2wq filters: what do you recommend?


hello all,

just hooked up my new pair of 2wq's sunday and am thoroughly impressed by the improvement. overall clarity, soundstage width and depth, and of course bass extension. trying to figure out which way to go with the fixed filter, x-2, homemade, 5a. i'm not familiar with the 5a filter so if somone could explain them to me i would be grateful. any comparisons between the different filters would also be nice. what caps would you recommend if i go homemade? thanks for your time and info.

aloha keith
Ag insider logo xs@2xatagi
maxgain,

just responded to your email. thanks for the pics and info.

hbrandt,
sorry i can't help you with instructions to build the crossovers as i've never done it, and my friend who builds speakers was going to help me but he's never done it either. perhaps maxgain or bigtee will respond. i know bigtee poste instructions somewhere here but i don't have time to search for it right now.

aloha keith
It's just like building an IC cable but very short. The caps get soldered together in parallel to get the value you are after and then they are soldered to the center(+) of each RCA male and female. Connect and solder a ground wire to the ground portion of each RCA. Cover it with something to give it some strength and your done. I use mine nude but they are very fragile that way and need to be used with care. It would be cool to have the caps soldered into a pair of IC's.
Maxgain:

Tried to reply to your email but it keeps bouncing back as undeliverable. Could you kindly send me your email address or phone number? I'd like to get you to build some crossovers for me in light of your excellent reputation.

Regards,
harry
The model 5 filters are the way to go if you want absolute transparency. However, after I've said that, you can build some that are very, very close.
Most of the caps discussed above have their virtues. Each is a little different flavor. I wish I could decide what was accurate. I sorta favor the Auricaps but as Maxgain says, the Dynamicaps are good BUT they are fragile. I have found Kimber Kaps to be decent along with Hovlands. The Hovlands give you a smooth and warm sound. Pretty much the opposite of the Inifinicap.
When I used McCormack amps way back when, I would solder the cap inside the amp and do away with the extra connectors. The center conductor wire from the RCA input was removed and the cap inserted. Kinda of hard to do that with a lot of connectors soldered directly to the boards now.
Maxgain has the info above for making these. He's right on the money and they are simple to make. I tried the "Nude" approach and actually thought it was better also.
One other note, I was told that the new model 5a's crossover at 100hz instead of 80.
I found using a frequency crossover point just below 80 works best in my room(actually about 73)
Most of these caps are + or - 10%. Auricaps can be specified at precise values at + or - 1% with a given value on special order.
The bottom line here is you really need to experiment. The M-5 filter simplifies this greatly and by the time you get through playing around with the x-2 clones, you could buy a pair of the 5's!
One last note, be careful about the manufacturers stated input impedance. This generally varies a good bit. That's why it's important to narrow your choice down through experimentation.