Hi, I order 2 of these speakers ,I read very good reviews for them ,and now I want to choose the best enclosures for them. What is the most appropriate construction closed box ,ported box,tl ,ob or horn ,what is the best enclosure .Which is the best box of which I will get maximum low frequencies with low times of group delays and at the same time preserve beautiful mid and high frequencies. Mostly listening to vocal jazz and pop.
Thanks
Thanks
To get the best out of these drivers, I'd suggest that you go the WAW (woofer-assisted wide-range??) route. This way you can maximize the low frequencies while preserving the mid and high. That's how I use my W5 drivers. Right now they are in relatively small boxes sitting on separate bass modules, actively crossed over around 200Hz. The boxes have "seriously" rounded corners, which I think make a big difference. On some Jazz and Flamenco CD tracks, I actually prefer this system to my big horn system, as the instruments and human voices are more palpable.
If you use helper woofers for the bass duty, whether the W5s are to be put in sealed boxes or (wide) OBs will depend on your taste. If you have the space for an OB setup, definitely give it a try.
Kurt
If you use helper woofers for the bass duty, whether the W5s are to be put in sealed boxes or (wide) OBs will depend on your taste. If you have the space for an OB setup, definitely give it a try.
Kurt
Last edited:
Nasko,
I certainly support what Kurt is suggesting...a Woofer assist or possibly a small sub assisting to fill in the low end does aid in becoming "immersed" in the music.. at least for me. A small sub can be placed under a desk or out of the way in a corner.
Kurt,
What are the dimmensions of your enclosures? ...and they are sealed?
I certainly support what Kurt is suggesting...a Woofer assist or possibly a small sub assisting to fill in the low end does aid in becoming "immersed" in the music.. at least for me. A small sub can be placed under a desk or out of the way in a corner.
Kurt,
What are the dimmensions of your enclosures? ...and they are sealed?
Having built the mini-ks, if the 2143 sound anything like, but with more authority, then it might be the best enclosure for it.
Here's a working link for it.
XKi - X's ab initio Karlson 6th Order Bandpass
Here's a working link for it.
XKi - X's ab initio Karlson 6th Order Bandpass
The boxes are not optimized for the W5 drivers. They are recycled from a pair of cheap coaxial speakers I bought at Best Buy years ago. They are about 8.5" wide at the front baffle, 13.5" high, and 10" deep, with a trapezoidal horizontal cross section that is tapered to 2" at the back. I don't know the exact internal volume of each box, but based on my quick estimate it is close to 7 liters. The boxes are ported, and at this point the ports are not plugged. I initially used these boxes just to get a quick impression of the sound of the W5 drivers. Since the W5s on these boxes sounded pretty good in the WAW arrangement, I just left them alone.
I added half-round edges (made of cardboard) with a 2" radius on the top and two sides. Adding the half-round edges increases the effective front baffle width to around 12".
Kurt
Interesting thread. I've been pondering about these drivers for a long time now. Good reviews but very little info on proven enclosures for this driver. I am also interested in the options of using this driver in a WAW setup.
Kurt, what kind of bass modules are you using? Any links to specific builds or more details please?
A picture is worth a 1000 words --
The bass modules are from a high-end kit I built >20 years ago. They are 10"Wx17"Dx30"H, each having two 8" woofers, in an aperiodic alignment (a slot in the back).
By the way, you can see one of my horn speakers (Speakerlab K) in the picture.
Kurt
Attachments
You haven't seen my old OB system using four 18" woofers and a 75" line source on each side. I had to dismantle that system when I moved from Chicago to California. Based on memory, that big OB system is still the best, most satisfying, speaker system I've put together (note the qualifier). The bass modules used in the W5 system now actually came with the line sources as a kit.
Well, no intention to highjack this thread from the OP. Going back to my original point, when assisting woofers are used, it does not really matter in my view whether the W5 is in a box (or what kind of box) or on a board, as long as the diffraction (or baffle step loss) issue is addressed.
Kurt
Apparently the XKis and mini Karlsonators are different animals, although they look similar due to the aperture. I prefer the dimensions of the mini Karlsonators, but cannot comment on the difference in sound between the two enclosures (for the same driver).
Unfortunately the W5-2143 was never simmed for the XKi enclosure, however X built a foam core XKi with the W5-2143 driver - and he loves the sound. There are even sound clips of this build on that thread. He had plans to do the XKis in plywood, but something went wrong and it never happened. X is a busy man.
W5-2143 can also work in the mini Karlsonator. Here is the sim:
Mini Karlsonator (0.53X) with Dual TC9FD's
Does not look like there are any mini K builds with this driver. I might be the first when I get my hands on these drivers one day.
I have been using the 2143's for a year now in sealed 0.2 cubic foot boxes. I run them in a WAW arrangement. The Creative Sound Solutions 7 inch woofer is run in a 0.75 foot box ported to around 30Hz. I use an active Xover to contain the 2143's to 300Hz and up. The bass boxes (acting as speaker stands) handle below 300Hz.
Attachments
Interesting setup. I like the idea of using the bass boxes as stands for the FR.
I am a newbie here gathering info on WAW options. From what I've read, it is said for a FAST, the distance between the FR driver and the Woofer must be less than 1/4 of the wavelength of the XO frequency. I am just wondering if you would get better results if you turn both the FR and Bass boxes upside down (rotate 180 degrees) so that the two drivers are close to each other? Might be an interesting test mcgsxr.
I was going to say the same thing. +1
Nice looking boxes though.
Btw, I recently bought a COTS HT style 10in sub in a nice looking (Polk PSW10) 1 cu ft cube with built in amp and xo for about $100. It made me think of them as stands and woofer below 140Hz. You could go OB even with the 2143. It’s a big woofer so can handle the 140Hz XO just fine. Anyhow a cheap and easy FAST or WAW using HT box subs.
mcgsxr's setup is very similar to mine, but much prettier.
In his setup, my guesstimate is that the null at 300Hz is at bout 54 degrees from horizontal. Not sure how a null in that direction would affect the overall sound, but I doubt that it would render a good integration of the driver outputs on the listening axis unobtainable.
Also, placing the woofer close to the floor has the benefit of avoiding or mitigating a null caused by floor bounce. Moving the woofer up to get it closer to the W5 might actually make the bass worse.
Just trying to "rationalize" my (and mcgsxr's) way of doing the WAW.
In his setup, my guesstimate is that the null at 300Hz is at bout 54 degrees from horizontal. Not sure how a null in that direction would affect the overall sound, but I doubt that it would render a good integration of the driver outputs on the listening axis unobtainable.
Also, placing the woofer close to the floor has the benefit of avoiding or mitigating a null caused by floor bounce. Moving the woofer up to get it closer to the W5 might actually make the bass worse.
Just trying to "rationalize" my (and mcgsxr's) way of doing the WAW.
I take note X, but this is a diy forum.
There seems to be a few WAW threads currently around woofer options. Please come to the rescue and give us some nice WAW woofer builds!
To be tested...
My 8" 1772 OB barely reach 200Hz before dropping. Baffle is about 50cm (20") and driver is off center.
They are most happy with a XO between 300 and 450Hz.