John, what they are refering to are ribbons. VMPS uses a ribbon called Silver Flute, or something like it , they retail for like $30 each. You get like 4 mid + 2 tweet ribbons = 6 ribbons per cabinet + 2 8 inch woofers per cabinet. So they are hybrid. Now what i have in mind is a design with only 1 high quality ribbon, the Philips RT8P, sells for $275/pr. + a superior mid cone + superior woofer cone. So VMPS is not the only alternative to cones. You can design your own.