New drivers for my 2-way boxes

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Years ago, I built some nice 2-way speakers. The woofers died of "foam rot", so I saved the enclosures (lots of work went into them... solid as a rock) They are 1.5 cu ft (I'm in US) ported boxes, for 8 inch woofer and tweeter (originally 1 inch dome) Ports are 2 inch dia by 3 inch long. Crossover is first order on woofer, second order on tweeter, crossed at 3000 Hz. I'd like to use the same crossovers with fresh capacitors (coils are homemade, but good quality, 0.6 mH) and they have "zobel" also. Original woofers were Peerless (loved em) but never liked the tweeters (hard dome) Any suggestions for new woofers/tweeters? How about the crossovers? I'm on a tight budget so nothing too exotic. Last I knew, Vifa made some woofers that should work great in these boxes. The 1.5 cu ft. boxes might sound large for an 8 inch woofer, but they sounded great (people would say "those are only 8 inch? WOW!) How about the tweeter... dome, ribbon? I'm not seeking perfection, just something that is "semi-sweet" but still can "kick ***" for the size.
 
Reasonable size for an 8, maybe some 10's. Go pick a few candidates and plug them int a sim like winISD and see which will work. Only a 2 way, you are going to need one of the tweeters that can get darn low. The SB maybe. With an 8, you are going to be crossing over below 2K. I don't know any 8 that can reach 3K well. Maybe a full range.
 
tvrgeek, no 10 inch... must stay with 8 inch so woofer isn't too close to port. My original 8 inch woofers went to 3000 hz, and because they naturally had reduced output that high is why simple first order was all I needed. Opposite for tweeter: needed second order to protect them. I also wired tweeter reverse phase (helps when speaker is on floor... on stands might not need to do this, or upside down works) By the way, the original tweeters never blew, just the leads from voice coil to terminal broke... light touch of solder and they worked for several more years. I pushed these things hard! Even though the boxes were roomy and ported, I still used light "fluffed" stuffing... a bit would find its way into the port and looked so cool floating in/out of port. I will try to post some pics of the box and crossover. They are built like a tank (that's why I kept them)
 
I would build a WLM La Scala Clone in that box. :)

An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.


Drivers:
Visaton - Lautsprecher und Zubehör, Loudspeakers and Accessories
Visaton - Lautsprecher und Zubehör, Loudspeakers and Accessories

With the bass Zobel it is a 6.8uF/0.4mH/4.7R treble crossover. Without the bass Zobel, it is 3.3uF/0.4mH/4.7R. 30-60 litres as explained at Visaton for the W200S/8ohm. You can model it in Visaton's free Boxsim program download, even change the tweeter for a 94 or 104mm type. :cool:
 

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Id concur with TVR, and System7 (im a slow typist).
There arent many 8s id use above 2k, maybe an 8inch fullranger would work, but then the bass is likely to be reduced.
An 8 plus inch dome isnt the easiest pairing to get working well, in my opinion. That SB29 dimple tweeter could be worth a shot, although if it were me id use a 2inch cone tweeter or widerange driver and cross around 1k or lower.
 
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system7, yes, I like the "la scala", and that tweeter looks like a good choice (goes much lower than most dome type)
I took a picture of my enclosures... not the best pic, but I was in a hurry) The front plate is removable (mounts to "cleats" inside the box) so I could make another one if needed, but I'd rather keep them "as is". I do understand that it's nice to cross a 2-way at lower freq (like 1000 hz) but should I use first order (6db/oct) or second order (12db/oct)? Didn't have time to study "la scala" crossover... will study it later. Hey, can someone tell me metric equivalent to 1.5 cu ft?
 

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Dissi, thank you for the suggestion (and crossover)
The Dayton looks perfect and within budget. I can't afford it, but the ScanSpeak P21WO20 looks great (and similar to Vifa woofer that I can't find anymore)
Any tweeter suggestions? I've never used a ribbon tweeter... how do they compare to dome type? MY biggest concern is the lower power rating (but they are also very efficient so I could add a resistor to help solve both issues)
By the way, my homemade boxes are high density particle board... does anyone use this or has everyone gone to medium density fiber fiber board? I used premade "shelf boards" for the sides/top/bottom... it had rounded edge already sanded/primered, and just happened to be correct width... very convenient!
 
Ribbon tweeters usually have much higher distortions than domes and are crossed at 3 kHz or higher. The lower power rating is not a problem because of the higher sensitivity. Example: 95 dB at 1 watt gives 105 dB at 10 watt. The Dayton tweeter I proposed will probably also reach its power handling limit at 105 dB. If you want more, you will need a driver from the semi professional sector. The Ciare MT 320 should theoretically make 110 dB...
 
Dissi, now I remember why I avoided ribbon tweeters (it's been years since I did any speaker projects) I also realize that my original 6 dB/octave cross on the woofers was a mistake. It did cause some issues, so I will go with 12dB/octave.
I've been looking at tweeters (mostly dome) and several have smaller mounting size, so I will have to add an "adapter plate" to my 3 inch cutout. Should I put this on front or behind cutout? If behind, should I flair the cutout? I like the idea of the tweeter being recessed a bit. What about cutting the end off a flaired port and adding this as a sort of horn to front of tweeter (would also look nice, but that's not my main goal) I'm not after perfection... but want to avoid any major issues. Maybe just choose a horn loaded dome that fits my cutout?
 
Hi,

Maybe you should listen to the advise already given. Half baked crossovers
and a random tweeters won't remotely work half as well as the crossovers
and tweeters already described in this thread to go with the 8" bass/mids.

If you like the Dayton 8" go with Dissi's crossover and tweeter.

rgds, sreten.
 
sreten, I think you misunderstood... yes, I really like the suggested crossover (and tweeter). "random tweeter"... hardly. I'm looking at many different tweeters, even though I haven't done this in years, I understand how it works (bottom line is how it sounds) The truth is, I'm on a very limited budget, so it doesn't matter what I want to do, it's what I can do ;) By the way, a friend made the original crossovers (I was still in the early leaning stage) He kept it simple, but used quality parts. This was my first speaker project (over 25 years ago), and I would like to do it better this time, but if I was doing a new project, I would build new enclosures (I have many ideas... way beyond a simple "box") I totally would be satisfied with the Daytons and crossover... thank you, but I also miss shopping around for drivers. I would love to post some of my ideas for enclosures (on a new thread) Everything from pyramids to transmission lines :D
 
Hi acefromspace,

I also like shopping around for drivers, but keep in mind, you need a tweeter that operates from 1.8 kHz. Small horn loaded drivers and ribbons are not suitable. Your idea of a self constructed horn will give unpredictable results, but is not that bad. Actually there is a trend to use tweeters with special horns, called waveguides, to boost the lower frequencies...
 
Nobody answered my question about mounting tweeter in front or behind front baffle. The homemade "horn" idea was only concerning mounting the tweeter behind baffle (5/8 inch thick) At the very least, I would flare/round the existing cutout (3 inch dia) to avoid issues. Should I just choose a tweeter that fits the original cutout, or choose one according to what works best with the woofer and crossover, even if it has smaller mounting size (and requires adapter plate)?
 
it is a fallacy that ribbons have higher THD than domes. When used too low then their THD is severe. Higher crossovers are a must though. For what its worth i wouldnt recommend a ribbon with an 8 incher in a 2way.

For once I would agree with Sreten and dissi on the drivers and filter shown (even if the rude delivery isnt agreeable)
 
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