Came across what appears to be a sleeper Morel bass-mid sold by PE. It looks very good based on specs and cost. The higher Qts makes it suitable for a sealed box and also as a dedicated midbass. FR appears smooth to 5k, 86dB sensitivity and 4 ohm VC. Its apparently a custom design proprietary driver sold only through PE. Hopefully the motor has better HD performance than most other lower end Morels suffer from.
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Looks like a Kit seller.
Deceptively flat frequency response and apparently easy to crossover without measurements (with passive parts) but pretty boring driver to me.
Clue: impedance magnitude 30ohms @ 20KHz for a 4 ohm nominal driver.
For reasons previously explained by @TMM in a great post here:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...ofer-leg-on-the-crossover.394425/post-7240096
YMMV
Deceptively flat frequency response and apparently easy to crossover without measurements (with passive parts) but pretty boring driver to me.
Clue: impedance magnitude 30ohms @ 20KHz for a 4 ohm nominal driver.
For reasons previously explained by @TMM in a great post here:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...ofer-leg-on-the-crossover.394425/post-7240096
YMMV
I see your concerns and have similar reservations, but Le is reasonably low enough to consider it as a good midbass candidate given the excursion delta Le isn't too high. I’ve heard many Dynaudio and Morel DPC cone drivers over the years and surprisingly can report they don't all sound that similar as you'd expect from the recipe of components. My main concern was odd order HD along with the IMD components usually associated with this internal magnet style of motor design. For the $90 price tag it could be a great large VC midbass for smaller high power 2 way monitors.
One significant observation I've made a while back was how amplification sensitive this type of driver can be. Most Dynaudio and Morel polymer cone drivers tend to sound dull and boring with typical HT and budget 2 ch amps. Paired up with a higher end, high current output stage and things start to wake up a bit. Some speakers just sound bad and lifeless with basic amplification and source gear. I’ve also made the critical observation that drivers with low overall THD having the majority of HD being 3rd order also tend to sound dull and lifeless. A higher percentage of 2nd order HD will usually sound more engaging and pleasant, but it depends where in the audio spectrum the harmonics are concentrated. I believe this is why paper cones sound more interesting than stiffer cone materials operating in their pistonic bandwidth. IMO, the ratio of even to odd order HD matters more than just aiming for the overall lowest possible THD.
One significant observation I've made a while back was how amplification sensitive this type of driver can be. Most Dynaudio and Morel polymer cone drivers tend to sound dull and boring with typical HT and budget 2 ch amps. Paired up with a higher end, high current output stage and things start to wake up a bit. Some speakers just sound bad and lifeless with basic amplification and source gear. I’ve also made the critical observation that drivers with low overall THD having the majority of HD being 3rd order also tend to sound dull and lifeless. A higher percentage of 2nd order HD will usually sound more engaging and pleasant, but it depends where in the audio spectrum the harmonics are concentrated. I believe this is why paper cones sound more interesting than stiffer cone materials operating in their pistonic bandwidth. IMO, the ratio of even to odd order HD matters more than just aiming for the overall lowest possible THD.
You hit the nail on the head……distortion components are where the timbre of a driver are derived…….no distortion…..no life. As mix engineers, we’re constantly running stems through outboard gear and plug ins that purposely add pleasing distortion and mic pre with high driven gain…..it’s the energy of the song when carefully executed.