Recommendation for inexpensive driver suited for classical music...

[coldcut]

Hello!

Can you guys help me with a recommendation on a inexpensive fullrange speaker that suits classical music really good? I listen a lot to Dvorák, Puccini, Verdi, Händl and similar composers. Also like modern pop, progressive and electronica, but using headphones for that.

Tried and owned lowthers many years ago, fantastic, but I don´t want to go down that route right now, since I have 3 fairly small kids wich have hands and fingers they like to put everywhere. Also the build usually is quite complicated.

My priorities are dynamics at low listening levels, good separation and clarity. I know very well these things does´nt come cheap, but how far can you go with, lets say 200US$/pair? I intend to drive them with either a tripath or hypex diy build. Would have prefered tubes, but those small and curious fingers....

 

[tinitus]

You could try this 2", with a woofer
http://www.optisound.dk/shop/tang-band-w2-800sl-362p.html

 

[901Fixer]

How complicated of a build are you willing to take on? There are many fantastic full range drivers in your price range but most require more than an open baffle.

 

[planet10]

You could try this 2", with a woofer

If you are going to go FAST, it is hard to beat the Fostex FF85

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=144099

What kind of enclosure size limits do you have?

dave

 

[coldcut]

Well, I don´t want to cut a puzzle.. Have some tooling experience though, built schmackhorns in the past.. , but don´t have the time to go through that kind of project right now..

Let´s say about a piececount of 10-12 /loudspeaker is a maximum.

 

[planet10]

What about enclosure size? Chang or ChiliChang?

dave

 

[coldcut]

Well, it depends how much you gain when going up in size? Don´t want the footprint to be too wide, height and depth is not an issue..

 

[coldcut]

After spending some time on google, I found this:

http://www.monacor.de/typo3/index.php?id=75&L=1&act=&act_sub=&artid=7463&spr=EN&typ=u

Cheaper than a fostex, smoother freq curve and a wooden phase plug!

Low SPL and high fs though...

Any comments or experiences?

 

[tinitus]

Also interesting, if it works fullrange
http://www.optisound.dk/shop/tang-band-w5-1685-367p.html

 

[planet10]

Looks like a TangBand. Fs is fairly low for a 3". That the SPL is also highish for a 3" as well is a bit suspicious.

dave

 

[coldcut]

Xmax is higher than many other fullrange drivers, even the larger ones.. And the cone is still very light, mms = 1,1 gr.. Looks promising to me!

I might go for these!! What kind of enclosure would do them jusice?

 

[holdent]

How about using the HiVi B3S or B3N instead? Zaph liked them and built a small very well documented system around them (http://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker18.html). Note that a subwoofer is a must for drivers this small - from Zaph "Like all other 3" drivers, this speaker has serious harmonic distortion below 100hz". So why 3" if a subwoofer has to be used? Again from Zaph "they are large enough to blend well with a subwoofer, but small enough to have high frequency extension and off axis response that doesn't stink".

 

[901Fixer]

Xmax is higher than many other fullrange drivers, even the larger ones.. And the cone is still very light, mms = 1,1 gr.. Looks promising to me!

I might go for these!! What kind of enclosure would do them jusice?

If I might make a suggestion, instead of finding drivers you like and then trying to find or design an enclosure you may want to look at the enclosures first and then build it as designed using the drivers it is designed for provided it is in your price range.
You sound like you have some experience from over the years but it doesn't sound like you want to start from scratch and design an enclosure and experiment with it. You are looking for a proven design and there are many here. 10+ pieces of wood per enclosure is very realistic for most of the designs. Most use the same width cut for all of the internal pieces, baffle, top and bottom which makes things much easier.

 

[coldcut]

Ok, fair enough... It´s easy to be carried away when planning..

So, I guess we have to take a step back to the first question..

Design suited for classical music
Dynamics and clarity
Drivers for max 200$'
10-12 piece woodcount
Size its not the main issue, but not OB:s with the width of a barn
Driven by class-d amp

1. Planet10 FF85 + CSS design
2...
3...
4...

Any more suggestions?

 

[901Fixer]

So the $200 budget is for just the drivers? The FF85/SDX7 Tysen may still be a bit over that unless you can find a deal or someone selling some slightly used. The Tysen's are on my short list of future builds.
As the week progresses I'm sure you will get more suggestions and recommendations.

 

[planet10]

A variation on Tysen could use any decent midbass.... there are certainly alot of them for less money than the SDX7 (althou it is one of my favorites)

dave

 

[renfrow]

If you're looking for speakers that do small groups well, this speaker does really well, I've built two sets with this and like them really well... However, on big orchestral pieces that have a lot of energy, all over the orchestra, going on at once, they seem to be a bit muddied. I'd recommend a multi-way design for those pieces.

Tom.

 

[coldcut]

A pair of Sdx7 is about 350 here.. Shipping not included. Visaton have a similar design : http://www.visaton.de/en/bauvorschlaege/breitband/stella_light/index.html

A lot cheaper, but probably not even close...

 

[SimonC]

Well, it depends how much you gain when going up in size? Don´t want the footprint to be too wide, height and depth is not an issue..

There's is always the Saburo http://www.frugal-horn.com/spawn-plans.html & DTB's build thread http://www.audio-talk.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1142.

I've listened to DTB's pair a few times now in different settings and they really have something a bit special happening. Elgar's Pomp & C just soars in all its over the top glory from these.The build looks complex, but its all straight lines and 90 degree corners, plus you can always call on Dave D & Scott for advice and encouragement.

A pair of Fe126's from madisound & some phase plugs should be well within your budget.

If you want to know more about them Dave the Bass (DTB) is a member on this forum as well, he's a laid back dude who likes to chat.

Monacor driver looks interesting...

Simon C

 

[coldcut]

Thanks for the suggestions.

I´ve kept looking around visatons wbsite, and found this:

http://www.visaton.com/en/bauvorschlaege/breitband/solo_eck/index.html

I know the drivers are over the defined budget, but what do you think of the design?

I have a rectangular room, 13ft wide 24 ft deep, seems to b perfect..