Small format cone driver in horn thread

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I've experimented with loading several small drivers in various tractrix horns. Works very well. The problem is directivity of HF response and lack thereoff in bigger drivers. You either go for "magic" mids, or amazing highs or just build additional horns for seperate drivers. I've had best results with loading a 30 cm x 30 cm square tractrix loaded with 1" alu driver, with highpass at cca 800-1000Hz.

Yes, its a trade off :)

Testing some smaller 2" CD horns now with a higher crossover point...
 

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My latest iteration of the batcave system is a cheap 2" driver loaded into a tractrix horn

I am getting useable response from 200hz to 16khz. Below is a 15" woofer in a U frame with response down to 35- 40hz in room. Subwoofer support is in progress

The clarity is exceptional especially in the lower midrange and upper bass. The sound is very accurate and clear on axis with the point source covering most of the audible range

Next ill try some 3.5"-4" drivers in a JBL conical midrange horn pictured below

Anyone else had success with this setup?

What's the sensitivity of this system?
 
Its triamped at the moment with eq boost to the subs. I will have to test the difference with and without the horn on the fullrange driver to see how much increase in sensitivity I am getting.

A quick measurement shown below. 30cm from horn mouth
 

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Few general questions
Do we feel that these small format cone drivers are sonically comparable or better than an entry level compression driver?
Do we feel it would be benificial to load a 2" or 3 " cone driver into a smaller throat to provide a bit of compression (would it be detrimental to the frequency response or distortion ?)?
Do we feel that some of these small cone drivers are easier to integrate with other drivers than a compression driver?
pretty situational based, but any general opinion appreciated
 
Few general questions
Do we feel that these small format cone drivers are sonically comparable or better than an entry level compression driver?
In general, a CD will have high efficiency over a wider bandwidth than a cone driver - so you need to measure and eq them to do a proper comparison. With that done, they sound fairly alike to me.

The cone driver might be happier with a low crossover. Not sure how distortion levels compare. Note that the CD might not like some 'entry level' electronics, since any hiss and noise will be >10dB louder.

See post four.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/multi-way/290092-tweeter-coaxial-mounting-midrange-horn.html

This was an 8-ohm cone vs a 16-ohm CD.
Same volume & eq settings.
They are comparable <1kHz.
The CD is about 15dB louder from 2-6kHz.

NOTE: this was a $50 cone driver vs a CD that cost $200 second hand, so the cone is doing well to be at all comperable.

Do we feel it would be benificial to load a 2" or 3 " cone driver into a smaller throat to provide a bit of compression (would it be detrimental to the frequency response or distortion ?)?
Yes, or more: the post I linked was a 4" driver on a 2" throat.

Ideally, you'd get fancy with phase plugs to extend the response. I found that just by introducing some asymmetry (a few bits of sticky foam), I could reduce the 4kHz notch (to about -3dB), so I could get decent response to 6kHz with either driver.

Do we feel that some of these small cone drivers are easier to integrate with other drivers than a compression driver?
pretty situational based, but any general opinion appreciated

Depends on the equipment (passive? DSP?) and the range you want to cover.

With the components I linked, 500Hz-2kHz would be about equally easy.

If using passive components, and trying for a 6kHz crossover, I'd say a CD would be much easier: the crossover for the cone driver would need a lot of parts, which would cost more than the driver. I personally find that anything more complicated than a 2nd order passive crossover is too much work.
 
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Few general questions
Do we feel that these small format cone drivers are sonically comparable or better than an entry level compression driver?
Do we feel it would be benificial to load a 2" or 3 " cone driver into a smaller throat to provide a bit of compression (would it be detrimental to the frequency response or distortion ?)?
Do we feel that some of these small cone drivers are easier to integrate with other drivers than a compression driver?
pretty situational based, but any general opinion appreciated

When a driver is mounted in a compression chamber it often causes frequency response dips at high frequencies due to unequal path lengths. If the transition is smoothed or damped it can help and bushmeister did a really excellent job in the transition from the SB driver to the XT1464 horn as the driver is bigger than the horn entry. Not so much an issue for a midrange horn as the crossover will take it out.

The transition from driver to horn whether it is a compression driver or cone will determine the impact on frequency response. Not all drivers are suited to every horn a reason why manufacturers often work hard to get a good combination.
 
Reminds me of this project i tried out.. probably the best horn sound i've managed so far, but the walls of them are too thin so the lower frequencies they cover aren't the best

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARZWYU9RsW4

Ive had success with using casting plaster powder mixed with wet paper slurry for damping. It goes on nice and thick and is less toxic than resin
 
They load my fullranger to 400hz. The driver is open ie no back chamber so response is kinda cardioid. The u frame 15" midbass takes over from there. Its a seamless combo.

Im done here folks. This does everything I need and is the best sound ive had in my room. Adios amigos :)

Ps augmenting the low end with a dual 18" FLH sub with EQ. Does the trick
 
Yea. The link / measurements I gave earlier are based on the same horn (from the same retailer).

They are great for the price. A bit lightweight, but that's easy to modify. I also enlarged my horns a bit.

A JBL 2386 horn would also be a good option - however I couldn't get them locally for a decent price.

yep, I got that link from you. Thanks

It sounds better than the VFM horn BTW
 
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