Design and Fabrication of a 3-Way Speaker System Training Unit

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A Capsule Research Proposal

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement

In IT 211-Technology Research 1

1st Semester, SY 2020-2021

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Submitted by:

Bryan Holden S. Olorvida

December 2021
Introduction

According to Jones (2000), with the presence of a high-end technology in this

present time, almost everything is made possible through developments and

innovations in both academic fields and material processes. Having said that, many

innovations and developments have been made in the education sector especially in

the field of electronics educative process. One of which that undergoes lots of

development was from the invention of loudspeakers in 1861 by Johann Philipp Reis in

his electric loudspeaker in telephone and of course Alexander Graham Bell’s electric

loudspeaker in 1876.

Since then, loudspeakers have been undergoing changes and developments

that suit to the present times. Loudspeakers are used in various occasions making it

more interesting, more comprehensive and thus create a more conducive to learning

environment especially in the field of educations since a loudspeaker or also known as

speaker driver or simply a speaker is an electroacoustic transducer, that is, a device

that converts an electrical audio signal into a corresponding sound, thus enables

learners to perfectly hear the sound.

However, according to Kauffman (2010), many people are deceived by the

desire for a bigger better speaker and the desire for acoustical excellence.

Loudspeakers, in actuality, are heavily dependent of their enclosures. Speakers offer

better response at different ranges of frequencies. There are woofers, mid-ranges and

tweeters which listed from lowest to highest frequency response. Whereas, a tweeter
will not play a 50 Hz tone, a subwoofer will: and a woofer will not play a 2600 Hz tone,

a tweeter will. Likewise, venting, or lack thereof, along with the size of the vent,

contribute to the output response of the speaker.

As per observed, one of the common instructional materials used in the

teaching-learning process is the use of audio and video presentation that aids a better

learning. However, one of the common problems encountered by the students is the

poor quality of the audio of the speaker, thus hindering the learners to correctly hear

the sound leading to poor understanding of the video presented. This is similar to

Mayer ‘s (2001) claims that audio and video presentation inculcates high cognitive

activity necessary for active learning but is also affected by the presentation of sound

or how the sound frequency appears to the learners if it is clear or not. Thus, clarity

and vagueness of sound both affect the learners’ ability to comprehend the lesson

presented.

With the constraints mentioned above, the present researcher is proposing to

design and fabricate a 3-way loudspeaker (woofer, midrange, and tweeter) that is

helpful to both electronics learners on how to connect the woofer, midrange and the

tweeter inside the speaker box including the frequency dividing network, that is when

designing a 3-way speaker is concerned and to the teachers to further uplift the level of

instruction effectively and efficiently. Moreover, this 3-way loudspeaker is deemed to

allow drivers to operate in more narrow, optimized ranges, eliminating the distortion

that result from excessive driver excursion. Furthermore, this 3-way loudspeaker

seems to offer many advantages like decreasing the cost for research and production
to build full range loudspeaker sound reproduction, offers 3 frequency bands: highs,

mids and lows, thus allowing learners to correctly hear the sound.

Objective of the Study

The main objective of the study is to design and analyze a 3-way loudspeaker

specifically on how to correctly connect the woofer, midrange and the tweeter inside

the speaker box including the frequency dividing network. There are also including the

3-way crossover design to complete the 3-way loudspeaker system and some

measurement of the loudspeaker’s component by using acoustic laboratory’s

measurement and anechoic chamber.

Moreover, this study seeks to:

1. Identify the purpose and function of the woofer, the midrange and the tweeter in

creating a speaker with a clearer sound;

2. Analyze the basic types of loudspeakers (woofer, midrange, tweeter) and to

define their application for use in wood-working shop projects;

3. Present these connection techniques in such a way as they might be helpful to

the prospective builder of a 3-way speaker system; and

4. To provide a helpful guide for the design and construction of hi-fidelity 3-way

speaker and to help the builder avoid needless and costly mistakes of acoustic

and aesthetic design.

