Well so far I don't think he's had anything uncomplimentary to say about the MA drivers, and it is possible to simultaneously like more than one brand / flavor for different reasons / applications.
I've heard quite a few Fostex over the years, including some on which I would concur with strongly worded criticisms. Of the few TB drivers I have personally heard, I could probably live with the sonics of the W8-1772 and one of the little guys ( W4 1879?). It's probably not controversial to opine that the price reflected by use of the array of neodymium magnet slugs in those two could tilt their "bang for buck" calculus. Then again, I'm not yet convinced that neos offer any distinct performance advantage over pedestrian ceramic materials, certainly in this class of driver.
I've heard quite a few Fostex over the years, including some on which I would concur with strongly worded criticisms. Of the few TB drivers I have personally heard, I could probably live with the sonics of the W8-1772 and one of the little guys ( W4 1879?). It's probably not controversial to opine that the price reflected by use of the array of neodymium magnet slugs in those two could tilt their "bang for buck" calculus. Then again, I'm not yet convinced that neos offer any distinct performance advantage over pedestrian ceramic materials, certainly in this class of driver.
Some thoughts about Frugals:
Rear loading have limitations, there is a response dip in the upper bass, front and rear waves meet @180 degrees out of phase.
The limited displacement of the driver. So there is not much low frequency output capability. Size is also a problem cos the Frugals are too small to go either low or loud.
Maybe I should go for a FAST system. Tang Band W4-655 as fullrange and Dayton PS-220 fullranger for the bass - it goes deep, it is very fast and articulate.
Rear loading have limitations, there is a response dip in the upper bass, front and rear waves meet @180 degrees out of phase.
The limited displacement of the driver. So there is not much low frequency output capability. Size is also a problem cos the Frugals are too small to go either low or loud.
Maybe I should go for a FAST system. Tang Band W4-655 as fullrange and Dayton PS-220 fullranger for the bass - it goes deep, it is very fast and articulate.
If you want a good FAST, take a look at ScanSpeak 10F/8424 for full range (although a Vifa TG9FD-10-08 or Vifa TC9FD-18-08 can work almost as well for less $) and Dayton RS225-8 for bass. The PS220-8 is a whizzer full range and is too fragile of a cone to produce impactful bass, and really, not a woofer. The RS225-8 is one of the best 8in bass drivers available for price point and even 3x the price point. I built such a system detailed in this thread:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/full-range/273524-10f-8424-rs225-8-fast-ref-monitor.html
Use first order BW XO at 350Hz for phase-linear performance that sounds very nice.
Only if it is a poorly designed horn… one thing a horn designer needs to ensure is that at the cross-over point between the front of the driver and the horn the length of the horn (+ distance to the front plane) is an odd number of wavelengths long.
dave
OT and personally insulting posts removed. There are plenty of other places for stuff like that and this isn't one of them. Stick to the topic.
Next time will see points handed out.
I would have hoped this would have been sufficient but apparently it was not.
The forum IS NOT the place to argue this stuff out. That is between the parties concerned and should take place via email out of public view.
That might well better suit your needs / expectations - among the scores of enclosure types I've built, FASTs with a small fullrange operating anywhere from 250-330 up have worked very well. For maximum benefit, I'd be inclined towards purposely designed mid bass drivers for the bottom, rather than a widebander - but then the PS220 is not one with which I'm familiar.
I have used quite a few combinations of drivers (usually either Fostex FF85K / WK or Alpair 7.3 & 7Ps for the top end so far) and woofers ranging from single CSS SDX7 to duals / quads of SDX7, Peerless 830870, CSS EL166, SilverFlute W14, and most recently Alpair12PW.
Aside from the associated expense, and issue of dealing with XO - not my favorite thing to do, I'd far rather build enclosures - I think there's little to argue about this approach. What am I saying, DIYers are wont to that.
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yes, how big indeed? I've found the XLs to work quite well in rooms from 450ft^ 2 (my upstairs) to Dave's much larger room . If much larger than say 600ft^2, I'd be inclined to rolling in woofers around 100-120, and high passing the full rangers.
800 ft^2 but a big ceiling so about 250 m^3
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/blogs/planet10/493-fall-listening-space.html
dave
Once you have the plan-set pdf ($10 donation to diyAudio), email me with the page numbers you need and i'll send you dwg or dxfs.
dave
Here is the CNC boilerplate:
<bolilerplate>
DXF or DWG files are easily exported from the CAD software, native format is Vectorworks. I need to know the page of the PDF you need, and the version of DXF/DWG that can be handled. (i do have a collection of already exported)
It should be noted that a CNC is only really useful for the sides and the driver rebate. Unless the CNC is 5-axis, you will still need to pass all the internal pieces thru a table saw -- it is quicker & easier to just do them all on a table saw. You could rough cut the other pieces but they still need to go thru a table saw to angle the ends.
The drawings all assume a 5 mm kerf, so the CNC operator would need to adjust for the larger kerf needed for CNC work. You/they will need to adjust for actual wood thickness as well.
</bolilerplate>
dave
Here is the CNC boilerplate:
<bolilerplate>
DXF or DWG files are easily exported from the CAD software, native format is Vectorworks. I need to know the page of the PDF you need, and the version of DXF/DWG that can be handled. (i do have a collection of already exported)
It should be noted that a CNC is only really useful for the sides and the driver rebate. Unless the CNC is 5-axis, you will still need to pass all the internal pieces thru a table saw -- it is quicker & easier to just do them all on a table saw. You could rough cut the other pieces but they still need to go thru a table saw to angle the ends.
The drawings all assume a 5 mm kerf, so the CNC operator would need to adjust for the larger kerf needed for CNC work. You/they will need to adjust for actual wood thickness as well.
</bolilerplate>
email me a copy of the receipt and i'll get you the download URL (howmany times am i gonna have to say that
)dave