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The midrange is the most important driver.

OK, I don't need you to believe the topic name. Just wanted to start a friendly discussion.

Among full-range, multi-way speakers there are usually at least 3 drivers:

  • Tweeter
  • Mid-range
  • Woofer
The most exorbitant prices are usually in the tweeter, followed by the woofer, then the mid. More or less. When I read discussions that are about tech-brands, it's almost always about the tweeter. Off the shelf prices in high-end speakers can vary from $40/ea. to $500/ea. with top of the line Be and AMT. Hard diamond tweeters are even more expensive. And yeah, I've paid a lot for tweets in my mains. Still, I think maybe all of us have been convinced that the tweeter is where we should spend our largest dollars.

Maybe it is the quality of the mid that determines everything else. It is where the vocals are, and how well it integrates and extends up and down the range determines everything else. From what tweeters you may use, to the dynamic range.

What do you think?

Best,


E
erik_squires

Showing 3 responses by bdp24

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bdp24
10,132 posts
 
snapsc---A good sub frees one to pick the loudspeaker most appropriate for one’s priorities other than, of course, the lowest frequencies. Though vehemently disagreed with by many here, even the brilliant Ralph Karsten of Atma-Sphere, I consider that a matter best and predominantly determined by one’s musical diet. If, for instance, I listened mostly to small Baroque ensembles and Bluegrass (the two are related!), or Folk, Singer/Songwriter, and Vocal w/accompaniment, I would definitely go with the old Quad ESL. If I needed more maximum volume than the Quad is capable of providing, it would be the Eminent Technology LFT-8b, hands down. Retailing for $2499, it is only $400 more than the MG1.7i, and imo a superior loudspeaker. Harry Weisfeld of VPI recently stated he feels the LFT-8b provides the best midrange of any speaker, at any price, he has ever heard. He is not alone, yet almost everyone continues to ignore it. Weird!
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,132 posts
 

snapsc---All good points.

1- True. All dipole speakers, not just planars, need to be at least 3’ from the wall behind them, 5’ being even better. But then, many box speakers sound better out there as well.

2- ET is a very small company that does no advertising, and has few dealers. They also rarely introduce new models, or make bi-yearly "improvements" to existing models (a large source of income for some companies). They therefore are rarely reviewed in pro mags, though the LFT-8b got a rave by Robert Greene in TAS a couple of years ago. I’m not sure ET even offers home trials, though if there is no dealer within 150 miles of you they will sell and ship them to you for free.

3- Ever notice how many Maggies are always for sale used? Now, how about ET’s? Sure, many more Maggies are bought, so that’s part of it. Used ET’s, when available, go for about $1500.

Your last paragraph is as spot on as are points 1-3. Everyone has the buttons that when pushed allow for the suspension of disbelief in reproduced music. For myself, the lifelike reproduction of the timbre of voices and instruments, from the bass registers of a piano to it’s highest overtones, is paramount. As if the sound from top to bottom is cut from the same cloth, as J. Gordon Holt put it. To have the entire range of a singing voice reproduced by a single driver is unbeatable! I’ve never heard a dynamic (cone) or horn speaker do that as well as ESL’s (I own old Quads, and Stax phones), magnetic-planars (I own ET’s and Magneplanar Tympani-IVa’s), and ribbons. Others with different priorities may be better served by competing designs.

bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,132 posts
 
I find the idea of two different drivers doing the relay-race baton handoff in the midrange, that handoff being arranged via a x/o filter, a very undesirable situation. Fortunately, one needn't accept that scenario. The Eminent Technology LFT-8b's "midrange" magnetic-planar driver has a symmetrical 1st-order (6dB/octave) filter at 180Hz, and another at 10k. 180Hz to 10kHz from a single driver, with no filtering! Actually, there are two of the drivers (to create a line-source, and increase maximum SPL capability), one stacked atop the other, with a ribbon tweeter beside them, and an 8" dynamic woofer in a sealed enclosure below. For $2499/pr!
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