Scope and Limitations

The study will only focus on the design and fabrication of the 3-way

loudspeaker system and 3-way crossover design in connecting the woofer, the

midrange and the tweeter for a clearer sound, thus its functionality, effectiveness and

efficacy and its acceptability when it comes to its techniques and design, performance

which will be evaluated by the electronics technology students and electronics

technology instructors of Palompon Institute of Technology (PIT) for school year 2020-

2021.

Technically the researchers can deliver only a Frequency Response Coverage

within 20Hz-20KHz range.

 Review of Related Literature

According to McGraw Hill (2010), loudspeaker, also called speaker, in sound

reproduction, device for converting electrical energy into acoustical signal energy that

is radiated into a room or open air. The term signal energy indicates that the electrical

energy has a specific form, corresponding, for example, to speech, music or any other

signal in the range of audible frequencies (roughly 20 to 20,000 hertz).

Moreover, the loudspeaker should preserve the essential character of this

signal energy in acoustical form. The part of the speaker that converts electrical into

mechanical energy is frequently called motor or voice coil. The motor vibrates a

diaphragm that in turn vibrates the air in immediate contact with it, producing a sound

wave corresponding to the pattern of the original speech or music signal. Most

frequently the motor consists of a coil of wire moving in a strong magnetic field, but

the diaphragm may also be operated by electrostatic forces or by the action of

piezoelectric material.

As such, the aforementioned statements were supported by the Moving-Coil

Loudspeaker Theory by Richard Brice (2001) which states that loudspeakers convert

electrical energy back into acoustic energy. Normally, they perform this in an

arrangement whereby the oscillating electric current from the power amplifier flows in

a coil. This coil is wound upon a former at the apex of a paper cone which is itself free

to oscillate backwards and forwards because it is supported at its edges and apex by an
elastic suspension. The addition of a large magnet in close proximity to the coil

completes the assembly. The oscillating magnetic field which generated as the electric

current moves to and from in the coil interacts with the field generated by the

permanent magnet and creates alternating attractive and repulsive forces which propel

the loudspeaker cone in and out, thereby creating sound.

In addition to Hill’s claim, according to Lalena (2006), a loudspeaker is a device

that converts an electrical signal from an amplifier into a sound. A loudspeaker driver is

an electromechanical-acoustic device with two electrical input terminals, to which an

electrical signal is applied, and a diaphragm which vibrates and radiates sound. An

electromechanical motor mechanism exerts a force on the diaphragm to cause it to

vibrate.

According to Owen B. (2001), by far, the most common type of motor

mechanism is the electromagnetic-mechanical transducer which employs a coil wire

immersed in a magnetic field; electric current flowing through the coil causes a force to

be exerted on the coil which is mechanically coupled to the diaphragm.

In addition, a loudspeaker system employs one or more loudspeaker drivers in a

common enclosure. A one-way loudspeaker system employs a full-range to cover the

full audio spectrum. A two-way system employs a low-frequency driver called a woofer

and a high-frequency driver called a tweeter. An electrical low-pass filter is used in

series with the woofer and a high-pass filter is used in series with the tweeter. These

filters are commonly referred to as the crossover networks. A three-way system adds a
midfrequency driver called the midrange or squawker. The crossover network for this

driver is a band-pass filter. In some systems, a driver called a supertweeter is used to

reproduce audio frequencies into the ultrasonic range. A driver called a subwoofer is

used to reproduce audio frequencies into the infrasonic range.

Because loudspeakers are designed to do a particular job, manufacturers of

high-quality systems seldom use only one extended range driver to reproduce the

entire audio spectrum. Most hi-fidelity systems employ a two-way or three-way

woofer-tweeter combination. The function of the electrical dividing network, usually

called crossovers, is to make sure only the appropriate frequencies of the audio

spectrum are fed to the individual units in the system. Failure of crossover to perform

its job correctly may result in distortion of the output or damage due to overheating of

the voice coils.

Marsh Long (2014) claims that speakers are categorized by the range of sound

they put out, as measured in Hz. Some speakers are considered full-range, since they

attempt to put all the frequencies they are sent. The trouble with that is that the size of

these full range speakers typically limit how good they sound. Small full range speakers

just can’t get enough of that bass, and larger one tends to not do well with the higher

frequencies.

