there have been some advances in ribbon and electrostatic panel technology, as exemplified by the newer martin logan panels and piega concentric tweeter/midrange drivers, respectively.
i still can't understand how anyone can get excited by cones. i have never heard a full range all-cone speaker that i have liked.
i did like an earlier gradient speaker, with an open baffle midrange and jordan modules as tweeter. |
hi shadorne:
i think you are ignoring the obvious. i exchew cone speaker designs. i realize others like them. i just have a hard time fathoming why they are so popular, given their faults. i will never buy one . |
sorry for the spelling error, the word is "eschew".
as to faults of cone design, they include the following:
cabinet colorations, lack of driver coherence, stridency of many metal-based tweeters, and crossing over dissimilar drivers
of course, pick your poison. nothing is perfect, i;ve picked mine. it's all a matter of opinion. |
hi ojgalli:
are you suggesting that a "properly" designed cone system can sound like an apogee duetta signature, sound lab, or magnepan 20.1 ?
i would wager that in a blindfold or any other test, i could tell the difference between panel and cone 9 out of 10 times.
if there is a cone design in production that sounds like a panel speaker, please advise as to brand. |
why is it that whenever i listen to a cone design i hear cabinet and driver colorations. please cite a cone system with no cabinet colorations and i will listen carefully to it when i have the chance.
you can blindfold me and i will recognize a cone speaker. if cone speakers are so realistic, why do i detect a sonic signature ?
i realize it is a matter of personal taste, but i wonder how many who prefer cone designs would not prefer them as much if they heard a panel speaker in blindfold mold.
timbre is most important to me and i feel panels do a better job.
if there are any outstanding cone systems, i will try to appreciate their virtues, the next time i go to las vegas. |
hi clio9:
i live in the nyc metro area, do you live near there ?
i would love to hear these speakers.
thanks for the invite.
the most realistic timbre of any speakers i have auditioned were stacked quad esl, mcintosh c22, quad 15 watt tube amps, and thorens t/t with ortofon arm and cartridge. |
wqit 'till the new magnepan becomes commercially available. let's see how many abandon their cone systems and buy the magnepan.
i understand that the expected price for the new magnepan speaker system, a stand mounted + woofer combination is around $2500. |
if i could not tell i was listening to a cone design in a cabinet, i would seriously considder it. i know of no design which satiisfies the aforementioned requirement.
i have heard many, many cone designs. |
thanks marty and shadorne for your insights. i happen to have heard a few tannoy speakers which i like based upon their frequency response.
in addition, there was an early gradient speaker which had an open baffle midrange and tweeter (jordan modules) which i thought was a wonderful design. i could easily live with that gradient speaker.
in the past, i liked the aerial 10t, rogers ls35a and proac response 3, and chario academy one, driven with the original jadis orchestra.
i guess there are some exceptions to my panel preference after all. |
hi shadorne:
i would be shocked that anyone would expose a pair of ears
to spl exceeding 100 db. my normal listening level is about 75 db. anything above 75db i consider loud.
my preferred seat at a large concert hall, is last row orchestra. i doubt i would experience a spl excceding 85 db, especially with all of the bodies in front of me. |
hi chashas1:
i happen to like most panel speakers, but consider the magnepans a good value.
i was not trying to single out the magnepans, although their latest prototype might be something special. i have not heard them, my impression is based upon reading and talking to someone who was at the SHOW this past january.
the virtues of magnepans are well known. i like the boxlessness, depth, frequency response and radiating pattern. i think they are "easier" on the ear using a tube preamp and tube amp.
why not listen to one ? |
what hybrid are you referring to ? the new magnepan uses a panel woofer. i believe it is similar to the bass panel of the 20.1. by the way, i agree that integrating treble/midrange panels with cone bass drivers can be difficult/ |
does anyone think great strides have been made in crossover technology, especially with the availability of a such a variety of capacitors and resistors.
is it a given that a crossover from 1969 is inferior to one designed in 2009 ? |
