The FAST TL's are up and running! Installing drivers, crossovers, and binding posts, and adjusting stuffing takes surprisingly longer than you would think! About 4hrs. The new 10F/RS225 FAST TL's are playing very nicely. Will let them break in for a few days and give some impressions then. They sound very good so far.
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I look forward to a comparison between the sealed version and the TL, and if there are any appreciable downsides to the extra output (beyond the cost/complexity of the cabinet).
The transparency of your design process for these speakers has been very educational - thanks for all the time and effort that you put into keeping this thread updated.
Try to get them up to ear level (6 inches) for me. I find this to be incredibly important to the imaging. I had only one base and the other one on phone books. Then I had to give the base back to our woodworker for matching purposes when he built the second base. I pulled the phone books and listened to them on the floor. EAR LEVEL IS IMPORTANT. I think you will agree if you move them up six inches and sit in a normal chair.
I'm almost ready to give an in depth listening review of them. I took my time breaking in the second one, but it's ready now. I have both bases and top hats as well. I just need a really good preamble, like the Yarra and a low noise AMP like the TPA3255 - hint, hint LOL
I'm almost ready to give an in depth listening review of them. I took my time breaking in the second one, but it's ready now. I have both bases and top hats as well. I just need a really good preamble, like the Yarra and a low noise AMP like the TPA3255 - hint, hint LOL
The bass is totally adjustable to one’s tastes by adjusting the stuffing. I have stuffing in the closed end up to the woofer, then a small loose amount right at the top of the turn. The rest of the line is empty except for eggcrate foam lining. Adding 5x more stuffing at the top hairpin essentially killed the bass from the TL. So you can really adjust it exactly from 0 to max. Max is pretty thumping - like having a subwoofer almost but better since it’s more defined and not mushy.
Regarding the height - my normal speakers are about 12in higher. This height is different, actually interesting effect of making the soundstage lower. It’s not bad at all. I will listen to it at this height for a few days. If I add feet it will probably be metal outriggers that add 2in or less. I find that the mass of the speakers is pretty substantial and I do not fear it tipping over even without feet.
The location of the vent port serendipitously doubles as an excellent handle to transport the speaker without bending over. Very convenient.
Regarding the height - my normal speakers are about 12in higher. This height is different, actually interesting effect of making the soundstage lower. It’s not bad at all. I will listen to it at this height for a few days. If I add feet it will probably be metal outriggers that add 2in or less. I find that the mass of the speakers is pretty substantial and I do not fear it tipping over even without feet.
The location of the vent port serendipitously doubles as an excellent handle to transport the speaker without bending over. Very convenient.
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In the crossover, there is a 4.7R and 4.7R signal divider to cut the power to the 10F tweeter by half. This could be made 3.3R/6.8R for a little more treble. However, I am listening to it right now and feel the extra bass is filling out the low end below 60Hz so the rest is still balanced. The speaker sounds like it has dedicated subwoofers now. There is some nice deep reach on pop music and hip hop tracks.
This TL can get loud and not distort! I have never heard a single RS225 play this loud and clean before. Very nice.
This TL can get loud and not distort! I have never heard a single RS225 play this loud and clean before. Very nice.
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This is one of the reasons why this speaker works so well. The visceral impact of mids is and vocal range mids often lacking in speakers that use steep crossovers where the large woofer doesn’t get to contribute. Since a 1st order shallow crossover is used here, the woofer contributes well past 1 kHz, up to 2kHz even - in conjunction with the 10F/8424 full range which acts as upper mid and tweeter. There is the 80Hz to 160Hz range which I call the “chest punch” range and this is directly handled by a large 8in cone plus the output of the huge port from the TL.
Basically, the RS225 is really the key driver here, the 10F, is secondary.
Basically, the RS225 is really the key driver here, the 10F, is secondary.
Well I solved my lack of floorspace for two sets of FAST speakers with the FAST Doublestack. 
I have been listening to the new 10F/RS225 FAST TL speakers continuously for a few days now and I think I have enough info to give a listening impression. These speakers have given me a reason to embark on a process of rediscovering my music collection again because they are transformational speakers - they made what was already great about the 10F/RS225 FAST in a sealed box, about 10x better. It is not simply the extra articulate bass, but rather the whole midrange opened up because the RS225 is not pushing against a sealed box, but able to freely articulate the very important band from 50Hz to 2kHz where a huge amount of content is located. Songs which I thought I knew well because I have heard at least 500 times, was simply breathtaking or jaw droppingly great. I mean, the sound is stunning. I have mentioned this before - very few speakers stun me and force me to stop what I am doing and really listen and feel connected in a visceral way to the emotion and depth of the track. This is one of those speakers - it is truly special. The other thing that makes it 10x better is the effortless way it has power and dynamic range. I can listen to Beethoven's 5th by the Berlin Philharmonic in Ultra HD and get the softest to loudest notes, and the speaker never distorts. I can play Metallica or Ronnie James Dio and it never gets congested, I can play hip hop and it cranks out the SPL without distorting while kicking up the thump in a clear and effortless way, I can then listen to delicate chamber orchestra and the nuances of the oboe and flute are all there. The power reserve and clarity in the bass just feels so good. Higher SPL levels are achievable without stress - it seems like it gained and extra 10 dB of headroom. When playing hip hop the cone barely moves yet the punch is loud and clear, no distortion. All genres from pop, jazz, metal, instrumental, classical, folk - they all sound amazing. Some examples of music I listened to include: Omer Avital, Stan Getz, Tracy Chapman, Infected Mushroom, Natalie Merchant, Yuri Honing Trio, Massive Attack, Diana Krall, Black Sabbath, Neil Young, Ahmad Jamal, Dio, David Guetta, Beethoven, de Saint Colombe, J.S. Bach, The Who, Cassandra Wilson, 2Pac, Suzanne Vega, Anne Bisson, Queen, Metallica, ZZ Top, Norah Jones, Pearl Jam, and of course, Sade.
