Well not a real horn, on the inside of the sub box there is a divider that looks like a horn and ends up at the ports. I needed the sub to fill the lowest lows (to be honest I can barely tell its effect, it is very subtle), hence the long transmission line and the ports to only produce what the nirvanas are not.
If you turned the sub off, most people couldn't tell. I can, and only because I sat through the measurements.
The same goes for the highs, on the measurement they look rolled off from 15 to 20k, but in reality the highs are quite extended.
This might be due to the fact that the 2 drivers don't behave as a point source anymore and since we're measuring them as such they don't tell the whole story.
If you turned the sub off, most people couldn't tell. I can, and only because I sat through the measurements.
The same goes for the highs, on the measurement they look rolled off from 15 to 20k, but in reality the highs are quite extended.
This might be due to the fact that the 2 drivers don't behave as a point source anymore and since we're measuring them as such they don't tell the whole story.
You have been listening for a long time now. Any new thoughts?
I just bought AN12 (regular not cast). Considering OB or CSA box design. I am curious what kind of imaging you get. For me this is absolutely necessary and wonder what you are experiencing. A lot of people talk of beaming with this speaker. What do you thing about that?
Thanks
Uriah
I just bought AN12 (regular not cast). Considering OB or CSA box design. I am curious what kind of imaging you get. For me this is absolutely necessary and wonder what you are experiencing. A lot of people talk of beaming with this speaker. What do you thing about that?
Thanks
Uriah
I am also curious about your current thoughts on these speakers.
It is quite amazing what flush mounting can achieve , isn't it ? Dramatically smoothed out those deep nulls in the response.
I'm glad you weren't discouraged by my and others comments. Looks like you have quite a nice setup , made bettter with a few tweaks !
Udailey,
I am a fan of cast basket speakers, but after seeing the pics of the AN12's , I think I would go with the stamped baskets , too. They look to be MUCH more open than the cast frames, which is strange , as cast frames are typically more open , and that is one reason I usually prefer them.
Try using rope caulk or ductseal on the exterior of the baskets/frames to damp them , and some pieces of wool or felt cut to size on the inside of the baskets' spokes/legs to minimize the initial reflection back to the cone.
These little mods work wonders and will really help clean up the sound. As you can see, flush mounting is a pretty necessary thing as well.
I have some old Calrad 12" FR's that I will be measuring with a WT3 very soon. I am going to take some baseline measurements and then the mods will begin !
.....................................Blake
It is quite amazing what flush mounting can achieve , isn't it ? Dramatically smoothed out those deep nulls in the response.
I'm glad you weren't discouraged by my and others comments. Looks like you have quite a nice setup , made bettter with a few tweaks !
Udailey,
I am a fan of cast basket speakers, but after seeing the pics of the AN12's , I think I would go with the stamped baskets , too. They look to be MUCH more open than the cast frames, which is strange , as cast frames are typically more open , and that is one reason I usually prefer them.
Try using rope caulk or ductseal on the exterior of the baskets/frames to damp them , and some pieces of wool or felt cut to size on the inside of the baskets' spokes/legs to minimize the initial reflection back to the cone.
These little mods work wonders and will really help clean up the sound. As you can see, flush mounting is a pretty necessary thing as well.
I have some old Calrad 12" FR's that I will be measuring with a WT3 very soon. I am going to take some baseline measurements and then the mods will begin !
.....................................Blake
AN12s are on sale right now for 173 a pair. Beat that! 
The cast option which has a bit better high end (per the spl/frequency graph) from about 12-15k is I think is $248. If I have an issue with HF I guess I can do a tweeter which will teach me about XO. If I recall I think the cast is a db better in efficiency to. I would love to say that I have every reason to think the regular 12 is going to be so close to the cast that I wont notice but it was really wifey that made the choice for me
Shipped today!
Cant wait.
Uriah
Super 10 is on sale as well. Maybe it was $153. I think so. www.commonsenseaudio.com
The cast option which has a bit better high end (per the spl/frequency graph) from about 12-15k is I think is $248. If I have an issue with HF I guess I can do a tweeter which will teach me about XO. If I recall I think the cast is a db better in efficiency to. I would love to say that I have every reason to think the regular 12 is going to be so close to the cast that I wont notice but it was really wifey that made the choice for me Shipped today!
Cant wait.
Uriah
Super 10 is on sale as well. Maybe it was $153. I think so. www.commonsenseaudio.com
Hi all,
I also got interested in the nirvana's so I ordered pairs of the 8, 10 and 12". The cast versions.
I'll have some spare time this summer so I'll push them in some TL'-subs, backloaded horns (jericho), OB and the prescripted commonsense cabinets that come along with them. See how I like them.
