full range dipole options in north america

[smak]

I'm actually in canada but many repeated attempts to get the beyma 8ag/n from speaker shop have come up fruitless..

i'm at a loss to find either the beyma 8 ag/n, ciare ch250 or even that senon yd1256 driver that was more recently mentioned.

Are there ANY high q full ranges around in canada or the usa that i could cut my teeth on? i've got a nice w-frame sub but have been searching forever to make it to some nice drivers up front. already have some nice supertweeters ready for the project also.

 

[hitsware]

Here's a toothcutter.........
Supravox is also available (and pricey)

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=290-379

 

[ScottG]

Based on what others have said on this forum and elsewhere the ciare is the speaker offering the most for the least in a fullrange OB speaker.

Though its not listed on their site (ch250), these people are the North American Distributors of Ciare and they don't have inflated prices:

http://www.assistanceaudio.com/08_Ciare.html

email them or give them a ring, you never know what will happen..

 

[gmilitano]

I'm actually in canada but many repeated attempts to get the beyma 8ag/n from speaker shop have come up fruitless..

You could consider the Radio Shack 40-1271 which is available in Canada. I'm embaressed to say that I have yet to do anything with my pair.

Look for them on clearence, I got mine for $5 each.

Regards,
GM.

 

[smak]

i did find assistanceaudio during my searches but my email yielded no response..

i'll have to ring them tomorrow.

thanks all, and good to know about that radioshack option.

oh and i knew about the supravox all along ;P maybe later on..

 

[Kravchenko_Audio]

Try Solen

If you want some stuff that is a little better go to and http://www.solen.ca/d they have the fostex line, Seas also does some quasi fullrange stuff. On the west coast there is http://www.acoustic-technologies.ca/products.html Happy hunting.

Mark

 

[johninCR]

I understand that the Pioneer full ranger works well on OB especially for only $25. http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=290-045
It's good enough to be mentioned in the LSDG at http://ldsg.snippets.org/sect-3.php3

Has anyone heard that Goldwood? At that price it's worth getting just to play around with and try to tweak good sound from it.

 

[johninCR]

Also, since you already have dipole bass, you don't necessarily need a high Q driver. If you can get up to 150-200hz with your dipole woofer, you can use almost any driver.

 

[smak]

i use solen fairly frequently.. they are by far the best canadian resource for us DIY'ers in my opinion..

due to the positioning of my w-frame i dont like to use it above 90Hz, so i dont need anything that goes super low but at least to 100Hz.

 

[Josephjcole]

Have you considered vintage drivers? I recently ran across a pair of 12" vintage full range drivers. I put them on an open baffle and was quite impressed with the sound, not quite as good as my fostex 108e sigmas, but very close, and I got them for free. There have been quite a few threads about vintage drivers suitable for open baffle on the full range driver forum recently.
http://fullrangedriver.com/tiki-forums.php
just a thought.
Joe

 

[rcavictim]

I understand that the Pioneer full ranger works well on OB especially for only $25.

Yeah but John, that Pioneer 8" FR has a #%$&*^@ FOAM surround.

If they'd fix that major flaw I'd try them myself.

Foam is for mattresses and beer. 😀

 

[johninCR]

What do your have against foam. As I understand the foam used today is much more durable than what was used back in the 70's. As long as they're not out in the sun $1 a year or less isn't bad.

 

[rcavictim]

What do your have against foam. As I understand the foam used today is much more durable than what was used back in the 70's. As long as they're not out in the sun $1 a year or less isn't bad.

They rot and the speaker becomes useless. The breakdown is gradual, so the speaker's characteristics are constantly drifting over it's lifetime. They rot and the speaker becomes useless. When they have turned to air suspension drivers the company that you paid for them the first time will have long run with your money so you won't be able to buy exact replacements. They rot and the speaker becomes useless.

I like to buy something of quality and then move on. I don't want to put my money into stuff that will have to be purchased again later if I know this in advance. With foam you have this forewarning. If people refused to buy all foam surround drivers they'd stop making them.

...also they make any driver so equipped look like cheap crap. Pro drivers NEVER use foam surrounds. Wonder why?

 

[johninCR]

I sell mine, but I'll take that into consideration when I build a pair that I plan to live with for a long time.

I picked up a pair of 30yo AR-4's for $15 and they aren't foam, but the surrounds look pretty fragile, so the treated cloth they used doesn't last forever either.

 

[ScottG]

Actually foam "rot" is either UV induced or a by-product of the accelerant used to make the foam lingering in the foam's "air space". Today both problems can be reduced to a non-issue (this doesn't mean that they are though). A simple applied compound to the foam can defeat the UV problem (if there is one).

As far as drivers with "floating" specs are concerned, ALL drivers have this characteristic. But the surround is usually the major contributor to this. Demagnitization is another serious problem.

Note however that a rubber surround doesn't insure quality. In fact it is one of the WORST surround materials because it adds mass to the driver and after break-in is still a "slow recovery" material.

The major (technical) reason why Pro Speaker Manufac.s don't use it is because foam is the easiest to puncture (i.e. not suitable for physical wear and tear).

 

[johninCR]

Scott,
Thanks for the good info, you must be in the biz with all the great technical detail you always provide. I'm still not sold on that woofer speed thing though.

Rod,
I told you your prejudice against foam was unfounded in the new world.