They aren't expensive, I bought a set of new ones in 1989 and another set a couple years ago for about $100. I've always liked Polk speakers.
Super fantastic? No, but for a $100 they are really nice. I'm going to use them for a HT set up when I get around to changing my room. 2 in the front, 2 in the back and I'll buy a center bar to go with them.
My first set has been my desk/computer speakers for years.
Super fantastic? No, but for a $100 they are really nice. I'm going to use them for a HT set up when I get around to changing my room. 2 in the front, 2 in the back and I'll buy a center bar to go with them.
My first set has been my desk/computer speakers for years.
Since high frequency response is mainly determined by the mass of the moving parts, the the lighter aluminium wire improves the high frequency response.
In addition, an aluminium coil has a lower inductance than a copper coil of equal resistance, and this reduces the rise in impedance at high frequencies.
ah ok Mike, interesting. Not much experience with Polk seen a few models in the UK but never heard any. Those older ones actually look a lot better than the newer uk ones I've seen. They don't make em like they used to
I agree with an earlier post about the Elac JET series. I've listened to (and own) speakers with JET II and JET III tweeters and IMO they are the best I've heard when it comes to high frequencies... the caveat being that they really need to cross at 2.5 kHz or higher, and most 6" drivers don't like that.
Interestingly, Quested has used the same Morel MDT30 since sometime in the 80s in all of their higher end products. It's about $80 at Madisound. Morel tweeters don't seem to get much love around here, but I listen to them every day in my Q108s and they really are a great driver. Even in really expensive systems like the QM412, they use the same Morel tweeter. The rest of the drivers are from Volt, so it's not like they're going for low-cost.
Quested really doesn't have a big audiophile following (which is a real shame), but they're right up there with ATC in the world of studio monitoring.
From a purely subjective standpoint, I think I prefer the JET tweeters, but I really think that they would be best at the top of a 3-way. Maybe if I can get my hands on a pair of them I'll build a 3-way with JET tweeters on the top and 10" volt woofers on the bottom.
Interestingly, Quested has used the same Morel MDT30 since sometime in the 80s in all of their higher end products. It's about $80 at Madisound. Morel tweeters don't seem to get much love around here, but I listen to them every day in my Q108s and they really are a great driver. Even in really expensive systems like the QM412, they use the same Morel tweeter. The rest of the drivers are from Volt, so it's not like they're going for low-cost.
Quested really doesn't have a big audiophile following (which is a real shame), but they're right up there with ATC in the world of studio monitoring.
From a purely subjective standpoint, I think I prefer the JET tweeters, but I really think that they would be best at the top of a 3-way. Maybe if I can get my hands on a pair of them I'll build a 3-way with JET tweeters on the top and 10" volt woofers on the bottom.
Agreed. I understood that the aluminium wire was usually copper coated to reduce resistance?
I used to have a pair of Grafyx SP-10 speakers which I think used those tweeters
I really like the Morel MDT30 as well some of their other mid and tweeter domes - the CAT378 and MDT55 (CAM558 with round face plate) are some of my favorites.
The MDT30 is a great tweeter in many ways, as it doesnt exhibit that strained lower midrange many other soft domes do when played louder. Thats one of the main reasons I love it so much, as it will play at abusively high levels without breaking a sweat, to the point the VC will go up in smoke before it really starts complaining. Its also one of the few soft domes that can deal with a 1st order single cap HP filter. Crossed at about 3.5k 2nd order it will keep up with just about any hifi driver and even some pro sound drivers. There's a reason Quested uses this tweeter.
The one downside to the MDT30 is the dome coating. It doesn't age well and tends to attract every dust partial in the air. For the price tag its a fantastic bargain. A long time ago I dubbed it the "un-tweeter" due to its ability to sonically disappear into the room. The horn loaded CAT378 is internally the same tweeter and its about the same price.
https://cpc.farnell.com/unbranded/dt-100/hi-fi-dome-tweeter-1/dp/LS00058
I tried some of these, a bit of a replica, wasn't too impressed. Typical soft dome sound, safe. No air or sparkle at all
Per the thread title (What is the most used, most popular good tweeter ever? DIY or mass market and why?), I'm surprised this wasn't brought up more. I would say this is one of the most used tweeters over the ages in DIY and in the mass-produced industry. And I agree, even way above its price it'll still hold it's own as a fantastic tweeter.
Edit: As far as why... it sounds great and has synergy with a lot of different woofers or mids, I guess it checks all the right boxes for the way a tweeter should sound to a lot of people. It's not the lowest playing tweeter on the market, but I keep getting surprised by how low some people end up crossing it and still getting good sound. I used to think 2.3khz was the bottom for it, then I heard it crossed at 1.9khz and it still sounded great. Although I never heard that one at higher SPL, possibly up in smoke at that point? But at like $30/tweeter, it wouldn't be a wallet breaker if you smoked one.
The ring radiator makes them a different animal compared to other soft dome tweeters.
Not sure what you mean by VFM.
Phenomenal tweeter, I agree.