Great speakers, cheap drivers?

[Ilkless]

I only bring it up because most high end drivers are treated more like jewelry than clockwork. At this point it's as likely to inspire my criticism as my curiosity. For example, I know the Philharmonic BMR is a top-quality speaker design, but the $400 tweeter almost makes me suspicious at that point. Not the $25 midrange, but I see the ribbon and think "hand spun gold wire by tibetan monks in a nitrogen purged EMI sheath" instead of a perfect horizontal dispersion pattern. Maybe ASR is rubbing off.

The RAAL in the BMR is the much cheaper 64-10D for OEMs, not the 70-10 for DIY (or the higher end 70-20 for OEM).

 

[somebodyelse]

Assuming this post is right Kii are using some pretty cheap drivers.

 

[D!sco]

The RAAL in the BMR is the much cheaper 64-10D for OEMs, not the 70-10 for DIY (or the higher end 70-20 for OEM).

Oh yeah, the BMR is a stellar deal all around. Top quality stereo for $1-3K. Wish they had an active version, and that I could hear the tower.

 

[mightycicadalord]

I think D&D 8c uses a dayton rs225 on the front woofer.

 

[D!sco]

You've gotta be kidding me @mightycicadalord
I might believe you, but I'd have to find my jaw on the floor after.

 

[mightycicadalord]

You've gotta be kidding me @mightycicadalord
I might believe you, but I'd have to find my jaw on the floor after.

It's a 225.

Another one is ATC used some super cheap vifa tweeters for the scm25. Seen plenty of expensive speakers using dx25 tweeter as well.

 

[mhardy6647]

Like for example, I can go buy the JBL 2414H-1 for about $60 on amazon. Most decent quality compression drivers land firmly around / above $100 (USD).
Therefore, I would define that JBL driver as cheap, since I can get it for cheap.

Oh, it's adorable!

A pipe flange that says JBL on it!

 

[HammerSandwich]

It's a 225.

This DIYAudio post shows SEAS for tweet & mid. Keyser is @Martijn Mensink, who ought to know the real details.

 

[mightycicadalord]

This DIYAudio post shows SEAS for tweet & mid. Keyser is @Martijn Mensink, who ought to know the real details.

I got my info from another diyaudio post so what is it really?

 

[Marc v E]

This thread is a real eye opener to me!

Apparently high cost drivers are not needed to get great results like in the d&d and genelec 8361 (?)

 

[D!sco]

It also helps if the manufacturer controls the design, production, and application of each driver at every level. IMO always the number one compromise to DIY design, and why I don't get people chasing the KEF LS60 like they're going to do significantly better overall.

 

[3125b]

I think economy of scales is a big factor here, that makes a huge difference in per unit cost. Buying an off the shelf driver that is manufactured in large numbers will always be cheaper than to develop and build your own (as a small to mid-sized company, aming for the same kind of performance).
Where it becomes interesting is when a speaker manufacturer aims for something that cannot be accomplished with off the shelf parts. The KEF Reference One Meta for example, you just can't buy a coaxial that good.

genelec 8361

Those are custom drivers, aren't they? Probably not cheap per unit, absolutely speaking they don't sell a lot of them.

 

[Marc v E]

I think economy of scales is a big factor here, that makes a huge difference in per unit cost. Buying an off the shelf driver that is manufactured in large numbers will always be cheaper than to develop and build your own (as a small to mid-sized company, aming for the same kind of performance).
Where it becomes interesting is when a speaker manufacturer aims for something that cannot be accomplished with off the shelf parts. The KEF Reference One Meta for example, you just can't buy a coaxial that good.


Those are custom drivers, aren't they? Probably not cheap per unit, absolutely speaking they don't sell a lot of them.

True. I should have said d&d and kii3

 

[AwesomeSauce2015]

Oh, it's adorable!
(Picture removed to shorten)
A pipe flange that says JBL on it!

Yeah, but it's one nice sounding pipe flange!
I mean, the JBL Studio 580s might not be the absolute greatest hi-fi I've ever heard, but they certainly are impressive once you set them up right and crank it a bit.

 

[dfuller]

Apparently high cost drivers are not needed to get great results

Not at all. Even cheap drivers are pretty decent these days.

Barefoot uses a $25 Dayton midrange, a $20 Peerless tweeter, and 2 $52 Peerless woofers on the $4000/pr Footprint01. That speaker overall behaves itself distortionwise pretty well.

 

[mhardy6647]

Yeah, but it's one nice sounding pipe flange!
I mean, the JBL Studio 580s might not be the absolute greatest hi-fi I've ever heard, but they certainly are impressive once you set them up right and crank it a bit.

1) actually the forum s/w will truncate images for you; you don't have to do it.
2) An itty bitty compression driver from JBL just seems sort of... ironic. Like a subcompact Bentley, you know (and, yeah, yeah -- I know about the Mini, but they ain't even all that Mini any more ).





Not sure I'd call either one great, but definitely not cheap, then or now.

 

[jonfitch]

I think the Swan D2.1 was a popular speaker back in the day (mid 2000s) using drivers that were just a couple bucks a piece.

 

[test1223]

Not at all. Even cheap drivers are pretty decent these days.

Barefoot uses a $25 Dayton midrange, a $20 Peerless tweeter, and 2 $52 Peerless woofers on the $4000/pr Footprint01. That speaker overall behaves itself distortionwise pretty well.

Yes there are many very good cheap drivers.

If you would like to get a tight guaranteed tolerance band of 0.xdB or 0.x% distortion a cheap driver becomes very fast a more expensive driver. Therefore it is sometimes a fallacy to assume company xy uses driver yz therefore the cost of one driver is very cheap...

True. I should have said d&d and kii3

Even drivers with higher build quality didn't cost an insane amount of money. Like the tweeter of the Kii which isn't cheap in the context of tweeter price and build quality.

I would consider under 25$ cheap dome tweeters over 100$ are expensive mass production tweeters and over 300$ are the luxury class tweeters with exotic / unusual solutions and (almost) no mass production.

 

[Sokel]

I was always wondering what kind of drivers can go from 30Hz->400Hz fairly undistorted,like the ATC ones for example and many more in 3way configurations.
That can't be cheap,I'm I wrong?