Full Range Drivers


I was wondering who has heard them and if so, what is or was your take on them compared to full range speakers.
donjr
Single driver speakers can run the gamut from stellar to down right crappy,just like any other type.You can't just make a general assumption that they are all good/bad or sound better/worse than multi-driver speakers.The good ones I have heard,Tannoy to drop a name,are IMHO every bit as good as any speaker I've heard.If you name a few speakers,you will probably get more responses.Of course this is just my opinion,feel free to disagree.
By one set of parameters your telephone is a full range driver. If you are looking for 20 to 20K range, you will not find a driver that can do it.
I use a horn with a compression driver that extends from 400 Hz. to 14Khz. Below that I have a 15 inch woofer which meets the horn at 400 and extends just below 50 Hz. Most guys on this forum would consider that unacceptably limited. I find that it covers most of the musical spectrum. At my age, high frequencies go to waste. The woofer delivers a sensuous, relaxed and accurate bass response so I'm happy.
What are you trying to learn? The advantage of a full range is no crossover. The disadvantage is compromised extension. Everything involves trade-offs and attendant choices.
I can't disagree. I've never heard one. I find your response appropriate considering the lack of information I provided. I'll try to see if I can demo some Tannoy's. I've heard that some full range driver configurations do a good job of reproducing vocals, I would imagine if implemented properly. I think my 3 ways do a good job, but have nothing to compare them too. I'm under the impression that no speaker does everything perfectly, so maybe I should look into having a second pair of speakers on hand for certain types of music. I'm probably crazy and just going through some weird 'collect bug'.
To get the most out of a single driver, you also need a huge, sometime elaborate enclosure.
And yes, the best can run some real $$$. But, given the generally high sensitivity you won't need a gigantic amp.
I have owned many speakers over many years and have enjoyed several single driver speakers including:
Beauhorns, Lamhorns and KCS seas exotics. None of these are full range in the sense of 20hz-20khz...not even close.
But depending on the room, positioning, music and personal tatse, I have found them all very satisfactory and satisfying...in fact, I would consider the KCS seas exotic to be one of the very best values I have come across.
I currently use Tonian Classic 12.1s which use the PHY driver covering most of the speakers usable range and the treble is brilliantly handled by the Raven 2 ribbon tweeter. This being second pair of Tonian speakers I have owned (original TLM-1s) and a very fine speaker IME.
I certainly like what a well designed single driver speaker can offer but like all speakers you have to pick your priorities and poison.