Furthermore, other speakers are more specialized to different ranges. Woofers

handle the lower range, mid-range speakers handle middle range, and tweeters handle
the highest ra. Put these discrete speakers together, and you get a much fuller, more

accurate sound reproduction than you get with a single full-range speaker.

Woofers, mid-range and tweeters are some types of speakers. Woofers are

made to handle the lower range of frequencies (sound waves) for a speaker system. A

good woofer might be 12 inches in diameter or more. There are a couple reasons for

that. First of all, the speaker has to move slower and the diaphragm (the speaker cone)

has to move farther to create the sound wave. Secondly, the speaker must produce a

higher volume of sound, as low frequency sound waves don not travel as well as high

frequency ones do and are much more likely to dissipate and be absorbed by surfaces

they come into contact with. The speaker enclosure and the woofer interact with each

other; so, the speaker enclosure is usually designed to specifically match the woofer.

There are types of woofers, depending on the needs. Although they are all built

very similarly, there are some distinct differences between each type.

 First is the standard woofer. A standard woofer produces frequencies

from 20 Hz up to 2,000 Hz (2 kilohertz, or 2 kHz). The woofer is often

characterized by its bassy sound which comes from the lower frequency

sine wave.

 The second one is the subwoofer. Subwoofers are only capable of

producing tones lower than 200 Hz in consumer systems. They are made

up of one or more woofers, often mounted inside a wooden enclosure.

Although the human ear is only capable to pick up a frequency as low as

 12 Hz, subwoofers working at lower frequency can only be felt, if not

heard. Subwoofers are the most common add-on to a consumer speaker

set up. They are typically placed in their own, isolated enclosure and

provide low-level thump that can’t get with standard woofers.

 The third one is the mid-woofer. Mid-woofers land right in the middle of

the woofer range, coming in form 200 Hz-5kHz. Having such a wide

range of frequencies, this speaker will produce the best quality sound

from 500 Hz-2kHz and start to deteriorate at either end of the spectrum.

 The last one is the rotary woofer. A rotary woofer is a woofer-style

loudspeaker that uses a coil’s motion to change the pitch of a set of fan

blades, instead of using cone shape.

On the other hand, mid-range speakers are targeted to handle the middle range

of the spectrum, coming in between 500 Hz-4 Hz. This is probably the most important

range of frequencies due to most audible sounds, such as musical instruments and the

human voice, being produced here. Since the human ear is most sensitive to the mid-

range frequency, the driver can remain at a lower power while still providing good

sound in terms of quality and volume. Because mid-range speakers are unable to

produce the extreme low or high spectrum, they often sound dull, or flat, and need the

support of a woofer or tweeter to get the full level of sound. A mid-range speaker is

essentially the same appearance as a full-range speaker or woofer. The major

difference is that midrange speaker will not be as big as a woofer, but only about 5 to 8

inches in diameter.
 On the high end of the sound spectrum, we have tweeter speakers, which get

their name from the high tweet of birds. Tweeters typically cover the range of 2 kHz-20

kHz, though some specialty tweeters can go as high as 100 kHz. Moreover, tweeters do

not interact with the enclosures or cabinets at all, and at times are used without a

cabinet. While construction is similar to a standard electromagnetic speaker, they

usually use a dome-shaped diaphragm in place of a speaker cone. These are referred to

as dome tweeters. This diaphragm can either be made of plastic, plastic impregnated

silk, aluminum or titanium. Each material type produces its own unique sound

characteristics. Since tweeters are extremely small, they don’t produce a lot of volume.

To help this, many are attached to a horn. This horn resonates or vibrates with the

tweeter, mechanically amplifying the sound that it produces.

To sum it, a 3-way speaker has a more involved crossover that splits the audio

signal into 3 frequency bands: Highs, mids and lows. Tweeters are small and produce

high frequencies; woofers are large and produce low frequencies, and mid-range

speakers split the difference. Since Speakers are often deigned with multiple drivers, a

crossover network is generally included in the speaker design to send certain bands of

frequencies to different drivers. This is important because the electrodynamic speaker

driver is, by nature, not overly effective at producing all audible frequencies (20 Hz to

20,000 Hz). Therefore, it is to everyone’s benefit that speakers have various drivers

designed to effectively reproduce different bands of frequencies within the overall

audio signal. These bands are divided up by a crossover network that splits the audio

signal and sends the different bands to their appropriate drivers.

