Supplementary NEO3 crossover

[milezone]

Hi, I'm looking to experiment with supplementing the HF range on my electrostatic KLH Nine speakers. I have a pair of BG Neo3w tweeters I'm planning to use as they're lying around. The issue/question at hand is, since these tweeters are vastly different in their power requirements, compared to electrostatic panels, I'll need to power them directly from my amps (Ncores). My question is, does anyone have a suggestion for a simple crossover that I can use for this application. Ballpark values would be much appreciated for ideally a single capacitor and resistor. Thank you in advance to those who can help.

[PeteMcK]

what frequency do you want to cross them over at?
what's the difference in efficiency between the electrostatics & the Neo3Ws?
do you have a link to the BG's impedance graph?

[milezone]

Here's a data sheet for Neo3 tweeters which are similar to mine: http://www.k4revenge.com/Mat/new/bgneo3pdr.pdf

The efficiency difference is about 10db. I'll be using the existing electrostatic tweeters with these so crossing over low isn't something I'm considering. I'm thinking around 3000hz but would like to experiment a bit to see if they improve with a higher crossover frequency. I'm also considering a cheap active crossover like a DCX as another alternative. Would this be worthwhile for my application do you think? It's of interest as I'd like to mess around with using a low-pass filter to around 16khz for the main speakers, and set up the NEO3 cover upper ranges.

[PeteMcK]

this may be useful:Zaph|Audio
looks like a really good tweeter, I've never used this type before, but i think I'd be inclined to crossover reasonably high, say 4KHz or higher, 2nd order.
With such a difference in efficiency, I'd use a proper L-pad rather than a single resistor

[PeteMcK]

some numbers- Lpad - 2.7 ohms in series, 1.8 in parallel
3KHz - 6.6uF, .42mH
4KHz - 5uF, .32mH
5KHZ - 4uF, .25mH

[milezone]

Hi pete, could you elaborate on the Lpad bit of this. Are you suggesting two 2.7 resistors in series and a capacitor following would suffice for what I'm trying to do? I'm not doubting this however it's new territory for me so I'm hoping to better understand what you're saying before turning things on. Furthermore, if I were to go with an active crossover, which I don't really want to do as it seems unnecessary, what's the proper way to wire from a balanced termination on the XO device to a pair of speaker terminals on the drivers?

[PeteMcK]

no, 2.7 in series with the tweeter, & 1.8 in parallel with it:
L pad calculator - attenuation dB damping impedance decibel loudspeaker speaker voltage divider - sengpielaudio Sengpiel Berlin
re: "and a capacitor following would suffice " - no, that's first order,
I'd go 2nd order(for better protection for the tweeter), i.e a cap in series and an inductor in parallel
Crossover Design Calculators
( crossover, Then L-Pad, then tweeter)
active crossovers come before the amplifier: BiAmp (Bi-Amplification - Not Quite Magic, But Close) - Part 1

[milezone]

Thank you for the help. It's making things a bit more tangible. In looking at the calculator you sent, I assume Linkwitz-Riley is the crossover you're suggesting, in which case, the Ohm values would be 4 for highpass (my tweeter) and 16 for lowpass (the speakers). Hopefully you can confirm that I'm on the right track before I make a mess.

[PeteMcK]

Yes, L-R is what I used & 4 ohms for the highpass. - The lowpass section doesn't matter, 'cause you aren't going to use that, right?