What is the value of all this speculation about whether of not the Druid design should work? It clearly works for a lot of people. "Science Says" is a fun game for awhile for a certain sort of person but the proof is in the listening.
I have no expertise in speaker design but I have wondered if the unusually short excursion of the full range driver could explain anything about the success the Druid enjoys. The driver movement is not visible until you reach very high listening levels and then only slightly.
Also, why should the diameter of the driver be a limiting factor? The QUAD 57, to which I hear the Druid compared sometimes, has a much larger radiating surface. Does it also defy the calculations of our critics? Or does it also benefit from very short excursion? Is it transitional speed that benefits both in defying projections that should limit them?
Maybe it is possible that Zu started out with a design that should not be able to work and manipulated it in such a way that it works quite well. I don't know their secrets but I remember being told that they took old technology and found ways to improve upon it using modern tools and materials. Maybe they did that. Maybe not. Still, the speaker is a marvel and deserves investigation. If it turns out you don't like it, you will have had some fun experimenting and you will be able to provide us with an educated and informed opinion.
I have no expertise in speaker design but I have wondered if the unusually short excursion of the full range driver could explain anything about the success the Druid enjoys. The driver movement is not visible until you reach very high listening levels and then only slightly.
Also, why should the diameter of the driver be a limiting factor? The QUAD 57, to which I hear the Druid compared sometimes, has a much larger radiating surface. Does it also defy the calculations of our critics? Or does it also benefit from very short excursion? Is it transitional speed that benefits both in defying projections that should limit them?
Maybe it is possible that Zu started out with a design that should not be able to work and manipulated it in such a way that it works quite well. I don't know their secrets but I remember being told that they took old technology and found ways to improve upon it using modern tools and materials. Maybe they did that. Maybe not. Still, the speaker is a marvel and deserves investigation. If it turns out you don't like it, you will have had some fun experimenting and you will be able to provide us with an educated and informed opinion.