 According to Marshall L (2014), to adequately and accurately reproduce a wide

range of frequencies with even coverage, most loudspeaker systems employ more than

one driver, particularly fir higher sound pressure level or maximum accuracy. Individual

drivers are used to reproduce different frequency ranges. The drivers are named

woofers (for low frequencies); mid-range speakers (middle frequencies) and tweeters

(high frequencies).

Likewise, in order for a speaker to efficiently produce sound, especially at lower

frequencies, the speaker driver must be baffled do that the sound emanating from its

rear does not cancel out the (intended) sound from the front; this generally tales the

form of speaker enclosure. The enclosure’s design plays an important acoustic role

thus determining the resulting sound quality.

The aforementioned statement supports the acoustic theory which states that

sound is perceived as a wave motion in which particles do not move with the waves

but vibrate only about their mean positions. The widely accepted particle velocity

theory is that, upon the generation of a sound, the particles move away from the

source, striking and displacing each successive particle in the sound’s path. Under

these conditions only the energy of sound is actually travelling away from the source,

not a blast of air carrying the sound.

The acoustic theory of operation states that all direct radiator speaker systems

are inefficient. They use different methods to achieve efficient coupling or the

diaphragm to the outside air. Whether a multi-driver infinite baffle or bass reflex is
used, the diaphragm is still relatively small compared to the outside air. The impedance

match is poor one and the efficiency is low. A more efficient impedance between

diaphragm and air can be realized by attaching the diaphragm to a constantly

expanding flared tube. The mouth of the horn is coupled to the driver or speaker. The

horn’s flare rate of expansion is fixed by a mathematical formula, that if properly

designed, will yield high efficiency, uniform response, and very little distortion.

Moreover, the horn is an acoustic transformer, not an amplifier. The reason

sound emanating from the mouth of a horn is louder than the sound introduced at the

throat of the horn is because the driver realizes an efficient impedance match with the

air as the sound waves travel along length of the air column. When the driver is

coupled to the throat of a horn, all of the frontal diaphragm is six times as large as the

narrow mouth opening, thus the compression ratio will be six to one. In practice. Most

driver to throat will be around two to one; that is, the driver diaphragm area will be

twice the area of the throat.

Thus, the efficiency of a loudspeaker is expressed as a ratio of acoustic power

output to electrical input. Electrical efficiency depends upon power lost in the voice coil

turns. Magnetic efficiency depends upon the voice coil’s interaction with the flux

density within the magnetic gap. Mechanical efficiency depends upon the rigidity of

piston suspension characteristics of the spider and surround. Radiation efficiency

depends upon the ratio of piston diameter to frequency of radiation. Efficiency id by no

means a criterion for judging quality. There are good quality high-efficiency speakers
and good quality low-efficiency speakers. Each type of loudspeaker has its own

application.

The common denominator of all the mentioned statement is that the

researcher seems to believe that the 3-way loudspeaker is far better and have more

kind of advantages especially in a large size room as in cinema or large-scale private

room. Moreover, 3-way speakers can control both mid and high frequencies without

introducing distortion and possible to achieve ultra-high sensitivity with low distortion

and more manageable, thus can control all range of frequency with greater ease.

Methodology

Before starting the initial phase of the study, a lot of reading and gathering of

information has been collected so that optimum result will appear at the end of the

study. These also include the planning, designing, making and implementing the

variables of the study.

