Aer and Lowther compared

[DaveCan]

In the next year or more I plan to save up for a top of the pack Fullrange driver..

From what I've researched so far it would seem that the AER Mk1 driver is somewhat better at everything over the Lowther drivers, and many prefer it...

Has anyone here ever had a chance to compare the two?, or any other of the AER drivers like the Mk2 and 3?

The most expensive Lowther I looked at here in Canada is the EX-4 at $2450 a pair and the AER MK1 is $2500 a pair.. So I guess it would be between those two, as I'm really set on the idea of the AER and that would be my max price to spend..

I'm thinking the 8'' drivers from both these companys will sound better or as good in the mid and highs as all the small Fostex drivers modded or not, with more low end and thats good enough for me... If the AER can do mids like the fe108ez while having better sens and more authority then I'm in for that... Any advice or thoughts? Dave

Heres the specs of the AER driver, quite nice.. http://www.rlacoustique.com/aer.htm

[ScottG]

Originally posted by DaveCan
In the next year or more I plan to save up for a top of the pack Fullrange driver..

From what I've researched so far it would seem that the AER Mk1 driver is somewhat better at everything over the Lowther drivers, and many prefer it...

Has anyone here ever had a chance to compare the two?, or any other of the AER drivers like the Mk2 and 3?

The most expensive Lowther I looked at here in Canada is the EX-4 at $2450 a pair and the AER MK1 is $2500 a pair.. So I guess it would be between those two, as I'm really set on the idea of the AER and that would be my max price to spend..

I'm thinking the 8'' drivers from both these companys will sound better or as good in the mid and highs as all the small Fostex drivers modded or not, with more low end and thats good enough for me... If the AER can do mids like the fe108ez while having better sens and more authority then I'm in for that... Any advice or thoughts? Dave

Heres the specs of the AER driver, quite nice.. http://www.rlacoustique.com/aer.htm

In that price range I'd be looking at a Supravox 215-2000 EXC. Not only is it an electromagnet design, but its also a near full-range driver without a whizer. And that whizer on either the lowther or the AER (at the bottom of its range) will have a nasty narrow band peak.

..and note that even with the obvious exception of reduced off-axis higher freq.s (..which all large diameter drivers have to some degree), it consistently is perceived by others as being better than the AER and Lowther (with very little negative comments).

btw, I finally received my sub amp - hefty little bugger (..but I haven't played with it yet).

[chrisb]

Well then, you need to consider the Feastrex as well - they wouldn't take an enclosure much larger than your existing BIB

As for affording them - I read on the internet (so it must be true ) that a healthy adult male can survive quite well with only one kidney.

[ronc]

As for affording them - I read on the internet (so it must be true ) that a healthy adult male can survive quite well with only one kidney.


But, when you only have one left its Fostex time.

ron

[DaveCan]

Scott,
Good to hear you got your amp. It is a real hefty unit thats for sure. I had probs with mine but returned it for another one and all is good now.. I'm not using it at this time but tried it out with a car sub and it sure has great control I'm real happy with it. I'm still going to make that Iso project we talked about ,or maybe go IB depending if my new digs will support that approach etc ( moving in a few months or so).. I'll check into the Supravox also, thanks for the recommendation..

Chris,
I would think of Feastrex but I thought the cheapest unit was $2500 + per driver.. Not sure of the exact price as I've never seen an accurate quote in Loonies yet.. I came up with the $2500 per pair limit as thats what a pair of AER MK1's cost, and normally I would never spend that much but I thought I could save up over time for them..

Ron,
Fostex are my price level even with two kidneys, but I got to thinking that hey, I got no car payments, no credit card dept and I love music.. I will have to save up for sometime to get to that amount but from what I've been seeing lately going on around me with friends with serious health problems I think I'm going to reward myself and enjoy some good things while I can...

Dave

[wixy]

The cheapest feastrex (the D5NF) is under $3000US per pair I think. I've heard nothing but praise for these.

[Scottmoose]

Having heard both the AER MK1s (real ones -thank goodness all that mess has finally been sorted out!) and various Lowthers, my inclination is that the EX4 is a shade more detailed than the MK1, although not quite as smooth, so opinion is polarised. Neither is 'better', they're just different. I could make a case for (& live with) both really. As a true Brit, I'm forced to say if I had the money, I'd go with the Lowther, but the AER was equally impressive, albeit in different areas. The Supravox mentioned above by, er, Scott (that's two of us -how worrying) would also be a terrific option though. Depends on what you want to do with them, really. Not having heard the Feastrex, I can't comment, other than they are very well regarded (though the cheapest model has a high Fs, so you're doing well if you can get ~50Hz out of it, run solo). Not sure about the pricing either.

[hornophile]

Hello,

An other option to consider would be to have a pair of lowther driver reconned by M. STAMM in Germany.

those "upgraded" lLowther are supposed to be more efficient and have more bass and extension.

M. STAMM made drivers for LOTH-X. The LOTH-X company doesn't exist anymore but according to the reviews made when it was still alive, those drivers were clearly superior to lowther.

I havn't listed to those modified Lowther, but I have PM2A (old modele quite shouty...) and I'm tempted to give them a try.

You can find M. STAMM on ebay ( search lowther and u ll find lowther stamm reconning or something like this) Price is 300 € for a pair (just for reconning, new phase plug and spider)

Just my 2 cents

[DaveCan]

I guess if the AER Mk1 isn't a whole lot better than the Lowther DX-3 or 4, then I may go with those at half the price... I read some reviews where the AER was thought to extent quite higher and have better overall presentation than the Lowther but you never know I guess..

If the Feastrex drivers were to come in at under $3000 Canadian a pair then I may very well try to save up for them. It would seem from people comments that they sound incredible and also produce bass even with the real high fs..

I've never heard any of the drivers mentioned so it would be a leap of faith for the brand I end up getting eventually. The Lowthers have more people using them over AER and Feastrex so it's easier to get opinions on them, but the AER seems like a special driver to me and if Feastrex is as good as people are saying and could come in under 3 big ones then that may be a no brainer... Anyhow this is just research for now, I need to save up for any of these drivers as they are way out of my range at this time.. Dave

[MJK]

What type of enclosure do you want to build?

What is the system that will drive the speakers?

What are the performace goals for your speakers?

I think that those questions need to be answered before a driver can be discussed or recommended.