So I've made some Tang Band Needles, and Dayton BiB's. Now I'd like to step it up a notch in full-range nirvana.
I gave myself a roughly $300 budget for speakers, which puts me in range of most of the Fostex line.
My woodworking skills don't extend much beyond a BiB.
I'm bewildered by the choices, any suggestions? 168EZ? 207E? 168E? 108EZ? 126E? In BiB? Fonken? Chang? Sachiko?
Whats the most fostexy fostex?
Cheers,
Mitch?
I gave myself a roughly $300 budget for speakers, which puts me in range of most of the Fostex line.
My woodworking skills don't extend much beyond a BiB.
I'm bewildered by the choices, any suggestions? 168EZ? 207E? 168E? 108EZ? 126E? In BiB? Fonken? Chang? Sachiko?
Whats the most fostexy fostex?
Cheers,
Mitch?
mrybczyn said:
Since you seem to have a collection of smallish (3 to 4" driver) designs already...
You just have to try the 206E + Sachiko combination next. Big. Really Big.
I have a pair of Half-Changs nearing completion (they're making music, need stained), but I REALLY want to build a pair of Sachiko.
Rick
mrybczyn said:
Having access to at least 8 quite different systems/rooms with a range of "Fostexy" systems, my first reaction would be that depends :
primarily on the room, then on the degree of your devotion to character of existing source and amplification components (which could change flavor with any of the Fostex drivers), and then your expectations & listening tastes/habits.
in other words, there is no singular right answer.
If your budget includes the cost of materials, and you estimate your personal woodworking skills would be taxed with some of the more elaborate enclosures, then the bewildering list could be streamlined quickly. To do justice to them, many of the drivers you listed would like to see enclosures more elaborate than a simple BIB or even BR (i.e. back-loaded horns or scoop-mouthed BVRs such as the Changs), and it would be hard to recommend the Fonken(Prime), Sachiko etc designs to someone unsure of their skillset.
The BIB is likely the easiest of all the builds; there are only 6 pieces per box, all them are simple square cuts. I have only heard one pair - with all due respect to the builder, they simply weren't my cuppa tea. Another fairly simple build that I did quite like (even though it was a different brand of driver) was the Metronome, but it would require a bit more joinery skill.
For a quick taste test, I'd suggest either the FE127E or FE167, which are much more flexible in terms of the range of enclosure designs in which they'll work well - i.e. starting with something as simple as the BIB or even a basic BR . My favorite enclosures for those are rather more complicated (i.e. the Fonkens) , but you might want to take a look at the Mileva for the FE127E. I have built two pairs of them, shipped several flat pack kits, and am still living with a pair in my TV system .
>>> Whats the most fostexy fostex
Lots of great choices for you. With respect to the other recommendations i agree with Rick about moving up in size to one of the larger Fostex drivers because that will give you an entirely different sound and scale compared to the smaller (but also very good) drivers you currently have. The larger drivers move more air and simply sound bigger and more relaxed. That said, i would recommend boxes that work well with either the Fostex 165k (which i love in a BIB), 168S (in BIB/Back horn), 206e (in a BIB), 207e (BIB/Back horn or bass reflex) or 225k (BIB). These are all pretty big speakers but most tuck nicely out of the way in corners.
IMO, once you hear a good sounding BIB or back horn it's difficult to go back to smaller sized speakers. The coherent midrange (no crossover), dynamics of sound, scale of sound, ease of presentation, all spoil the listener. I have a nice pair of 127e (not enabled) speakers but the larger Fostex drivers just sound more enjoyable and lifelike.
Enjoy the building process for whichever cabinet you choose! Take it slow and fuss over the details. Also, if you decide to build another BIB double up the front and back of the cabinet (making it 8 pieces, not 6) to reduce audible vibration.
Let us know what you decide to do.
Godzilla
Lots of great choices for you. With respect to the other recommendations i agree with Rick about moving up in size to one of the larger Fostex drivers because that will give you an entirely different sound and scale compared to the smaller (but also very good) drivers you currently have. The larger drivers move more air and simply sound bigger and more relaxed. That said, i would recommend boxes that work well with either the Fostex 165k (which i love in a BIB), 168S (in BIB/Back horn), 206e (in a BIB), 207e (BIB/Back horn or bass reflex) or 225k (BIB). These are all pretty big speakers but most tuck nicely out of the way in corners.
