I actually bought these speakers from a close friend who did buy them out of the back of a pickup truck from a guy with the same ole' "I bought too many speakers" story. That was a couple years ago. I never knew that he really got scammed. I figured there was a speaker shop around there just trying to get out and make some sales. (Yeah right).
So, my pride and ego aside. The "brand" is Digital Audio, which I have seen listed in a couple scam articles. I always thought they sounded good at my friends, but now that I've got them home they are disapointing. So, I took some pics and stuff. Can you tell me just what these components might actually be worth and what I can do to make them sound better?
The model number is as follows: Digital Audio 2002 DA-2012-7.1 Cinema Series II
This is the back of the woofer:
Back of tweet. (there is also a horn tweeter)
From the bottom of the inside of the cabinet straight up. Just one cross brace I can see.
The best thing is to set a budget for new speakers that don't come off the back of a truck. That is the only way to make them sound better. You can sell those for $25-50 to some kid who doesn't know any better.
Besides what I said in my first post, is there anything obvious when you look at these pictures that tell you they are of poor quality?
What I see: -A fairly well made MDF cabinet that may or may not be the appropriate dimensions.
-A woofer with a cast/chrome basket and a less than impressive looking magnet and speaker poles.
-Tiny wires running to both tweets. -A crossover that looks like it could be from Radio Shack.
Here's the thing: They still sound clear and crisp. They do lack bass "volume" though. The bass is punchy but never really hits hard or "booms". I have a Denon AVR-1905 (80w/ch). I have to crank the bass all the way and it still won't hit at all! But, if I hook it up to my old (really old) 40w Technics it does much better.
As you can see I'm deeply confused. I know just enough about home A/V to get myself screwed. ANY help and feedback is GREATLY appreciated.
Yes, the way it is constructed, no internal bracing whatsoever, the cross brace you see is there just to keep the cabinet from wobbling. Looks like tiny pieces of MDF are all over the place and glued in places to plug some sort of space. The woofer has a shiny but very thin basket, not good at all, probably worth 50 cents in China or Philippines. The different colored cannibalized wires, looks like they just had some wires scattered around the factory and just stuck them together just to connect the speakers together.
Nothing you do to these will make it sound better. Now if you think it sounds clear and crisp, that's good, but you really need to go around and listen to other speakers.
You are not confused, what you are doing is trying to convince yourself that there is hope for these things and that they can sound good with the proper equipment. That's fine you are the one who has to live with them. If you believe they sound better with the Technics, then use those.
And as soon as you get tired of these things, just chalk it up to experience and move on to better things or speakers.
good luck
007 ¥
Unregistered guest
Posted on
Well maybe:
Garage party speakers, beating them up won't hurt as much and when finally trashed, then toss them.
Maybe you can find use for the P-board/mdf wood somewhere, like a wennie roast at the fire pit.
If the garage thing ain't an option, then look/find a young buck who likes shiny stuff/speakers. Easy enough to do in this day and age.
A friend who owned a junk yard told me once, & it's pretty true on the whole:
======> ~{PEOPLE ARE LIKE CROWS, MAKE IT SHINY AND THEY'LL TAKE IT HOME EVERY TIME}~!!! ======>
No disrespect intended to the low grade speaks, people who like shiny things, and of course you for being man enough to post your mistake..
Try changing the crossover of the speakers(check out some DIY websites), the drivers might not be that bad, internal construction is pretty shabby-as expected from white vans, you don't really expect internal bracing & 1st grade cabinetry do you? Keep them for parties. Frankly, even some entry level hifi speakers (no brands) look bad internally if ppl actually bother to open them up and look inside. Change the crossover, that should make the most difference and you can keep the shimmering drivers ;-)
Your complaint about the bass presentation sounds almost like the speakers were designed to do that. There are some makers for whom 'boom' has less importance than slam or punch. My problem with most speakers (B&W, PMC, Proac, Mission, ...) out there is in fact that they boom rather than deliver tuneful bass with impact. Is this really a question of you having to adjust to their presentation?
Frank, I'm not sure how much design really went into these speakers. It is true however that the end result is that they tend towards creating punchy base, as does my Denon 1905. I rigged up my car sub which is about a 400w Infinty Perfect 10 and it covers the lower frequencies better.
I think these will be my "home theatre" fronts for a while. (I had intended on using them more as a studio reference monitor).
