FE126En in MLTL

[planet10]

You can take advantage of the corners by buidling Frugel-Horn Mk3.

dave

[rjbond3rd]

Originally Posted by slhijb

Do you think in this situation, a thin tower FE126En MLTL will be really good?

I have also designed a pair of FE-167Es for an MLTL, but am worried they may be a bit too much for this small room. Opinion?

Hi slhijb, in my limited experience, I think a bipole FE126En MLTL in a room like that could be excellent (especially with a sub to fill in the bottom octave). You just need to give it some breathing room vs. the wall. I would -imagine- 18" may be enough. Bipole has such a spacious sound.

Personallly, I think if you go with FE167E, your only worry is baffle step (not a huge deal). Others have suggested the FH Mk3 which I'd love to hear myself at some point.

[chrisb]

Originally Posted by rjbond3rd

Hi slhijb, in my limited experience, I think a bipole FE126En MLTL in a room like that could be excellent (especially with a sub to fill in the bottom octave). You just need to give it some breathing room vs. the wall. I would -imagine- 18" may be enough. Bipole has such a spacious sound.

Personallly, I think if you go with FE167E, your only worry is baffle step (not a huge deal). Others have suggested the FH Mk3 which I'd love to hear myself at some point.

Floorspace is always a problem with "conventional" bipoles & rear mouthed horns, and listening distance can be an issue with front mouthed BLH in small rooms.


FWIW, I'd think BSC wouldn't be needed at all with 167s in a small room unless the enclosure was so poorly designed as regards bass response

[slhijb]

Great responses and much food for thought. I do have a pair of 167Es and at this point they may be the best bet. Possibly no BSC, Zobel or subwoofer needed. In this smaller room with corner loading they should do well. Sounds like most of you feel they won’t overwhelm the room.

The FH MKIII with FE126Ens are also intriguing. They appear efficient, inexpensive and easy to build. Went back and read the forums on them. Would love to hear how they compare to MLTL 167s. May have to build both to see.

[chrisb]

Originally Posted by slhijb

Great responses and much food for thought. I do have a pair of 167Es and at this point they may be the best bet. Possibly no BSC, Zobel or subwoofer needed. In this smaller room with corner loading they should do well. Sounds like most of you feel they won’t overwhelm the room.

The FH MKIII with FE126Ens are also intriguing. They appear efficient, inexpensive and easy to build. Went back and read the forums on them. Would love to hear how they compare to MLTL 167s. May have to build both to see.

if you're up for a slightly more challenging build for the 167s that delivers more refined /smoother LF rolloff than the MLTL,(which could be very beneficial in a small room) take a look at the Fonken:



pm Dave for most recently revised plans


not evident in the photo is a void cavity in the lower section that has been used in at least one build to accommodate a small rear firing woofer - certainly not essential in your case, but for use in a bigger room....

I'd consider the FH3 a much simpler build - the curved side panel is not as challenging as it looks. If corners are available in a small room they'd play more than moderately loud with FE126En, even with as little power as you've go to work with.

I have 3 separate systems, one of them a room approx 200sq ft L-shaped 8x22, but for various reasons none are quite right for the FH. I do have a pair of Fonken167 in my stable of approx 5 different designs, and they don't overpower the small room at my music listening levels (2A3 & EL34 SET and well under 90dB). In the much larger HT system (320sq ft) they have no trouble playing as loud as I can stand it (Denon AVR1610 "75" watts of home theatre receiver power)

[slhijb]

Awesome. Just emailed Dave to see if I can get plans for the Fonken167s. Looks like exactly what I am looking for.

Thanks Chris!