Your Ikon Audio speakers are sold from Quebec, a plus. Manufactured location not listed. They are 5 db less sensitive than SP2's current production and 7 db less sensitive than the SP2-XT. There is no +- db spec on their frequency response. There is no plot of frequency response, impedence vs frequency, polar sound level versus frequency, or harmonic distortion vs frequency in the manual (I downloaded the pdf file) There is no minimum or maximum impedence listed in the manual. They probably have at least 2 crossover networks, and maybe three. After reading posts on the speaker threads of diy, I feel guilty for having one crossover in the SP2's, although if I were a purist the SP2's are bi -ampable and I could install the crossover before the amp (4 amps channels required). Admittedly I backed into all these numbers, I bought the Peavey's because they sounded good. The numbers give me a reason to believe. Similar horn+big woofer speakers are available from JBL, Mackey, American Audio, others, it is a classic design going back to the Western Electric experiments. All should be available at shops catering to musicians and bars, but you don't have to drive them at 126 db. Mine sound fine about 80 db. Harmonic distortion actually increases at 10W vs 1 W on the SP2, they have it plotted out. I have mine on pole stands above and behind the piano at the end of a long room, works well in living room, dining room, and into the straight shot kitchen 35' away. I can still hear some highs with the tweeters above the furniture. .
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It sounds nice. Invisible movements of cones produce loud and clean sound. Stereo in a wide area due to directivity pattern, like in case of real planars.
No, for bass I use woofers in concrete horn (40-100 Hz) and concrete horn under floor for below 40 Hz.
However, if to go with EQ it is possible to drive it way below 100 Hz since a fraction of max power is used. I did that once in restaurant where we had a private party in a separate room, the whole restaurant staff served us, and even their manager asked, "Where I can buy such a system?" I honestly said, it is a prototype yet, not for sale. I should sell it then!!! 😡
This speaker have unusual construction: glued by epoxy thin walls of Pergo, and the entire box is molded from inside using a mix of sand, wooden filings, and some goofy compound.
Edit: yesterday I tortured one by mistake: 56V of DC during several seconds. Some smell appeared, but no change in sound quality.
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wavebourne multihorn
On Wavebourn's speaker I like the burlap screen in the wood frame. Without, looks like someone left the horn machine on "auto" and went out to lunch. Alecu7, that goes for you, if you don't like something black and technical lurking at the top of your living room, cover the room end with a tapestry or burlap screen. I saw a nice tapestry of unicorns and medieval ladies in Paris, your kid might like that. For JBL 2 way 15"+ horn 98db spl 8 ohm look at http://www.jblpro.com/catalog/general/Product.aspx?PId=51&MId=3
On Wavebourn's speaker I like the burlap screen in the wood frame. Without, looks like someone left the horn machine on "auto" and went out to lunch. Alecu7, that goes for you, if you don't like something black and technical lurking at the top of your living room, cover the room end with a tapestry or burlap screen. I saw a nice tapestry of unicorns and medieval ladies in Paris, your kid might like that. For JBL 2 way 15"+ horn 98db spl 8 ohm look at http://www.jblpro.com/catalog/general/Product.aspx?PId=51&MId=3
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show your testing numbers please
One quibble, the JBL's quote 20000 Hz and the Peavey's quote 16000 top frequency, doesn't matter much to me as my ears were shot away above 15000 hz. I was much more golden eared before summer camp 1969.
So anyway, stop by your music supply with a piano CD and see what you think. Just because PA speakers will produce 126 db doesn't mean they can't sound good at 1 watt input, in my opinion.
I prefer the complete spec here http://www.peavey.com/assets/literature/manuals/sp2_specs.pdf but due to weight they may not be shipping into alecu7's market. That is a comparable JBL product that guys are discussing on speaker thread ("why does JBL use titanium drivers?") that is not demonstrated here. You will notice in that Peavey manual, polar response plots, impedance vs frequency plots, harmonic distortion plots at 1 and 10 watt, actual tolerance of frequency spec numbers. They also sound good in the store. The radians, the Ikon's visited by alecu7 don't even say what +- db they mean on their quoted frequency. I suspect ikon means +-10db with their impressive freq response spec, but who knows. The "hifi" industry has dived off a cliff in my region, they demo in a big high ceiling warehouse with diagonal shelves, who knows what their stuff sounds like even if they are better than the spec? I find everybody's bass a little wimpy in 2 speaker systems, even Gedlee, unless they have 15" woofers, or active feedback like my old LWE III's. Alecu7 has a 2 channel amp, which puts him in the market (if he likes piano like me, or even rock) for a full frequency speaker. I suspect most peoples separate subwoofers may have the same time alignment problem as the klipshorn, until you prove me wrong.
One quibble, the JBL's quote 20000 Hz and the Peavey's quote 16000 top frequency, doesn't matter much to me as my ears were shot away above 15000 hz. I was much more golden eared before summer camp 1969.
