H J s system !

[andromedaaudio]

Got my new blank SM 468 pancake tapes from.RTM france
.1000 m and 762 m.
The B62 is not really made for anything bigger then 10 inch reels though , the telefunken takes all sizes .
If i can give somebody a tip;
buying a telefunken M15 A is a no brainer .
Solid construction ,fantastic handling ,sounds great .

Got also Adapters reels etc.
Gonna try some tape dubbing .

 

[andromedaaudio]

I was going through some old USB sticks and i realized there are some speaker models which i made in the past that are not yet in my system thread .
Also a 20 degrees off axis response measurement is included , you see just a slight high freq roll off in the XPE model ,
1/6 oct smoothfact , measured of axis.
Also from 1700 hz to 9000 Hz + - 1 db , dead neutral
The woofer i used back then in a mdf design was a 26 W scan speak 8861 T00 paper woofer , thats the reason why i m so paper woofer skeptical ,.... no real impact / not linear / early roll off
Also the thiel accuton diamond tweeter i ll never use again.





DSC05733 by andromeda61, on Flickr

 

[andromedaaudio]

I think i m gonna design a new speaker .
It could take a year or so , but the plan is there .
Off course Full range sound but in a smaller footprint / package ,(its hard to design something different once you have tasted the full sound spectrum)
Most likely this time a 4 way design , i wanna experiment with dividing the freq range differently then the XPE.( 2 6,5 inch mids )
I wanna cross the new 7,5 inch paper mid lower and the other 5 inch higher ( by crossing the tweeter higher )
Same 12 inch ETON , 7,5 inch paper bass/ mid , 5 inch paper mid ( more expensive units/ motor system but that doesnt always result automatically in better sound ) and a different ( more expensive ring radiator softdome design) then the XPE .
The XPE model was more of a challenge of how much sound quality i could achieve while spending as little as possibe ( if not deemed nescessary to spend more )
During that time i was so fed up with expensive accuton diamond units not delivering what i wanted to hear
The XPE still remains a near perfect design in my eyes as i really wouldnt wanna change a thing even after the past 5 years , its a completely efficiency matched system without the use of resistors anywhere for maximum transparency , not much to improve on X over circuit wise
But its for the connoisseur who likes a big speaker sound
The new model will need some resistors in the signal path due to design as is the case with most loudspeaker designs by the way .
This one will get a different colour luxury lacquer finish with most likely macassar ebony wooden inlays .
It will be as much bandwith/ soundpressure level as i can put in a smaller design .
Will be exiting

Efficiency will be lower because of the use of only 1 woofer per side , around 91- 92 db .
And off course made of HPL material , the best for cabinet construction / design imo.

May be some felt around the tweeter not sure .
Felt or another absorption material around all units can lower the efficiency with 1-2 db , as it absorbs energy .
I have experimented extensively with it in the past with previous models but i found it a bit dull sounding after a while .
It does improve image focus however which has its charmes , but in the end i like as much liveliness as a speaker can produce

 

[andromedaaudio]

XLF/ boulder 3010 3050 /DCS vivaldi series versus mine on you tube same digital track.
Mine has slightly more pronounced bass but the tonal balance is quit similar( as it should be off course ).
Attack of notes is a bit snappier/ dryer with boulder solid state.
If i d ever buy a speaker it would be the XLF , but i would tune the tw and mids slightly down probably( increase resistor value ) to tilt the balance slightly in favour of the bass

y

As my room is not very deep here is a recording further back with the telephone mic almost against the ( dampened with absorption) back wall.

