Best sounding speaker mfg?

Model Railroader Electronics and DCC
1

So I know the sound of a speaker is only as good as the source of the sound. And in my experience Loksound has the best sounds out there hands down.

So just for the sake of argument, who makes the best quality speakers on the market? I always stick with Loksound for speakers too but thought I’d get some opinions.

I just picked up a Athearn Big Boy from a guy and the sounds are dismal so I’m swapping out the decoder for Loksound and have room for dual speakers so I’m curious what speakers you guys are liking the best?

I don’t mean to start a Ford vs Chevrolet argument, but would appreciate feedback :slight_smile:

Mike

2

Mike,

I would HIGHLY recommend speakers from Scale Sound Systems. JT Burke is the proprietor and is a sound engineer by trade. JT designs and 3D prints his own baffles for the speakers and they just sound terrific.

For your Big Boy you want the Boiler Barker speakers. And there should be enough room in that monster to install two. I did that in the boiler of a brass 2-6-6-2 Mallet and the chuff is full & throaty - even with the master volume set @ 50%.

I can’t recommend SSS speakers highly enough. You won’t be disappointed.

Tom

3

I know what you’re trying to say, but…[:D]

Yes, I know it is grammatically correct, but it always sounds wrong to me.

4

That’s because you must be auditorily incorrect. [swg]

Rich

5

I’ve installed a few ‘boiler barker’ speakers and agree with Tom that they make a big difference in ‘locating’ the sound closer to the source by having the speaker closer to the stack. Below is a brass hybrid BLI Hudson that I gladly removed the puffer thingy and replaced it with a boiler barker speaker:

This is the stock assembly with the smoke maker shown:

J3a_upgrade-stock by Edmund, on Flickr

—and replaced with, as I recall, a 21mm dia. boiler barker:

J3a_SSS speaker by Edmund, on Flickr

Unless you’re comfortable with tearing down your chassis to access the smokebox it may be a bit of a challenge for someone not inclined toward that kind of a project. The ‘boiler barker’ series are circular speakers designed for installing inside the boiler itself.

Sc ale Sound Systems also offers the aptly named ‘Big Boy’ speaker which I’ve used in several larger tenders. Here’s one I’m fitting into a B&O EM-1:

BnO_EM-1-DCC Tender by Edmund, on Flickr

Sometimes a weight has to be shifted around. JT has a tutorial on installing this speaker into, I believe, an Athearn Big Boy.

6

Fantastic! Man I love this forum!

Have never seen or heard about Scale Sounds Systems but I’m all over giving them a try.

Thank you guys for the recommendation!

Mike

7

What you are asking is highly subjective and personal opinion.

I wouldn’t say loksound has the best sound for everything. It’s very hit or miss depending on where the sound came from.

It also depends a lot on how a speaker is used. I have a QSI titan that has two 1.1" high bass speakers in the tender. You can quite literally hear it through the front door of the club at 4 watts total and down to 120Hz -6dB. Soundtraxx with its adjustable Eq might come close. But not in terms of volume.

And paragon with rolling thunder blows them all away.

But the favorite so far by most is the sugar cube speakers commonly available. Soundtraxx sells them. But they are limited in power.

8

^ This … absolutely.

9

I’ll second the quality of TCS Decoders for steam. However, I like ESU loksound for some steam locomotives. I chose it for my big boy as it has actual recordings from the engine. Not to say Soundtraxx doesn’t but I don’t like their sound quality and cost more for me.