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In Reply to: RE: You impressions of single-driver speakers? posted by genungo on August 24, 2014 at 11:30:02
The only single driver or crossover-less speakers I've heard in recent years that don't have the downsides you speak of are the Tocaros. The 40's have a single 10-inch driver; the 42's have the same driver plus a wood/laminate tweeter -- no crossover. If you come to the 40's from a full range speaker, they will initially sound a little compromised on top and a bit bass shy. That is how they sound coming from the 42, which is a bit more open on top and fuller overall thanks to a larger cabinet. What's interesting is that if you come to the 40's from live music or after not having heard a full range speaker in a while, they sound very natural and satisfying. You don't miss anything. Partly, I assume, because you're distracted by the smaller Tocaro's remarkable coherence. I'm speaking here of the 40E's and 42E's, which are the current versions whose main drivers have been upgraded/tweaked.I don't know the bandwidth of Tocaros. The 40's are 97dB, the 42's 99dB.
The speaker the Tocaro is descended from, the Rehdeko, used a whizzer cone, I believe.
Every single driver I'd heard before the Tocaros, which to be fair is barely a handful and not in a long time, was conspicuous for both virtues and defects. I could hear the price being paid for coherence, speed, and clarity.
Edits: 08/26/14Follow Ups:
Single-driver speakers aren't for everyone, that's for sure. I suspect that, for many of those who absolutely love them, a range of delights slightly narrower than usual is enough to fill the void. I'm more than happy with my "augmented single-driver" Laura speakers at present, at least when certain types of recordings are on the table. Interestingly, while "coherence" and "clarity" are definitely two of their prime virtues, "speed" is not one of the first things that comes to mind when I listen to them. They sound warm rather than cool, I'd say. I'm hearing a smooth, slightly distant presentation that seems to be devoid of peaks and troughs. While this type of speaker may not be the best thing for rock music reproduction, it works quite well with other types of music.
Those Tocaros would seem to be among the very special ones based upon most of what I've heard about them...
Tocaro promotes them as jazz speakers, which I understand. They do have a lot of jump and impact. But that's not how I'd characterize them - as a jazz speaker. I'd say they are very realistic sounding, which is what people who hear a lot of live music like about them. For those who prefer comfort, ease, richness, charm, they're probably too much. I don't intend this to sound judgmental. There is an argument to be made for not bringing the dynamics and energy of live into the living room. I would say the opposite speaker to a Tocaro might be Spendors or the larger Harbeths. There is room in the world for both extremes, right? I mean I've got Audio Note E's and K's playing alongside my Tocaros. They acknowledge each other but with more cordiality than affection!
Nicely said! I also have two distinctly different types of speakers in my listening area, so I think I know what you mean...
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