Focal TC90 TDX tweeter?

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Apfelsauce

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Joined 2011
#1
I had these inverted "tioxid" dome tweeters in the second or third pair of speakers I built, about ten years ago. I remember liking them very, very much. I now have a line on these, NOS. Was I maybe just in awe of my early creation? Or were these actually great drivers? I had them paired with a 7" Focal woofer that I remember having a kind of ceramic-look cone to it and a fat black aluminum phase plug.

I'm inching toward another project, probably a 7" two-way, and am thinking I'll go this route for the tweeters... I'm WAY open to suggestions for a woofer. Something unconventional-looking (I know, not a good criterium!) would be nice. I think Madisound helped me with the crossover, and I'll probably see if they or Solen (now that I live in Canada) can help me again, despite the obsolescence of the TD90. Any comments, suggestions, enthusiasm, advice, haranguing, etc.?
 

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#4
fabel said:
As a 7" I would take the 6ND430 - LF Neodymium Driver into mind - even if it weren't for the special look 😉. It can also be found in Zaph´s comparison.
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Yeah, I've eyed those a few times, mostly from Zaph's recommendation. Their sensitivity would make a great match for the TC90TDX, that's for sure.

But that raises a few more issues... a) I'm not sure where I'd find them in Canada. I'm used to the usual - PE, Madisound, Solen, etc. And b) I'm not smart enough to design a crossover that would do justice to drivers of this caliber, and the few respectable services I'm aware of (Madisound, first, and Solen, second) don't design for drivers they don't sell. I think I can talk Madisound into designing me a filter for the Focal tweeter, given that they used to carry them and I have bought them from them before, along with crossover plans, but I'm positive they can't do anything with the EighteenSound driver!

Otherwise, I think there are a number of choices for a 2k crossover point, including a few options from Seas, and for a good price, too... I'm waiting to hear back from Madisound regarding a potential crossover design before I buy the tweeters, and will move forth from there. Mostly I just wanted confirmation from folks who remember them that the TC90 TDX were good tweeters... I didn't want my memory to deceive me, as well as my ears!
 
#6
Any more help or suggestions on a design incorporating the TD90 TDX? Pretty please? 🙂 I'm thinking of going for something along the lines of the Seas reed-coned ER18RNX, and basically building Zaph's SR71 with this ole' Focal tweeter. Anyone care to dissuade me or offer some filter suggestions or other expert advice?
 
#9
Apfelsauce said:
No, I gather. I was really thinking of just mixing-and-matching. It was late, and after Easter supper, and I'm not sure what I was thinking...
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It's OK.. better a mistake now then after you have made purchases. 😉

BTW, I think the whole 2 driver affair is a bad idea. There is just to much pressure loss from the baffle, UNLESS its a really wide baffle. (..or unless you don't care about the pressure loss and are going to use a "subwoofer" into the midrange.)


Frankly a design you *could* emulate reasonably well would be the Elisinore:

Elsinore Speakers DIY

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/multi-way/97043-elsinore-project-thread.html

The Felt cavity around the tweeter would/should negate most of the issues surrounding (literally) the effects of the baffle on the tweeter. The mid-basses are all available from Madisound, and you should be able to leverage that into getting their help with those changes to the crossover relevant to the change in tweeter - the rest of the crossover should be the same.

Just my "2 cents".. 🙂
 
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#10
Madisound said they could design a crossover incorporating this tweeter, so now I'm just left to settle on a woofer. (I've got plenty of time - still enjoying my previous creation!) The first suggestion I got was for a Morel MW166 - and it would be cool to have an all-French speaker - but despite their reputation, Zaph has steered me away from that one.

I'm leaning strongly toward a two-way, with a 7" or so woofer, but I could be talked in a three-way, or maybe into a system that was necessarily augmented by a subwoofer. I'm shooting to spend less than $120 per driver, or that price for a pair should I build an MTM configuration, which I'm not averse to. Zaph makes a pretty good case for the Seas L18 H1224, or for a bit less scratch the SB Acoustics SB17NRX35, which could probably be crossed over a bit higher (and I might be willing to spring for four!). I'm currently using some much smaller SB Acoustics drivers, and am impressed at least with their inherent qualities (if not with my, and then Solen's, filters).

The TD90 TDX has a 900 Hz-ish Fs, so I'm looking for something that could be crossover (regardless of slope) above 2k Hz - not out of the question for a number of drivers, I don't think. I'm looking for extension into the mid-40s or so. Again, extra points for something non-traditional looking!
 

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#12
fabel said:
Hey, if you want it all French I would consider this onehttps://www.madisound.com/store/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=120&products_id=8524. I once had the Focal in a combination with the older Z0 version of it - very good together.

G F
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Yeah, I looked at both that an the carbon fibre version. Both are pretty good looking, and I've heard good things about them, although I can't say I'm excited to countersink all these non-round drivers!

Tell me, though: didn't Audax leave the DIY market too? How does Madisound still actively stock them?

EDIT: Hmmm... Nevermind. Just saw that Solen still stocks Audax, too. Don't know what I heard!
 
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