So anyway, stop by your music supply with a piano CD and see what you think. Just because PA speakers will produce 126 db doesn't mean they can't sound good at 1 watt input, in my opinion.
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Yes, unicorns and medieval ladies is what Maria likes. Lions too.
The Musée de Cluny: from Roman baths to the Lady of the Unicorn
The more I read about speakers and speaker systems the more confused I get. So I'll keep reading, maybe one day I'll know everything about nothing.
I have a sound generator and I'be used the other day. I can only hear between 40Hz and 15500Hz so all of the sudden 20-20k doesn't sound appealing to me. (pun intended).
Maybe after so much search and research I'll end up buying the smallest speakers: the headphones 🙂.
Still searching...
Off topic, but Musee de Cluny was our first stop in Paris. The line to buy the museum pass was 2 people long. The unicorns & ladies were nice; the baths kind of reminded me of an abandoned junior high gym. Then the museum pass got us past a 4 block line of bus riders at Versailles, walked right in, you're next, sir! Yea, guidebook!
In my opinion 40-16000 is fine, especially if it is +-3db response, not 10 db, not "production tolerance implicit" as Ra*** Sh**** products used to use. (Their numbers were good but their stuff sounded bad to me, back when RS used to demo sound products in the store). 40 Hz lows plus good time alignment mean the bass drum on ZZ Top "Afterburner" sounds good and flat, not boomy, also the drum parts of 1972 Scottish Tattoo, my best drum record to date. So much of modern reflex bass is boomy, not tight, also those tubes they use in cars. High frequency plus low distortion at high frequency means that the top notes of Serkin's LvBeeth Sonata Steinway, and the Steinway on Peter Nero "Warm & Wonderful" albums, sound proper without hissing or making the "SSHH" sound. High distortion speakers will also sound funny on the hard piano hits of Beethoven Moonlight Sonata movement 3. I play that piece, more slowly than Serkin, and use my little Steinway as a sound calibrator.
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I got me speakers. Yeah!
I didn't finish my amplifier but I got my speakers. There are Klipsch KG4. From the reviews they look like there are a very good match for tube amifiers.
Any comments from the specialists here?
I didn't finish my amplifier but I got my speakers. There are Klipsch KG4. From the reviews they look like there are a very good match for tube amifiers.
Any comments from the specialists here?
Glad you found something you like. I think any 2 way woofer + horn treble design has possiblities of being good, even if they use two 8" woofers instead of one 12". 38 -20000 hz 3 db points sounds impressive. 100 watts maximum power handling will not be a problem with a tube amp with a single output pair per channel. 94 db spl is okay. Stopped production in 1992, I hope you got a bargain. Be sure to set up high enough that the horns are above the furniture and have a straight shot at your ears. Around 2012 you may want to ask someone if they have electrolytic capacitors in the crossover- these are only good for about 20 years before starting to dry up and change value. Cheap to replace, but reaching them may be iffy. Enjoy listening to your handiwork.
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This is the spec I have from the seller:
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 38Hz-20kHz(+-)3dB
POWER HANDLING: 100 watts maximum continuous (500 watts peak)
SENSITIVITY: 94dB @ 1watt/1meter
NOMINAL IMPEDANCE: 4 ohms
TWEETER: K-74-K 1" (2.54cm) Phenolic dome compression driver
HIGH FREQUENCY HORN: 90(o)x40(o) Exponential Horn
WOOFER: Two K-8-K 8" (20.32cm) Poly ICG cone active / KD-12 12" (30.48cm) Fiber-composite cone passive
ENCLOSURE MATERIAL: Medium density fiberboard construction (MDF)
ENCLOSURE TYPE: Bass reflex via passive radiator
DIMENSIONS: 24.25" (61.6cm) x 15.75" (40cm) x 10.75" (27.3cm)
WEIGHT: 40 lbs. (18.2kg)
I don't quite understand how the 12" passive radiator works (probably in anti-phase with the woofer). They look almost mint. I paid US$ 150. I have tested yesterday and a little bit. The sound is cleaner and crisper than my paradigms.
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Peak SPL
Using a simple Excel spreadsheet program which calculates the peak sound pressure level at a your listening position the Monitor 7s at 94dB efficiency, powered by 10 watts/channel should give you a peak sound pressure level of 98 dB if you're 9 feet from the speakers. Not too bad.
Using a simple Excel spreadsheet program which calculates the peak sound pressure level at a your listening position the Monitor 7s at 94dB efficiency, powered by 10 watts/channel should give you a peak sound pressure level of 98 dB if you're 9 feet from the speakers. Not too bad.
Decent amp- build yourself a great pair of the TriTrx TL's (kit) from parts-express. Youre looking for very high sensitivity like you said, and you wont beat the Tritrix for half your $1k budget. I would not go with any full range speaker/enclosure. There is TONS of info on them and the kits cant be beat.
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