Need help (Fe166En)

[nightuser]

Hello!

I wanted to build "Arpeggio" loudspeakers (you can find it in the "Articles" section). But, I was surprised (terrible surprise), that Fe166E and Fe166En is not the same driver, and I canceled my order.

Now, I do not know, what to do. I have heared some very positive comments about Fostex's fullgange drivers (especially about products with > 16 cm piston). And the second - I am not to experienced to build a horn. As I understand, Fe166En prefers horn.

May be some another enclosures are possible for Fe166En? May it be sealed box or bass-reflex? What is estimated frequency response? I want to have one loudspeaker in system - box + 1 driver.

I tried to evalute the expressions from Arpeggio Loudspeaker article for Fe166En.
You can find those expressions here:
Arpeggio Loudspeaker
And for 22 L sealed box I got better results: fc about 87 Hz, when Qtc is 0.707. As I understand Qtc comming from stuffing. Is it correct? 87 Hz for a single driver system is seems to be fine, but not fc = 150 Hz calculated in WinISD. If I chose 15 L BR with tuning frequency about 65 Hz, can I get good sound (in comparision to Arpeggio)?

May be I should to watch for a new designs? Or new fullrange drivers? Or transmission line? If someone build BR enclosure from datasheet, please, answer.

The key problems are: I am newbie to build "anvanced" enclosures and I have to buy speakers from abroad heaving limited budget. 200 USD for pair of Fe166En + USPS Priority delivering - is ok, but no more any cent. Ok, 230 USD maximum.

[Scottmoose]

Bob Brines has a neat MLTL floorstander for the FE166En which may suit: FT-1600 MKIII

[nightuser]

Originally Posted by Scottmoose

Bob Brines has a neat MLTL floorstander for the FE166En which may suit: FT-1600 MKIII

Will it sound i 3x7 m room? I have a lot of furniture at home. As I know, horns requires a lot of space in room - 25 m^2 or more. If TL is type of horn, it has the same limitation, hasn't it?

[rjbond3rd]

In my limited experience, that room is big enough for a wide range of speakers (including lots of horn designs). Personally, I would try them on the short wall first because you can (presumably) have more flexibility in the distance of the listening position (i.e., you can try sitting further back).

If you care about "3D pinpoint imaging," it is -often- best if you can pull the speakers away from the walls, and have absolutely -nothing- in between the speakers (unless perhaps on the floor). It still takes experimentation to get the best sound (toe-in, etc.)

What kind of music do you listen to?

[zman01]

Nightuser,

Your situation now reminds of my own predicament couple of months back. As a fellow newbie, I'll share some thoughts on choosing a new design...

Earlier this year, I was hooked on doing a FR build using Fostex speakers, and badly looking for Fe126E and Fe166E. Only drivers I managed to track down was Fe166en and placed the order. I posted my challenge with choosing the right cabinet for the drivers and got suggestions on BIB, iBIB, and some of the horns designed by Scott (Scottmoose - who posted earlier).

Newbie, new Fostex drivers, challenge with cabinets

Finally went for the BIB - very satisfied with the sound quality. But these speakers are pretty big - like over 1.6 meters tall - not sure you want something this big.

So now on to part 2 - beyond Fostex do you have other choices? You mentioned that you are bringing the speakers from abroad - you can look at other drivers too - go for perhaps Mark Audio drivers? There are many good designs (free plans) based on MA drivers. I myself am doing my current builds based on MA drivers.

You can go through the forum and look up various designs based on the CHR-70, EL70, Alpair 7, Alpair 10, and Alpair 12 drivers. Lot of builds, lot of discussions, plenty to learn.

-Zia

[nightuser]

Originally Posted by rjbond3rd

What kind of music do you listen to?

"Usual" :-) Jazz-based, soft-rock, folk (celt), "girls with guitar".

As I understand, this kind of music do not required extended bass.

[nightuser]

Ok. Thank you. I will read this thread.

What models of Mark Audio i should think about?

[planet10]

What amplifier will you be using?

dave

[nightuser]

Originally Posted by planet10

What amplifier will you be using?

dave

Power Follower 99
designed by Andrea Ciuffoli

[nightuser]

Can somebody explain me where Qtc comes from? It is attribute of enclosure type? Now I am reading books (in russian and english in parallel) to understand physics... but, no understanding - just confussion

If Qtc comes from enclosure type, why WinISD simulation program offers different Qtc for sealed box volume? What was the reason, Morgan Jones choosed Qtc = 0.707 for Arpeggio? (I do not mean his wish to have flat amplitude response, I mean physical parameters of box|speaker|amplifier.)

Is there an article about how to calculate enclosure and systems parameters step-by-step? I found some articles by Thiele and Small at DIY AUDIO PROJECTS - Do-It-Yourself Hi-Fi for Audiophiles but understanding does not comes yet.

Please, explain.