Tweeters


Specifics of audio are new to me. Can someone comment about the various tweeters and what distinguishes them from one another in terms of sound, quality, etc...
Thank you.
earthquake
Hahnzie said a compression driver is [typically a piezo driver] this is not true. Compression drivers are not piezo electric. They are domes.
That zaphaudio list is interesting. Zaph also did a test of ribbon type tweeters that concluded that they tested relatively poorly. A $29 vifa dome outperformed 4 out of 5 on paper. Cant remember what manufacturer I read recently using two domes to replicate the dispersion pattern without using ribbons.
I have speakers with ribbon type "isodynamic" hivi tweeters and I think the high end sounds very nice. Silk, fabric, metal domes, or ribbon tweeters, I think the crossover and overall design of a speaker has more to do with the sound.
My advise is pay less attention to the type of tweeter, and listen without bias. Your ears will find the speaker a talented designer has made for your tastes.
Zaph link is very miss leading. $29 vifa domes no where near the performance of any ribbon of quality. What zaph is testing for means nothing to sound quality or end result. If you look at Zaph they offer most all loudspeakers with ribbons.
I really don't think you can predict the sound of a speaker based on the type of tweeter used. There are just too many variables in the design. The type of enclosure, the crossover, the placement of the tweeter in the cabinet and other variables make it impossible to know what the speaker will sound like without listening. For example, I've seen many people say that metal-dome tweeters are harsh, but Harbeth uses metal dome tweeters in its HL5s, which could never be called harsh.

Don't get hung up on this. Find a speaker you like and listen to it. Don't worry about the driver types.