My favorites among the Faital LF drivers, in order of preferences:
1. 18FH500
2. 3FE22
3. 15PR400
4. 4FE22
5. 12PR320
They're all very good, but the top 3 are particularly impressive in their own ways.
The 18FH500 delivers the best low-mid I ever heard. Very agile, comfortable until 1.6khz, a unique driver.
the 3FE22 can cover beautifully 5 octaves, including the last one, which is impressive even for a small cone.
The 15PR400 is downright violent, from as low as 150hz up to 3-4khz, it's just brutal ( 100db 1w/1m ). Maybe the only time where a drum feels (almost) like a live drum.
1. 18FH500
2. 3FE22
3. 15PR400
4. 4FE22
5. 12PR320
They're all very good, but the top 3 are particularly impressive in their own ways.
The 18FH500 delivers the best low-mid I ever heard. Very agile, comfortable until 1.6khz, a unique driver.
the 3FE22 can cover beautifully 5 octaves, including the last one, which is impressive even for a small cone.
The 15PR400 is downright violent, from as low as 150hz up to 3-4khz, it's just brutal ( 100db 1w/1m ). Maybe the only time where a drum feels (almost) like a live drum.
Acoustic Elegance does what you are asking in terms of fidelity. But not the bland part an earlier gentleman described scanspeak to be (which i sort of agree with).
I now cant live their famous 15" midrange the TD15M with Apollo upgrade. I did compromised and no longer use their 15" bass woofers, the SBP15 as they needed ~280L per woofer.
I now use four 10" TD10S in two ~60l ported cabinets to save space.
I tried various combination of 2/3 ways with their 15" mid and bass woofers and yes, even at 15" woofer sizes, at home loudness levels the 3 way still sounds better than 2way.
I own quite a few of SB drivers and speakers They are a great value for money and requires much smaller cabinets.
However only the Satori range comes close to the Acoustic Elegance, the SB range whilst good and high fidelity is still comparatively lesser in fidelity.
I always demo to friends two SB speakers when they come over.
First, a modified version of Curt Campbell's Uluwatu speaker using six 5.25" midwoofers (SB15NRX). Then the Satori 2 way Ara next.
I always demo in this sequence and they *always* prefer one Satori midwoofer over SIX standard ones. I dont even bother matching loudness levels and the Uluwatu is a good 10db louder.
it's very box/OB dependant.
And not as impressive as, say, a 18FH500.
Don't get me wrong, the 15PR400 can deliver very decent 30-150hz if used correctly, it's just not as impressive as the 150hz-3khz
Thanks! Maybe the 15FH500 (which we choosed for a friend of mine, but I didn't heard yet) delievers both low and higher range, although maybe not as low as the 18FH500 and not as high as the 15PR400, but needs smaller box than the mentioned two.
Here are some for the 15PR400, although not so detailed:
FAITAL 15PR400-8 (Woofer 15", 8 Ohm, 800 Wmax)
Hi Mark100,
Thanks a lot!
As a pure sub this makes sense for sure. How far up in frequency would you recommend using the BMS? It is only stated for sub use (<200 Hz), but I have heard others using it further up in frequency with no problems.
Thanks!
Best
Peter
Thanks a lot!
As a pure sub this makes sense for sure. How far up in frequency would you recommend using the BMS? It is only stated for sub use (<200 Hz), but I have heard others using it further up in frequency with no problems.
Thanks!
Best
Peter
My limits were around 80hz. i´ve heard some people going to 600hz with 862.
i don´t trust those people
Yes but what you gain is excellent bass extension in boxes that fit into the majority of small homes. A lot of scans drivers are easy to work with but at the same time a lot of them are not, at least in terms of frequency response linearity.
Personally I feel that a really good balance is to use 92-95dB midrange drivers, tweeters and upper bass. So you basically have a compact three way with relatively poor low frequency extension. Then use subs to give you the low bass.
If you can fit 15" fridge size boxes in your room then so be it, go for it. I certainly cannot! Nor would I want to.
I would add that, on the whole, I wouldn't want to use any Pro driver that didn't have copper or aluminium demodulating/shorting rings.
This absolutely bares repeating.
Most amplification is class AB and crossover distortion is at its most insidious at low power levels. Granted a well designed amplifier will show negligible levels and a well designed emitter follower based amplifier will probably be operating entirely within class A, using pro drivers in a domestic environment at domestic levels, when optimally biased. But there are many amplifiers out there that aren't so well designed and will sound, comparatively, terrible when used at a few milliwatts.
