by Jonathan » Wed Nov 30, 2005 6:49 pm
If you want best results with tweeters up high, you need to make sure you accomodate a couple of things. You'll want them crossed over at or above 6khz. A couple of things happen past 6khz, the first is that our ears are no longer dependant upon pathlengths for imaging, they are only dependant on intensity (volume). The second is that at 6khz you are approaching harmonics more so than fundamental cues in the music, so you're more in presence range. Basically it means that the midrange driver can handle the vocals, while the tweeter is left simply for added detail and shimmer. The other thing you'll want to do is make sure that have the equipment to both equalize and set the level of the tweeters (or have some really good 1/3 octave equalizers on tap, one per channel).
Past the tweeters, you'll also want to make sure that you have a midrange that can match them. Typically this will call for a 4" midrange or a dome midrange, but there are a few (VERY few) 5.25" or 6.5" drivers that can play up to 6khz or so cleanly. With cone midranges, you're going to run into beaming issues, so it's best to have a custom kick panel or angled door installation to make sure they're pointed on axis relative to your ears. Of course a dedicated midrange driver is also going to perform best when combined with a dedicated midbass driver. So that's another thing to consider. Another option is to use a 6.5" 2 way set in kick panels, with additional tweeters up top to handle the upper frequencies.
Either way you choose, you're going to want steep slopes on the dash tweeters and likely steep slopes on what you're mating them with. What I've listed above isn't the only way to do it, but it's pretty much the only tried and true way that almost guarantees great results.
If you want best results with tweeters up high, you need to make sure you accomodate a couple of things. You'll want them crossed over at or above 6khz. A couple of things happen past 6khz, the first is that our ears are no longer dependant upon pathlengths for imaging, they are only dependant on intensity (volume). The second is that at 6khz you are approaching harmonics more so than fundamental cues in the music, so you're more in presence range. Basically it means that the midrange driver can handle the vocals, while the tweeter is left simply for added detail and shimmer. The other thing you'll want to do is make sure that have the equipment to both equalize and set the level of the tweeters (or have some really good 1/3 octave equalizers on tap, one per channel).
Past the tweeters, you'll also want to make sure that you have a midrange that can match them. Typically this will call for a 4" midrange or a dome midrange, but there are a few (VERY few) 5.25" or 6.5" drivers that can play up to 6khz or so cleanly. With cone midranges, you're going to run into beaming issues, so it's best to have a custom kick panel or angled door installation to make sure they're pointed on axis relative to your ears. Of course a dedicated midrange driver is also going to perform best when combined with a dedicated midbass driver. So that's another thing to consider. Another option is to use a 6.5" 2 way set in kick panels, with additional tweeters up top to handle the upper frequencies.
Either way you choose, you're going to want steep slopes on the dash tweeters and likely steep slopes on what you're mating them with. What I've listed above isn't the only way to do it, but it's pretty much the only tried and true way that almost guarantees great results.