What are the things to look for when trying to pick a woofer (6.5 or 8") to operate without a LF crossover?
I do intend to crossover the tweeter however.
I've read there's more to it than just the freq response of the woofer -- what are the parameters to look for? Are there indicators in the published specs?
I'm sure it's also a matter of just listening to it?
I do have some Goldwood 6 1/2" woofers where I'm just using a series cap for the tweeter and they sound very good to me. The high end is rated at 3k.
I do intend to crossover the tweeter however.
I've read there's more to it than just the freq response of the woofer -- what are the parameters to look for? Are there indicators in the published specs?
I'm sure it's also a matter of just listening to it?
I do have some Goldwood 6 1/2" woofers where I'm just using a series cap for the tweeter and they sound very good to me. The high end is rated at 3k.
that driver certainly would do it.
but WHY ? you're essentially using voice coil's self-inductance instead of an external inductor to accomplish the same thing PLUS extra distortion via flux modulation.
i would rather use a low inductance driver with some faraday rings and an inductor in series with it.
Some woofers have response peaks at the high end caused by edge distortion. That's why you should look at the woofer's published FR graph. Problems with response peaks usually occur above 1000 hz.
Suggest you study a number of different woofer's FR charts and you'll see what we're talking about.
Suggest you study a number of different woofer's FR charts and you'll see what we're talking about.
This can work well. A lot of times there's a challenge in integrating the midrange crossover with the woofer in terms of phase tracking. I used an acoustic absorbent felt pad on a grille in front of a woofer in a recent project to achieve my target slope- worked better than any other solution I've used.
Cause it works well.
I've heard it and it's a fine driver. Easy to match to a tweeter without a low pass. It can actually work better that way.Many/most woofers are peaky up top or just plain don't sound great, so a LP filter is needed. But we remember the "Old Days", right? In vintage speakers the woofer was often run wide open. Not always the best choice, it it "worked." Tho I doubt the Goldwood drivers sound great up top or roll off where you'd want, I have not heard them. Easy enough to give it try!
I had pretty much the same question as the OP, but wanted to add to it.
When choosing the tweeter's crossover point (accomplished via an electronic crossover), are there any rules as far as how much it should overlap the naturally-rolled off woofer's response? Can software give me that answer or is it more of a gut feeling/personal experience type of situation?
I found this 1" soft-dome Vifa with a very low Fs of 777Hz (and a huge surround!) and was thinking of pairing it up with a 10" woofer operating in a DCR enclosure.
When choosing the tweeter's crossover point (accomplished via an electronic crossover), are there any rules as far as how much it should overlap the naturally-rolled off woofer's response? Can software give me that answer or is it more of a gut feeling/personal experience type of situation?
I found this 1" soft-dome Vifa with a very low Fs of 777Hz (and a huge surround!) and was thinking of pairing it up with a 10" woofer operating in a DCR enclosure.
Must be a gut-based thing then!
Though such a xover is obviously much easier to implement when you're the manufacturer of both the woofer & tweeter and can design them from the start to work together (along with a tweeter probably built with particularly beefy electrical construction).
This is reassuring. I know that some "classics" use the same system, like EPI's very popular 100 model w/8" woofer; and their 10" 120 model. And check out that complicated xover for the tweeter.
Though such a xover is obviously much easier to implement when you're the manufacturer of both the woofer & tweeter and can design them from the start to work together (along with a tweeter probably built with particularly beefy electrical construction).
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The original A25s used the natural acoustic rolloff of the bass driver, combined with a very simple 1st order crossover and a bit of level matching on the tweeter. The sound was very good, considering the age of the speaker, but treble was not very extended and a mite bit clunky, hence the swapping in of the more hi-tech excell units. The original A25 drivers were rather more inefficient than their modern day equivalents and i suspect they roll off earlier, but i see no reason why you couldn't put something together using the newer units and a tweeter of your choice and, with a little tweaking and a lot of listening, get at the very least a respectable sound or, potentially, a great one. Plus, I found that it taught me a lot about what i like and don't like in a speaker, and the vagiaries of speaker placement. So i say, go for it!
^ Being a fan of the A25s, I assume you know of World Design's (near)replica of that speaker, the WD25A. I may be getting in over my head but due to the cost of the SEAS woofer, I'm looking at lower-cost woofers for my Recession Era Speaker that have enough h.f. extension and hopefully aren't too ragged up there. I'm not looking to build a speaker with studio monitor sonic quality, but more of a "pleasant" sounding design that doesn't empty out my savings account, while at the same time attaining more R&D experience.
BTW my last building experience was waaaay back in '83 when I designed a ported enclosure for a 12" woofer that came with this Radio Shack 3-way kit (page 60, upper left; click to enlarge & drag page). Btw despite what the spec section says, that mid driver was actually crossed over at 900Hz, not 2kHz. My 4cu/ft and 80lb enclosure (the included plan called for a 2cu/ft acoustic-suspension enclosure) turned out pretty good, but was not a good match for the typical college dorm room! I ended up selling them & buying some small Advents.
that have enough h.f. extension and hopefully aren't too ragged up there. I'm not looking to build a speaker with studio monitor sonic quality, but more of a "pleasant" sounding design that doesn't empty out my savings account, while at the same time attaining more R&D experience.BTW my last building experience was waaaay back in '83 when I designed a ported enclosure for a 12" woofer that came with this Radio Shack 3-way kit (page 60, upper left; click to enlarge & drag page). Btw despite what the spec section says, that mid driver was actually crossed over at 900Hz, not 2kHz. My 4cu/ft and 80lb enclosure (the included plan called for a 2cu/ft acoustic-suspension enclosure) turned out pretty good, but was not a good match for the typical college dorm room! I ended up selling them
& buying some small Advents.
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I've wondered about this - I've been trying to decide about upgrading the crossovers on my HPM-900s, and on those the woofer is run without any filter. I would guess they're pretty smooth in their rolloff, as the cones are compressed graphite. I always thought it had more to do with distortion induced by the interaction of the woofers high end output with that of the mids or tweets.
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