 

[LL21]

XLF/ boulder 3000 versus mine on you tube same digital track.
Mine has slightly more pronounced bass but the tonal balance is quit similar( as it should be off course ).
Attack of notes is a bit snappier/ dryer with boulder solid state.
If i d ever buy a speaker it would be the XLF , but i would tune the tw and mids slightly down probably( increase resistor value ) to tilt the balance slightly in favour of the bass

Interesting...why the XLF? As you a speaker designer, I am curious to understand what the designer/industry folks think. Personally, the XLF is the speaker for me other than the [unfortunately] impractically large and electronics-intensive Rockport Arrakis (2 sets of amps, 2 sets of speaker cables, [2] extra sets of interconnects to the active crossover. However, other than the Arrakis, I prefer the XLF over its rivals, but that is a personal preference, not one based on technical knowledge or anything else.

 

[andromedaaudio]

If i remember correctly it was the first wilson speaker to use a softdome / textile dome ( silk whatever )
So its a kinda special design because the wilson trademark was always the inverted focal dome tw .
I could have said wilson alexx also by the way , it depends a bit on the room .
And I like the big focal audiom woofers , i m a bit skeptical about the new big wilsons with paper woofers , but i have not heard them yet .
Furthermore its a quit easy to drive speaker efficiency is fine , i cant recall the impedance graph but it should match the cat amps pretty good .
Nice curves , nice looking back plate with all those adjustability's and the wilson fit n finish is excellent
But resolution wise my design( resistor less ) probably tops it in certain areas , and may be also in dynamic contrast / lower bass reproduction .
But overall speaking i think it ll be an enjoyable non fatiguing natural sounding loudspeaker , not sharp / hard on the ear , as you ve seen in my thread here, i ve had my share of ceramic and diamond cones
But I have not heard them , i ve heard only maxxes and X 2 and the smaller wilsons .
What i like about wilson is that they have always stuck with paper mids/ natural sound and pioneered the compostie / phenolic resin based speaker cabinets

 

[LL21]

If i remember correctly it was the first wilson speaker to use a softdome / textile dome ( silk whatever )
So its a kinda special design because the wilson trademark was always the inverted focal dome tw .
I could have said wilson alexx also by the way , it depends a bit on the room .
And I like the big focal audiom woofers , i m a bit skeptical about the new big wilsons with paper woofers , but i have not heard them yet .
Furthermore its a quit easy to drive speaker efficiency is fine , i cant recall the impedance graph but it should match the cat amps pretty good .
Nice curves , nice looking back plate with all those adjustability's and the wilson fit n finish is excellent
But resolution wise my design( resistor less ) probably tops it in certain areas , and may be also in dynamic contrast / lower bass reproduction .
But overall speaking i think iit ll be an enjoyable non fatiguing natural sounding loudspeaker , not sharp / hard on the ear , as you ve seen in my thread here, i ve had my share of ceramic and diamond cones
But I have not heard them i ve heard only maxxes and X 2 and the smaller wilsons .
What i ilke about wilson is that they have always stuck with paper mids/ natural sound and pioneered the compostie / phenolic resin based speaker cabinets

Thanks. I do like the XLFs a lot and look forward to hearing them after they are fully calibrated/set up. They have been well set up when they just installed them, but we stopped the calibration which can take hours when Covid lock down occurred, and so we hope to get that done over the summer.

 

[andromedaaudio]

Thanks. I do like the XLFs a lot and look forward to hearing them after they are fully calibrated/set up. They have been well set up when they just installed them, but we stopped the calibration which can take hours when Covid lock down occurred, and so we hope to get that done over the summer.

Yes its absolutely essential to have that done properly, wrong resistor values can make or break a speaker FR wise ( meaning leaving an imprint on everything played .)
My advice would be if you dont know what the previous owner had changed on the resistors , to install first the wilson standard values and go from there .
With wilson s time alignment system i dont have any expirience .

