Pro Coaxial Compression Drivers

coctostan · 25th March 2008, 01:28 AM

I am curious if anyone has played around with some of the coaxial compression driver setups from the likes of BMS, B&C or 18Sound to name a few. Are there inherent issues to be taken into account?

Links to some that I am considering:

B&C 8CXT - http://www.prosoundservice.com/m9_vi...tem=B%26C-8CXT
BMS 8CN552 - http://www.bmspro.info/index.php?sho...283&id=5059989
18Sound 8CX400F - http://www.eighteensound.com/index.a...roduct&pid=250

I was thinking these 8" coax's would work well as surrounds in ported enclosures and some sort of TMW for LCRs. All pointers and opinions welcome.

holdent · 25th March 2008, 02:40 AM

I haven't tried any of the 3 drivers you list. A couple of comments though:

The B&C
I like the look of the specs for the B&C 8CXT the most. The Fs is high at 76 Hz though. The woofer appears to have the smoothest curve but the compression driver response is pretty ragged.

The BMS:
The BMS 8CN552 has a high Fs of 87.6 Hz and the frequency response curve provided (driver in a 10 L box) suggests that the usable lower limit is more like 110 Hz. The high frequency response curve provided has a broad peak from about 1500 Hz to 6KHz -- this will take some heavy duty crossover work to "fix".

The 18 Sound
The rising response of the 18 Sound woofer can be tamed in the crossover. However no matter what you do the response will be pretty ragged in the critical midrange. It has the lowest Fs of the group but its still relatively high at 64 Hz.

Based on the specs I'd get the B&C (prices being equal). Note that I don't know of any coaxial that will generate as smooth a frequency response than two seperate drivers of equivalent cost. But this may not be a critical a problem for you. I'm biased though -- I'm the very satisfied owner of Hawthorne Silver Iris 15" coaxials mounted in a large OB.

Hopefully ScottG and other more knowledgeable DIYers than me will comment.

coctostan · 25th March 2008, 04:16 PM

I'm not sure if the raggedness of those charts is a function of minimal smoothing or if it is caused by the horn loading of the coax.

Wouldn't the Hawthorne and other similar coax cd designs have a similar upper end response?

holdent · 25th March 2008, 06:41 PM

Yes - the Silver Iris does have a ragged high frequency response. I read someplace that this a function of the woofer cone shape providing poor loading for the compression driver. Despite this it has a very smooth easy-going sound to it - that why I disclosed that I was biased towards coaxial drivers.

BHTX · 26th March 2008, 07:23 AM

I have yet to find a coaxial driver without a ragged response, and I've been looking at them for years. And yes, it's mainly due to the horn loading of the compression driver by the woofer's cone. The only graph you'll find without such a response are those from Radian, which is either only because they're ridiculously smoothed, or because their crossovers have smoothed it out (as they were supposedly measured with their corresponding passive crossovers), but I highly doubt that. However, the Radian coaxes are supposedly very good sounding. I've seen every bit of scarce info on the net regarding these units, and I remember coming across more than one person saying that they closely resembled that of the older Tannoy dual concentrics. I actually purchased one of the 12" in-ceiling models (yeah, crappy stamped steel frame) to try on an open baffle, with the intention of mating them with Alpha 15A's on OB if all went well. However, I still haven't gotten around to it, due to finances and staying busy lately. And I need to figure out the crossover too.

Andersonix · 26th March 2008, 04:18 PM

All opinions welcome? Whenever I see the term "pro" I think of hookers, cab drivers, and car salesmen.

pinkmouse · 26th March 2008, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BHTX
However, the Radian coaxes are supposedly very good sounding.

If this is the same Radian that makes stage monitors, I have to say I'm not impressed. We had a selection of their models with 8" and 11" co-axes through the warehouse recently, and whilst testing, I found them very harsh and ragged.

Magnetar · 27th March 2008, 02:39 AM

PAS 2580 with Emilar ec320 biamped 'Super UREI'

Beyma 15DX with JBL 2241 diaphragms biamped

both worth mentioning but both severely compressed and lack sensitivity and resolution, both require subs and super tweeters. Both better than the Tannoy and Altec 15's I've had

CLS · 28th March 2008, 01:12 AM

Has anyone heard Beyma 15XA38Nd or 12XA30Nd?

They look good on paper:

http://profesional.beyma.com/ENGLISH...f=15XA38Nd.pdf

http://profesional.beyma.com/ENGLISH...f=12XA30Nd.pdf

Especially the off axis response, too good to be true?

Magnetar · 28th March 2008, 04:25 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by CLS
Has anyone heard Beyma 15XA38Nd or 12XA30Nd?