IMO, once you hear a good sounding BIB or back horn it's difficult to go back to smaller sized speakers. The coherent midrange (no crossover), dynamics of sound, scale of sound, ease of presentation, all spoil the listener. I have a nice pair of 127e (not enabled) speakers but the larger Fostex drivers just sound more enjoyable and lifelike.
Enjoy the building process for whichever cabinet you choose! Take it slow and fuss over the details. Also, if you decide to build another BIB double up the front and back of the cabinet (making it 8 pieces, not 6) to reduce audible vibration.
Let us know what you decide to do.
Godzilla
Jeff, thanks for reminding us about the 165K - TC was a big fan of this overlooked model. I was briefly listening to a pair of these last night in a buddy's Abbys.
He's recently moved to a small townhouse and divested much of his bigger system, including the FE206ESR in the biga$$ BLH / T90. For his current room and listening habits, it's hard to find fault with the FE126E in Hornshoppe Horns & Vaughn Audio Carina.
At a seated distance of less than 8 feet, the tilted front baffle of Abbys launch well over my vertically challenged listening orifices. They certainly fill the full space, but Frank finds that with ceiling bounce, the best imaging is heard at the dining table in an open area at least 10 feet behind the couch.
context
He's recently moved to a small townhouse and divested much of his bigger system, including the FE206ESR in the biga$$ BLH / T90. For his current room and listening habits, it's hard to find fault with the FE126E in Hornshoppe Horns & Vaughn Audio Carina.
At a seated distance of less than 8 feet, the tilted front baffle of Abbys launch well over my vertically challenged listening orifices. They certainly fill the full space, but Frank finds that with ceiling bounce, the best imaging is heard at the dining table in an open area at least 10 feet behind the couch.
context
A FF225k with a fostex ft17h in a BIB would fall in budget and really perform spectacularly. The ft17H is NOT a tweeter, it's a supertweeter, and people trying to use it as a tweeter have branded it 'spitty'. One would want to use a tiny little cap on the ft17h (1uf) with the 225k run full range. With the appropriate input power limitations, it's a fantastic little supertweeter.
badman said:
Another approach could be something like an FE207/FF85K combo - XO between 200-300Hz. This 3" driver is not only cheaper than the FT17H or any of Fostex's dome tweeters, but it's quite an amazing little wide-bander - certainly not lacking for detail from the upper midrange to beyond the extent of my hearing (now probably less than 15KHz) .
Mind you, the direction in which the sensitivity is mismatched by over 6dB (ie. less for the 85K) makes for more awkward passive balancing, or biamping, either of which could stretch a budget too far.
>>> A FF225k with a fostex ft17h in a BIB...
Without having heard this combination i salivate at the thought! This may be the ultimate BIB! Except of course the one using the Eminence 12LTA 12" wide range driver (which may provide more output than any other BIB)... But the quality of sound from the 225k + ft17h should be superb. I'd build this if i had an appropriate room.
Godzilla
Without having heard this combination i salivate at the thought! This may be the ultimate BIB! Except of course the one using the Eminence 12LTA 12" wide range driver (which may provide more output than any other BIB)... But the quality of sound from the 225k + ft17h should be superb. I'd build this if i had an appropriate room.
Godzilla
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: which fostex for $250?
why not???
if they sound good i'd do it; that's part of the fun!
the last couple "bring your own" audio get togethers i went to, i brought something "funny looking," not even close to what the forums said would work, etc.
by the end of the night they got the most listening time, by far.
and the "jaw drop" factor is just fun too...
chops said:
why not???
if they sound good i'd do it; that's part of the fun!
the last couple "bring your own" audio get togethers i went to, i brought something "funny looking," not even close to what the forums said would work, etc.
by the end of the night they got the most listening time, by far.
and the "jaw drop" factor is just fun too...
Thanks for the great suggestions folks! I've made the plunge, and ordered a pair of FE166's from solen.ca , so I can go up in size. I want to keep it strictly a one-driver-per-speaker design, so I didn't go for the FF's.
Thanks again. I'll post results in the BIB or pics thread
Cheers,
Mitch
Thanks again. I'll post results in the BIB or pics thread
Cheers,
Mitch
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