Experience with Iconic products

[alcofibras]

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2005!!!

Does anyone have advices about the opportunity to use very efficient drivers that go "only" to 60Hz down and use a subwoofer for the lowest octaves, or to loose some efficiency but use drivers that goes a bit lower?

I'm asking this because, acording to the specs of the Iconic speakers, this is the dilemma I have to face now...

[Jim D]

Unfortunately, the problem is that the laws of physics preclude a small box having great bass and high efficiency. You can have an inefficient small box that goes way down or an efficient small box that does not, just not both.

Several of the Iconic models will go under 30Hz, but only in large (6-10 Cubic ft.+) boxes. The 1634 will do about 34hZ F3 in a 7 cubic foot box. If you make it bigger it will do better.

The 168-8A will do about the same in an 11 cu' box and it is more efficient.

Our new 164-8LF is even better in both efficiency and bass, but we are just getting it toward production and awaiting steel parts costing.

In small box drivers, one has to open up the magnetic gap so it does not bind due to the floppier suspensions and heavier moving mass of the cones. This results in lower efficiency and less articulate bass. The large drivers, especially those with (underhung) voice coils fully immersed in the magnetic gap, like the 164-8A, 168-8A, and 128-8A produce much more detailed bass than other overhung voice coil woofers when at least 1/2 of the coil is outside of the gap at all times.

Our 165-8A is a bass horn driver and unless you have a huge bass horn will not go to extreme lows.

The big boxes. properly done, just have an ease of response smaller ones do not. There is just no free lunch, sorry, and anyone who tells you otherwise, is lying. JIM

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ January 01, 2005 05:06 PM: Message edited by: Todd W. White ]</font>

[alcofibras]

Thank you very much for your answer!

I'm all ready aware of the "basic rules" of speaker design, and I truely don'care about the size of the boxes.

My problem is rather about subwoofer - or not. If this is possible to match nicely a subwoofer from 60Hz down with a very efficient upper system (Iconic speakers, for example), I may choose this solution.
But I'm afraid of how such a solution would affect the sound of the whole system. I do fear a "mismatching" when using a low efficient high powered subwoofer with the Iconic mid-bass.
This is the reason why I'm asking weither it would be wiser to chose one of your a bit less efficient drivers like the 168 instead of using a sub.

Any way, since I'm not in a hurry I would be very pleased to know more about your future 164...

[alcofibras]

Does anybody have an enclosure to advice me? Maybe a horn-bass-reflex combination...

Goal : 60-300Hz

Have a good day!

[alcofibras]

Todd,

Does the company have a name like GKF or something? I thik I remember to have read something about them using Atec drivers.

But I'm not sure...