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I Also Once Hated The Single "fullrange" Driver Sound, But Not Any Longer!

Posted by thetubeguy1954 (A) on December 16, 2014 at 16:29:43

In Reply to: I am hating the single driver sound. What am I doing wrong? posted by ElWoodrow on December 15, 2014 at 12:43:01:

Hello ElWoodrow!

First I want to tell you there is no such thing as a single fullrange driver, period! That's right! Not even the much loved and very highly acclaimed Quad ESL can honestly be being called a true single fullrange driver! Presently the $27K/pr. Voxativ AC-4X drivers setup in their Voxativ Ampeggio Signature enclosures, are about the closest anyone's come to developing a commercially manufactured single "fullrange" driver in a properly setup enclosure and at $27K/pr. they're not what I'd call very cost effective.

Now as far as these wide-range driver nay-sayers posting down below go, I'd wager most of those going on & on about how poorly wide-range drivers sound have NOT ---{and I don't care how much they whine differently}--- heard a quality wide-range driver setup properly in the correct enclosure for the driver chosen! For some reason the majority ---{not all}--- of wide-range driver nay-sayers I've spoken with purchased a cheaper wide-range driver and used it in the wrong cabinet! Then when the sound was terrible they have the audacity to blame that on the "wide-range" drivers and come to the mistaken conclusion that all wide-range drivers suck! I honestly think most of these DIYers enter the world of single, "wide-range" drivers with this mentality. "I want to hear why these idiots believe one driver can sound better than my 2 or 3-ways, but I'm not spending any real money on the drivers because I already know wide-range drivers suck before I start."

The truth is 8 years ago I was one of these guys myself. The ONLY thing that set me apart from these guys is when I decided to see what all the "wide-range" driver fuss was all about, I didn't go cheap! I did go somewhat inexpensive, just not cheap. I started with a pair of Fostex's inexpensive, 8 inch, FE206E "wide-range" drivers. Then I hired Cardersound to build me a set of Sachiko double-back-loaded horns in Rosewood veneer. What I heard sounded so good I switched from using my $5,000 Italian, 2-way, Aliante Pininfarina One speakers to these Sachikos permanently and I've never looked back once! The photo just below shows you how my system looked then ---{the plans for these Sachikos, which are now called the Kirishimas, can be downloaded at http://www.frugal-horn.com/ for free}--- when the Fostex FE206E drivers were still in use.

As time went by and I learned more about wide-range drivers, I later replaced the Fostex FE206E drivers with Fostex's better & more costly FE206ES-R and later on again with Fostex's even more expensive $1.8K FE208ES-R drivers! My final change was done about 1 year ago when I replaced those Fostex FE208ES-R drivers with inexpensive, $256/pr, Dayton PS220-8 drivers that had Rispoli's $400/pr., 7-step, proprietary cone treatment applied. These inexpensive PS220-8 drivers are absolutely amazing. They're ok sounding stock, but with the cone treatment applied they're something special. They have the best frequency extension in the bass & treble ---{I'd say from 40Hz (maybe lower) to at least 13Khz}--- of all the drivers I've tried in my cabinets, which also includes a Lowther DX4! These drivers in the Sachiko cabinets allow me to play a small 4 piece ensemble with the PS220-8 drivers and I hear all the delicacy, inner-detail, correct harmonic tone, color and timbre that one would expect to hear when using a Reference level SET amp like the Mastersound Reference 845 amp and high-quality full-range drivers. Yet on the very next song I can switch from chamber music to playing Prog-rock like "Miracles From Nowhere" by Kansas at SPLs of 100dB+ with amazing dynamics, lightning fast transient response with all the delicacy, inner-detail, correct harmonic tone, color and timbre I heard with the chamber music but, absolutely no "Lowther shout" and not the slightest hint of strain! The best way to describe the Sachiko/Dayton PS220-8 combo's sound is to have you imagine listening to the very best set of ESLs, ribbon or planar speakers you've ever heard that now have a 95dB sensitivity rating and much, much better bass & treble extension! That will give you just a hint of an idea of what I'm talking about. This sound really needs to be heard to be believed. The best part is these speakers are easily duplicated. So anyone who hears them and likes what they hear can build the exact same speakers for themselves.

Anyone who doesn't believe me and would like to hear this for themselves is welcome to send me an email. Let me know when you're planning to be in the Orlando, FL area and I'll send you my phone number. We can setup a time for you to stop in for a listening session. Just one word of warning. Most people who stop by and plan on staying maybe an hour or two, but once they come over that usually turns into anything from a 3 to 5+ hours stay and that's ok with me. I love making new audio friends! Oh yeah since the photo up above was taken the silver-faced, Goldenote Stibbert CDP was upgraded to the newer, version 5, tubed unit with a black face. The CDP is now used solely as a transport with an Audio-gd Reference 7.1 DAC. The tubes, with the exception of the Bendix 6900s have all changed. I now have Psvane WE845 and Psvane 12AU7-TIII installed. You can see my entire system at the link called Thetubeguy's Audio Room & System

Thetubeguy1954 (Tom)

Central Florida Audio Society -- SETriodes Group -- Space Coast Audio Society
Full-range/Wide-range Drivers --- Front & Back-Loaded Horns --- High Sensitivity Speakers

• Thetubeguy's Audio Room & System   (Open in New Window)

Edits: 12/17/14

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