The study will use both the descriptive qualitative and quantitative method

approach in describing, identifying, providing and presenting the procedures in

designing and fabricating a 3-way loudspeaker system (woofer, mid-range, and

tweeter) including the dividing frequency and analyze the data especially in measuring

the frequency response and total harmonic distortion of the driver or loudspeaker

system using an audio analyzer, power amplifier, microphone, turnable base and

printer.
 In determining the effectiveness and efficacy/efficiency of the 3-way

loudspeaker system, there will be an evaluation sheet to be provided to the selected

respondents of the study. These respondents will be the 3 rd year electronic students

and the electronic instructors of PIT since they are the one who could exactly assess

and evaluate the result of the study. They will be chosen using fishbowl techniques

since the researcher cannot afford to include all the students. The respondents will be

disregarding their age, economic status, and sex. The Rating sheet does not require the

respondents to fill their names for these data will be kept confidential.

The evaluation sheet consists of 14 questions testing the design, the procedure,

technique and performance (quality of the audio and clarity of sound) of the designed

3-way loudspeaker system. The last part of it will be the respondents’ suggestions or

recommendations.

Lastly, the mean will be used as statistical tool in the treatment of data to be

gathered.
 The Conceptual Process

Planning of Design

Preparation of tools, equipment

Suggestions/Recommendations and Materials

 Quality of audio / Clarity of

sound (performance)

Planning and Implementation of

Evaluating  Design techniques and procedures

 Procedure/
Technique

Testing
Implementation of the Design

Fabrication and Assembly

 Fig. 1. The flow of the Study

Looking into the flow of study, in designing a 3-way loudspeaker system, what

comes first is the planning of design. This design should be within the standard but not

so costly and also would answer suffice the answer of the study. After planning the

desired design, preparation of tools, materials, equipment needed for the realization of

the desired design. In order to realize the desired design, there be a careful planning of

the procedures and techniques on how to properly and exactly carry out the output

and thus implementation of the design comes after. And the biggest and hardest job

comes after which is the fabrication and assembling of the design using the tools and

equipment. This part would be the critical part since the planned procedure and

technique should be put into account so as not to commit mistakes, thus not wasting

time, efforts and of the materials as well; and of course, achieving completely the

desired output. After the fabrication, testing of the made output comes after so as to

evaluate the quality of audio/or clarity of sound or the performance of the speaker, the

design and of course the effectiveness and efficiency of the techniques and procedures

used in the making of the output. After the evaluation, recommendations and

suggestions form the respondents will be put into account so as to make a better and

much more effective and efficient design of a 3-way loudspeaker system. If lapses were
made during the making of the output, then the necessary action will be done again

following the cycle of process.

Expected Output

The expected output of the study is an effective and efficient design of a 3-way

loudspeaker system that would give ideas to the electronic students on how to

properly connect the woofer, mid-range and the tweeter in one enclosure or cabinet

following procedures and techniques and for the instructors to improve quality of

learning based on the result of the study.

End-User/Target

The end users of the study will be the electronics technology students and

instructors.

Project Duration

The duration of the proposed study will be eight (8) months after the approval

of the proposal.

Activity Description/Task Duration

1 Planning of the design 1 month

2 Preparation of tools, equipment and Materials 1 month

3 Planning and Implementation of techniques and procedures 2 weeks
4 Implementation of the Design 2 weeks
5 Fabrication and Assembly 2 months
 6 Testing 1 month
7 Evaluation 1 month
8 Finalization, presentation, and submission of research report 1 month
Estimated Budgetary Requirement

Tools/Materials/Equipment-------------------------------- 5, 0000

Questionnaires ------------------------------------------------- 500

Labor-------------------------------------------------------------- 2,000

Miscellaneous-------------------------------------------------- 1, 000

Total = Php 8, 500

Bibliography

[1] McGraw Hill (2010). Loudspeakers-Design and Construction

TAB Books Amateur Manual

[2] Lalena (2006). Crossover Calculator Software. Lalena.com-Online

[3] Richard Brice (2001). Bulding Speaker Systems

[4] Marshall Long (2014). Architectural Acoustics (Second Edition)

[5] Ben Duncan (1996). High Performance Audio Power Amplifiers.

[6] Richard P. Heydt (2008). Dielectric Elastomers as Electromechanical

Transducers

[7] Leo L. Beranek (2012). Acoustics: Sound Fields and Transducers

[8] Loudspeaker Enclosure Construction Manual, Los Angeles, California, James B.

Lansing Sound, Inc., Publication Part CF802