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Coaxial Ribbon Midrange/tweeter - Can a small midrange ribbon actually do midrange well?

Fellow Members: my apologies if you may have caught a similar discussion under Piega 511 Coax Loudspeakers. That title may not reflect the general interest I am hoping for.  

I am wondering, from a technical standpoint, how the Piega 511/711 Coax loudspeakers use a relatively small coaxial ribbon mid/ tweeter array driver to cover the entire midrange.  I always thought of smaller ribbons as excellent tweeters only.  If it does cover the entire midrange, can it move enough air to make
an impactful presentation for large orchestra or rock music, for example. Reviews praise the speaker’s agility, resolution and accuracy. It sounds like a most worthy competitor in its price range but I want a loudspeaker that can do most genres well.....not just vocals, chamber music and jazz.  Thank you in advance for your input. 
audiobrian
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
Erik, I assume you meant to say "ribbon" midrange. As you know, there are many planar midrange drivers---the other Eric (with the inferior spelling ;-) .
audiobrian OP
186 posts
 
I truly appreciate the responses so far. The Eminent Tech speakers have a much larger/longer midrange ribbon array than the Piega 511 Coax Loudspeakers. This is why I find it hard to believe this Piega coaxial driver can generate the necessary SPL for more demanding music and without distortion.
bill_k
921 posts
 
I owned their earlier model C10 Ltd. which also used a version of their hand made coaxial midrange/tweeter. While they refer to them as 'ribbons' they're actually planar magnetic in design, since the conductive foil elements are on a substrate rather than being freely suspended in their magnetic field. They have a very detailed and pure quality to their sound and image exceptionally well. I'd strongly suggest an audition before making such a purchase since individual preferences and system matching will play a large part in determining whether they're the right choice for you.
erik_squires
16,444 posts
 
Erik, I assume you meant to say "ribbon" midrange. As you know, there are many planar midrange drivers---the other Eric (with the inferior spelling ;-)
.
@bdp24

Not at all. I meant "planar" in the generic sense, including ribbon, planar magnetic or even ESLs, in that the radiating surface describes a plane instead of a cone. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a true ribbon midrange though.


bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 

@erik, are you forgetting about the Apogee Acoustics full range ribbon loudspeakers?

But let me back up. I asked if you meant to say "ribbon" in your sentence "this is not the first time a planar midrange has been envisioned". I did so because the "this" in the sentence I took to be referring to the speaker the OP is asking about, a loudspeaker with specifically a ribbon midrange, not a generic planar one.

In regards to planar midrange drivers, of course the Piega 511 is not the first speaker to employ them! My God, that goes back to the 1950's. QUAD, KLH, and Dayton-Wright ESL's, Magneplanars in the early-70's, the Infinity IRS and RS-1b, all the ESL's introduced in the 1980's and later, the ET LFT's, and many more.

So Erik, what do you mean by "a planar midrange"? 

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