What to build with a pair of Fostex FE167

[kevinkr]

I was given a pair of NIB Fostex FE-167 (not the E) for my birthday very recently and am contemplating building something like a small back loaded horn or even simpler just building a pair of the Half-Chilis...

I am open to suggestions which should not be inordinately complex or expensive to execute.

I am open to BSC compensation if required and expect that I may need an RLC series trap as well.

[planet10]

15-26 litre bass reflex, Brines ML-TL, Scottmoose ML-TL, halfChilis, Chilis, KimChi, Fonken167... that's off the top of my head. In order of complexity... i haven't heard them all, but my favorite is the last. I'm probably biased

dave

[Godzilla]

Come to NY and i will give you these speaker cabinets...

http://www.zillaaudio.com/fostex-168s-24l-cabinet.htm

I want to make room for new speaker projects and these are sitting un used.

Godzilla

[GM]

Low complexity, best bang/buck? BIB.......... What would be interesting though considering your experience with Onkens would be to cobble together a Fonken and Onken to compare and then experiment with damping the latter to see which design routine might be better overall..........

GM

[kevinkr]

All good replies and have given me something to think about -

I will have to think about the Onken/Fonken issue, Dave I would be interested in Fonken plans which IIRC are not on your site..

The Half-chilis look quite interesting as well.

Godzilla, offer much appreciated not sure when I can get to NY - where are you located? If upstate I might be able to detour to pick them up during some trip, otherwise I'll have to think about it.
Edit: Unfortunately your server appears to be down at the moment so I have not been able to take a look at them..

Horns are still attractive.

The Onkens are working extremely well, just wondering whether I could get any bass out of an FE167 in an Onken cabinet without building a relative monster. The Half-Chili is interesting because of its small size and somewhat horn like design. (BVR Horn)

[planet10]

Originally posted by kevinkr
Dave I would be interested in Fonken plans which IIRC are not on your site..

I'm in the midst of a 1v1 revision of the plans (shorter (for more empty space underneath if a stealth woofer is added) and a bit wider to accomodate optional grills). They will be by request, and when i get them far enuff along require a small fee (like Brines).

A thread on the 1v01 version here http://www.audio-talk.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1397

dave

[GM]

Originally posted by kevinkr
The Onkens are working extremely well, just wondering whether I could get any bass out of an FE167 in an Onken cabinet without building a relative monster. The Half-Chili is interesting because of its small size and somewhat horn like design. (BVR Horn)

Well, in a near-field listening app and some form of BSC, it should do just as well as any other similar size 'FR' driver with minimal Xmax, but to get rid of the BSC will require at least a BVR.

GM

[kevinkr]

Based on the complexity of most other designs the Half-Chili does seem like the compelling choice. Something I can build on my own without a lot of assistance.

[Bigun]

I've read a few comments, can't remember where, but my understanding is that the Onken design gives superior bass performance compared with the chili.

I may also be biassed, as I went the Onken route myself:

My 'Moon-Onken'

It isn't that complicated - given the effort and time involved in sourcing materials etc. you may as well pick something you'd be excited about and the Onken design is fun.

I will make a brave statement that it isn't that hard to design one of these beasts for good results. There are some pitfalls but that is why we have this Forum to help people. I concede that there are some nuances that require experience to extract the best performance and Dave of planet10 is my guru for such things.

Here's another example...

V8 Fonken design ?

[kevinkr]

Well I have a pair of Onkens I built a couple of years ago, (check the Onken threads) so I am well acquainted with their performance and limitations.

I think with the FE167 that BSC is probably going to be mandatory and I suspect that will have an adverse impact on efficiency which I need as the FE167 isn't particularly efficient which is why I was thinking a BVR like the Half-Chili might be the ticket..

I have to run the numbers in the Onken calculator to determine just how big a box would be required and what sort of efficiency I can achieve.