I believe Steve referred to it as a 'half-Zobel' by which he means a parallel RC network used for the purposes of EQ rather than impedance levelling.
Does that include the legendary System7 'half-Zobel' though!
EDIT: Darn - Scottmoose beat me too it!
Define your criteria, while remembering that ribbon tweeters, like every other type of drive unit without exception, are not all designed alike, nor are they created equal. At present your question is like saying 'are 6in woofers worth the money?' Or 'is this gilded bas-relief of a proboscis monkey worth the money?' And that's before you get to the question of implementation, since this is just as important as individual performance.
People at this forum are terrible for always wanting the best, but cheap too! 😕
How much do you want to spend? Me, I like cheap, but always try to play to the driver's strengths.
I have heard some super RAAL ribbons and Mundorf AMT planars. But I can't think of a single reason why it's a better technology than more spherical apertures.
UNLESS you are building an MTM. Then the dispersion of the ribbon tweeter and the midbasses is more matched and PA-like in projection. You know, cylindrical inverse-distance rather than spherical inverse-square on loudness.
I used to show a splendid Selah Audio ribbon MTM image at this point, but apparently this infringed some vague idea of copyright. Which was strange because I was always complimentary about it. Anyhoo, here's what I am talking about in this kit from Wagner.net in OZ. Good on yer, mates. 😀
How much do you want to spend? Me, I like cheap, but always try to play to the driver's strengths.
I have heard some super RAAL ribbons and Mundorf AMT planars. But I can't think of a single reason why it's a better technology than more spherical apertures.
UNLESS you are building an MTM. Then the dispersion of the ribbon tweeter and the midbasses is more matched and PA-like in projection. You know, cylindrical inverse-distance rather than spherical inverse-square on loudness.
I used to show a splendid Selah Audio ribbon MTM image at this point, but apparently this infringed some vague idea of copyright. Which was strange because I was always complimentary about it. Anyhoo, here's what I am talking about in this kit from Wagner.net in OZ. Good on yer, mates. 😀
Attachments
My question probably could have been better phrased better, as to draw attention to a ribbon tweeters performance over that of dome tweeter. Considering what I’ve just read in The Art of Speaker Design, Part II. I thought it was a valid question.
Ha,well that would be useful for sure, but i am also interested in peoples thoughts on this controversial subject 😉
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So much has been written on the subject that there's little to add.
Here's some more reading for nigelb63:
The Pros and Cons of Ribbon Tweeters | NOVO Audio and Technology Magazine
Here's some more reading for nigelb63:
The Pros and Cons of Ribbon Tweeters | NOVO Audio and Technology Magazine
Much has been written on the designs available, however the vast majority are very similar in diaphragm design. In the future we should see advancements here that will improve on the limitations (as well as some others) mentioned in the Novo press article.
Biggest issue I see with most ribbons are their limited lower frequency performance/reliability for a given size, AND they are expensive to manufacture.
Generally the vast majority of the units available today need to be crossed over a bit high (above 3 KHz). This means they may not be a good match (dispersion wise) with some woofers or mids larger than about 5 inches.
Some have reverted to making a longer ribbon to go a little lower, however now you’re into enough vertical beaming to be an issue, AND although the longer versions can go lower it’s often only a little lower. Their diaphragm designs are still fragile and they have poor motional control at these frequencies.
We need a small ribbon capable of reliable performance down to about 1 kHz. Unfortunately that will probably never be “cheap”.
Biggest issue I see with most ribbons are their limited lower frequency performance/reliability for a given size, AND they are expensive to manufacture.
Generally the vast majority of the units available today need to be crossed over a bit high (above 3 KHz). This means they may not be a good match (dispersion wise) with some woofers or mids larger than about 5 inches.
Some have reverted to making a longer ribbon to go a little lower, however now you’re into enough vertical beaming to be an issue, AND although the longer versions can go lower it’s often only a little lower. Their diaphragm designs are still fragile and they have poor motional control at these frequencies.
We need a small ribbon capable of reliable performance down to about 1 kHz. Unfortunately that will probably never be “cheap”.
Here is a real world review of ribbon tweeters with a comparison to a modestly priced dome. While 10 years old, it has both good objective measurements as well as a useful subjective evaluation. In short, for most designs and most users, no, they aren’t worth the money.
< Zaph|Audio >
< Zaph|Audio >
The vast majority of manufacturers don't want to use metal dome drivers due to the warranty and in store problems with them. You can smash most soft dome tweeters until you are blue in the face and the speaker will sound exactly the same. 99% of the time this decision has nothing to do with perceived audio differences.
Yes Zaph has shown some measurements of some ribbons and in his opinion they are not great. Particularly in the distortion numbers.
Then comes along the ImulseAudio guy and we see a "ribbon" with distortion numbers on par with drivers Zaph would call very good.
There are ribbons and then there are ribbons. Most are just another..
Then comes along the ImulseAudio guy and we see a "ribbon" with distortion numbers on par with drivers Zaph would call very good.
There are ribbons and then there are ribbons. Most are just another..
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