In Reply to: Because they sound like ceramic. posted by peppy m. on November 21, 2022 at 11:40:26:
. . . or any other ceramic cone drivers, I can't really comment on what ceramic "sounds" like. But I've worked with paper, polypropylene, aluminum, and Kevlar drivers over many years of DIY, and don't find the differences all that dramatic IF you get the crossover right. Stiffer materials may offer lower distortion and slightly snappier transient response IN THEIR PASSBAND, but exhibit nasty breakup modes up high, and definitely require more aggressive notch filtering to suppress those peaks. Polypropylene drivers, with their good internal damping and smooth rolloff, are the easiest to work with and, to my ears, have the best chance of sounding sweet and natural.
Likewise with dome tweeters. There's a stereotype that silk domes sound "silky" and magnesium, aluminum, and titanium domes sound "metallic," but again the crossover dwarfs those differences. I've heard commercial designs with metal domes sound sweet and airy, and fabric domes sound bright and shrill. More important is to seek models with low fs, low distortion, and robust power handling. These factors also make it easier to get the crossover right.
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- Not having heard them . . . - Brian H P 16:27:27 11/21/22 (0)