To Buy or to DIY, here is my question

What's the point of your post?  In the aerospace industry, our typical markup was 5x-10x the parts cost to cover the rest of our operational costs plus profit.  Never begrudge a manufacturer just because you can't figure out what their cost of doing business is.

If you build the speakers yourself, you had better like them because you will find them difficult to sell. Unless you have a trade account, you will be paying a multiple of what the manufacturer pays for the components. There is also the opportunity cost of your time. The chances of getting better sound than a speaker from an experienced designer (sadly now deceased in the case of Pro Ac) who has spent decades refining his designs are slim.

fatdaddy2,

Exactly. Hiring US workers with US taxes, US healthcare, US utilities etc. these ever increasing costs need to be recouped in every widget a company produces. 

As a manufacturer if you don't know your true cost of doing business you better brace yourself for impact. 

If I buy the speakers that appear closest to what I desire

they are $11k new and $8k used.

@chorus 

What is it that you desire?
can you intimate it with words?

I heard some Devore O/96 the other day that threw a wider stage than i expected.
And some coffins Moab things should be relatively easy to make a large box for.

The main problem is making them sound good.

BTW, I do encourage you to check out Troel's website, a builder after my own heart, but he has a lot of pictures about construction and assembly that can really help the new builder see what's involved.

http://www.troelsgravesen.dk/Diy_Loudspeaker_Projects.htm