2. speakers
  3. 1088216229

Crossover mods and speaker efficiancy?

I was just wondering if anyone can tell me if it makes sense that with complete crossover mods(caps, coils, resistors, and internal cabling)that the speakers would draw more current from my amp? My speakers are Hales T5's with totally upgraded crossovers. I am using Dynamicaps for the tweeter section, Dynamicap,Audiocap and auricaps for the midsection and Solen/Axon for the bass area. My coils were replaced with Solo foill coils(16guage for tweeter, 14 guage for mid and 12 guage for bass). Finally as well the internal cabling was replaced with cardas chasis wire of three guages for the three drivers.
My question is that should these changes make my speakers less efficient or draw more current from my amp. I have a Pass X250 which has a meter on it which indicates how much current is being drawn and when the amp is going out of A mode. When the needle moves at all it's out of A mode and into AB mode. What I have noticed with the crossover mod is that the meter is reading that the speakers are taking very much more current than before the mods. The needle bounces to around the 2 or 3 O'clock point on loud passages where as before the mods the needle rarely passed 12 or 1 O'clock. The sound is way bigger sounding and I suppose the bigger sound is due to the larger current draw but I'm not sure. Would this type of crossover mod make my speakers less efficient in that my amp is obviously working much harder than before but the sound is much bigger than before. Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. I should note that I can listen to louder levels of volume of the music as the sound is clean and doesn't sound "loud" as the speakers now tend to have less distortion and I can play loud without being annoyed. The needle on the X250 meter now tends to bounce around alot where as before it just wiggled.
mitchb

Showing 2 responses by trelja

trelja
3,226 posts
 
It's great to hear the mods have made such a positive impact in the sound, Mitch!

These mods should definitely make your speakers more efficient. Especially, the inductors and resistors. But, I think the DynamiCaps do this as well, which is why they sound so much bigger and more explosive than just about any other cap out there. TRT goes into some discussion about this on their website, and Peter also will talk about it on the phone a bit.

In my opinion, it just so happens that because your system has improved so much, you are listening at louder, more realistic volumes. This is strictly my own point of view, but I rarely encounter an audiophile who listens anwhere near the volume that I begin to "feel the music". The other day, I was walking during lunch, and a band was playing in the courtyard of a high rise across the street. Even from where I was, the sound was a good deal louder than what most people listen to, and this definitely got me thinking about the high end in general.

I think the increased smoothness, refinement, and dynamics of the modifications have drawn you into the music more, and you are now listening at a higher volume. I think that a good sounding system is much easier to listen to loud, and was one of my major reasons for getting into the high end in the first place.

Incidentally, do you have an SPL meter? If so, set the volume to what you used to listen to, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if your amp reads lower than it used to.
trelja
3,226 posts
 
Sean, actually you beat me to the punch in saying the same thing! You deserve the credit. I thought I was posting first, but you must have gotten up pretttttty early in the morning. Anyway, it is clear we are on the same page, and now so it Mitch. Good sound often leads to louder playing of a system.

Herman, it was me who "presumed" Mitch went to larger inductors and lower loss components. While your argument makes sense from a logical perspective - it was never explicitly stated until Mitch confirmed it above, it falls down in practice. Anyone who has ever looked at an audiophile loudspeaker crossover can attest to the fact that someone going with Solo, AlphaCore Goertz, or North Creek Music Coils is moving up to a larger gauge inductor. That is just the reality of things.

I have looked at the crossovers of a lot of expensive audiophile loudspeakers, and will tell you 14 gauge Solen Perfect Lay is about as good as things EVER get. Now, I am certain you can find the needle in the haystack, but what I say is true 99% of times. I was actually impressed just now in reading about the Axon cap, as normally Solen is the top of the line. But, I am not at all suprised to hear of the electrolytics in the bass area. Again, this is the reality of things.

I think one thing that you can definitely distill out of my opinions is that we need to stop kow towing to loudspeaker manufacturers when it comes to crossovers. I can assure you that they do not enter some secret society once they begin a company and gain insight from the creator that none of us plebians do not have. The economics of speaker manufacture is, like most businesses, to maximize profits.

The crossovers being internal causes them to often be the first area corners are cut. Personally, I feel that speakers today are too entranced by book matched veneers and perfect finishes. I would like to put the money into the crossover given the choice. I think there is no shame in taking two steps back from making these finishes and putting the money into the sonic elements of the speaker.

I hope that we always have this kind of dialogue in terms of audio, and that as time passes, what we come to consensus on can be integrated into products that I maybe one day have a say in(right now, unfortunately I do not enjoy that) at my company. I want Fried to return to greatness by being the people's company. Members of the discussion forums can help me achieve that by making sure their voices are heard.
More to discover