Need help picking drivers for a 3 way

[Panny82]

I was pretty set on making a MTM 2 way set of mains untill i talked to my dad. He really suggest on a budget to build a 3 way. He says I would get more out of it. I was thinking about doing a dome tweeter (SEAS 27TDFC) and a 6.5in mid I am stuck between the SEAS P18RNX/P and SEAS ER18RNX. He was also saying that a 5in for mid might be better considering they are faster and can be more accurate, considering I will not need it to go very low. For the lower mid and bass I am stuck between the SEAS P21RF/P which are on sale right now for 59.00 and the Dayton RS225S-8 which are both 8in. I am not sure if a 10in might be better for handling the lower end of the mid range and bass. I was thinking 10in right away but thought 8in to make a better looking floor standing speaker. I will be getting a sub woofer for handling the real low stuff. I thought I would run it by you guys to see what you thought. If you guys can think of better drivers please let me know. I am looking to keep driver cost down to 400 though.

[JCD]

Some random comments:
I think I'd agree with your dad -- if you're going with a 3 way system, a 5" mid makes sense to me for the reasons he mentioned.
I think you need to go bigger than an 8" for the low end. I wouldn't consider anything less than 10".. and I'd probably go for a 12". Even with a sub, I'd stick with a 10 or 12. 8" isn't enough of difference over a 5 or 6" mid to make it worthwhile IMO.

As for the specific drivers you're mentioning, I can't say which is better or worse, but if I had to buy blind, I'd go for a Seas over a Dayton.

Another thought -- if I'm on a budget, I'd consider a really good tweeter and a good mid. My unsupported opinion is that fewer good drivers is better than more lesser drivers. You know one brand that I think you should look at in that price range are some of the offerings from Usher. From what I've heard, they offer some really good stuff for the $$. The Hiquophon tweeters would be stepping up just a little, but those are supposed to be some AWESOME tweet for the money. A two way with those and a 6.5" to handle the mids and sub to round out the bottom end and I'd think you'd be doing quite well.

[its_bacon12]

How low are you wanting to go with the bass? If you have subwoofer plans, then an 8" should be fine for handling the mid/upper bass regions. And I'd also second a 4" or 5" midrange driver.

One that I have experience with is the TangBand 4" Titanium (w4-1337) and it is untouchable for performance in it's price range. RS series are always good choices and again, in that price range I'd go with the Dayton, which is the value leading performer. Price no object, then definitely a higher end Seas.