Recommendations:

"The Loudspeaker Design Cookbook" by Vance Dickason ISBN 1-8825-8010-9 $35 This standard text is often referred to simply as "the LDC" by the DIY community. If you only have one book, this is an excellent candidate. "Introduction to Loudspeaker Design" by John L. Murphy ISBN 0-9663773-2-X $25 Just as it says, this is an excellent introduction to the art and science of designing loudspeakers. A fairly recent publication, this covers most of the same ground as "the LDC", but in a more easily accessible format. "Advanced Speaker Designs" by Ray Alden ISBN 0-7906-1070-1 $17 Available at any Radio Shack, this is a minimalist cookbook with lots of recipes and almost no technical background. If you're really serious, you should skip this book. However, if all you want is to do one or two quick, simple designs, this could be the book for you. "The Theory and Design of Loudspeaker Enclosures" by J. Ernest Benson ISBN 0-9638-9290-8 $25 Quite technical and not for beginners, this is one of the best books to add a solid theoretical background to the practical instruction of the LDC. Like the LDC, this is one of the three books considered essential for dedicated DIY-ers. "High Performance Loudspeakers" by Martin Colloms ISBN 0471-97089-1 $55 More expensive than the LDC and Benson books, the is the third essential book for all serious DIY-er's. This book treads the middle ground between practicality and technical detail. "Loudspeaker Recipes: Book One" by Vance Dickason ISBN 1-8825-8004-4 $25 A companion to the LDC, this holds your hand through the design and construction of four 2-way designs. Note that this really isn't a kit book, but rather is published as instruction with examples. "Testing Loudspeakers" by Joe D'Appolito ISBN 1-882580-17-6 $35 More than a "how to" book on loudspeaker testing, this instant classic walks the reader through a number of real examples. "Acoustics" by Leo Beranek ISBN 0-88318-494-X $45 One of the two definitive works on acoustics and acoustical engineering. Heavy on math and theory, it for the serious sudent rather than the casual bobbyist. "Acoustical Engineering" by Harry F. Olson $70 The other definitive work on acoustics and acoustical engineering. Even more complete than Baranek. "Master Handbook Of Acoustics" by F. Alton Everest ISBN 0-07-136097-2 $35 Now in its fourth edition, if you want a lot more than the basics, but are intimidated by the content (or price) of the Baranek or Olson books, this is a good choice. As its title suggests, it's less of a textbook and more of a handy reference guide to the science and practice of acoustical engineering. "Audio Transducers" by Drs. Earl Geddes and Lidia Lee $70 This is a fairly new and quite comprehensive book on the science (and math!) of loudspeaker and microphone design by the same folks who produced the Speak software recommended in Appendix C. Included are chapters on crossovers, various types of drivers and systems, acoustics in general, and psychoacoutics in particular. Hardly inexpensive and heavy with math, it's also bundled with Speak, where it makes both a good buy. Currently, this book is only sold at the GedLee Associates web site. "Premium Home Theater - Design & Construction" by Dr. Earl Geddes $46 This is a new book and a recent recommendation. I'll let the words of my respondent do the work here: "It gives a solid theoretical background to home theatre design and is practical enough for somone to design a HT following his approach while at the same time understanding the theory behind the critical aspects. His approach is quite different to most HT setups I have seen and in particular the way he deals with room acoustics is of great interest. Rather than show how to build a HT room for conventional speakers, he shows how to design the whole setup as a system, taking account of the relationship between the speakers and room acoustics." Currently, this book is only sold at the GedLee Associates web site. "Ribbon Lousdpeakers - Theory and Construction" by Justus V. Verhagen, Ph.D. ISBN 1-882580-44-3 $25 This is a new and quite comprehensive book on the design and implementation of ribbon loudspeaker transducers and systems. Dr. Verhagen is well-known to members of the DIYspeakers List as a frequent contributor. This book is a wealth of information on ribbon transducers, including links to web sites, a complete bibliography, and commentary (with measurements) on available commercial transducers. Although it delves into great detail, it's not a daunting read and is accessible to readers of all experience levels. Published by the Audio Amateur Press, this book is sold at the audioXpress web site. "Designing, Building and Testing Your Own Speaker System with Projects" by David B. Weems ISBN 0-07-069429-X $20 "Great Sound Stereo Speaker Manual" by David B. Weems. ISBN 0-07-15748-91-X $20 Two first time builder's books from the same author. These were recommended by someone who said they, "…include very straightforward methods for designing Zobels, notch filters, etc., and walks you through the design process for the included projects. At least one includes some design formulas for TQWT's & other types of pipes. Weems got me started in this business!" "Audio Power Amplifier Design Handbook" by Douglas Self ISBN 0-7506-5636-0 $50 As noted in Appendix D, this has become almost the "Bible" for many power amp designers. "The Scientist and Engineer's Guide to Digital Signal Processing" by Steven W. Smith, Ph.D. ISBN 0-9660176-3-3 $64 The perfect introductory book for this important emerging technology. If you don't want to spend the money for the book, the whole thing is available online for free from the publisher's web site at http://www.dspguide.com/. I must admit, though, even with a fast Internet connection, I found it worthwhile to buy the hard copy.

©1998-2007 by Bob Stout, all rights reserved

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