Ultimate challenge biggest bang speaker

CS, yes I disagree. Beethoven symphonies, as well a Wagner, etc, are played daily on my LOWTHERS(with no subwoofers), from a RECORD PLAYER.
I wouldn't play Megadeth, so I don't know about that. How about Blue Oyster Cult? They play that quite well.

And BTW, single-driver speakers are "active speakers", being directly driven by the amps, with no intervening passive crossovers. They just don't have the amps inside the speaker cabinets.

There was a lot right about what was used in the early days of the pre-WW2 era. This is why some of the highest end products are still using some of this technology(and expanding upon it).

But that's mostly for us record playing, tube amp owning old farts who don't watch TV while we're listening to music.

what about source technology louspeakers or the $595 morels they are blowing out? i have not heard either, but these are possibilities. anyone heard either?

i have heard the as-f1 speakers from athena, and they did not bowl me over. but the cd player and the amp were not very good so maybe this is not fair. i have heard perfectly good speakers sound awful because of a bad room, bad source, and a mediocre amp.

the av-3 kit from GR Research will make a very smooth classy sound if you have woodworking skills. about $350

a real bargain? a fedex box with sonic impact soundpads glued on. about $40

:) I was just pulling your chains a little, but I think we all can agree that Lowthers are an aquired taste.

Having heard probably 30+ Lowther DIY systems at various DIY meets and a few at show I can honestly say that consistency amongst different lowther designs is at best erratic.

But I will stick by my premise that Lowthers are limited when compared to other designs on larger scale music, they are fast to rise and slow to stop and music like Megadeth, distortion harmonics and dynamic bass and orchestras sound congestested an congealed versus multi element designs.

Now let follow up and say that since the lowther sound in my experience starts at pitiful and climbs to very good, you may be the curve breaker and have an excellent system that supercedes the systems I have experienced. Like I said for a single driver the lack of consistency in sound amongst different designs is dumbfounding to me.

Lowthers may be an acquired taste for some, and an immediate love/hate for others. I've seen it go various ways.

I totally agree with your assessment of Lowther systems at shows, and even though I'm a Lowther owner, I've never heard a really good sounding Lowther speaker at any show. Many things interfere with good sound at shows, as was evidenced at the recent T.H.E Show and CES.

Regarding their "restrictions", yes they have them.
The main restriction is the lowest bass octave.
I agree with the "fast to rise" comment, but the "slow to stop" comment is factually erroneous, because the internal magnetic damping/control of the Lowther driver is the among the fastest of all cone type speakers. This is true both on rise and stop. The moving mass vs magnetic strength ratio is awesome, and provides superb control in all movement aspects(including braking). This is simply an electro-mechanical characteristic of the drivers.

I do agree that in a single-driver, the likelihood of having more IM distortion in complex large-scale music is higher, but I have to say that this must be weighed against the other undesirable factors that exist in multi-driver designs(active or passive), so listening preferences may ultimately define what is preferred in this area. In multi-drivers, the fundamentals are often reproduced by one driver, and the harmonics reproduced by other driver(s) which will not have exactly the same tonal qualities, movement characteristics, or radiation source locations. They may have less IM, but other distortions become greater.
All speaker systems are a "mixed bag" of plusses and minuses, and it is your preference and listening tastes which dictate.

I agree that in multi-driver systems, active speakers are a big step in the right direction for best control, least crossover-induced problems, and generally better sound quality.