I don't usually get this excited about a speaker, but this is one of the best I have ever heard. I started with the TPA3255 Class D, it was very good, then went tothe VHEX+ 100w Class AB amp it got better, then I moved to the 40w Alpha Nirvana Class A, and the combination is magical - one of the best listening combos I have heard. Simply breathtakingly magnificent. The textures, tonal detail, clarity, bass articualtion and nuances within the bass note, the force of the bass, delicacy of the midrange, and glass smooth highs all work so well. Hugh did something very special in the Alpha Nirvana (the name is apprpriate) and these speakers connect to that amp in a way I have never heard before. The last time I heard something this good was listening to Wesayso's Two Towers line array in the Netherlands. His speakers had delicacy, impact, and force all in one but rely on DSP and EQ. These speakers are running raw - no EQ, a passive XO, and a simple opamp for a preamp (my own OPA1688 dual parallel headphone amp), a $100 SMSL Sanskrit DAC, Amazon HD music service, and the Alpha Nirvana (single 600VA trafo). For a simple system to sound this good without EQ or DSP is really amazing.
If you can get a chance to make the TL speakers, they truly are amazing. Pair it with Aksa's Alpha Nirvana for what could perhaps be one of the best sound system combinations, anywhere. One of the best 3 speakers I have heard, ever.
I have been listening to the new 10F/RS225 FAST TL speakers continuously for a few days now and I think I have enough info to give a listening impression. These speakers have given me a reason to embark on a process of rediscovering my music collection again because they are transformational speakers - they made what was already great about the 10F/RS225 FAST in a sealed box, about 10x better. It is not simply the extra articulate bass, but rather the whole midrange opened up because the RS225 is not pushing against a sealed box, but able to freely articulate the very important band from 50Hz to 2kHz where a huge amount of content is located. Songs which I thought I knew well because I have heard at least 500 times, was simply breathtaking or jaw droppingly great. I mean, the sound is stunning. I have mentioned this before - very few speakers stun me and force me to stop what I am doing and really listen and feel connected in a visceral way to the emotion and depth of the track. This is one of those speakers - it is truly special. The other thing that makes it 10x better is the effortless way it has power and dynamic range. I can listen to Beethoven's 5th by the Berlin Philharmonic in Ultra HD and get the softest to loudest notes, and the speaker never distorts. I can play Metallica or Ronnie James Dio and it never gets congested, I can play hip hop and it cranks out the SPL without distorting while kicking up the thump in a clear and effortless way, I can then listen to delicate chamber orchestra and the nuances of the oboe and flute are all there. The power reserve and clarity in the bass just feels so good. Higher SPL levels are achievable without stress - it seems like it gained and extra 10 dB of headroom. When playing hip hop the cone barely moves yet the punch is loud and clear, no distortion. All genres from pop, jazz, metal, instrumental, classical, folk - they all sound amazing. Some examples of music I listened to include: Omer Avital, Stan Getz, Tracy Chapman, Infected Mushroom, Natalie Merchant, Yuri Honing Trio, Massive Attack, Diana Krall, Black Sabbath, Neil Young, Ahmad Jamal, Dio, David Guetta, Beethoven, de Saint Colombe, J.S. Bach, The Who, Cassandra Wilson, 2Pac, Suzanne Vega, Anne Bisson, Queen, Metallica, ZZ Top, Norah Jones, Pearl Jam, and of course, Sade.
I don't usually get this excited about a speaker, but this is one of the best I have ever heard. I started with the TPA3255 Class D, it was very good, then went tothe VHEX+ 100w Class AB amp it got better, then I moved to the 40w Alpha Nirvana Class A, and the combination is magical - one of the best listening combos I have heard. Simply breathtakingly magnificent. The textures, tonal detail, clarity, bass articualtion and nuances within the bass note, the force of the bass, delicacy of the midrange, and glass smooth highs all work so well. Hugh did something very special in the Alpha Nirvana (the name is apprpriate) and these speakers connect to that amp in a way I have never heard before. The last time I heard something this good was listening to Wesayso's Two Towers line array in the Netherlands. His speakers had delicacy, impact, and force all in one but rely on DSP and EQ. These speakers are running raw - no EQ, a passive XO, and a simple opamp for a preamp (my own OPA1688 dual parallel headphone amp), a $100 SMSL Sanskrit DAC, Amazon HD music service, and the Alpha Nirvana (single 600VA trafo). For a simple system to sound this good without EQ or DSP is really amazing.
If you can get a chance to make the TL speakers, they truly are amazing. Pair it with Aksa's Alpha Nirvana for what could perhaps be one of the best sound system combinations, anywhere. One of the best 3 speakers I have heard, ever.
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I guess we will know in a few months after I build it.
Info on amp:
Keantoken's Aurum-X 300w Amp with LatFETs
Info on amp:
Keantoken's Aurum-X 300w Amp with LatFETs