I went a little crazy and bought too much! any suggestions for designs?

[mondogenerator]

Having tinkered with the 2" TB W2-800SL, and liked the quality of its reproduction, i thought id buy a couple more. so I ordered 4.

Then I ordered a pair of the Mark Audio Alpair 5. in a way its a little unfortunate the 6 was out of stock, but the sacrifice in bass is not terrible, and the graphs posted on the site looked slightly smoother on the alpair% so i took the plunge.

THEN, i got carried away an also ordered a pair of TB W3-1285SG, since i wanted to try these for a while as well.

I think theres a Fonken for at least one of the latter two drivers, possibly both? but what else is there out there for them? I have plans for the 2"ers already......

[DocLorren]

Hi Mondogenerator,

Your signature line pretty much sums up your lifestyle in DiyAudio. Can't help yourself, huh? Feels so familiar. Please, first tell us what have you achieved so far and what made you happy until now. How are the Alpair 5's fairing?

DocL

[Bigun]

you need to buy some more drivers

I think Henkjan has a good TL deisgn for the Alpair5's

[hassome]

Hi Mondogenerator,

if you still have space on your workbench, try the alpair 5 with some active bsc filter. I am currently using them with a circuit based on this:
DIYHiFi.org • View topic - Preamp for BSC and fs notch filtering
Sounds nice to me, though 100% anti hi fi

Regards,
hassan

[mondogenerator]

thanks all! i havent received delivery of the drivers yet , but on the plus side, I have more time to consider my options! Im still currently looking for a good 8" woofer/sub to go with them in a semi-FAST or similar design. once again thanks all, youre advice is welcome!

[norman bates]

Hi moon !!!!!!!!!!1

I've wanted to try a nonsuch 4 design (4 x w2-800sl in a vert array, but the bandor had 26cm2 versus the 800sl that has half the cone area). And the 800sl would roll off at 500hz sealed due to high Fs and Low qts. I'd rather not cross to a woofer at 500hz, but others have.

I'd make some nearfield monitors for the alpair 5 (ears 3' from the drivers).
Maybe some pillar speakers to sit on the coffee table directly in front of you.

Norman

[mondogenerator]

moon???

LOL

the cone area, fs and xmax defo limits the w2-800sl, but WinISD gives me about 300hz F3 in a sealed box...saying that i AM using the attenuation on the driver side of the small choke i plan using to soften the HF a little, co my resultant Qts is somewhat higher.

either way, with either the TBs or Alpairs im planning on using a woofer such as visatons AL200 or tiw200xs, and im looking into other 8" woofers.

some food for thought there though, so thanks

[mondogenerator]

Well after a couple of weeks i received the drivers from lautsprechershop.de, and fantastically packaged!!! survived the trip from Germany to the UK, without the merest hint of damage!



from initial running in of the Alpair5, and the TB W3-1285SL, i can definitely notice the difference in sensitivity. the TBs are audibly louder, and slightly warmer, despite the bezel being slightly smaller than that of the Alpair. The Alpair5 definitely has the edge in some respects, the ultimate HF 'definition' if you will, is better. maybe the warmth will come out a little in a suitable enclosure. im planning to damp the frames on both these drivers somehow, the cast TB frame is strong, but rings.....quite alot. more than a pressed steel one would....the Alpair frame is better, I like the polymer chassis in general, such as the old audax poly chassis HDA drivers. still poly rings too, so im treating the drivers the same. maybe filling up the grooves in the bottom of the bezel, with silicone as i seal them into the boxes......

[Bill poster]

So the TB's really lag behind in definition? Not what I want to hear.. I wondered which to go with for my build, the main reasons for not going with the alpair (for me) is power handling and the huge surround.

[mondogenerator]

not lacking in definition exactly. its a hard thing to explain. they sound slightly more dynamic i guess, but the difference is really not great at all. the extra sensitivity, and 'warmth' that the TBs display, more than makes up for it. after all the alpair cone is almost half the mass, and it is REALLY flexible. the TB with a phase plug and no radiating dome VC cover, extremes of HF are very good, perhaps the HF gain is due to hornloading(?) and tonally i prefer them to the alpairs in ways, but the alpair5 handles the midrange and HF very well. the downside is the lower sensitivity.

for the record the TBs surround is huge, maybe 8-10mm, and mechanical excursion is about 6mm so i dont anticipate many problems since the xmax is so low the suspension is never going to strain the cone.

the alpairs suspension is extremely loose, and having no spider the cone is very free moving. i would worry that the cone could be distorted at excessive excursions though, since it is do flexible and lightweight.

price wise, for me, the alpairs came to £108/pair, and the TBs £50/each. the difference in their performance is similar to the difference in price, considering the almost bespoke nature of MA drivers they are a bargain. given also that the TB are mass produced and also supplied unmatched, i was expecting inferior quality.

This is simply not the case. the TBS are just 'different'. i wouldnt hesitate to recommend either of them to you.