I been looking at the positive reviews the Zu Druid has gotten and it appears to me that they use the Eminence Legend B102 and an APT tweeter, with wavequides, trim rings, phase plugs etc. Anyone ever listened to a B102 for general sound quality? They are pretty reasonably priced - cast frames and decent looking quality. Might make a good cheap clone project.
amt
amt
Its likely that this is a "custom" driver from eminence. The B102 does not have the same surround as the Druid's fullrange.
http://www.americanmusical.com/item--i-EMI-LGB102--brand-85.html
click on the picture to see an enlarged close-up of the B102 and then look at the close-ups of the Druid on 6moons.com.
http://www.americanmusical.com/item--i-EMI-LGB102--brand-85.html
click on the picture to see an enlarged close-up of the B102 and then look at the close-ups of the Druid on 6moons.com.
amt said:
Looking at what you can see, which APT tweeter do you think is behind the shiny metal trim?
ScottG said:
Scott,
The pics are not very good quality. At first the Druid driver looked like it had a plastic coating ring around the edge that the B102 doesn't.
Looking closer at the B102 there seems to be a coating on it also where the cone meets the surround. The chrome trim ring on the Druid hides some of the surround. It may the same.
I looked at all the great reviews on the Druids and was interested. The looks were my biggest turnoff.
I would build a deeper cabinet, router the front vertical edges with a 1' radius roundover bit, countersink the driver for flush mount, and finally wrap with veneer. The 1" radius roundover makes applying a single sheet to cover front and both sides real easy.
I have a friend with speaker design software. May give him the specs of the B102 to see how large a cabinet and port it needs for a 40 Hz bottom.
George
It would hard to be 100% sure if that was an OEM version without asking the manufacturer, but in a way that is moot because if you are wanting to clone it, the B102 is not a bad choice as it puts out up to 8k, albeit -7 dB:
http://editweb.iglou.com/eminence/eminence/pages/resources02/sensitivity.htm
http://editweb.iglou.com/eminence/eminence/pages/resources02/sensitivity.htm
The APT50 is the basis of all the APTs I think. The different versions are just different lenses screwed on.
The cones look pretty close except that the Druids surround looks like an accordian type but not the same as the b102 unless its been stretched out and doped (almost looks like rubber) And the machined trim ring looks to be covering part of it.
Im sure that these arent just stock drivers but I wonder how much can be done to both to get them close. The 10" is operated full range and the tweeter uses a "split shelf" xo. Whats that? And how does the efficiency go up to 101db?
amt
The cones look pretty close except that the Druids surround looks like an accordian type but not the same as the b102 unless its been stretched out and doped (almost looks like rubber) And the machined trim ring looks to be covering part of it.
Im sure that these arent just stock drivers but I wonder how much can be done to both to get them close. The 10" is operated full range and the tweeter uses a "split shelf" xo. Whats that? And how does the efficiency go up to 101db?
amt
amt said:
From what I read it is a 12 dB highpass with poles at 12K and `5K.
I am thinking on building a different speaker using these. Need to model to get an idea of box volume needed.
I am thinking of a real simple crossover. Bringing in the APT lower, maybe 6K, and putting a small inductor in sereies with the woofer to roll it off a lttle quicker.
The efficiency claims can be seen on the sensitivity link above. The driver is listed at 100 dB at 1KHZ - 2 KHZ. Usually speakers are rated at 1KHZ. Using a pair should get it to 102.
There are most llikely tweeks applied to these drivers. The impedance is higher for the druid. Of cource, box tuning would give the B102 some peaks that would give a couple 20 ohm humps.
I am thinking of going to a conventional looking BR enclosure, with some filtering on both drivers. The tweeter is going to need some padding down too.
The best prices for the B102 drivers came from places that do not handle the tweeters. Would like to buy both a same shop.
I have wasted more money on Goodmans Axiom 201 and 301's than these cost new. The old Goodmans all suffered from cone/surround rot and fell apart after a few weeks use. Drivers look to run 250.00 or so for these.
George
In the review of the Method subwoofer, the reviewer states that the Druid is 'Griewe' loaded. Do either of you know what that means? I'm not familiar with the term.
Also, on the crossover, if there are poles at 12K and 5K does that mean it is first order between 5K and 12K and second order below 5K?
Paul
Also, on the crossover, if there are poles at 12K and 5K does that mean it is first order between 5K and 12K and second order below 5K?
Paul
I talked with someone at Zu about 3 monthes ago when I was considering the new Tone for purchase. He indicated that once a 'white paper' is published or a patent is applied for its only a matter of time before a clone from 'the east' shows up to compete. The indication was that there are a number of unique properties of their design that were being closely held. While this might delay competition from others, its also one of the reasons I chose to purchase elsewhere. The sword cuts both ways. 
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