If you are wanting to use pro drivers for your standard hifi, and will listen at typical domestic levels (say 70-85dB in room), then you do need to make sure that your amplifier isn't going to ruin things. I could well imagine someone thinking pro drivers only come alive, and sound good, at higher volumes if their amplifier was spraying a decent amount of high order grunge into the mix and that grunge was audible at lower volumes.
This absolutely bares repeating.
Most amplification is class AB and crossover distortion is at its most insidious at low power levels. Granted a well designed amplifier will show negligible levels and a well designed emitter follower based amplifier will probably be operating entirely within class A, using pro drivers in a domestic environment at domestic levels, when optimally biased. But there are many amplifiers out there that aren't so well designed and will sound, comparatively, terrible when used at a few milliwatts.
If you are wanting to use pro drivers for your standard hifi, and will listen at typical domestic levels (say 70-85dB in room), then you do need to make sure that your amplifier isn't going to ruin things. I could well imagine someone thinking pro drivers only come alive, and sound good, at higher volumes if their amplifier was spraying a decent amount of high order grunge into the mix and that grunge was audible at lower volumes.
18sound 6nd430 doesn't have any copper or aluminium in motor but fair very well in measurements. Faital 12pr320 also measures great distortion wise, as shown by Mbrennwa in his OSMC thread.
Does anyone have exp with 3" VC B&C 15NDL76,18PS76 or similar B&C woofers compared to 15"/18 BR/FH Faitals?
I have four 18PS76. They have served me well. Haven't tried Faital Pro in the same size class. Certainly sound better than the Kappalite 15LF. The Eminence was a bit worn in to be fair.
I wouldn't use them above 300hz.
I wouldn't use them above 300hz.
Sure, but I ask because the air loaded mass is very different between two drivers of the same size cause the angle & shape cone and it seems there is also a consensus that at same Sd size one big is better than several littlier units ! Say below 200-500 hz.
I have to admitt my ref. and liited eperience is still a big Onken with two 15"; but the blue Kef flag ship with its 4 x laterral 8" units slams a lot as well !
🙁.... is it not also about the power supply design please ? For instance a Chord amp with smps PS (reaaly don't know if they are class A on few whatts) which are power monster work fine at low spl... at least on hifi speakers, never heard before on a PA speaker.
Anyway I assume we are talking about upper mid-treble area if we are speaking about details ? Odd to me as compression drivers are never bad at the detail game... while ESL speakers beat them at lowSPL/better details game...
I asked myself it's not about the T/S parameters : more voice coil layers : less fine details (less short motion control from the amplifier) , taller voice coil , same ?
😕😕😕😕😕😕 : you mean in a venue, theater, cinema ! 😱
Never heard a 18" doing the beginning area of male voices accurate in home environment... maybe because this voice coil control story : too heavy mms despite the BL & Tesla involved.... I never would use a 18" above 200 hz...exceptions should exist... but dmn 1.6 k Hz ?!!!!!!
An 18" driver will beam like a laser at 1.6Khz. You should not use bigger then an 8" up to this frequency, otherwise you will end up with a hole in the off axis response in the mids.
Narrow vertical off axis response (less floor and ceiling bounce) is a good thing especially if you cross to a line tweeter like a ribbon, AMT or planar. But you better use a line of small drivers to do this and have wide horizontal off axis response to match these tweeters.
Narrow vertical off axis response (less floor and ceiling bounce) is a good thing especially if you cross to a line tweeter like a ribbon, AMT or planar. But you better use a line of small drivers to do this and have wide horizontal off axis response to match these tweeters.
That's the frequency response of the 18FH500. Tested myself and what FaitalPro provide is accurate.
So, up to 650hz the on-axis response is basically the same as the (very) off-axis of 45 deg.
Now, it's very manageable up to 1100hz.
1600hz is optimistic if really 45 deg is important for your project.
Would like to see some 30deg off-axis and even 15deg off-axis responses but there is none.
That being said. Using a 18FH500 only up to 200hz is a waste. Pretty much like buying a Porsche GT3RS or a Ferrari 488 pista and never bring it on a racetrack. You CAN do that, but it's a waste nonetheless.
At the very least, 400-500hz. But 200hz? Nope.
Might as well choose a more appropriate driver to cover the low-end.