They have to compete with Jordan jx92s, fostex fe208E (old type, the better one), BD-tqwt with fostex fe103e and a homebrew multiway dynaudio.
Any thoughts and tips are welcome!
I also got interested in the nirvana's so I ordered pairs of the 8, 10 and 12". The cast versions.
I'll have some spare time this summer so I'll push them in some TL'-subs, backloaded horns (jericho), OB and the prescripted commonsense cabinets that come along with them. See how I like them.
They have to compete with Jordan jx92s, fostex fe208E (old type, the better one), BD-tqwt with fostex fe103e and a homebrew multiway dynaudio.
Any thoughts and tips are welcome!
Yeah they sound great I am pretty happy with them. FAR FAR better than any of the commercial stuff I could get at my local electronics super store. I dont go into the high end stores since they are so far away and many times by appt only. But I have heard many Klipsch, Paradigm, Infinity, etc and these top them for sure and by a long shot. Are they better than Thiel? Its been so long but thats the last super hi-fi speaker I heard and it blew my mind. I dont think the imaging is as good with these, but then they have been playing an hour or so and not been moved around much at all.
Picasa Folder Here
I am pretty happy with them. FAR FAR better than any of the commercial stuff I could get at my local electronics super store. I dont go into the high end stores since they are so far away and many times by appt only. But I have heard many Klipsch, Paradigm, Infinity, etc and these top them for sure and by a long shot. Are they better than Thiel? Its been so long but thats the last super hi-fi speaker I heard and it blew my mind. I dont think the imaging is as good with these, but then they have been playing an hour or so and not been moved around much at all.Picasa Folder Here
Hi Uriah,
thanks for the pics!
Do I see 3 wires running? what is the third wire for?
Please tell me (after they are burnt in well) what the low end of the freqs do. Large panels without cross-bracing. The panels will swing a bit. Maybe you need the swinging panels to enhanche some low freq. With ordinary BR-enclosures it also can make the sound round and muddy a bit.
They look impressive!
cheers, Pep
thanks for the pics!
Do I see 3 wires running? what is the third wire for?
Please tell me (after they are burnt in well) what the low end of the freqs do. Large panels without cross-bracing. The panels will swing a bit. Maybe you need the swinging panels to enhanche some low freq. With ordinary BR-enclosures it also can make the sound round and muddy a bit.
They look impressive!
cheers, Pep
Well, David Dicks sold me the ANs. He recommended 16 gage wire and all I had was some multi stranded 18 and some solid 24. So I ran one of each from + and -. You know, the thicker the wire the less frequencies that can travel it, so this might actually help the top end a bit. Yeah, I should have twisted them, but they sound great.
Just turned them up. I turned the volume up to -6db, whatever that means, on my Harmon Kardon AVR135. BTW I prefer my tube amp to the HK. So, anyway, turned it up to -6db. Like I said I dont know what that means but it was loud. So loud that I was worried something bad was going to happen to the speakers, the receiver, or my ears. ZERO distortion!! WOW they really really kick a$$ at high volume. All instruments were just as well represented as they were at lower volume. I was amazed. I think I could DJ the neighbors party from my basement.
Also, I was listening to some Enigma. That first disc they came out with back in the early 90's if not '89. Anyway, I have heard it hundreds of times and this time there were some new bass notes. A whole new bass 'floor' on the last song I listened to. It didnt add much to the song but it was there and the speakers were not just hinting at it they were really kicking these new notes.
Uriah
Just turned them up. I turned the volume up to -6db, whatever that means, on my Harmon Kardon AVR135. BTW I prefer my tube amp to the HK. So, anyway, turned it up to -6db. Like I said I dont know what that means but it was loud. So loud that I was worried something bad was going to happen to the speakers, the receiver, or my ears. ZERO distortion!! WOW they really really kick a$$ at high volume. All instruments were just as well represented as they were at lower volume. I was amazed. I think I could DJ the neighbors party from my basement.
Also, I was listening to some Enigma. That first disc they came out with back in the early 90's if not '89. Anyway, I have heard it hundreds of times and this time there were some new bass notes. A whole new bass 'floor' on the last song I listened to. It didnt add much to the song but it was there and the speakers were not just hinting at it they were really kicking these new notes.
Uriah
Two new pics to show you guys/gals. The last two pics on my web album are new.
http://picasaweb.google.com/udailey/AudioNirvanaSuper12Build
I built a speaker stand and a speaker cover. Stand gets it to the correct listening position and looks neat. Think I will house Nelson Pass F5 amps in the stands.
