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Speakers The single most critical component

I know we've been over this Q hundreds of X's over the past 20 years here on audion, You can find dozen of topics dealing with this Q <which is the ,,,,most important component...>>
well time for yet 1 more topic dealing with this,, perhaps unanswered, un-resolved issue.
I'm bringing up the old hachet due to my recent experience acutally hearinga FR in my system. 
Let me tell you, there is not even 1 traditional/conventioanl/xover design <The Boxed Type>> in the world that could convince me  , there is something that will beat out FR (caveat, FR requires  some sort of high sens =sensitivity, tweeter)  in  the Boxy world of speakers.
That is to say, FR + Compression Horn is the future of 21st Century high fidelity. 
One lab has already brought us these ~~~SHF~~~ aka SuperHighFidelity  single drivers. 
The code word here is ~~SHF~~~ which can not never be employed when describing xover/trad/conventioanl style  aka The Box designs. db level under 91 are _<<IN-EFFICIENT>> , = dysfunctional, out dated, old school , = Dinasaurs. 
For amps, I only consider tube amps (PP and SET) as ~~SHF~~~ I can not include ss amps in this topic. 
IMHO all well made tube amps sound very close,
 a  kt88 in brand X will sound  close to brand Y. 
So amplification takes a  distant 2nd place in critical component.  No need to break the bank buying amp A vs  a  lower priced kt88 amp B
CD players, nearly all  tube DAC's , tube cdp-ers sound  close. No need to braek the bank over X vs Y.
My Jadis DAC is  only miniscule gain over the Shanling,
 the Shanling
only a  miniscule gain over the Cayin CD17. 
Now as for  best source  , phonograph is the ideal playback medium vs cds. 
I have some LP's now , but my main collection are classical cds, most not on LP version. Cables , I did note some gains employing silver/copper wiring throughout my entire system including inside the Defy.
Tweak worthy.
New Mundorf caps in all componets, tweak worthy. 
Yet the main central component remaisn the speakers.
Here is where  the entire audio resolution either rises to Nirvana or falls to <<distortion/muddy waters,/pollution/anti-fidelity  voicing  issues.
Your system's fidelity is ultimately dependent on what speaker  you have chosen to employ.
Forget all you've learned over the years, 
The new mantra is <,The speaker is key component>
All else is just extra tweaks/nuances. 
To sum up, a  ~~SHF~~ driver will match even the top of line Wilson weighing in at hundreds of lbs priced $$$$$$$ overa single FR driver. 
FR beats out any/all xover box design speakers. Mostly due to that key specification ~~db level~~~ which is everything in speaker design and thus in resolution/fidelity. 

mozartfan
mozartfan OP
2,143 posts
 
before that became dominant. I can also accept that the combination of a tube amplifier and speaker could alter the sound enough to be accepted as an inseparable unit,


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All tube amplification must, w/o exception, be paired with a  FR/Horn tweet. 
Tube amps(SET/Pushpull etc) will not perform/work/function  without a  FR employed.. 
This is a  cardinal rule  which can not be compromised in any other speaker design. 
Tube amplification + FR, 
= 2 sides of the same coin. 

mozartfan OP
2,143 posts
 
You know my argument  is really not too difficult to follow along.
1970s,80,s90;s, 2000, 2010,
we are well into the 21st Century. 
The 1970's speakers served us well. 
But its high time Seas and  Scan Speak delete their entire inventory of any and all  drivers which are not 94+ db rated. 
Yeah I know , thats like 99% of their production. 
Which is why the 1 lab that will prosper over the next 50+ years is Voxativ,
 All others will have to play catch-up, but its doubtful Seas and Scan Speak will be around much longer. 
I say to both labs , 
you served us well,
RIP
dletch2
455 posts
 
All others will have to play catch-up, but its doubtful Seas and Scan Speak will be around much longer.



You were doing so well, then the deep end you fell off of.


Much work has been done in the last 30 years to reduce impact of thermal compression from voice coil/magnet structure heating. That will continue. Seas and Scan Speak both are still viewed as making some of the best drivers on the planet. That is not likely to change any time soon.


Single full range dynamic drivers, ala Voxatif have one large, unavoidable and limiting issue. Doppler distortion. They solve one issue and create another one.


I am hoping for direct brain interface in <50 years.

Post removed 
herman
2,282 posts
 

OK I‘ll nail my colours to the mast: my primary directive is ’garbage in garbage out‘, with ’weakest link’ lurking in the background.

By that I mean that the source should always take precedence, and that a  top down hierarchy is justified

Give me your best shot.

that is so easy it is not a "shot". There is so little "garbage in" it can be ignored. I have a Raspberry Pi with a HiFiBerry DAC running off of a wall wart power supply. Somewhere in the $100 range. Currently have a $10K Denafrips DAC and DDC, I've had a $30K DCS Rossini with clock, A $15K Chord DAVE with Mscaler with linear DC supplies, and others.. The more expensive are clearly better, but the Pi sounds really good and is  nowhere near garbage. So the source can in no way be considered the most critical component.

Weakest link
is off topic, the thread is supposed to be about "the single most critical component." By definition "single" means one which eliminates links from the discussion. 

@Mozartfan, you win the prize for the longest most rambling posts... hands down... but I have a question

what is this FR you keep going on and on about? When I googled "Berlin FR" I found in one of your diatribes I  got something about a German farmers market and a German Ford dealer.
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