Is it possible to cover the whole spectrum, high SPL, low distortion with a 2-way?

Pretty conventional EQ with either a little boost or all cut
I agree it is fairly conventional. More sensible even than Camps original scheme. But I still define it as a lot of eq to get a desirable result. A +6 and a -9 filter is close enough to my affore mentioned 20db eq range for me, personally, to call it a lot of eq.
It simply, usually, takes a lot of eq to flatten a sub in a room. Normal situation. Camplo calls it a little eq is what struck me as, Camplic...
 
If the sources are within 1/4 wavelength or less they will (almost always) appear and couple as one source.

Even at 200Hz more than an octave above the crossover frequency 1/4 wavelength is 43cm.

Add that with the wavelengths involved and the number of cycles needed for the ear to recognize a frequency...
The argument is a little deeper than this idea of hearing one source.....This one source can grow in size....that aspect is discernable with eyes closed.....Take two woofers play one then immediately play both at equal spl to listener.....the source will be wider to the listener in the same direction the two woofers stretch the radiation size, while still sounding as a single unit.....yet a larger, single unit. Still, everything I just explained makes no sense without context to listening proximity lol. The experience will change whether 2ft or 20ft.

This same affect happens in the crossband. The energy being expressed moves in the direction the signal goes on the baffle, at least to some extent.... Only at far listening distances can you cheat this unless the drivers are really small which allows the tight physical summation.

I think my current scenario is doing very good considering how big it is, how far apart the drivers are, no DSP help outside of some, little, eqing.....

I am still designing with the mindset of listening within 1m. all the aspects are, very intimate to the listener, with close proximity.
 
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Yep, CD's taken lower has definitely been a design goal in numerous builds lately. I know i sure have played with that alot.

What if find interesting is trying to guess why crossing over lower sounds better.
On the surface it would seem either the directivity curve improves;
or distortion, THD, IMD, whatever, decreases;
or getting as much bandwidth as possible into a point source, simply sounds better.

Personally, i feel xover point based on directivity, is pretty much fixed by geometry. So if a SQ gain is due to directivity improvement from moving the CD xover lower, it just means xover wasn't correctly chosen to begin with. I toss this out as a valid reason for lowering CD xover.

I do believe getting as much bandwidth as possible into a point source or perhaps better said, a quasi-point source, simply sounds better.
This opinion comes from working on MEHs and comparing them to a number of different type builds and commercial speakers that were all well executed.
I give lowering the CD xover point a lot of value here.

But then it get's real interesting to me....
Let's ay i'm willing to run the CD at low enough SPL that I can safely take its response very low...like 300Hz or so.
Will it sound best taken as low as possible? (and ignore directivity concerns by comparing outdoors)
My experience is no, it won't.....that there is a trade off between the CD getting marginally worse as it goes lower, compared to the cone driver getting marginally better. That the tradeoff has an equilibrium point and going any lower with the CD worsens the sound.

Purely subjective assessments and evaluations...i know.

But the idea of that tradeoff, that past a certain point a CD gets worse as it goes lower, and that the cone driver it's mating with gets better as it goes lower........pushed me to say hey, there needs to be an intermediate driver to solve that.
I mean heck, isn't that the whole reason for multi-ways existing?....
Use as many driver sections as needed and let each driver section do what it does best...

Anyway, i don't try to take a CD as low as possible anymore.
The AXI if i had one? ....probably 500Hz lowest, maybe higher.
My dcx464 and 4594HE's....i'm up to 900Hz, with small mids bridging the gap down to low-mid woofers at 300Hz (which pass off to subs at 100Hz)
The clarity improvement of the combined CD and mids crossed at 900Hz is remarkable, vs eliminating the mids and running the CD straight down to low-mids anywhere between 450-700Hz. (All on the same box apples to apples).
my 2c experiences
You make some great points. The directivity has to match at xo. Leading people to large woofers that will beam a bit. Taking the horn down close to cut-off helps in this regard, as directivity is starting to dissappear on the horn right when it transitions to a woofer with almost no directivity (in my case 500hz from a 12 inch). One question, how on earth to you get the directivity of a horn operating a bit above cutoff (where it still has pattern control), to match the directivity of a small mid driver?
 
Yes Mark, well said, even though I may discount the subjective part a bit.

