have an entry (my wife would skin me if I diverted onto another project with the house un-finished), but are interested neophytes welcome?

David,

It is for anyone interested and neophytes are most especially welcome.

Kevin Haskins

[owdi]

The last Adire Audio event was one of several that I help organize for Dan Wiggins.
Those were a lot of fun! :B

Was this the one?

http://speakers.sub-optimal.net/thumbnails.php?album=16

Best Regards,
TerryO

I recognized the back of my head in one of those pictures!

[TerryO]

Here's some more info on the Contest:

Speaker Contest: "The Puget Sound!" DIY Speaker Contest

August 28, 2010 @ Mercer Island Congregational Church, 4545 Island Crest Way, Mercer Island, WA

Doors open at 9:00 a.m., and judging begins at approximately 9:30 a.m.. We may be flexible on start time if a contestant is traveling some distance and may be arriving later than the start time; please let us know in advance so we can schedule accordingly.

Entries

This year there will be two "classes" of entries: original DIY designs and kits. We realize that a lot of effort, experience, skill and sometimes luck are needed to come up with a successful design. Many accomplished designers learned their craft by starting with kits of one sort or another and subsequently progressed toward original designs. For others, the lack of time or experience makes a kit a means towards better, affordable sound.

A kit is defined as...

...Any pre-designed or published design (publication includes the Internet) that is the product of another person. This may be plans, parts, kit, or both plus cabinets, etc. Any major deviation from the plans may at some point constitute an original design -- however, a club appointed technical committee will have the final determination if this problem presents itself. All kits must have been offered to and available to the general public at some time. We rely on the integrity of the contestant!

The kit class is broken by cost per pair, and excludes the cost of the cabinet and finish. The breakdown for kits is as follows:

$0-$175/pair
$176-$325/pair
$326+/pair

Original design breakdown is as follows:

One way -- under $75/over $75
Two way -- under $200/over $200
Three way -- under $300/over $300
Unlimited -- no limit

NOTE: This is for drivers and crossover parts only; cabinet material and finish are not included. We again rely on the contestants' integrity. Your uncle who owns the HiFi Emporium cannot give you a special deal that isn't or hasn't been available to the general public. Nuff Said!

The speakers will be driven by the system the club supplies. Don't bring your own MegaWatt Hyper Triode Amp -- we're not going to use it. To keep it simple, we are not going to allow biamping or plate amps for a bass module.

The entry fee is $5 if you pre-register (postmarked by August 21) or $10 if you register at the door. If you have any questions please post on one of the forums with a thread on the contest. Also, it would help us a great deal if you'd let us know or think you're coming. A downloadable format entry form and the address to send it and your entry fee will be provided at a later date.

Judging

The judging will be by a panel of judges in a special room set aside for this. We will have three judges, which in turn plays his personal pre-selected musical selections (2-3 minutes max.) while sitting in the "sweet spot." Each contestant is allowed to specify general guidelines to set-up, that is, distance apart, toe-in, although corner loaded speakers will need to provide their own artificial corners. Remember that the judges will be sitting side by side so that should be taken into consideration.

We intend that judging will be totally blind -- this means that a curtain is utilized to ensure that sound, and not appearance, will be the sole criteria. All speakers will have the loudness adjusted to the same level before judging begins. Set-up of speakers will be by a club crew using notes taken at time of entry. Each judge will be issued a standard evaluation form prior to each session, and will rate each entry by assigning points, after which the form is collected by the Technical Committee member assigned to monitoring the judging (and setting SPL levels prior to each evaluation of an entry, etc). The forms are then scored by the Contest Director, or his designee for total points. After the final entry is judged, the points earned are assigned within each category to determine ranking within that class. The total overall points regardless of category or class will determine Best Sound of Show.

Other Stuff

General admission of the public is free. We hope to have a garage sale/swap meet type offering for those who wish to sell or buy audio gear for free. However, the owners are responsible for their gear, etc. Don't expect to drop off stuff and return at the end of the day to pick up the money. (Please advise in advance if you wish to sell items).

We are going to let the attendees help out by voting for the Best Craftsmanship, Most Unusual, Most Creative Use of Material (Bondo, duct tape, silly putty, etc.).

Awards

Each entry will receive a certificate of participation and a print out of his entry's frequency response measured by a qualified expert designated by the Contest Director or head of the Technical Committee. Additional certificates will be awarded to class winners, as well as 2nd place .

