KEF Ci160 fullrange

[River757]

I was digging around the net looking for affordable 6.5" FR drivers (affordable for me = @$40 each) and found this KEF inwall/in ceiling model: Ci160.2FS

Has anyone ever heard one? There is also a 5.25" version, the Ci130.2FS which unlike the larger version includes a full spec chart.

They look good anyway with their crisp-white cone and black surround and I assume the driver can be removed from the plastic mounting frame.

[planet10]

I'm surprised they aren't a 2-way... good to see KEF doing a FR.

One of my favorites the CSS EL70 are <$40 each too.

dave

[IG81]

Looks good and might be fun, but it certainly is not a 40$ driver. Most stores seem to be in the ~120-160$ range for one unit.

IG

[River757]

Originally Posted by IG81

Looks good and might be fun, but it certainly is not a 40$ driver. Most stores seem to be in the ~120-160$ range for one unit.

IG

Oh I know the KEF is way past my limit but I posted about it because I was surprised that company even made such a driver and out of pure curiosity I wanted to find out if it sounded decent.

As far as the 6.5" size I was searching for, that is a little larger than the majority of FRs used by members here but since much of the music I listen to has some pretty energetic and sometimes rather low frequency bass*, I wanted something that could provide some "oomph" but still could handle the higher frequencies adequately (8" drivers, as far as the upper frequency spectrum, generally seem to pretty much give up past @8kHz).


* couple of examples: Animal Collective's "My Girls" (pop, but not kiddie pop - rather, it's a story about the singer's wife and daughter); "Carl Sagan - A Glorious Dawn" yep that Carl Sagan, a downtempo track by a guy named John Boswell using samples from the awesome Cosmos TV series

[IG81]

While larger than what you seek, the Wild Burro Audio Labs Betsy and BetsyK are very affordable and I've heard good things about them. They'd get you some very decent bass in the appropriate enclosure, but they might need a super-tweeter depending on your preferences. I don't have experience with any of the current ~6" offerings; I mostly have experience with vintage drivers anyway and not a whole lot of them.

IG

[River757]

Originally Posted by IG81

While larger than what you seek, the Wild Burro Audio Labs Betsy and BetsyK are very affordable and I've heard good things about them. They'd get you some very decent bass in the appropriate enclosure, but they might need a super-tweeter depending on your preferences. I don't have experience with any of the current ~6" offerings; I mostly have experience with vintage drivers anyway and not a whole lot of them.

IG

Thanks for pointing those out. But the site doesn't mention their diameter anywhere I can see. They look to be 8" which is actually something I'm also interested in; and I don't mind using super-tweeter with them.

[planet10]

Wild Burro is an 8". I was going to suggest it but IG beat me too it.

dave

[talaerts]

The Kef looks very distinguished.

You can find the frequency plot and a manual (sadly no T/S) here:

http://www.ceiling-speakers.co.uk/KE...peaker-186.asp

For those who try it, I hope it's screwed in its frame, not pinned:


As an aside, i often love their multiway and coaxial speakers.

[talaerts]

There is also one with a circular mounting frame.
I think it could look good, even with grille, in a nice wooden box: