TA2020 + Full ranges??

[steve13]

Hi everyone

I was thinking of pairing a TA2020 ("tripath") to some full ranges, possibly Fostex FE126en. Any thoughts, advice, opinions?

I read on this forum that the general consensus is that the fostex plans are not great, however i also need an enclosure which is not too huge (small apartment).

Help would be appreciated
Thanks

 

[ra7]

The tripath amps sound good with high-eff full rangers, like the FE126En. Go for it. They are a great, economical starting point to hifi sound. Dave or planet10 here will surely chip in with cabinet options. You can check his website too which is great.

 

[mor2bz]

a tube buffer , tube stage in cd player, or tube preamp will help a bit.
make sure you have battery power for the amp. this makes the bass twice as good. if the sound is too hot listen off axis. for more warmth and tone but alot less treble get a coat of dammar on the cone. my own experience,
mind you. what are you doing for bass support? a woofer crossed over,
a backloaded horn, a sub to augment?

 

[Godzilla]

Yes, good combo.

 

[Saturnus]

I've used a FE206 BLH with an TA2020 as my home reference system for years. It's completely off-grid battery powered as the batteries are recharged by a small 15W solar panel.

If you use the smaller Fostex's you might need a tube pre-amp to get the sound right. With the larger Fostex's that's neither needed nor wanted.

 

[steve13]

Great, thanks for all the advice already..
@Saturnus, what type of enclosure are you using? and what room dimensions?

Good idea about the tup pre-amp, i kind of always wanted to build one anyway.. but will only get onto that later, once all is built and broken in.

I am interesting in the back loaded horn designs, the only problem is i dont really have a lot of space, are there any smaller options?

 

[danerius]

What kinda batterys are u using? Any thread here on diyaudio?

Regards /Bo

 

[Saturnus]

Steve13, I just use a slight modified version of the reference design. My listening room is about 18 square meters (~3½m by ~5m).

danerius, I use LFP cells.

 

[planet10]

The smallest enclosure that provides a load the FE126En likes is the Frugel-Horn Mk3 (Frugel-Horn Mk1 Level 0, is a bit smaller, but performance gains are to be had with the Mk3). If you need a smaller box, time to look at a different driver.

dave

 

[steve13]

The frugel-horn mk1 level 0 looks like a decent size, also not too complicated.
I think i might be going with that..

Thanks for all the help everyone
rgrds

 

[chrisb]

The frugel-horn mk1 level 0 looks like a decent size, also not too complicated.
I think i might be going with that..

Thanks for all the help everyone
rgrds

the more recent design FH3 is a much easier build and IMO an overall better performer.

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/full-range/172937-frugel-horn-mk3-beta-builds.html

 

[steve13]

thanks for the link, having a look now.you are right, is easier. will spend some time tomorrow and troll through the thread.

thanks again

 

[danerius]

Steve13, I just use a slight modified version of the reference design. My listening room is about 18 square meters (~3½m by ~5m).

danerius, I use LFP cells.

Cool 🙂