To me there is only one reason to take the Xover lower from a waveguide and that is to match it to the woofer DI at the Xover. But unless you have a low DI waveguide or a very large woofer, this is never going to be below 500 Hz. I think that you would agree with this, but you did not specifically say it.

I did many paper designs of a high DI system with a 90 degree coverage that had a low Xover of about 500 Hz, (the idea was to get a high DI lower in frequyency) but it required an 18" direct radiating and a 22" waveguide to match. It looked good on paper, but was not economical at that point.
 
Thanks cspieker, and thanks Earl,

MEH's.
I've used the same sized horn and pattern, with the CD crossing straight to various sized mid-woofers from 8" to 12". With xover frequencies ranging from 480Hz to 700Hz. These all sounded pretty much the same, all crossed to a sub at 100-120Hz.

Then last July, i added in four 4" mid drivers, which work fine on same conical horn anywhere from 250Hz to 1100Hz. It's easy to cross to the CD anywhere between 450Hz and 1100Hz. I've kinda settled in at 900Hz, which is certainly clearer than anything below 700Hz.

And yeah, I discount my own subjectivity... heavily ! Certainly expect others to do so too :)

Up until last July, i thought i had achieved sound about as good as i had heard anywhere. Then i was like WTF, listen to what the small mids have added, and raising the CD xover
If i still didn't have that opinion 6 months later, i wouldn't be subjecting folks to my impressions. But ...subjective it is... I haven't found any measurement that can distinguish between different xover points at all, including polars.
 
I haven't found any measurement that can distinguish between different xover points at all, including polars.

Seriously? Do you mean out of the limited sample size that you ran, or in general? Because I can point to dozens of examples on my website. The crossover point is clearly seen in the DI among other things. I'll give you that sometimes it's so bad that the exact frequency is hard to pinpoint but make no mistake it's obvious to find the range in which it lies.
 
Thanks cspieker, and thanks Earl,

MEH's.
I've used the same sized horn and pattern, with the CD crossing straight to various sized mid-woofers from 8" to 12". With xover frequencies ranging from 480Hz to 700Hz. These all sounded pretty much the same, all crossed to a sub at 100-120Hz.

Then last July, i added in four 4" mid drivers, which work fine on same conical horn anywhere from 250Hz to 1100Hz. It's easy to cross to the CD anywhere between 450Hz and 1100Hz. I've kinda settled in at 900Hz, which is certainly clearer than anything below 700Hz.

And yeah, I discount my own subjectivity... heavily ! Certainly expect others to do so too :)

Up until last July, i thought i had achieved sound about as good as i had heard anywhere. Then i was like WTF, listen to what the small mids have added, and raising the CD xover
If i still didn't have that opinion 6 months later, i wouldn't be subjecting folks to my impressions. But ...subjective it is... I haven't found any measurement that can distinguish between different xover points at all, including polars.
Concerning DI - What relationship does a MEH and it's respective drivers and crossover points have to do with a waveguide/horn and separate direct radiator? It seems like an apples/oranges discussion.
 
The argument is a little deeper than this idea of hearing one source.....
I doubt we are even talking about the same thing in the same language.

I think my current scenario is doing very good considering how big it is, how far apart the drivers are, no DSP help outside of some, little, eqing.....
Then all this thrashing around at least got you somewhere you like :)
 
And yeah, I discount my own subjectivity... heavily ! Certainly expect others to do so too :)
Don't discount it too heavily, I don't :)

Seriously? Do you mean out of the limited sample size that you ran, or in general?
Earl having read all of Mark's thread's on his builds I am certain he means within his own speakers he cannot find a measurement that explains his preference.
 
Then all this thrashing around at least got you somewhere you like
Yes I am happy so far. As I said, with the size of the system....listening at such a close proximity, the cracks are exposed...but as for making the best out of it...I think PPSL is the best I could do to get desired output into a package that would fit nicely under the midrange.

Right now I wonder how will this nuance affect how I decide to EQ....I've always wondered this actually. Yeah proper listening distance is the easy answer....but how to get such direct energy and headroom and bandwidth, into a package that sums as good as I am striving for o_O Its no wonder that so many people have landed at a large MTM. It seems to me that the Largest MTM you can make is a good route....I do have the drivers....but I am just talking.

If one were to create a large MTM with side firing subs, I think this is a good idea, even at the sacrifice of losing some sensitivity from the side mounted woofers. Maybe a Large Floor standing MTM with an Array of woofers down the side from top to bottom.