Frugel-Horn XL for Alpair 10.3/10p, Fostex FF165wk, more

If you enjoy normal hearing then a full range speaker doesn't need one - the absence of a crossover is one of the benefits and results in the lovely 'seamless' sound.


Should you be 70+ with diminishing range then one of the less expensive plug-in super-tweeters does re-inforce the upper register. (Spending a small fortune on Townshends rather defeats the diy object imo.)
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
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... if you wanted to ad a tweeter which one would it be???

Adding a supertweeter is fraught with the issue of getting the tweeter close enuff to the FR — impossible if you can’t mount is coaxially (ie FT17 inside Eminence 12LTA.

Because of the distance issue, response will be quite different as you move around.

But it can make a difference with some FRs. Typically a horn is chosen since its dispersion will be a better match to the top of the FR.

With the 3 prime drivers used in FHXL (A10.3/10p/FF165wk) no top end enhancement is really needed. The A10p probably has the least present top-end, if you find it not enuff, a suggestion would be to switch to the A10.3.

dave
 
Will the 10 MAOP also be part of the 3 prime drivers? And dose the MAOP have the same frequency response in the HF range as the A10.3?


With the 3 prime drivers used in FHXL (A10.3/10p/FF165wk) no top end enhancement is really needed. The A10p probably has the least present top-end, if you find it not enuff, a suggestion would be to switch to the A10.3.

dave
 
I actually have a pair of A10 MAOP replacing my A10.3M in an FHXL box. Currently running in at 400hours+ and counting.

For my hearing and a couple of friends, it seems that the A10 MAOP and the A10.3M still benefit a lot from a super tweeter. It somehow flattens the frequency curve in the high-frequency zone when it starts to drop. The decay of high frequencies are now more natural without being harsh ... they still sound smooth. Metal sounds like real metal ...

A10 MAOP a step up, but only if you have a pair. Hopefully we will see some A11 MAOP.

dave
 
So I’ve heard the pros and cons of my question #1084! I’ll stick with the single driver . I can say one thing . The least of the single driver speakers I have , and heard , are better than almost any multi driver system. I’m sure this brings controversy, but why have crossovers, when they take away from the sound/music. People that listen to single driver say most of the time that they sound great ! Until they find out it is a single driver, then they say that it can’t sound that good without a multiple of drivers, the uninformed , by the “experts” !!!
 
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There is a lot to like here. The 10.3 drivers that I'm using sound very nice. Prior to building my FHXL, I was using an L,C,R array of Atlantic Technology System 350THX speakers that I purchased some time in the late 1990s. The 350s sounded waaaaaay better than the crappy DIY Radio Shack speakers with a single cap as a crossover that they replaced. After 20 years of listening to the 350s, I was rather happy with them as well as being accustomed to their sound. Moving from these to the FHXL with 10.3 drivers brought a LARGE increase in clarity and detail - I was REALLY surprised! This difference is readily apparent while listening and is also easy to see on frequency response plots that I made in my living room. Hearing the difference is clear, even when just using them for television, but music is a whole new story from them.

Because there is so "little" there (single driver and a 3-piece notch filter as opposed to multiple drivers and dozens of crossover parts with the previous speakers), hearing the differences among my various amplifiers is easier as well. I've been having a ball playing around with different amps and understanding the differences in their topologies.
 
‘Been at this a long time, ‘gotta say that the single driver solution was overlooked by many people, including me, for all the wrong reasons, like you say, they “figure” it cannot be good. Once I got to hear a single driver solution, well executed, I was convinced it was a great solution! It is not the only solution. It’s not always the best solution. It’s just that you cannot go around discounting what other people have found that makes them happy.

“Best solution” is tied to some number of specific parameters. Music as an art form is tied to both science and human perception. You’ll never untie the two. Our understanding of each is still pretty new and certainly incomplete. So give everything a try and find your personal comfort zone. There are many comfortable music chairs in front of many vastly different systems. I thank all of the good folks out there making it easy for me to test out those chairs by building them in my own house as it is, ironically, easier than traveling to someone else’s house to sit in their musical chair.

Cheers!
 
On a question ? In the V I used sheet polyfil the first sheet went all the way down the V the second sheet I put in was or started about 3 inches up from the first one . I put 4 sheets in this way , did not weigh them, but as far as gravity is concerned, I don’t think it will ever drop. Now the sound I’m getting is just incredible as I’ve preached before, only lacking in the very highest frequencies with the the 10.3 metal drivers with about 5/600 hours on them. One more thing layered from the back of the V forward . Filled the V in a better way ??????