FWIW I`ll have my Fostex recommended horns done by the middle of next week. I veneered them in walnut, and stained the inside of the mouth black. 2 more coats of poly and the drivers go in. I`ll ask a friend to photograph them and get them on this website, (I`m a computer dufus) so I can show them off. The finish is looking good and I hope the pictures do them justice. About 200 hrs. on the drivers now so that when they get installed they`ll sound about fully broken-in. I`ll see you when they`re completely done.
Hi !
Just tried my brand new pair in the Le8t's 80l closed boxes !
They aren't really broken (+-10hours), with a solid state AURA VA50 amp (I'd prefer a SE tube or mosfet amp but they aren't finished), but even in these boxes the sound damn good !
I think their frequency response is a little smoother and less rising than fe206e but they seem a little less dynamic (maybye due to the closed 80l boxes ?).
The magnet is huge and the finish impressive. Really more worth the money than many many other speakers ! damn fostex, these japanese really are the best !
Just tried my brand new pair in the Le8t's 80l closed boxes !
They aren't really broken (+-10hours), with a solid state AURA VA50 amp (I'd prefer a SE tube or mosfet amp but they aren't finished), but even in these boxes the sound damn good !
I think their frequency response is a little smoother and less rising than fe206e but they seem a little less dynamic (maybye due to the closed 80l boxes ?).
The magnet is huge and the finish impressive. Really more worth the money than many many other speakers ! damn fostex, these japanese really are the best !
The drivers were installed in the Fostex recommended cabinet last nite and I had some time left for listening. High frequencies seem smoother and more extended than stock FE206E`s ( I have the regular 206`s in Fostex recommended cabinets also), mid range a little more detailed, and bass overall about the same. I`m not sure if it is my room or the placement, but I get a sort of droning coloration in the lower mid-upper bass that the regular models don`t have. The more I listened the less obivous it seemed, maybe more energy in a range the others were lacking in. When I added a sub and played around with adjustments, bass improved and they sounded better, but they are different. I plan to move them around a little and further tune the sub. Overall they are better, but those who own the regular FE206E`s can rest assured they have an excellent driver. I`ll check back after some more listening.
I`ve been listening for 2 weeks now and expirimenting with stuffing almost everyday. Well I think I`ve got it right. I added polyfil, and filled the whole cc, making sure there was plenty directly behind the driver. I damped the cc alot more than I had planned to, but that did the trick. Last nite I listened to them for about 4 hrs, with no fatigue, in fact it hard to turn the system off last night. Vinyl sounds so good thru these, I`m playing stuff I have not played for 20 years..literally! When I finished them, I was dissapointed, but playing with position and stuffing these are very enjoyable. I have a friend that will post some pictures of them.
Saxophon
Hello,
to fill up the sound below 1 kHz try
a bi driver tripel horn, you get bass
from the second cheap driver BG20,
and by interlacing the membran movement
you will get a best step response,
specially because the Fostex has a stroke of
only 0,6 mm, the 206E has 1,5 mm.
http://www.hm-moreart.de/102.htm
free download, measurements
Hello,
to fill up the sound below 1 kHz try
a bi driver tripel horn, you get bass
from the second cheap driver BG20,
and by interlacing the membran movement
you will get a best step response,
specially because the Fostex has a stroke of
only 0,6 mm, the 206E has 1,5 mm.
http://www.hm-moreart.de/102.htm
free download, measurements
206ES-R
Hi noxo, can you post a few pictures for us now that they are finished. Heres a look at my 166ES-R's
http://home.earthlink.net/~conartonj/id1.html
I have a pair of the 206ES-R but wanted to wait till all the
fanfare and hoopla die down before settling on a cabinet.
Best,
Jrook
Hi noxo, can you post a few pictures for us now that they are finished. Heres a look at my 166ES-R's
http://home.earthlink.net/~conartonj/id1.html
I have a pair of the 206ES-R but wanted to wait till all the
fanfare and hoopla die down before settling on a cabinet.
Best,
Jrook
Jrook, I had a friend who is more computer savy than I post some pictures, but he put them on a thread I started called Fostex HP Reflectors. On page 2 of that thread there are 2 or 3 pics posted by noxonewbie, a friend that has been "bitten by the bug." Please check these out and give me your honest opinion, I appreciate constuctive criticism, so both positive and negative statements are welcome. Thanks for the request, Ray
Last nite I removed all the poly stuffing and deflex from the bottom of thr CC and added more wool felt behind the driver and sand bags to the bottom of the CC. This brought back the resonance around 150HZ to 200HZ and they sounded worse. There is a pronounced lower mid, upper bass peak that really bothers me. This morning I went back to stuffing and deflex and the peak is reduced, but not gone. Tonite I plan to put some deflex on the sides of the CC and put a little stuffing in the throat and listen some more. Any comments on stuffing the throat? Based on what I read stuffing is usually a bad thing for dynamics and want use as little as possible. After I make these changes I`ll report what I hear.
NoXo,
Pooh, sounds like the recommended enclosure and ES-R are pretty difficult to tame. Although I am familiar with long break in time of Fostex drivers, I think your 150 hours should give a fairly good impression of the final sonic settling. Your listening impressions surprise me a bit since Fostex is familiar with BLH designs and I am pretty sure they have taken some pre-cautions not to scrw up their new special and expensive 206ES-Rs. So what is up with the design?
