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I like the Fonken Style cabinet, but...

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Which driver would you recommend, since Fostex discontinued the FE127? I was thinking of getting a 2W SET amp, so I would like one that is fairly efficient.


Unfortunately, the Fostex driver / enclosure that would most likely be suited to a low power SET would be the FE126En in something like the FH3, or BK12

That said, the current FF125WK definitely works well in the appropriately sized/tuned Fonken enclosure, just don't expect high SPLs or gut wrenching bass
 
He is. 1st pass done, and a boxy prototype for a very specific application underway somewhere near east coast USA. A medium wide trapezoid or regular Fonken165 are not far from usable in a beta build.

dave



great, another design for the prototype list - a guy could get twisted around trying to remember the names :crazy:


Depending on your definition of moderately efficient, and listening levels, the low 90's sensitivity (92?) could be sufficient. I know that I dropped a pair of 165s into floorstander Fonken 167 boxes, and while this older enclosure design is actually oversized and mistuned for the new driver, it certainly worked quite well.
 
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Depending on your definition of moderately efficient, and listening levels, the low 90's sensitivity (92?) could be sufficient. I know that I dropped a pair of 165s into floorstander Fonken 167 boxes, and while this older enclosure design is actually oversized and mistuned for the new driver, it certainly worked quite well.

Not real sure how efficient I need. I just was looking at building a SET amp (2 W, just to see if I like it), and most of my research from people is that full range speakers work well with SET amps. Not real sure of my listening levels, I checked it with an app on my iPad which showed dBs in the high 70s, but I was not sure sure if that was accurate or not. I would be putting these speakers in my Basement HT and can connect them to a sub (once I build one in the future) for the low end frequencies. I would only use them for music, I will keep the current speakers for HT duties. Room is 18' x 20', the main listening location is 8' from the speakers.
 
Not real sure how efficient I need. I just was looking at building a SET amp (2 W, just to see if I like it), and most of my research from people is that full range speakers work well with SET amps. Not real sure of my listening levels, I checked it with an app on my iPad which showed dBs in the high 70s, but I was not sure sure if that was accurate or not. I would be putting these speakers in my Basement HT and can connect them to a sub (once I build one in the future) for the low end frequencies. I would only use them for music, I will keep the current speakers for HT duties. Room is 18' x 20', the main listening location is 8' from the speakers.


Definitely sounds like a candidate for FE126En and 2A3 DHT to me. (something like the Bottlehead Stereomour, perhaps? ) There are a lot of choices of excellent sounding low power tube amp projects, particularly if don't mind using something like an EL84 or 34 in SE Triode mode.
 
Definitely sounds like a candidate for FE126En and 2A3 DHT to me. (something like the Bottlehead Stereomour, perhaps? ) There are a lot of choices of excellent sounding low power tube amp projects, particularly if don't mind using something like an EL84 or 34 in SE Triode mode.

I like the Stereomour kit except for the price.:)

I was thinking something less expensive to start with like the Decware kit.

You said the FE126En is best in a FH3 enclosure, which won't really work in my room. Components are in one corner and the other corner is behind the bar. I have my HT speakers sitting on the fire place mantle which is elevated by 1 foot and is also 1 foot deep. So a book shelf style speaker would work better. I do like the looks of the Fonken style enclosure.
 
I like the Stereomour kit except for the price.:)

I was thinking something less expensive to start with like the Decware kit.

You said the FE126En is best in a FH3 enclosure, which won't really work in my room. Components are in one corner and the other corner is behind the bar. I have my HT speakers sitting on the fire place mantle which is elevated by 1 foot and is also 1 foot deep. So a book shelf style speaker would work better. I do like the looks of the Fonken style enclosure.


To be clear, the suggestion of the FE126En/FH3 combo was to meet the sensitivity required for matching with a low powered SET ( not all are low powered , BTW - but horsepower ain't cheap), and since I'm fairly familiar with both the drivers in a range of enclosures, and the FH3 enclosures with a range of drivers.

If you like the Fonken style, the FF125WK in the smaller Fonken box would likely best suit a "bookshelf style/size" application. The FF165WK- enclosure design which I've not seen yet but I can probably imagine, would have advantages in terms of sensitivity and bottom end, but at the cost of increased size.

