HF driver comparison 23744 vs 34647

[Alien_Shore]

I finally landed some nice 802-8G HF compression drivers with the "lite" diaphragms part # 23744, so I thought I would do some measurements and see if there is a quantifiable difference between the lite frams and the replacement frams that came along shortly after (part # 34647).

To conduct the tests, I wanted to control as much variability as possible, so I used the same 802-8G driver for all measurements, and swapped out the frams only. I took measurements from exactly the same positions, using the same amp, same levels, etc. I measured using three different horns that I have on hand: the MR931-12, 811, and 511.

Here's the 802-8G I used. Great condition, very clean:




And the two frams used for all the tests. The 23744 lite:


And the 34647 (slightly dimpled):


Here are the measurements for the 34647 fram on all three horns:


And here are the measurements for the 23744 on all three horns:


Here is the fram side x side compare on the 511 horn: