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Time for Two Ways !

There are as many types of speakers are there are human languages and dialects, but we have to agree one of the most popular formats is the two way system, with a tweeter and mid-woofer.

Sure, they are imperfect, often limited in bass or dynamic range, but they have major advantages as well:

  • Small Footprint
  • Small baffles
  • Single crossover point
  • Easier to integrate with a room’s acoustics

These are some general ideas. Of course, you don’t have to like 2-way speakers. You may prefer full-range single driver, ESL or 5-way beasts, but I hope we can please keep this thread 2-way friendly!

I’d love to hear from others about 2-way speakers you adore. Are you a 2-way only kind of audiophile?  How do you like yours? Horn loaded? Transmission line? Desktop?
erik_squires
mdelrossi1
79 posts
 
In my small room definitely 2-ways
Focal Electra 1008be2

My first expensive speaker and truly amazing.

sfar's avatar
sfar
1,760 posts
 
The Nola Boxer. I started with the original version and have upgraded to the S1. I've owned a lot of two-ways and three-ways and these are the most satisfying speakers I've owned.
erik_squires OP
16,122 posts
 
Hi @grinnell

Thanks for your contribution. Tweeters without a high pass filter are very rare, and usually piezo-electric so I had to do some research and now can call BS on the Ref 3A MM de Cap not having a crossover. Sorry.

Based on the SoundStage review, it doesn’t have a WOOFER crossover (i.e. low-pass filter). It most certainly DOES have a tweeter filter, so I would not say "no crossover." Also very interesting is that they assemble the tweeter and woofer themselves, though they do buy the tweeter dome from an outside source.

http://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/equipment-reviews/703-reference-3a-mm-de-capo-be-loudspeaker...

The Ref 3A is probably similar to the Seas A26 kits in crossover design. I chose a kit because you can learn a lot from the product link, here:

https://www.madisoundspeakerstore.com/2-way-speaker-kits/

Looking at the FR charts, I’m really pretty surprised. The ragged nature of the response, especially at the FR point is a disappointment. The designers say it is "phase coherent" but this means both drivers are pushing at the same time.

You know what you should experiment with is reversing the polarity of the tweeter. You will probably have a totally different speaker. :) See which you prefer. For more on this, see my first post here:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/speaker-phase-observation-and-question

Best,


E
erik_squires OP
16,122 posts
 
For those Focal fans here, I strongly encourage you to replace your tweeter caps with Mundorf MKP , I think you’ll like the improvement.

Best,

E
carmenc
293 posts
 
Back to Tannoy!  Best of the many speakers I've owned.  They just make music natural, relaxing and fun with all genres.  Not an easy task.  Currently DC8 and when I can in the future, Turnberry or Kensington.

Great thread by the way.
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