Let's talk Tweeters!

I have to echo Duke’s response. I get why you don’t want to mention brands, but it seems to really limit the applicability of the discussion.
MBL makes a very specific type of tweeter as far as I know not found elsewhere, and I have no idea if other manufacturers have produced an omni tweeter design with similarly excellent results. So I can’t say "I like omni tweeters because they have X results" because maybe I don’t like all omni tweeters - I can only speak to the specific ones I’ve heard that sound great. And pointing the the specific brand allows others to know exactly what I’m talking about.

And this really speaks to the whole issue of discussing tweeters in the absence of specific designs and implementations: We all know drivers don’t have qualities that exist in a vacuum - it depends on implementation. I’ve heard ribbon tweeters sound awful, and sound great, depending on how, technically, a specific speaker designer is using it.

How do I discuss the qualities of metal dome tweeters without mentioning the differences in implementation? Way back when metal dome tweeters were becoming more in use I used to agree with many audiophiles that metal dome tweeters sounded hot and metallic. But that prejudice was vanquished when I encountered the way Paul Hales had employed them in his speakers (Transcendence line), which seemed to have all the benefits of the metal drivers without the purported draw backs and characteristics (they were remarkably smooth, rich, sweet sounding speakers - still are, as I still have some).   Now, if someone cares to, they can look into how Hales implemented those tweeters (looking for instance at stereophile's measurements, etc).

I’m about to take delivery of a pair of speakers that use ribbon tweeters…a first for me…and I hope they sound as good as the aluminum/magnesium tweeters in my current "I won’t mention the brand as to not anger the OP" speakers designed by Alan Yun. I’m trying these new speakers due to their substantial efficiency with the plan of scoring a single ended low wattage tube amp at some point simply to see what all THAT fuss is about…I'm currently in Push Pull tube land for my main listening rig. I have noticed with my current speakers that although they utilize aluminum/magnesium for both the tweeters and woofers, they’ve been voiced to simply sound somewhat neutral and certainly not "forward" like one might assume metal drivers would sound…nothing hot or metallic in these, and I am certain that the crossover and voicing choices made by competent designers is the thing that matters here, not driver material.

Gents,

I agree, it's impossible not to discuss brands entirely, especially when a technology is entirely proprietary like MBL seems to.

I would like to focus on the technology and trade-offs. The post by @prof reads identical to an MBL speaker review. I'm sure it is well intentioned, but I'd like to discourage them in this thread, other threads may of course be started by anyone.

As mentioned, here are my guiding principles:

Stay focused on tweeters and their manufacturers (when known)

Discuss the technology, materials, construction, and trade-offs

Discuss comparisons to other similar and dissimilar tweeters

We will sometimes have to mention specific speaker brands, it is inevitable, but if we make speaker reviews common in this thread it destroys its focus. I really want to avoid this thread becoming "Speakers with good tweeters"

Ultimately of course, this is a group effort, so the contributions are what make a good thread, I just hope we maintain the purpose and add in the spirit of discussing technology and value.

Best,

E

@prof
Maybe I missed it, but in your original posting there was nothing about the technology. I only saw subjective opinions.

Also, no reason why you can’t mention it in comparison, in fact I would like you to. :) Let’s talk materials, operating principles. How does the motor work? How does it measure? What about room tuning and placement?

Of course, it is also impossible to take a tweeter out of the context of an entire speaker. However, I really want us to discuss trade-offs, benefits, costs of the technology.

"Brand X makes the most realistic speakers I’ve ever heard" doesn’t enable that type of discussion, and there are plenty of those threads around.

Look forward to talking about how the MBL drivers work, and even how the tweet is different from their woofers, etc.


Best,

E

erik,

I made my comments in regards to the tweeters used in the speakers I mentioned, and how I perceived their effect.

Do I understand then that you are looking only for technical contributions?  Maybe this is more of a DIY speaker builder discussion thread?