I have concluded that my son's 2 Vidsonix Nova-12 speakers (250W rms ~ 8ohm, 12" Woofer) are simply not powerful enough for my taste. The highs are fine, but the low-end (bass) lacks the "punch" I expect. I'm looking for that "club" sound where you can actually feel the bass. Now, most of his gigs will be outdoors, so I need something that is not dispersed when in an open environment.

Now, keeping in mind that 2 of our 4 kids are starting college and tuition is approximately $30,000 (£48,000) each/year (4 years = £384,000 for 2 kids), and 2 more children will enter college in 2-3 years, the speakers I want are out of the question.

I can buy Madison 15's for about $200/pair and good horns should not be too expensive; the crossovers run about $35 each for decent ones.

Problem is the cabinet itself. I'm quite handy with woodworking, but I understand a speaker box is not simply a box with holes.

Any advice? Is it even worth the trouble to build your own or is there a substantial savings?

Tried that - their mother won't let me.

my hubby del and his mate matt built some wicked speakers... we called em mat-a-dels! Used them at Fulham Town Hall for a 500+ gig and the sounded awesome.... Use them for large functions every now and again - mind you, matt and del do know tons about sound systems etc - as for me.... No, I would not know where to start!

Definatly worth building your own. i build all my speakers and they sound and look great - (nobody ever believes there built by myself). Just make sure you get the design for the bins right and you'll be laughing. A friend of mine designed my bins and they're amazing but then again he does have an 80K rig designed and built himself so he knows what he's doing.
Apparently the eminence designer software is pretty god and versatile with respect ot dimensions shapes etc.
regards
Steve

Of course the whole art of cab building goes out of the window if you settle for cheap drivers!. If you save money by building your own cabs, don't skimp on the chassis within, and make sure that all components and internal wiring are adequately rated!.

Price wise, of course there is a area where it starts becoming silly, but if you see a range of bass drivers priced between $25 and $300 - don't go for either the $25 or $300 driver - instead aim for one in the $75 - $150! range.

Personally, I'm a big fan of Eminence Drivers. If you are building big then the "Kilomax" series are for you, even their budget drivers sound good in a well designed and ported cab

Remember too that Bass doesnt have to be Stereo.

Theres nothing wrong therefore to buy ONE really nice driver now, and its matching pair/mate later on as funds allow.

No problem Jorge,

I've used Eminence for some time and have never had a negative experience with them. They used to boast of being "The U.S.A's No1 Loudspeaker Manufacturer", I don't know how much of this was just advertising B/S or if there was some fact to it, but a lot of the UK's respected speaker manufacturers have used / are using them within their own cabinets.

Just looking at your spec for your tweeters:-