Decided on a MLTL design now which 8 inch driver?

[TinEaredGaloot]

AN 8 with appropriate size vs Fe206eN with appropriate size cabs? Will be used with 3 wpc SET. Thanks for any input!

[rjbond3rd]

1. What style of music?
2. What size room?

I have a 2a3 and I wouldn't rule out the Alpair 12 -- even though it's less efficient, the other drivers will require a circuit in all likelihood, lessening the efficiency gap.

[TinEaredGaloot]

Music: jazz (affinity for a well played upright bass)
Room: 15ft L x 10ft W x 12ft ceiling

[chrisb]

most likely either would suffice for sensitivity and room-filling performance - suggestions hereafter will likely be based as much on anecdotal experience and personal preferences

without sacrificing some sensitivity with EQ/contour network or series R, which a 2A3 SE could ill afford, would not the 206E be better suited to something like at least a BIB?

[e_fortier]

Hi,

Any news with your built ? I have the same dilemma but I think I will built the FT-2000 from Bob Brines. I prefer classic rock, then Blues and Jazz and lets not forget about the kids who love hip-hop...I'm planning on building an EL84 PP but so far I've built RH84, RH807 and Chinook (Baby amp) 2.5W SET. Kinda wonder if they will be powerful enough ???

Eric

[Trebla]

I've listened to both AN8 and Fostex side by side in the same design MLTL cabs.
In this case the Fostex worked better.
By the way i use Audio Nirvanas, so this is not a biased opinion.

If you want to use ANs, then i would suggest going down the open baffle route.
Thats where they can really shine.

[Godzilla]

May i ask how the drivers sounded different in the mltl cabs?

[GM]

Originally Posted by chrisb

......without sacrificing some sensitivity with EQ/contour network or series R, which a 2A3 SE could ill afford, would not the 206E be better suited to something like at least a BIB?

Agreed, every low Xmax 'FR' driver in a relatively low tuned [< ~60-80 Hz] BR, MLTL I've auditioned to date sound way too tonally imbalanced [compressed] once I move more than a meter or so away, though many others seem not to notice.

Nowadays folks are apparently so use to the increasingly limited dynamic headroom of recorded and live music that they might only notice it if using them in a ~reference level HT or if they crank up some of the better symphonic recordings to get the quiet passages loud enough to truly enjoy.

Then too, if live rock, etc. concerts are their reference, these historically only go down to ~60 Hz flat with a ~40 Hz Fb at > -24 dB, so better IME to tune one's HIFI speakers similarly and use some form of EQ to protect them below Fb.

GM

[Trebla]

Originally Posted by Godzilla

May i ask how the drivers sounded different in the mltl cabs?

Yep.

The Audio Nirvana (std 8), sounded quite thin and bass light compared to the Fostex. The AN appeared to be more extended at the top end. I've noticed this before. We couldn't find a reason for this, other than the drivers themselves.

The cabs were built by different people and mine had a small adjustment to the size to take into account the parameters of the AN drivers.. One cab was mdf and the other ply, but we decided this wouldn't account for what we heard.
The AN drivers were well run in at this time.
The same drivers have been in two other cabs and the issues noted above were not obvious.

I now use open baffles with 15" bass drivers and would not easily go back to any sort of cabinet.
Though sometimes i'm tempted by the sheer dynamics of large horns.