They look good on paper:

http://profesional.beyma.com/ENGLISH...f=15XA38Nd.pdf

http://profesional.beyma.com/ENGLISH...f=12XA30Nd.pdf

Especially the off axis response, too good to be true?

The Beyma graphs are fairly accurate by my experience.

25th March 2008, 01:28 AM	#1
coctostan diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2008	Pro Coaxial Compression Drivers I am curious if anyone has played around with some of the coaxial compression driver setups from the likes of BMS, B&C or 18Sound to name a few. Are there inherent issues to be taken into account? Links to some that I am considering: B&C 8CXT - http://www.prosoundservice.com/m9_vi...tem=B%26C-8CXT BMS 8CN552 - http://www.bmspro.info/index.php?sho...283&id=5059989 18Sound 8CX400F - http://www.eighteensound.com/index.a...roduct&pid=250 I was thinking these 8" coax's would work well as surrounds in ported enclosures and some sort of TMW for LCRs. All pointers and opinions welcome.

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25th March 2008, 02:40 AM	#2
holdent diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Ontario	I haven't tried any of the 3 drivers you list. A couple of comments though: The B&C I like the look of the specs for the B&C 8CXT the most. The Fs is high at 76 Hz though. The woofer appears to have the smoothest curve but the compression driver response is pretty ragged. The BMS: The BMS 8CN552 has a high Fs of 87.6 Hz and the frequency response curve provided (driver in a 10 L box) suggests that the usable lower limit is more like 110 Hz. The high frequency response curve provided has a broad peak from about 1500 Hz to 6KHz -- this will take some heavy duty crossover work to "fix". The 18 Sound The rising response of the 18 Sound woofer can be tamed in the crossover. However no matter what you do the response will be pretty ragged in the critical midrange. It has the lowest Fs of the group but its still relatively high at 64 Hz. Based on the specs I'd get the B&C (prices being equal). Note that I don't know of any coaxial that will generate as smooth a frequency response than two seperate drivers of equivalent cost. But this may not be a critical a problem for you. I'm biased though -- I'm the very satisfied owner of Hawthorne Silver Iris 15" coaxials mounted in a large OB. Hopefully ScottG and other more knowledgeable DIYers than me will comment.

25th March 2008, 04:16 PM	#3
coctostan diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2008	I'm not sure if the raggedness of those charts is a function of minimal smoothing or if it is caused by the horn loading of the coax. Wouldn't the Hawthorne and other similar coax cd designs have a similar upper end response?

25th March 2008, 06:41 PM	#4
holdent diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Ontario	Yes - the Silver Iris does have a ragged high frequency response. I read someplace that this a function of the woofer cone shape providing poor loading for the compression driver. Despite this it has a very smooth easy-going sound to it - that why I disclosed that I was biased towards coaxial drivers.

26th March 2008, 07:23 AM	#5
BHTX diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2006	I have yet to find a coaxial driver without a ragged response, and I've been looking at them for years. And yes, it's mainly due to the horn loading of the compression driver by the woofer's cone. The only graph you'll find without such a response are those from Radian, which is either only because they're ridiculously smoothed, or because their crossovers have smoothed it out (as they were supposedly measured with their corresponding passive crossovers), but I highly doubt that. However, the Radian coaxes are supposedly very good sounding. I've seen every bit of scarce info on the net regarding these units, and I remember coming across more than one person saying that they closely resembled that of the older Tannoy dual concentrics. I actually purchased one of the 12" in-ceiling models (yeah, crappy stamped steel frame) to try on an open baffle, with the intention of mating them with Alpha 15A's on OB if all went well. However, I still haven't gotten around to it, due to finances and staying busy lately. And I need to figure out the crossover too.

26th March 2008, 04:18 PM	#6
Andersonix diyAudio Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Silicon Valley	All opinions welcome? Whenever I see the term "pro" I think of hookers, cab drivers, and car salesmen.

27th March 2008, 02:39 AM	#8
Magnetar Banned Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Portal 2012	PAS 2580 with Emilar ec320 biamped 'Super UREI' Beyma 15DX with JBL 2241 diaphragms biamped both worth mentioning but both severely compressed and lack sensitivity and resolution, both require subs and super tweeters. Both better than the Tannoy and Altec 15's I've had

28th March 2008, 01:12 AM	#9
CLS diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Taiwan	Has anyone heard Beyma 15XA38Nd or 12XA30Nd? They look good on paper: http://profesional.beyma.com/ENGLISH...f=15XA38Nd.pdf http://profesional.beyma.com/ENGLISH...f=12XA30Nd.pdf Especially the off axis response, too good to be true?

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