Pooh, sounds like the recommended enclosure and ES-R are pretty difficult to tame. Although I am familiar with long break in time of Fostex drivers, I think your 150 hours should give a fairly good impression of the final sonic settling. Your listening impressions surprise me a bit since Fostex is familiar with BLH designs and I am pretty sure they have taken some pre-cautions not to scrw up their new special and expensive 206ES-Rs. So what is up with the design?
Hey Doc, I wish I knew the answer. I`ve built the Fostex recommended horns for the FE206E`s and love them. When I saw that Fostex was coming out with a limited edition "improved" version, I had to have them. In my room the standard versions with T90A`s capped with a .33MFD cap, sound better in almost every way. I will continue to expirement with damping in the CC, but the resonance I hear makes me wonder if I have a poor glue job and a loose panel inside creating the sort of droning sound in the lower mids/upper bass. I hope that`s not the case or there will be a fire. You can see some pictures of the finished a friend/helper posted in the HP Reflector thread. If you have any ideas let me know. Thanks, Ray.
That`s a good idea mp9. When I glued the final side panel I used 2 100lbs steel weights and 4-7" deep clamps to make sure the interior walls were sealed and 18 to 20 clamps around the perimeter. All pieces were pretty square and accurately cut ( my dad was a wood shop teacher when I was growing up) so I hope there are no loose panels, but I can`t get inside far to check. Last nite I removed all poly stuffing in the CC and lined it with deflex except the front baffle and that helped alot. Now they sound pretty good at lower levels, but the more I turn it up, things fall apart. I`ll try the clamps this weekend and post the results, and thanks for the idea. If there are loose panels way inside, any suggestons how to seal them without ruining the veneer with screws?
I think I `ve got it right. I lined the CC (back, sides and bottom) with deflex and added a little wool batting to the throat and thing evened out nicely. After getting the damping right and with additional break in I like these more every time I listen to them. I now feel that these are the among the most listenable speakers I`ve owned. It`s been a learning and rewarding process.
No Xo,
Good to hear they are really smoothing up and getting right. Do you think it was worth the hassle compared to your (cheaper) 206s? Do you think it needs 200+ hours before you should modify the enclosures or experiment with damping?
Two days ago, I just unpacked my ES-Rs and drove them, without any enclosure or baffle, with my T-amp to hear what they would be like. I was shocked! Straight out of the box and totally naked they sounded bloody bloody awful. Like an amplified telephone line. Agreed, I had to smile a little since it also reminded me how the Fostex 108ES sounded for the first few minutes/hours and they are fantastic right now after 300+ hours. Still, there was sonic shock, a feeling of undeserved punishment. If I weren't prepared for it and didn't know what they are probably capable of in the future I would have sold them immediately.
Good to hear they are really smoothing up and getting right. Do you think it was worth the hassle compared to your (cheaper) 206s? Do you think it needs 200+ hours before you should modify the enclosures or experiment with damping?
Two days ago, I just unpacked my ES-Rs and drove them, without any enclosure or baffle, with my T-amp to hear what they would be like. I was shocked! Straight out of the box and totally naked they sounded bloody bloody awful. Like an amplified telephone line. Agreed, I had to smile a little since it also reminded me how the Fostex 108ES sounded for the first few minutes/hours and they are fantastic right now after 300+ hours. Still, there was sonic shock, a feeling of undeserved punishment. If I weren't prepared for it and didn't know what they are probably capable of in the future I would have sold them immediately.
Doc, I today I feel differently about them than I did yesterday. Last nite I was playing some Steve Earle and back came that resonance I thought I had tamed. In fact they sounded bad, and this was on a simple acoustic piece where fullrangers usually shine. I`m about ready to bring them back in the shop and adjust some more, but Wed. nite I stripped one of the T-nuts which mounts the driver. Now I have to cut the screw to get them out again,very frustrating. I go back and forth with these. My regular FE206E`s never gave me this much trouble, and today I feel like selling the "ESR`s" and put the regular ones back in the system. Last weekend I was having alot of fun with the ESR`s and now I back to square one. Am I a flake, do I need counseling, or should I just take more medication(LOL). I need a doctor`s advice. But seriously, I will continue to work on the ESR`s because when they do sound right I hear so much promise. I hope more break in, they have at least 250 hrs on them now, and I`ve heard they need 600 to 1000 hrs before they smooth out. I not ready to give up or sell them yet, but my patience is wearing thin. Also I will bring them in my basement and hook them up to my HT system and see if room nodes are the problem. Hang tough, Ray
I also think the main shocking thing is that they do not sound like the other FOSTEX imho. They have different tone (due to the radial paper making ?). I think there's less harshness in the highs than the 206e but the mids aren't as clear as the Fostex usually have ... Do you think so ?
I still do love them and find them easier to drive than the very good but agressive without a good sweet tube amp fe206e.
I still do love them and find them easier to drive than the very good but agressive without a good sweet tube amp fe206e.
Well here we go again. I was able to spend some more time wth them this weekend. I cut the mounting bolt that had the stripped T-nut and pulled out both drivers again. This time I added some more wool batting to the throat, I filled the entire 1st section, lightly and made sure it was even and somewhat loose. They sounded pretty good, even on the discs I was complaining about on my last reply. So back and forth I go. And yes, they do sound different from the other Fostex drivers I`ve used,(FE206E, FE166E, FE127E) so my expirience is limited. The Fe206ESR`s have more mid bass energy than I am used to and on certain recordings this is wonderful and other recordings, not so great. I will continue to work on these because I feel that when the horns are tuned to my room and tastes, I will have some very satisfying sound. I listened to the new William Orbit yesterday and it sounded very good. The story will coninue.
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