If you search the forums you will find lots of discussion on full range single driver speakers. |
Suggest you read about the Tannoy Definition DC8 which has an eight inch dual concentric driver and superb crossover. I prefer dual concentric to single driver. |
The best full range speakers can do some things really well, better than any other type, but what they do right is very limited, and the volume thay can do that is also limited. If the kind of music you listen to mostly is voices and small ensembles, maybe they could be enough for you, if you are into big orchestral music or Rock...Rap, they wont go there! jmho. |
A good full-range driver in a proper enclosure can certainly do much better than 80 db, and can sound very alive, fast and dynamic. But, as with everything in audio, there are tradeoffs, particularly in the way of a lack of bass extension and a somewhat prominent midrange that colors the sound. However, the downside can be surprisingly mitigated in really good designs. I have heard Feastrix full range drivers that sounded quite good in properly designed enclosures--check out Volti Audio's Feastrix driver speaker, as an example of a well implemented single driver system.
There are some nice speakers that are much cheaper that use the Taiwanese Tangband full range drivers. These are worth looking into as well.
Also, some systems use full range drivers to only cover part of the frequency spectrum. There is a fantastic system made by Surreal Sound that uses a Tangband driver for the midrange and high frequencies and multiple bass drivers for the low end. The Horning company uses a modified Lowther full range driver as a midrange in a three way system and this, too, is a great sounding system. |
Larryi,
Which Horning model did you hear and what amplifier was driving it? Their approach is interesting.
Regards, |
I heard the top of the line model(sorry, I don't know the name) driven by a Thoress amp one time and by a Tron amp another time. I like the very lively sound that these speakers deliver. The Surreal Sound speaker, which is similarly priced, is also very dynamic and lively sounding.
I hope this is a developing trend because I find most modern speakers to be dead sounding unless driven to higher volume levels than I prefer. Poor microdynamics, and lack of harmonic structure (thin, bloodless sound) is the way most speakers sound these days. I bet a lot of listeners would be shocked at how much "progress" has taken speakers in the wrong direction if they heard such great oldies like the full range Jensen field coil speakers (I heard a 13" model augmented with a super tweeter) or the Western Electric 713b midrange driver (the midrange I use in my system). |
IME, "full range single speaker"(s) are better in theory than in practice. |
Full range that does it all is tough.
Some very versatile and good sounding speakers use very wide range drivers though.
A high degree of time coherency up to about 5-7Khz or so, where the majority of recorded music occurs, is their unique trait.
OHM Walsh, Triangle, Zu, and Reference 3a are some examples that come to mind. |
look here: www.iconicspkrs.com
or greatplainsaudio.com |
Larryi,
Your summary of the current direction and sound of many 'modern' speakers is very astute.Why that route was chosen is puzzling and misguided.
Regards, |
In many cases, poor or lifeless sound is as much a result of less than optimal amplification to drive a particular speaker design than anything else.
Many modern speakers with good extended low end are also fairly inefficient and/or require lots of current to drive properly. The needed amps can become big, heavy and expensive both to buy and run. Class D amplifier technology negates much of this. Or some may chose to go with speakers that are more efficient and also likely also more (lower power) tube amp friendly. |
Some of the speaker systems that use the 4" aluminum Jordan driver in a TL enclosure sound very good. A while back I heard one from Carolina Audio and it is worth checking out, if still available. Limited max SPL, but well north of 80 dB at the listening position (in most rooms) and limited deep bass were the trade-offs for otherwise superior performance.
Marty |
I use C&C Abbys with a NSM 15EXP sub. Sounds good, blends well in a fair sized room 17 x 35. I get good volume from my 8-10 watt tube amp. |
