Are Fostex drivers temperature sensitive?

[Rick R]

I have a pair of Sachiko cabinets with Fostex FE203EN-s drivers in my garage system. My garage is not heated, and this morning I went in to do some work and turned on the system. Right now I have a 807 SET amp running the speakers. I noticed that it did not sound right, almost like there was some distortion in the midrange. I don't know what the temperature was, but it was probably 50 or less. Could that temperature create that distortion? It was probably in the low 40's last night outside.

[bubuxxl]

I´m no scientist,but in my opinion,yes.From my personal experiences,even dampness changes the sound on my full ranges.I guess it´s all about the materials implied and their behaviour under certain circumstances.

My speakers sound better when it´s nice and warm!

[Godzilla]

LOL, my fostex drivers (in BIBs) are in the basement and when it was cold they sounded less 'warmed up.' Could have been the amps contributing to their 'cold' sound too.

[chrisb]

Originally Posted by Godzilla

LOL, my fostex drivers (in BIBs) are in the basement and when it was cold they sounded less 'warmed up.' Could have been the amps contributing to their 'cold' sound too.

Like my wife might say about (her) running - don't be dashing off a quick 10K on a west coast winter Sunday morning without some warm-up stretches. If the system hasn't been getting a regular workout, the suspension components' mechanical properties have very likely quite stiffened up - I wouldn't be too worried unless temp dropped another 10 F. Now something like the very thin metal cones of a Jordan or Mark Audio driver, I'd be much more concerned about - certainly if not immediate damage from the cold, then from overstressed before fully re-acclimated to "room temperature"

[ssportclay]

Originally Posted by Rick R

I have a pair of Sachiko cabinets with Fostex FE203EN-s drivers in my garage system. My garage is not heated, and this morning I went in to do some work and turned on the system. Right now I have a 807 SET amp running the speakers. I noticed that it did not sound right, almost like there was some distortion in the midrange. I don't know what the temperature was, but it was probably 50 or less. Could that temperature create that distortion? It was probably in the low 40's last night outside.

My guess is that it shouldn't be an issue but I suppose the metal coned drivers from companies like Alpair would theoretically be more stable over wider temperature and moisture ranges if this is a real concern.