GoodSoundClub - Romy the Cat's Audio Site

In the Forum: Horn-Loaded Speakers
In the Thread: Fostex tweeters, Lowther broadbanders on a limited range.

Post Subject: Fostex tweeters, Lowther broadbanders on a limited range.Posted by gordan on: 4/12/2011

well, i believe that the popularity of the better fostex tweeters comes from their typical, off-shelf sound which is soft and easy on ear in comparison with super-resolunt Ti or Be diaphragm equipped competition. they very much suit any sharpness coming from the lower range solutions in the system. so why trying to change their typical sound when it's easier to select a different driver with a different sonic signature. i myself have fostex T825 and when i compared it to fane ST5020 and even 2404, they couldn't be more different in the way they render the HF, amazing difference.
going back to lowther topic. i still think they do some things amazingly well in the range of say 600-700 hz up to the first big midrange peak due to cone breakup/resonance (i think around 2k, have no graphs here), and possibly better than most of the drivers out there including plenty of compression drivers available. the speed, tone and transient energy are all good fundaments for a really good upper midrange solution, even if it is only run from approx 640 to 1280hz. in comparison, one of the (cheaper, but not really cheap) feastrex drivers we've had on loan here sounded very thin and strangely deranged (uneven, unbalanced) in comparison. apart from fetishism with anything japanese in this field and the tales of a rice paper hand pressed by 200 years old japanese virgins, i really don't understand the hype - no need to say both 5 and 9 inch feastrex were returned to factory. i would really love to hear a properly implemented lowthers in the way it avoid their inhereted and unavoidable shortcomings if used on their full range, i.e. on a very limited bandwidth where they do their very best. i too believe that all the bad mouthing lowthers get is from the myths perpetuated around them when used as a single, full range solution. however i'm afraid that the fetishists such as a guy with the above system would than rather pay some $$$$$$ for feastrex and rullit than $3000 for some PM4 which is also not cheap for using for one or one and the half octaves only. and i'm sure if he would rearrange his channels properly so the mid driver is not forced to go too low, he wouldn't hear any reasonable advantage from any rullit, feastrex or whatever is the fetish of the day over a lowther driver. my two cents.....

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