Funny you still mention the arrakis as the standard .
What was it about that design that makes you think that?
Did you pefer side firing woofers ?
I like it, it sounds more like they fill the room completely as compared to front firing
In my next design i will mount the woofer front firing though ,as i think buyers will prefer it visually to my other design.
And i ve got a lot more things i ll expiriment with .
I have the drawings/ design mostly complete and then these can be send to the cabinet manufacturer who translates it into CAD drawings for their machinery
My next design will be the full range ferrari in the small floorstander loudspeakers class
Possibly in high gloss IMOLA red , with maccasar ebony or walnut clusterburl wooden inlays.
Looks are essential if you want to compete in the high end market , my XPE design looks may be to boring .

Ps disclaimer i dont know yet if my design will be possible to make in HPL, this still needs to be discussed with the cabinet manufacturer , as its not a easy / cheap material to work with like wood or MDF / HDF for example .
The side firing version will be then be the other HPL option , a mini XPE in luxury version


One loudspeaker to rule them all

 

[LL21]

Thanks...because the Wilson speakers were factory refurbished, completely polished, repainted and recalibrated and also given a new 5 year warranty, I imagine it is likely they did come with a standard set of resistors. That said, it will all get finetuned this summer hopefully.

Meanwhile, I think the incredible build quality and SCALE/effortlessness of the Arrakis was what impressed me. Far beyond an XLF and note quite that of the Genesis 1s was my non-professional impression. Of a whole, everything delivered as you imagine it simply being played. From top to bottom. When my pants were flapping due to the bass, i put my hand on the cabinet next to the woofer and realized i literally would not have known if the music was playing or not by only touching the speaker. It was so still, it could have been OFF.

I STILL would love to see the Arrakis with the REL 6-pack of reference subs (the dual-stack of 3 on each side)...which is what Arnie has in his system. But nevertheless, for 2-speakers, the Arrakis remains my personal reference.

 

[andromedaaudio]

Thanks...because the Wilson speakers were factory refurbished, completely polished, repainted and recalibrated and also given a new 5 year warranty, I imagine it is likely they did come with a standard set of resistors. That said, it will all get finetuned this summer hopefully.

Meanwhile, I think the incredible build quality and SCALE/effortlessness of the Arrakis was what impressed me. Far beyond an XLF and note quite that of the Genesis 1s was my non-professional impression. Of a whole, everything delivered as you imagine it simply being played. From top to bottom. When my pants were flapping due to the bass, i put my hand on the cabinet next to the woofer and realized i literally would not have known if the music was playing or not by only touching the speaker. It was so still, it could have been OFF.

I STILL would love to see the Arrakis with the REL 6-pack of reference subs (the dual-stack of 3 on each side)...which is what Arnie has in his system. But nevertheless, for 2-speakers, the Arrakis remains my personal reference.

Ah okay it seems you have a pair in excellent condition .

Seems to me the Arrakis had an excellent constructed housing then , with rockports " moulded designs " they can take any design shape they want .
Wilson and my designs work with plate material , so extremely curved shapes are either extremely costly / impossible to make .

Here is a vid when i was busy with designing the x over / listening tests sorry for the mess , also the phone mic is completely overloaded
When i was playing really loud i put my finger 1 centimeter from the woofer flange on the cabinet i felt also absolutely no vibration .
40 mm braced HPL is a bit overdone actually , i could make the walls thinner
But the dynamic contrast is unbelievable , high end loudspeaker design is all in the housing

Ps My designs these days are also very reliable at high power, i never had a unit break in the 5 plus years of the XPE , unlike the accuton diamond which i broke
Scariest thing though during these loud tests the woofers hardly moved

 

[andromedaaudio]

Here is another speaker design besides the rockport which is a favourite of mine, its a classic beauty of construction
This kharma speaker is for the most part made out of HPL plates with acoustical chambers all glued together to create a rounded shape
And i can tell you thats not the easy way out design wise / cheap to make .
And they sound good too they re probably the only ceramic / diamond cone speaker i like .
Although these days they have their own design " carbon fiber " units

 

[andromedaaudio]

While listening to the Stevie ray vaughan vids today at work through the SONY WH 1000 headphones with noise cancelling on it does nt sound right actually .
It sounds like there is to much bass , with noise cancelling off it sounds better but still bass heavy.
But the XLF s out put is also to much for you tube / phone mic s / headphone by the way , this track sounds also very bass heavy on the XLF vid with the sony headphones ( noise cancelling on ), with that switched of its better but still also exaggerated bass.

