Anyone hear the Caravelle speaker and not like it?

Newbee, due to the "True Series First Order" crossover network design employed in the Caravelles, the system impedance remains quite flat between 7 ohms and 11 ohms throughout the entire range. This is a characteristic of the first order series crossover design. I received this information directly from the Caravelle's designer on the phone, just now.

It remains at an effectively flat 7 ohm level up until the areas above 11-12KHz, and has a slow linear rise as it progresses upwards in frequency to the 25kHz area where it reaches 11 ohms. There are no "wild" impedance changes anywhere in the curve, so that it is very easy on amplifiers of all types. Even some tube amps with higher output impedances will not be adversely affected, because of the very stable non-reactive nature of this speaker system's impedance curve.

The first order series network has alot of advantages in sonics and in matching applications with amplifiers. Some of the potential drawbacks are that back-EMF is more possible to occur with series crossovers, and that the tweeter is potentially subjected to higher power levels because it is operating in a first-order filter(shallower slope), at lower frequencies than higher-order(steeper slope) crossovers would permit. These potential drawbacks will not be objectionable in most cases, and the advantages of time alignment and correct transient behavior, as well as the superior flatness of the response and impedance curves will be far more important aspects to most users. Additionally, if there were any woofer-specific impedance changes that would potentially endanger the tweeter, the crossover frequency would automatically shift(sliding) upwards which provides additional protection for it. This is an inherent factor in series first-order designs, and is not any kind of "switching" mechanism. The crossover point just "slides" with any shifting impedances, and the amplitude response and impedance curves remain flat. The back-EMF issue is something that most amps have no difficulty dealing with, and should never be in issue, in practice. The main factor is the sound quality, which is very coherent and seamless in nature, fast in response, and open and natural in quality.

I hope that sufficiently answers your questions about the impedance of the Caravelles. Including "pros and cons".

Comparison with other box speakers is reasonable, although
the stunt suggested by Onhwy61 is over the top. On the other hand, no box speaker should be compared with planar or open baffle speakers because the spatial distribution characteristics are completely different, and may be preferred by some and disliked by others. I, for example, place high value on planar characteristics, and I am willing to accept their limited LF extension and the need for a powerful amplifier.

Regardless the sound,

Using $39 midbass, $27 tweeter, and cheap binding post for 2 way monitor is rip-off.

I have decided to take a chance on these speakers. I really do not care what kind of drivers they have or what the cabinets are made of. I listened to all the tech information that Robert told me about on the phone. It all sounds great, but the only thing I am interested in is the sound. The bottom line for me is I have 30 days to listen. If I do not think that the speakers are worth it, back they will go. I will only be out $100 shipping to me and half of that back to them. $150 total. Belive me, $5000 is a lot of money to me. I am currently on disability and have a fixed income. I sold my old system and am starting over. If these speakers are not awsome, I will not keep them. If they are what others owners are saying they are, I will have no problem paying their price. I warned Robert on the phone that I will tell it like it is. If I don't like the Carevelles, I will let people know. He said that he is not worried. The company seems very confident of their product. That was one of the reasons I thought I would give them a shot. We will see.

Twl as you know all the signal in a series crossover has to be played unlike a parallel crossover where some of the signal is dumped to ground..Seems to me that a parallel crossover with some of its signal dumped to ground, that unused signal would find its way back into the amplifier maybe as some kind of grunge or noise certainly as some out of phase aberation that may be passed along with the next waveform..Also most every parallel crossover designs have their components wired exclusively to the positive side only..leaving the amplifier dealing with a load that is unbalanced at the speaker end and no chance of ever working in symmetry. Tom