What's the best 7" & 8" woofers available?


I'm thinking of trying the DIY route for a pair of full-range speakers. In your opinion, what is the BEST 7" AND 8" woofer available and the best place to buy it?
Thanks all for the tweeter & mid-range comments.
Thanks and happy listening!
myraj

Showing 4 responses by rbj

Along these lines, what do you folks think of ETON?
They make 5", 7", 8", 11", & 12" mid/base and woofers.
Humble thanks from me too for all the info. Now,
a Zobel question. Will a multi-way speaker with all-active
crossovers benefit as much (or at all) as passive crossover
multi-way system?
Another Zobel question. The thread is changing direction
here, but since we're on it, and it's interesting, here goes. If we put a Zobel network on the woofer to flatten the reactance spike in the very lowest usable register,
wouldn't this decreased reactance now allow a higher signal
current to flow, meaning that the low end flat response is extended? The limiting factor of the flat response at this point is now the "X-max" total linear cone travel AND the
mechanical cone mass/damping factor (classic mass/spring/
damper system), NOT the electrical damping. If this is true,
shouldn't we look for woofers with high moving mass, long
long X-max (P-to-P), and "tight" non-compliant surrounds?
Thank you TWL. I surmise that current "state of the art"
is bottlenecked at the woofer itself. I am unaware of any
audiophile-quality woofer with an X-max of , say, 30cm.,
regardless of cone material, power handling, etc. I acknowledge that there are several methods, some sucessful,
such as you described above, to extend the bass. Until a
better woofer becomes available, I think I'll comb more thoroughly through the responses of others here, and at other sites. Another thread topic could be the pro/cons
of using, say, two 8" woofers vs one 12", comparing total
cone area, X-max, air displacement, total voice coil winding,etc. (physical ability to create sound waves).
Something like comparing one large intake valve to two
smaller valves, in an engine.