Terry Cain's BIB -why does it work and does anyone have those Fostex Craft Handbooks?

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#2,602
I would try the Hemp first. Its sound will be the hardest to ignore. With a small amount of cone tweaking the hemp's TONE will make it hard for you to "get off the pipe," so to speak. This weekend I built a BIB for the FF165K. I immediately preferred it to the FE168EZ. Right away. Audio alchemy here. Instant beauteous sound, and the driver wants MORE MORE MORE. Forget that puny Xmax on its spex table, it is irrelevant. This thing puts out, and one of them completely filled my garage with fantastic sound. At least that was my impression, after drinking three bottles of Piesporter while building them...

Hemp - 8" BIB
Fostex 165 - 6.5
Fostex FX120 - 4.5

Do this and you will have speakers to be happy with, far more return than you might think.
 
#2,603
dmason said:
This weekend I built a BIB for the FF165K. I immediately preferred it to the FE168EZ.
Click to expand...

What's up with the Sig's these days? Folks prefering the FF165 to the old and new 168's, a bunch of folks prefering the fe126e to the 108: are they Sigma's all show and no go? I know the later prefence among the horn shop crowd may actually be a preference for too small a chamber, but still. I suppose it's good news for all of us that the affordable drivers are winners.

Resident, I'm pulling for the Hemp, as will come as a surprise to no one. However, room size, available space and intended amplification may make the determination (probably no Hemp BIB's in a studio, FX120 wouldn't be a good match for a little amp, big room, or both).

Build the biggest thing you can.


good luck,

pj
 
#2,605
Bigger is Better. Although it helps if they fit in your room. 😀

I don't think the Sigmas are all show, but they probably only give of their best when loaded in more complicated cabinets. They're still spectacular units. Never thought I'd hear Dan say he'd found something better though for a similar sized BIB. Not that I'm entirely surprised -I've been saying for the best part of two years the 165 works rather well in these pipe-horns.

Yes, Sl will remain the same for a taller version, but you'll need to adjust Zdriver to 33.75in.
 
#2,606
Scottmoose said:
Bigger is Better. Although it helps if they fit in your room. 😀
Click to expand...
That's my main problem!
My room is 10'x25' and the speakers will be placed at the 10' side. With 20" or 30" depth the speakers will be too close!
My 2-way speakers now are about 6.5ft and I thing they're too close! I don't want to place the new ones closer!
Maybe I'll go with 6.5" drivers. 🙄
I like those Hemps though 🙁
 
#2,607
Resident

If you have that kind of real estate, I would head directly for the wideload Monolith Hemps. No questions. No prisoners, either. This would result in a Serious Music Maker. The hemp TONE is absolutely addictive.

For V.2 real HempTone (tm) drivers, www.abrown.com these are the Tone Tubby's, and Charlie has stock on hand. Now that the Sonoma harvest is in.:clown:
 
#2,608
Just thought I'd comment on the Sigmas. I had the 168s for quite some time and really liked them. However, I'd liken them to a good port wine as opposed to a craft brewed hoppy ale.

They are good, very good. And very smooth. But in my opinion, they don't have the snappiness of some of the other drivers. Great for Jazz and such, as they do horns very well. A good stand up bass will tickle your fancy.

But even with acoustic music, I find that there are better options. When one really strikes the guitar strings on an acoustic guitar, you should feel the sharpness and emotion that's rolled off just a little with the Sigmas. They lean a touch on the warmer side of things.

Again, fantastic drivers. But it depends on the flavor you desire.
 
#2,610
>>> having said that, it would seem that the overall BIB champ is the Fostex FF165K.

I haven’t heard every driver but I do like the FF165k (I fixed the typo on Zillaspeak). It’s less excitable than the 127e, more detailed than the Pioneer B20, more real sounding than the TB Bamboo and more balanced than the more expensive 168 Sigma (old style with wizzer). I prefer all the above to the old Vifa’s, Dynaudio, and Eton’s of my past.

The 165k doesn’t look like much at all, just a simple driver in a simple basket with a simple surround and a modest magnet. It looks cheap too from the front (the 168S and TB Bamboo look much more hi tech). But the sound is what counts and it certainly delivers! When I bought it I didn’t expect it to be better than the excellent 168S but in many ways it is – especially in overall balance of sound. It isn’t perfect but it provides a lot of what we all are looking for in a wide range driver.

http://www.zillaspeak.com/bib-godzillabib.asp

Peace,
Godzilla
 
#2,613
dmason said:
Resident

If you have that kind of real estate, I would head directly for the wideload Monolith Hemps. No questions. No prisoners, either. This would result in a Serious Music Maker. The hemp TONE is absolutely addictive.

For V.2 real HempTone (tm) drivers, www.abrown.com these are the Tone Tubby's, and Charlie has stock on hand. Now that the Sonoma harvest is in.:clown:
Click to expand...
Hey, my problem is room and you suggest me the Monolith?
Please don't play with my pain 😀
If I'll place a 72"x8"x32" cabinet (as Scottmoose built it) in my listening room.............. :hot:
May I use Hemp drivers in an other "smaller" design? Any suggestions?
Hope the Tone Tubby needs a smaller BIB.....
ok bigger is better! What do you suggest me to do?!
Please help................................................
 
#2,614
Accept that you can't fit the hempsters in the room. OK, you want an 8in driver? Go with the FE207E. Much more manageable footprint. If they're a bit tall for you (the driver especially is up rather high at 52in from the floor) then reduce height to 74in to give a ~146in line, use a Zdriver of 30in and you'll be away. Won't go quite as low as the full-length versions (probably loose about 5Hz of the bottom end) but they'll work well and still give a solid 30Hz, which is enough to be going on with.

If that's still to big for your taste, just use the regular 165 dims.
 
#2,615
Whew ... 262 pages. I read most of it. I ordered my 168EZ's. Have my measurements all figured out. Have a source for 4x8 Baltic Birch. This will take me some time as I will have to attack it as time allows.

Thanks for this thread. All the info is there for a newbie like myself to feel confident in a first time build. I will keep you updated.
 
#2,618
BIB tweaks

A while back the discussion on the BIB tunred to how to tame
the loss of mids coming out of the mouth in my BIB for FE127e.

GM suggested (or I interpreted his suggestion) that a fiber
'pennant' be suspended down the mouth. A pennant shape is the
width of the horn mouth and tapers down the length of the
internal divider.

I actually tried this with good success.

The pennant of foam carpet pad is attached to wood stick a little wider
than the mouth. The stick is suspened over the mouth and the
pennant hangs down the center. The stick can be turned to get different effects toward the diagonal corners or straight across.

I removed the pillow fill squares which I had around the mouth
to keep from getting boominess. With the proper material for
the pennant, this may improve further. I notice no boominess or
muddiness any longer (less anyway) when compared with the
MLTL for the FE127e.

My goal in all this is to get flat and low response with no muddiness
from the driver in the vocal range. A/B tests make these things in the BIB quite obvious.
 
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