Carmody S2000 DIY Speaker Kit Review

[amirm]

Hi Amir
Thanks for this review again.
About your comment above:
Is there a way to measure that somehow ?
This is so important for listening experience.

There is probably a way but I have not gotten there. Speakers produce a mix of different distortions that are level and frequency dependent to boot. How to characterize them with respect to audibility is difficult. When I get more dead time I will experiment more.

 

[pavuol]

Spoiler: "push it hard" design background

From the designer: I kind of wanted to name the speaker series after the Honda S2000. It just reminds of them in the way that they are small and high-tech looking, and really open up when you push them hard.

 

[Rja4000]

There is probably a way but I have not gotten there. Speakers produce a mix of different distortions that are level and frequency dependent to boot. How to characterize them with respect to audibility is difficult. When I get more dead time I will experiment more.

I guess it's a combination of distortion and change in frequency response according to level (mechanical compression).

 

[F1308]

The back is not exciting other than showing the port:

Oh, please, think twice and pay a closer look at the grain of the wood !!!!

 

[ichonderoga]

"Out of stock," but of course :'-( ... here's to keeping my eyes on this kit!

 

[bunkbail]

"Out of stock," but of course :'-( ... here's to keeping my eyes on this kit!

The MTM version is still in stock.

 

[ichonderoga]

The MTM version is still in stock.

Am I blind ... https://www.diysoundgroup.com/s2000-kit.html ... is what I can find.
Nevermind I found it ... https://www.diysoundgroup.com/s2000-mtm-kit.html

 

[digicidal]

Although probably fine (@amirm certainly thought so) for music reproduction, I'm thinking you grab 3-4 kits worth and finish them dark... with a couple of very competent subs would be fantastic for a cheap theater setup. Output requirements (per speaker at least) would be reduced due to reinforcement, dialog should be nice, and the off-axis (horizontally at least) would make for good multi-seat sweet spot. All for under $2K depending on what subs you went with.

I think the panthers look at their wallets often in deciding which activity to engage in... and considering most consumer's priorities - I'm fine with that. If price weren't in the equation at all... I'm pretty sure no one would select these over the Revel's however. (Nor do I think that's what Amir was indicating by using the golfing one for these).

 

[MZKM]

Am I blind ... https://www.diysoundgroup.com/s2000-kit.html ... is what I can find.
Nevermind I found it ... https://www.diysoundgroup.com/s2000-mtm-kit.html

Also, for those of us without a soldering iron, while it is “out of stock”, you can get pre-assembled crossovers for either kit for $32/pair. So, all you’d need to do is the assembly.

 

[mathman]

The most impressive thing about this review is that 20 foot ceiling of your "garage" XD

 

[milosz]

I've found that a speaker that is good up to about 3 kHz, then dips a little but comes back up can sound pretty good on a lot of material. Going up to 3 kHz you get nice "presence" then up around 10 kHz or more you get "air" and some detail-ness, to coin a word.

My experience is that a lot of the bad engineering / mastering / plain harsh sound seems to poke at my ears in the range of about 5 to 8 kHz.

So a speaker like this one will be a bit forgiving of source material and upstream electronics, it would seem to me, while still being musical.

For a small room, or if used with a "musical" sub this speaker would be quite acceptable for most sensible music lovers*, I would think.

Spending low on gear gives you more cash to buy recordings and go to see live music (once the world comes back from COVID)


============================================================
* Personally, I am not sensible. I have a lot of gear, I build things, and frequently fiddle. My apartment looks like a hifi shop- more systems than rooms.

 

[PenguinMusic]

Conclusions
I will confess that I hate doing reviews like this. Objective scores are likely to be low creating a lot of cries of "how could you like it so much." Early on in my speaker testing I realized that what is important to my ears is good response from 200 to 2000 Hz. Dips in that region can be really problematic as there is so much "life" in music in that region. Testing this speaker made me realize perhaps I don't like as much high frequency content and want a more sloped down response.

Something that doesn't jump out of the measurements and is a key reason I listen is power handling. Yes, I show you the distortion graphs but those are two points and you can't hear what I am hearing. In this case as I noted, the speaker incrementally gets louder and louder without falling apart like just about every budget speaker. I want to experience music, not the limitations of the speaker and the S2000 does a very good job here.

I imagine nothing is more complicated than getting a cheap, small speaker to sound good. The components are simplicity in themselves. But balancing the compromises must be a herculean affair. Whatever that formula is, it worked for my ears.

I suggest giving this build a try. If you don't want to build them yourself, ask Rick to build them for you. You will wind up with a unique speaker that sounds really good, and fits everywhere.

I am happy to give a strong recommendation to Carmody S2000 DIY Speaker.

Hi amirm,

If I dare say something : those conclusions about "Here's a speaker that does measure only relatively well but that I really enjoyed on subjective listening" do only one thing : make you more "human" and "sensible" to things beyond numbers

OK, not really on par with "Audio SCIENCE" but I must say that I really love it

Regards.

 

[gr-e]

I'm surprised with this tweeter's low distortion. I bought a pair of these just because they were cheap (got them for around $50/pair), turns out they're some very capable drivers.

S2000:

Revel F328Be:

JBL 308P:

 

[JohnBooty]

"Out of stock," but of course :'-( ... here's to keeping my eyes on this kit!

For those interested in this kit, I would strongly suggest asking Erich (proprietor of DIYSG) when they might be in stock or otherwise directly letting him know you're interested.

https://www.diysoundgroup.com/contacts

Erich tends to stock his kits conservatively. It is a small business, and if he overstocks a kit and is stuck with unsold units, that can represent quite an economic hit. You can help him gauge the actual level of interest in a kit by asking when it might be in stock.

He is a good guy. Very responsive. Great reputation in the hobby on AVSForum, the audio DIY subreddits, etc.

 

[Helicopter]

Good grief!!! Something is seriously wrong with the scoring system or my measurements of F328Be. Then again it demonstrates why I liked the sound of S2000.

You beat me to it. I saw the facepalm, but I still just laughed through the whole, admittedly well-reasoned argument. I also see the merit of F328Be as an instant reference speaker, but I would have chosen Revel Performa3 M105 for a more apples-to apples comparison, and I would want something like M126Be or Focal Kanta No1 for a reference passive bookshelf. As great as F328Be, or Genelecs, etc., may be, they are not in the same category.

 

[Nango]

No gap. Used butyl rubber to seal and some appears to have oozed out while awaiting review.

It can be trimmed away.

Well done!!! This is like a license to setup a speaker shop and start selling those!!!!

 

[ck42]

I've had my eyes on this exact kit in the past, but wasn't ready to pull the trigger. Now with actual testing done....wondering if this might be a new project to replace my Pioneer BSS (Affordable Accuracy Monitor version).

@amirm Would love to hear your thoughts on the subjective listening portion between the S2000 and the BS-22 (AAM). I'm always looking for that hidden gem, low-cost, budget bookshelf speaker!

 

[hardisj]

I'm always looking for that hidden gem, low-cost, budget bookshelf speaker!

Might want to check this out.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/neumi-bs5-bookshelf-speaker-review.14404/

 

[ROOSKIE]

I'm surprised with this tweeter's low distortion. I bought a pair of these just because they were cheap (got them for around $50/pair), turns out they're some very capable drivers.

S2000:

Revel F328Be:

JBL 308P:

Wavecore.
They are a very respected driver manufacturing and design source.

 

[ROOSKIE]

Might want to check this out.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/neumi-bs5-bookshelf-speaker-review.14404/

Great write up and review!
Looks nice but eyeballing the results it sure doesn't seem to be an upgrade from the Affordable Accuacy speaker.