RiGuy
http://picasaweb.google.com/udailey/AudioNirvanaSuper12Build
I built a speaker stand and a speaker cover. Stand gets it to the correct listening position and looks neat. Think I will house Nelson Pass F5 amps in the stands.
RiGuy
I'm glad to see some great discussions on the ANs.
I've built 3 pairs so far. My favorite by far is the 2.8MKII Ambience enclosure with the twin 3" ports. No tubes yet, but I'm going to try some 3.5" tubes to see how they sound.
My set up is the 10" cast frame in the front and the regular 8" on top.
I ended up putting 2 pair of speaker terminals in the back each wired to 1 of the drivers. I then jumper them for listening to both.
I could bi-amp them by pulling the jumper, or just turn the top off by pulling the jumper off and using 1 amp. I like the flexibility.
I'm interested in flush mounting the front driver.
What's the easiest way to do this? I'm using 3/4" birch ply.
Any suggestions welcome.
Thanks
I've built 3 pairs so far. My favorite by far is the 2.8MKII Ambience enclosure with the twin 3" ports. No tubes yet, but I'm going to try some 3.5" tubes to see how they sound.
My set up is the 10" cast frame in the front and the regular 8" on top.
I ended up putting 2 pair of speaker terminals in the back each wired to 1 of the drivers. I then jumper them for listening to both.
I could bi-amp them by pulling the jumper, or just turn the top off by pulling the jumper off and using 1 amp. I like the flexibility.
I'm interested in flush mounting the front driver.
What's the easiest way to do this? I'm using 3/4" birch ply.
Any suggestions welcome.
Thanks
Attachments
Allen, I saw where one guy DID flush mount (the guy who started this thread) and raved about the effort being worth the results, but flush mounting these odd shaped drivers is not going to be easy. Maybe easiest would be to cut a circle with a router that is the diameter of the rounded edges if they were to complete a circle and then fill in the gaps created when you drop the driver in with some putty and veneer over the top? I dont know. Sounds pretty tough to get it right.
Maybe just cut a piece of 1/4" ply to about 14.5x14.5 and then use a dremel to cut the shape and then glue this new panel onto your existing speaker?
Uriah
I am really enjoying the AN as well. Have you built any speakers other than ANs? What is your impression with A vs B?
Maybe just cut a piece of 1/4" ply to about 14.5x14.5 and then use a dremel to cut the shape and then glue this new panel onto your existing speaker?
Uriah
I am really enjoying the AN as well. Have you built any speakers other than ANs? What is your impression with A vs B?
Udailey,
The only speakers I've built are the ANs. The first was non Cast Frame 10" with twin 3" ports.
I made some mistakes with the cabinet and was very disappointed with the sound. No bass was the biggest problem.
I sold them to my brother-in-law who is an excellent woodworker, who was going to take them apart and fix them up.
My second pair was the non Cast Frame 10 with the single 6" port. Also in the 2.8 cubic ft. enclosure. They were much better, but the bass had the problem of having a mid bass hump.
A 6" port tube really helped that. I still have those speakers.
The last set is the 10" Cast Frame in the 2.8 enclosure with twin 3" ports, with the 8" regular on top. Big difference. Much better sounding. Better bass and better off axis response.
What do you mean A vs. B?
Allen ...
The only speakers I've built are the ANs. The first was non Cast Frame 10" with twin 3" ports.
I made some mistakes with the cabinet and was very disappointed with the sound. No bass was the biggest problem.
I sold them to my brother-in-law who is an excellent woodworker, who was going to take them apart and fix them up.
My second pair was the non Cast Frame 10 with the single 6" port. Also in the 2.8 cubic ft. enclosure. They were much better, but the bass had the problem of having a mid bass hump.
A 6" port tube really helped that. I still have those speakers.
The last set is the 10" Cast Frame in the 2.8 enclosure with twin 3" ports, with the 8" regular on top. Big difference. Much better sounding. Better bass and better off axis response.
What do you mean A vs. B?
Allen ...
Peps,
The 10" Cast is much better than the regular 10". Spend the extra money, it's worth it.
My favorite is the Cast 10" with the regular 8" on top.
When I only run the 10", the ambience is gone. Someone else in this thread was talking about this. It's true.
Plus, for $98 for the pair (I think), it's pretty cheap upgrade.
Allen...
The 10" Cast is much better than the regular 10". Spend the extra money, it's worth it.
My favorite is the Cast 10" with the regular 8" on top.
When I only run the 10", the ambience is gone. Someone else in this thread was talking about this. It's true.
Plus, for $98 for the pair (I think), it's pretty cheap upgrade.
Allen...
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