About Butterfield Audio

ButterfieldAudio.com is a site dedicated to the love of audio and the projects of one young speaker builder. (Pictured above.)

The Beginning:
I first got involved in speaker design during college. Low on funds, I began learning everything I could about speakers, in order to become a well informed consumer. Eventually I learned enough to build a pair instead of buying them. The first speakers I ever built were a bookshelf version of my MTM tower speakers. With a tweaked crossover, and a new cabinet, these speakers continue to impress me as the left and right in my current main listening system. I built a matching center speaker of the same design within a month.

The next design I built was a pair of surround speakers. At the same time as I was working on the design, I heard about the DC DIY2001 budget speaker competition. I decided to design my speakers for under the $150.00 limit, and enter them in the contest. They eventually won the contest, and I was awarded a $100 gift certificate to Parts Express that I would use to fund my first subwoofer project. I am currently using the speakers for their intended purpose as surrounds, but I have also spent time listening to them as main speakers in my bedroom system, where they sounded quite good. In fact, this versatile little speaker now serves as my center channel sitting on top of a very narrow TV screen top. One of my friends also uses a pair as studio monitors in his home studio.

I recycled the amp from my first subwoofer project (a gigantic coffee table with a downfiring titanic 12" that shook the floor and broke the lights in the basement) and used it for my current subwoofer. This one was designed to move air, and not shake the floor, as I now live in a condo on the third floor, with downstairs neighbors to worry about. I used two 10" drivers in a bipole configuration to keep from shaking the floor, while still producing plenty of dB's to enjoy.

Current Projects:
I am currently working with another speaker designer named Dave toward a transient perfect three way design using asymmetric crossovers. The high pass slopes are to be second order acoustic, while the low pass slopes will only be first order acoustic.

I am also working on simulation and measurement software, and learning a lot writing it myself. Check back for updates.

Future Projects:
I will most likely write down some of the scientific/engineering observations that I make in the process of building a transient perfect design, and writing my own software. In the back of my mind, there is always the thought of writing a book, or starting a speaker company.