Finally a "Best Sound of Show" certificate will be presented to the overall winner. All winners of their respective DIY class are eligible for this. Please note that "kit" speakers aren't eligible for the Best Sound of Show.

Unless overruled by the Technical Committee for violation of the rules, the decision (total points) of the judges is final.

Best Regards,
TerryO

[Ezcl]

Looking forward to this... I'll be able to visit family while I'm up there too!

[RegulatorCT]

Well if I am not in Spain at this time I would love to come to learn/experience what DIY audio is capable of !

[pcmofo]

Too bad I am on the east coast.. this sounds like a fun event. Perfect place for me to bring my first speaker project to...

[owdi]

I'm the proud owner of a new home, with a garage, so now I have no excuse not to build anything. Well, no excuse other than I spent everything on the house.

Would any equalization be allowed? I have an idea for a speaker, but it would require an active filter.

[TerryO]

For those who wish to pre-register their entries to the speaker contest, it is $5 per entry along with your name and address and a description of their entry.

The required items in the entry description are as follows:

1. Kit or self designed.

2. Single driver, 2-way, 3 way, etc.

3. Total cost of the speaker with a breakdown as to drivers, crossovers, etc., for both pairs of speakers. The cost of the cabinets or finish are not counted.

4. Description of the crossover topography and frequencies involved.

5. What drivers are used (make and model #).

Please see rules if there are questions.

Please make out checks to the Pacific Northwest Audio Society

Registration forms and checks need to be sent to:

Pacific Northwest Audio Society
P.O. Box 435
Mercer Island, WA. 98014

Best Regards,
TerryO

[TerryO]

Just a reminder that "The Puget Sound! DIY Speaker Contest" is this Saturday, August 28th.
Attendance is free, entries are $10 each at the door. Those bringing entries should plan to be at the door at 9:00am as judging should start at 9:30. If you are bringing standmount speakers, it would be best to bring your own stands.

Hope to see you there!

Best Regards,
TerryO

[owdi]

I don't have an entry, unless you want to listen to my Zaph Audio Seas L18 / Seas 27TBFCG. I'll definitely be there to listen.

Just a suggestion - you should add the date to the subject of this thread. It will help people remember it's this Saturday.

[mikec]

Any coverage of the event that anyone would care to share?

[TerryO]

First of all, I'd like to thank Kevin Haskins for the kind words about our event. Kevin really came through for me time and time again, as I was bogged down with some family matters earlier this spring. I tend to give him a lot of flack, but he is indeed a true long-standing (long suffering?) friend. He not only got the word out about the Contest while I was tied up, but also served as a member of our technical committee and as an alternate Judge. He was also kind enough to donate some great prizes, including some Hypex amp modules.

While I'm on the subject, I'd also like to thank Dave Rosgaard for all his help, which was considerable. Dave not only created a spread sheet for scoring the Judge's evaluation sheets, he also created and printed out the certificates and served as the Technical Assistant in the Judging room, setting the SPL levels and passing out the eval forms. He's a superb Speaker Designer and is one of a very (very) small handful of people in the world that can successfully design Series Crossovers. Dave and I are old Audio Buddies and have traveled to many meets together over the years. He also served on the Technical Committee.

John Nail is from Eastern Washington, so we don't get to see him as often as we'd like, but he's attended a number of our meets and Contests. John is a dedicated and very knowledgeable speaker builder, with a highly developed degree of Craftsmanship thrown in. He is probably best known for his "Purple Puppies" which featured a Watt Puppy style cabinet with a fabulous (and unforgettable!) Imperial Purple paint job. John has served on our Technical Committee, as well as volunteering to do the measurements. He also brought some great prizes for the contestants.

Jerry Pomeroy is the former long-standing President of the Pacific Northwest Audio Society. His dedication and enthusiasm is contagious and he deserves a great deal of credit for making things gel. It's hard to overestimate the contributions that Jerry has made over the years in our efforts to keep things moving. I might add that Jerry made his debut as a diy speaker builder this year, entering a kit design that looked and sounded great! Great work!

Probably the hardest, and most important job, of the whole Contest is that of our Judges.
We've been extremely fortunate in having some of the best people around staffing our panel.

