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Fostex FE208-SOL

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FE208-SOL apparently this is a new driver been released to the US ?. Has anybody tested these drivers or have build a cabinet specifically designed for this Fostex driver.
I originally built the BK–20 cabinet with the FE206En driver this was to accommodate my newly purchased ACA 1.1 version PCB that only produced 4 watts. I preformed the 1.5 mods on the 1.1 version plus added 24 V to increase the wattage output a few months ago. I just recently purchased and assembled the ACA version 1.6 duel mono blocks. I was thinking of upgrading the driver for this monster 80 pound backloaded horn cabinet I constructed. With this Fostex FE208-SOL be a good upgrade replacement for this particular cabinet?. My plans are to build another amp for a dedicated pair of subs. I was also thinking of adding a tweeter or a super tweeter where those people listening to my system who can hear above 15, kHz I myself cannot hear anything above 15 kHz I’m stoned deaf after that. Building a third amplifier just for the tweeter. When I was at the 2018 Burning AMP the Lx mini active crossover caught my attention and I believe I would like to play with the system like this.
Any opinions would be much appreciated because crossovers and speaker, combinations are a whole new ballgame and new to me. From my readings in this form this sounds like a good question that could be answered by one of the gurus I’ve read through Planet-10 website.
 
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frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
I wasn’t aware of the 208-sol till today. The Sol series seems to be superb in my experience (have had/seen FE103/FE83 versions).

If i were you i would look at a better horn 1st. The BK20 is a “before proper middling” horn designed for many generations ago FE206s., and as such is middling quantity.

Have a look at the Dallas2, Kirishima or Vulcan. Be really nice to hear a pair in Vulcan.

Madisound sells these for $350USD each.

If you want a pair of these jump, they won’t last long.

dave
 
Vulcan sounds like a winner , Thanks Dave Planet10

I wasn’t aware of the 208-sol till today. The Sol series seems to be superb in my experience (have had/seen FE103/FE83 versions).

If i were you i would look at a better horn 1st. The BK20 is a “before proper middling” horn designed for many generations ago FE206s., and as such is middling quantity.

Have a look at the Dallas2, Kirishima or Vulcan. Be really nice to hear a pair in Vulcan.

Madisound sells these for $350USD each.

If you want a pair of these jump, they won’t last long.

Thank you Dave I knew you would be the one to answer this question and the one that I would trust the opinion of . Are the Gerber files available for the Vulcan . I have access to C&C machine specifically for woodworking on large plywood all I have to do is bring down the wood and cut them out. It does not have to be just Gerber files if I remember correctly the C&C machine they have available except for different other formats. If not then I will have to order them from Madisound.
 
I wasn’t aware of the 208-sol till today. The Sol series seems to be superb in my experience (have had/seen FE103/FE83 versions).

If i were you i would look at a better horn 1st. The BK20 is a “before proper middling” horn designed for many generations ago FE206s., and as such is middling quantity.

Have a look at the Dallas2, Kirishima or Vulcan. Be really nice to hear a pair in Vulcan.

Madisound sells these for $350USD each.

If you want a pair of these jump, they won’t last long.

dave


Hey Dave....

Do you think there will ever be a frugal horn XXL for this and other 8” fullrangers?

Love the XL for my FE163 ENS.

Thanks
Clint
 
frugal-phile™
Joined 2001
Paid Member
Do you think there will ever be a frugal horn XXL for this and other 8” fullrangers?

There has been enuff demand that Scott is now looking at a FH-like bo for A12p and A12pw. It will not be the same FH alignment, because that would make the boxes too BIG and the drivers firing over your head.

At the moment a bugger FH is either Vulcan or Avebury.

dave
 
At the moment a bugger FH is either Vulcan or Avebury.

dave

Hopefully, Scott will come up with a design like the FH series that has a great WAF. It is understandable that additional horn length is necessary to take advantage of the potential volume at the lower frequencies.

The Vulcan and Avebury’s imposing height is a no go in this household. The realities of having a spouse...

I may have to build the fostex box for the time being... it will be a waste of wood though since they will likely not compare well with the FH concept.
 
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BHD

diyAudio Member
Joined 2004
Hey Dave,

Any thoughts on the FE208-SOL vs. the FE206ES-R? The spec numbers show the ES-R as slightly more efficient than the SOL but the graphs sorta show otherwise.

I've been using my FE206ES-R's in my Sachikos for years but would love to find a better driver. Are you still making phase plugs?
 

BHD

diyAudio Member
Joined 2004
Hey Dave,

Would these work in the Dallas 2 horn? I'd love to put them into a pair of Vulcan enclosures but they'll be going into a fairly small room so unless they'd work in a room like that I'm looking at putting them in a single horn. It looks like they'd *just* fit.
 
Vulcan and the FE208-sol

I got the second to last pair. In case this would be useful to anyone, I asked Scott about using the FE208-SOL in the Vulcan enclosures. This was his helpful reply:

Hello Joshua,

As it happens you're the second person to ask this in a few days. Short
answer is yes, acoustically speaking they should go straight into
Vulcan, although I'd shift the rear panel of the low-pass chamber back
slightly to compensate for the volume taken up by the increased magnet
size. Optimally loaded output should be solid to 40Hz with an F10 around
30Hz. Frankly, that's about as far as I'd go with a chambered back-horn;
you can go lower with one but it comes at the price of increased size
and GD, and potentially reduced linearity.

In design terms there are no ports in either Vulcan or Kirishima
-strictly speaking they have horn termini. The former is a rather more
advanced design specifically designed for boundary loading to lower the
frequency to which it's impedance matched and create both a more
efficient and linear load -it has a better-defined upper corner
frequency (acoustic low pass filter) reducing GD in the lower midband.
As such they're meant to be placed in relatively close proximity to the
front wall (and if corners are available, that's theoretically the
ideal), although like all loudspeakers the optimum position for them
will need to be established the old-fashioned way, i.e. trying it out as
only the broader aspects can be roughly predicted in advance with
reasonable accuracy; room construction materials, furnishings, exact
position, rest of system's electrical behaviour and personal taste all
come into this.
 
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