Here is an organ plunging the depth.

Correct bass is also difficult to design as its hard to measure and there are a lot of differentiations in recordings.
On some tracks it sounds just right , some tracks it sounds bass heavy , it depends also on the kind of mixing monitors they use in the studio .
Pop in general sounds bass heavy , classical / house much less so

Ps These speakers also need a bigger room to breathe its not an ideal situation

 

[andromedaaudio]

Here is a tiesto CD where the sound is just a gigantic bubble/ stage without any reference to speakers.
Thats what bass does to the sound , the spaciousness is not really captured on you tube but its an enourmous stage where all kind of things are happening , the bass is good with this CD
I ll replace the vid with one in day light later during the day.

Here recorded from slightly further away , the cd s clips at the end unfortunately , i need to buy a new one.

 

[andromedaaudio]

Here is a Dance valley CD of the 2003 fesitval in the netherlands which i attended .
I d love to hear CH precision The gryphon or Halcro power amps on my speakers .
But to be honest i dont think they will deliver the fullness/ definition of good tubes , they will have the control but sound dryer most likely .

Wilson WP Daw or the magico S 5 mk2 are in the same price range , but mine will make them both sound like a puppy dynamically/ scalewise

 

[andromedaaudio]

 

[andromedaaudio]

My last vid with the old pre .

Elvis tape

 

[andromedaaudio]

New pre amplifier CAT Legend with phono .
Estimate about 6-7 years old
Teflon circuitboards L /R volume control .
My CAT JL2 sign apparently already has Teflon circuit boards .

I ll decide after the Munich show in may next year what im gonna do .
As it is now i m planning to replace the KT120 tubes in due time with 6550 s .
The amp was designed to be used with them plus the tube cages fit then .
If i dont hear any good solid state im planning to buy the latest CAT JL5 or JL7 s and after comparing the JL2 sign with those i ll then choose which to sell.
Also if i see a good opportunity im looking to buy a 30.6 , i ve never been happier with my digital ( Mark levinson 360 S) .
The dac sounds great especially after 12 hours or so on the juice

im totally happy with the sound as it is

 

[Addicted to hifi]

View attachment 84125 View attachment 84127

Very nice setup.

 

[andromedaaudio]

Regarding my new speaker design it ll be smaller this time.
A smaller 3 way system with front firing woofers.
2 versions of the same design , but full range non the less .
FR sound in a small package with a paper composite midrange for natural sound.
Housing material as usual HPL ( High pressure laminate ) Phenolic resin composite.

1 design will have double 11 inch woofers 94 db efficiency .
Parallel X over filter / high impedance X over ( speaker can be used with low powered tubes )
1 design will have a single 12 inch woofer 92,5 db efficiency
Series X over

Units for high freq.: scan speak ringradiator revelator this time instead of the illuminator range .
Because of the more solid back chamber .
Flat FR off course

Same for both speakers

Mids 2 versions.

4 inch mid Illuminator range

Ellipticor range 18 cm mid



As usual ETON design 11 Inch and 12 inch woofers
But new redesigned versions with a different motor / lighter and still stiff membrane

Tweeter : 0,3 grams moving mass Ringradiator as compared to the softdome version which has a membrane weight of 0,4 gr







Mids elliipticor 18 cm , elliptical voicecoil .








Mid 4 inch








This 4 inch has a foam surround , it doesn t have the typical dip between 1-2 khz associated with rubber surrounds
Best response of any mid on the market " Scanspeak denmark "

 

[andromedaaudio]

One like this might be my next tape deck
Being a mechanical guy , this is just awesomely made