What's With the Ring Radiator Tweeter?


I see the new and somewhat new Sonus Fabers using ring radiators along with some other companies (I think Onix does, too). What is this tweeter and why Sonus is going with it? I think I read in a thread here somewhere that the radiator is a little sterile sounding. I only heard it on the Sonus Cremona stand mount and (with all Linn equipment) it did sound kind of peaky, like maybe too much info being too prominent.
tomryan

Showing 1 response by perfectionist

Von Schweikert also uses it. From their website...

Due to new developments in transducer design, VSA has announced a highly improved version of their classic VR-4 Gen III model. The new Special Edition model utilizes a new dual-ring radiator, an extraordinary breakthrough in tweeter technology from Denmark. This new "dual-ring" design eliminates the tradeoff between low mass and rigidity, i.e., the problematical diaphragm flex causing distortion. This new tweeter operates from 500Hz to 40,000 cycles per second, with negligible distortion. In fact, it sounds more like a ribbon than a dome tweeter, but power handling and dispersion characteristics are state-of-the-art, correcting the problems found in flimsy ribbons. Although it is trite to say that this new tweeter will allow you to hear things in your recordings that you have never noticed, that is the only way to properly describe the sensation of hearing the Special Edition for the first time! Clarity is achieved not by excess treble energy or amplification of harmonics, but by dramatic reduction in distortion and phase shift.