Winston Ma, the owner of First Impression Music (perhaps the finest Audiophile label in existence) was unable to be here this year due to a prior commitment. Winston was a well known Music and equipment reviewer in Asia for several decades before immigrating to the United States. He has served with distinction as a Judge in all our prior Contests and was missed.

Mike Lavigne, who writes for Positive Feedback is an Audiophile in the finest sense of the term. He has uncanny hearing and auditory memory, perhaps the best I've ever seen, along with an encyclopedic knowledge of music. His critique of the "unseen" speaker entries almost exactly matches what is subsequently measured. What a track record!

Bruce Brown, is the owner of Puget Sound Studios, a SOTA Recording/Mastering studio which serves some of the best known high-end labels and artists. He has served several times as a judge in prior Contests. Bruce has a degree in Music (among others) and is also a musician. He has been the person responsible for mastering/producing Hi-Rez discs with the Judge's Music selections for the contests. As a technical aside, this year's disc had a tested Block Error Rate (BLER) of under 5, whereas Audiophile Labels are usually happy with a Block Error Rate between 20-40. It's my understanding that JVC's R&D Lab in Japan is (sometimes) able to get a BLER of 3!

Renan Jefferies is a retired Software Engineer from one of the giant firms based in Seattle (you can probably guess which one). His father was a music lover, who instilled a life-long love of the same in Renan. He listens primarily to Jazz and Classical music and has excellent taste in music and can easily distinguish flaws in a performance or it's reproduction. Renan has also served several times as one of our Judges.

The people that helped set up the rooms on Friday night and clean up after the event should also get credit, quite simply because if these important tasks weren't performed, there'd be no Contest.

Best Regards,
TerryO

[TerryO]

I forgot to thank Gary Gesellchen for jumping in and taking measurements when John Nail was delayed in traffic. Gary set up his own measuring gear and went to town, avoiding any delays!


As many of you seem to be interested in the outcome of the Contest, :B
here are the results:

Original Designs

Best 3-Way (under $300) and also Best of Show:

Gary Gesellchen

Dayton 8" woofer
Vifa 4" mid
Seas 3/4" dome tweeter
Crossover: 2nd order L-R @ 250 & 3500 Hz
Cost of components & crossover $240.00

Runner up for both awards (by just a few points):

Dave Rosgaard

Silver Flute W17RC38-08 6.5 inch Wool Cone woofer
Seas 10 F-M 4" treated paper cone midrange
Peerless 811435 1' textile dome tweeter
Crossover: Series 3rd Order electrical @ 900 & 3500 Hz
Cost of components & crossover $195.00

2-Way (Under $200) and third overall in points

Terry Olson

1.5" Radio Shack close-out full range shielded drivers (12 per speaker)
Adire Audio AV8 8" shielded woofer
Series crossover 2nd order highpass, first order lo-pass @ 450 Hz
Cost of components and crossover $81.00

Single Driver (one way)

1-way over $75.00

Howard Grim

Fostex 206E Fullrange plus Passive Radiator
Side or Bottom Firing, Back loaded horn
Cost of components $260.00

1-way under $75.00

Peter Karsborn

Tangband 3"
Bottom Firing Pipe
Cost of Drivers $28.00



Kits

Kit over $375 and top points for kits

Jerry Pomeroy

Kit designer: Kevin Haskins (Exodus Audio)
Exodus Audio 6.1
Usher 1" dome tweeter
Extremis 6.5" midwoofer
Crossover: L-R 4th order Frequency (?)
Cost $400.00

Kit under $175

Carl Ravenscroft

Kit design: 2-way, unknown tapered pipe design
Driver Coaxial Tannoy 1667
Crossover: Stock Tannoy, frequency unknown
Cost: $125.00

[Ezcl]

Thanks to Terry and everyone else who helped out, I had a great time! I especially enjoyed hearing all the different speakers, especially mine, on that nice Galaxy amp.

[TerryO]

Thanks to Terry and everyone else who helped out, I had a great time! I especially enjoyed hearing all the different speakers, especially mine, on that nice Galaxy amp.

If people had an enjoyable time that really makes it worthwhile. :B

Just a note: I'll be sending the copies of their speaker's evaluation score sheets to each contestant tomorrow, right after I buy stamps!

Best Regards,
TerryO

[TerryO]

I hope all of you will join me in wishing my pal, Kevin Haskins a:

Happy Birthday !!!

I believe that Kevin is now older than I am (give or take a couple) :E

Best Regards,
TerryO