Offer to fund driver purchase for FAST design with ASR rigor

[Ilkless]

I'm using the GRS PT6816-8, which reputedly performs similarly to the BG but with different materials. It appears to be a clone/knockoff. If it falls short, I'll return it and get the BG. I haven't really looked into the Alpair 12PW. Might it have any significant advantages?

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It's the Alpair 12P, but designed to be used with a tweeter, with more midbass capability and a smooth rolloff on the high end.

 

[kipman725]

If it's just for near field: https://sbacoustics.com/product/1in-sb36wbac21-8/

 

[Wolf]

Not convinced DIY coaxs are worth the additional trouble of a 3-way XO and cost, given how tweeter response is modulated by the midrange cone's movement, and the roughness in the top octave. Having dealt with a widebander that rolled off from 5kHz (Mark Audio CHP-70) and finding it quite pleasant, IMO a smooth rolloff (even if steep) above 10kHz is less trouble than wrangling with a coax.



Tangband makes some of the coolest looking drivers out there. The nulls at 8 and 10kHz are concerning to me.

I'll be measuring a pair in the near future, so stay tuned....

 

[D!sco]

If it's just for near field: https://sbacoustics.com/product/1in-sb36wbac21-8/

I want to make a headphone out of this suddenly.

 

[Ilkless]

I'm also curious about MarkAudio's rather Byzantine driver break-in regimen. I intend to follow it. Is there something unusual about the design or materials used that calls for such specific procedures? I'm skeptical but I'm left with the impression that I'd be quite remiss if I didn't follow it to the letter.

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Mark Audio was founded by a materials engineer who's obsessed with the pseudoscientific, intuition-driven notion that any microscopic change in the material of the speaker's moving parts will definitely lead to a significant, audible difference in the sound output even when no real change is seen when we measure the soundwaves directly. So, there's much to be skeptical about it.

 

[DavidMcRoy]

Mark Audio was founded by a materials engineer who's obsessed with the pseudoscientific, intuition-driven notion that any microscopic change in the material of the speaker's moving parts will definitely lead to a significant, audible difference in the sound output even when no real change is seen when we measure the soundwaves directly. So, there's much to be skeptical about it.

Well, THAT actually makes sense.

 

[D!sco]

I never find what I want on the Tang Band site, but I always find something I didn't know I wanted

 

[Ilkless]

Well, THAT actually makes sense.

Yes, measurable structural/material changes at the driver component level does not necessarily translate to consistently measurable differences in the sound waves emitted by the driver (given the many sources of variance in the measurement device and environment). And even if there were differences, they are not necessarily audible. And even if audible, not necessarily preferable.

Lots of leaps of logic taken. Mark Audio uses the founder's materials science background to assert that the drivers must sound greatly different even when the emitted sound waves do not see any real change.

 

[DavidMcRoy]

Yes, measurable structural/material changes at the driver component level does not necessarily translate to consistently measurable differences in the sound waves emitted by the driver (given the many sources of variance in the measurement device and environment). And even if there were differences, they are not necessarily audible. And even if audible, not necessarily preferable.

Lots of leaps of logic taken. Mark Audio uses the founder's materials science background to assert that the drivers must sound greatly different even when the emitted sound waves do not see any real change.

Sounds like molecular clairvoyance or some such.