I am working on a center channel design to blend with my Zu Audio Essence speakers, and would like to share my ideas to get some feedback from the forum. With all of the possibilities I would like to narrow it down and get to building and testing!
Drivers:
2x Satori MW16P-8 6" Mid woofers
1x Fountek NeoCd3.0M-blk 3" Ribbon Tweeter
Enclosure:
3/4" 12 ply birch plywood, sealed ~16L based on UniBox simulation, with felt lining with acousta stuf final amount to be determined based on measurements. 3/4 chamfer around baffle. External dimensions 17.5" wide, 9" high, 11" deep (I know this is closer to 18 l).
Driver alignment:
Horizontal MTM 5" CTC across all drivers, with tweeter above center axis of woofers in a high nested mounting location. I am open to other alignments and have also been thinking about a 3-way design with the Satori MD60N-6 2.5" Textile Dome Midrange.
Next steps:
I plan to build the enclosure soon, then measure to see where I am at.
One goal is to have decent dispersion.
I am planning the crossover ideas, and would like some feedback on some of the ideas:
1. 2.5 way vs 2-way.
I have been thinking about a 2.5 way design to help avoid some of the issues with a horizontal MTM. However 2-way crossed over around 2500 seems simpler. I have been modeling these ideas in the Jeff B spreadsheet.
2. Super simple crossover vs. higher orders.
Since the Zu 10" woofer runs full range and the ribbon only uses a single 1 mf cap, my first thought was to run this center channel in a similar way, but I have become concerned about this design in terms of various cancellations / combing / lobing etc.
I next started to model a 2.5 way design following the tweeter manufacturer cross over recommendation of 3rd order @ 2500hz, with one woofer as 2nd order @2500 hz with the other woofer at a frequency of 1875 hz or lower. I have read that mixing the crossovers on an MTM as 3rd order tweeter / 2nd order woofer can be good for dispersion though not sure this applies to a horizontal MTM.
Finally a straight up two way crossover 2nd or 3rd order for tweeter and 1st or second order for woofers at around 2500-2700 hz.
I would like the crossover to be minimal, however appropriate. The models suggest calming the tweeter with an l-pad.
As for the crossover software, how much can it be relied upon and how important are the phase and impedance curves? Phase slopes should slope evenly across response? Use Zobel to tame impedances, what is too high for impedance across response?
Any thoughts, experiences, or feedback on this design or similar designs?
Thanks!
Chris
Drivers:
2x Satori MW16P-8 6" Mid woofers
1x Fountek NeoCd3.0M-blk 3" Ribbon Tweeter
Enclosure:
3/4" 12 ply birch plywood, sealed ~16L based on UniBox simulation, with felt lining with acousta stuf final amount to be determined based on measurements. 3/4 chamfer around baffle. External dimensions 17.5" wide, 9" high, 11" deep (I know this is closer to 18 l).
Driver alignment:
Horizontal MTM 5" CTC across all drivers, with tweeter above center axis of woofers in a high nested mounting location. I am open to other alignments and have also been thinking about a 3-way design with the Satori MD60N-6 2.5" Textile Dome Midrange.
Next steps:
I plan to build the enclosure soon, then measure to see where I am at.
One goal is to have decent dispersion.
I am planning the crossover ideas, and would like some feedback on some of the ideas:
1. 2.5 way vs 2-way.
I have been thinking about a 2.5 way design to help avoid some of the issues with a horizontal MTM. However 2-way crossed over around 2500 seems simpler. I have been modeling these ideas in the Jeff B spreadsheet.
2. Super simple crossover vs. higher orders.
Since the Zu 10" woofer runs full range and the ribbon only uses a single 1 mf cap, my first thought was to run this center channel in a similar way, but I have become concerned about this design in terms of various cancellations / combing / lobing etc.
I next started to model a 2.5 way design following the tweeter manufacturer cross over recommendation of 3rd order @ 2500hz, with one woofer as 2nd order @2500 hz with the other woofer at a frequency of 1875 hz or lower. I have read that mixing the crossovers on an MTM as 3rd order tweeter / 2nd order woofer can be good for dispersion though not sure this applies to a horizontal MTM.
Finally a straight up two way crossover 2nd or 3rd order for tweeter and 1st or second order for woofers at around 2500-2700 hz.
I would like the crossover to be minimal, however appropriate. The models suggest calming the tweeter with an l-pad.
As for the crossover software, how much can it be relied upon and how important are the phase and impedance curves? Phase slopes should slope evenly across response? Use Zobel to tame impedances, what is too high for impedance across response?
Any thoughts, experiences, or feedback on this design or similar designs?
Thanks!
Chris