The Decware is a simple and sweet little amp - it was one of the inspirations for me to tackle building the first of my own tube amps over 10yrs ago. Only you can decide if 2W would be enough power for a speaker with sensitivity in the low 90's - but based on my own experience, unless you've got room to support a large BLH type of enclosure, I suspect it wouldn't take long to lust for more with the Fonkens.

It appears from Steve's website that they've dropped all full parts kits, and are selling only the PCBs and provide a list of recommended parts, including specific Edcor OPT. Personally I find that a bit interesting, as one of the "secret ingredients" that Steve touted for 15yrs was the in house hand-made scramble wound OPTs. Be that as it may - I'd be inclined to buy a pair of boards and plan towards a mono bridged pair, yielding "approx 6 watts".
 
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Yeah, no space for a BLH there. Since I haven't heard either a full range speaker or a SET amp I would need to start somewhere. I could always stop by Decware and have a listen since they are local. I was thinking of making one of the Decware amps, see how it was, then making the second for bridged mono amps.

I think that I may be most interested in the FF165wk in the Fonken build. How much different in size could it be from the FE127eN model?
 
Yeah, no space for a BLH there. Since I haven't heard either a full range speaker or a SET amp I would need to start somewhere. I could always stop by Decware and have a listen since they are local. I was thinking of making one of the Decware amps, see how it was, then making the second for bridged mono amps.

I think that I may be most interested in the FF165wk in the Fonken build. How much different in size could it be from the FE127eN model?


Say Hi to Steve and Devon

There are 2 basic shapes for deFonken boxes - the original rectangular, and the new Trapezoid ( a bit of a trickier build). So far I've only heard Dave's rough volume calculation for the 165 - at approx 17 liters - or about 30% larger than the original FE127E box. Tuning is via the size of port spacers - again, I'm not sure if he's completed those calcs yet.

If interested, drop him an e-mail at the commercial site listed below
 
Is the sound of the CGR different from the Fonken? The CGR doesn't have the same WAF as the Fonken style. The large front baffle with offset driver is what does it.


I'm trying to be diplomatic here, but if you read between the lines, the fact that I can easily overlook the CGR ......... :xfingers:

Yes, the combination of lower diffraction narrow front panel, substantial additional bracing from the 3 layer side wall sandwich construction and higher restrictive vent slots contributes to a lot of additional finesse in terms of LF roll-off and imaging.

That the resulting enclosure could be considered aesthetically so elegant, well, that's a bonus. ;)


Of course with a nicely proportioned fabric grille cover, the driver's offset positions in the CGRs could be disguised.
 
You could hide the CGRs behind a fabric grill. I was thinking the same thing. That would be a plus since my little ones have both pushed in the dust caps on my center channel when I had the grill off to change the foam surrounds. Haven't seen any grills with the Fonkens. Have you seen any? Having it on when playing the speakers would probably hinder the imaging.
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
The CGR is a very good box -- as those who have built them can attest -- but the narrow baffle big bevel boxes are better yet.

Each variation gets progressively harder to build and is the price you pay for better... but if you can't successfully build the more complex boxes they won't sound as good as one you can build :D

With the CGRs for the smaller drivers, it is possible to use any of the faces as the baffle, and at the expense of a bit larger diffraction signature the driver can be centred.

dave
 
You could hide the CGRs behind a fabric grill. I was thinking the same thing. That would be a plus since my little ones have both pushed in the dust caps on my center channel when I had the grill off to change the foam surrounds. Haven't seen any grills with the Fonkens. Have you seen any? Having it on when playing the speakers would probably hinder the imaging.

If only for WAF, I almost never build a pair of speakers these days without providing for grilles. Thanks to Dave's prompting a couple of years ago I've adopted the use of the little rare-earth (neo) magnets, which are usually buried under veneer. The reason you don't generally see grilles on Dave's photos is probably that he wants to display the driver treatment.
 
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frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
The reason you don't generally see grilles on Dave's photos is probably that he wants to display the driver treatment.

And in my household they are not needed. I have started trying to store grills on the speakers when not in use -- i have a stack of grills and can only guess what speaker they belong to. The magnets buried under the veneer provide the best of both worlds.

dave
 
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