Frugel-Horn XL for Alpair 10.3/10p, Fostex FF165wk, more

Dave - let me elaborate a bit, and it could just be our lexicons - I'm referring to the ambience of spread of output of the lower frequencies from the rear mouth output of any of the Frugels as compared to Pensils. I've lived for a while with examples of the latter with A7.3 and A10.3, and for a shorter time, the former with A10.3 and 10Ps.

While I've not built / heard every single enclosure in the Lindgren oeuvre - who exactly has? - of those I have, ether of the horns mentioned, or that matter the rear mouthed Maeshowe / Valiants as compared to the Aiko or Saburo of the double mouth series have always sounded bigger than any direct firing mono-poles using the same driver.
 
On the bass side of things, I'm thinking most of us will have a hard time determining if one speaker reaches 4-5Hz lower than another speaker does...

4-5hz in the 100hz region is really not that much ("4-5%").
But now go lower...
around 50hz it is a lot more ("8-10%").
And even lower...
at 32hz go just 2hz lower and it is subjectively (by ear) almost double as low.
 
And unless the approx 1.63 dB difference in sensitivity (advantage paper ) is a critical factor, it comes down to which tonal signature works best for you. With the A7, I definitely prefer the metal, but in the case of either the A6 or A10, I'm more ambivalent, and would choose based on application. Of course at the end of the day it's your ears you need to live with, and some folks definitely prefer the papers.
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
Yes.

Our initial comparison of A10PeN vrs A10.3eN with a couple hundred hours low level break-in had us choosing the paper cone as better, but we lent the metals to Bernie and he got many, many more hours on them and when they came back the comparison was 6 of one, half dozen of the other. Both very good. I believe those drivers are now in Pensils in CHris’ HT.

dave
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
A10.3 gets smoother up top and greater DDR as it breaks in. I guess metal takes longe rto settle in than paper.

pensils might be my next build, a lot easier than the XL's.

Except for the angle cuts, not really. Pensil has more fiddly bits… the bits on the back so the back can be removed (and sealing and screwing that), and althou the holey brace is only shown in 1 drawing, not optional as far as we are concerned.

dave
 
As a builder of a set I can atest to putting braces into the cabinet. It is a little tricky to get it just right, but it is worth the effort. When you put your hand on the panels with deeper bass notes playing the cabinets are free from vibration. The cabinet does not add or detract from the music being played. Just nice clean music coming from them.
Spend the time and effort, it is really worth it.

I hope this helps