Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site
In the Forum: Horn-Loaded Speakers
In the Thread: RAAL “Water Drop” tweeter for Macondo.
Post Subject: The anxiety of not knowing?Posted by Paul S on: 2/20/2007
These are very interesting effects, all right. No way to be sure, I supppose, but if I understand you correctly this could be related to what I was calling the "MF attack" phenomenon, up the page. Although the air is charged with anticipation, yet one can never quite anticipate a note or musical effect before it happens, even with a familiar piece. It just makes you giddy. I was thinking I should try losing a few dB off the ribbon and then gradually bring it back up until it happens again, just to learn more about this. But why should increased HF clarity apparently extend to transients up and down the frequency range? It's like it makes all the notes and intentions less expected yet clearer, or vice versa, but that does not make sense, either way.
But I have never heard a HF-only ribbon with 109 dB efficiency, only the "pro" versions that they insist on running down to < 3k, even at modern concert halls, so you might well be on your own out there. At any rate, I don't know of anyone besides you who does not run truly HE ribbons lower. So who knows if the effects you mention are in any way related to those exhibited by other "good" naked ribbons used only for HF in compatible systems, or if you simply have a freak on your hands.
The "calm HF" effect is something I have long sought but seldom experienced from repro, and I have blamed the amps as much as the ribbons. Mere HF extension is not enough. Hard to say whether the amp or the ribbon is typically at fault, but either these ribbons via a crossover are a real bitch for any amp, or the ribbons themselves are very unforgiving of the amp via the crossover. In my experience an amp typically has as hard a time with these dinky-ass HF ribbons as it would with big LF drivers, and no doubt this has contributed to putting some people off the idea altogether.
Bets regards,
Paul SRerurn to Romy the Cat's Site