chan@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Jeff Chan) (11/20/88)
Here are my recommendations for speaker parts/kits/info: Two very extensive and competitively priced speaker component dealers are Madisound Speaker Components, 8608 University Green, Box 4283 Madison, Wisconsin 53711 (608) 831-3433, and A & S Speakers, 3170 23rd Street, San Francisco, CA 94110, (415) 641-4573. A & S is now open Saturdays (great for us Bay Area folks!). Both offer high quality drivers from around the world. Audio Concepts (901 South 4th Street, La Crossse, WI 54601 1 (800) 346-9183 for catalogs and orders) is also a good source for high quality raw parts. They also offer some good speaker kits, including full kits with cabinets and parts only kits (ie build your own cabinet). Speaker Builder Magazine (PO Box 494, Peterborough, New Hampshire 03458 (603) 924-9464) publishes plans for speakers, and through Old Colony Sound Lab (PO Box 243, Peterborough, NH 03458 (603) 924-6371 or -6526) offers many books on building speakers and on audio electronics in general. Old Colony also sells some high quality electronic parts and kits for amps, preamps and test equipment from the pages of their other publication, The Audio Amateur. I've just started a subscription to both magazines (they give you issues back to the start of the year when you sign up) and enjoy the articles and the spirit behind them. The articles come from audio professionals like William Johnson of Conrad Johnson or Nelson Pass of Threshold and also from intelligent amateurs, and the equipment is generally directed at an audience of music-oriented audiophiles who are also capable of building their own. It was pretty reasonable for the magazines to split about 6 years ago, since more people are able to design their own speakers than design their own class-a mosfet amps or preamps. So the speaker designs seem to come from a broader range of people than the electronics designs. Accordingly, SB comes out six time a year while TAA is a quarterly. Both cost $20 per year. On a related note, OCSL stocks electronics parts and kits probably because speaker components are fewer in number and easier to get. For example, printed circuit boards usually are available for the TAA projects. I guess I'm trying to justify them having two separate magazines. The subject matter really are different in character. I'm enjoying both magazines and recommend them. The mods I did on my disc player have made it sound fantastic (try it yourself before you jump to any comments about subjectism), and the ideas came from Jung via TAA, in addition to Hi Fi News (UK) and the New Jersey Audio Society newsletter (via our local audio group). This brings up another point. The publishers of the magazines continue to support local audiophile groups (by offering free start-up ads). There are groups in most major areas and they are another source of good information and discussion. See the classifieds in the back of the magazines. Have to go; happy listening, Jeff C. Internet: chan@ames.arc.nasa.gov UUCP: ames!chan The opinions above are mine; I have no connection with any businesses in this posting except as customer.