Highly unusual: Altec 288 compression driver used bare

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Highly unusual: Altec 288 compression driver used bare

Рет қаралды 1,960

Күн бұрын

To my knowledge I am the first to use the 288 bare, without a horn, for over 3 years now. (AKA = there might be someone doing it already, but they have no internet presence I am aware of.)
Here, I'm sharing about application notes and listening experiences. (Actually recapping, as have already shared about this on this channel years ago.)
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Пікірлер: 14

@jamesoneil9757 10 ай бұрын

Thank you for this Janos. I think this kind of experimentation can really help us train our ears and of course maybe we get to something we really love using flexible DIY techniques.

@swingarmer 4 ай бұрын

you can hear up to 20k? wow that's amazing!

@realworldaudio 4 ай бұрын

I think of it as more of a curse than a blessing. Most stereo systems 18+kHz is simply ATROCIOUS to say the least, especially at the levels they are blasted at show-rooms. This weekend I was at a live event (where I was performing), and after the performance I sat down with the audience and listened to the other performers. Even though the venue had extraordinarily good PA system, it was still quite draining and fatiguing, and even today (2 days later) I have ringing in my ears. (Mind, it was not the loud volume, which it was not loud at all, but the very high frequencies - we listened to a lot of gamelan / Indonesian music which has extreme levels of the 20kHz range). On the other hand, I can truly appreciate when a loudspeaker can handle the 17+kHz region well, and I can say such loudspeakers are rarer than white crows and tigers, and not at all what people would think from the ads and festishization.

@asadabbasmirza9519 10 ай бұрын

Seal or close the hole where the horn is bolted and open cover of diaphragm and this way it become more like dome tweeter with naked diaphragm.

@PlaybackMansion 10 ай бұрын

My drivers also sound more natural without horns. I think when they're facing up without a horn it's the closest thing to how a microphone capsule behaves (in reverse)

@mfr58 10 ай бұрын

Hi Janos, what is the Blutack in the mouth of the 288 for?

@EssS1226 10 ай бұрын

Is this true only of 288s particularly. I shall take the horns off my CD and project them upwards and see if I experince some of this voodoo you talk about. 😀Thanks.

@karlsonkab51 10 ай бұрын

you could make a Karlson slotted "K-tube" say a quick rolled, cut and taped paper tube. That way you could experiment quickly between a constant tube diameter and one which expands bit. Also play with driver tilt. - How do the cheap aftermarket diaphragms perform in 288? - mine need new 'phragms. j

@CC-bg8gf 10 ай бұрын

Salut János. As far as you know, is there a modern equivalent that get close to the performance of your Altec 288? The Great Plains Audio 288-8h (16h) perhaps?

@jamesoneil9757 10 ай бұрын

I think the benefit of the GPA is that you should be able to get two matching massive Alnico magnets that have equal mag charge that’s not diminished by time. But, I do not believe the GPA phragms are very good, but most people will disagree. My new GPA 288’s had badly installed diaphragms so I have bought a bunch of new phragms that are not very expensive. I even have a pair made by someone in Russia that are made of paper. They are exquisitely made. I don’t think diaphragms are magic, I think that given a selection of different diaphragms that we can install them and test and listen to find what sounds best. There is nothing special about GPA phragms. Or, you can source original phragms and try those. Unless you find a very good supplier who will test and repair your 288’s, you need to learn to install phragms. So, just go for it, there’s no magic, you’ll see the difficulties and need to solve them using common mechanical sense. It’s unavoidable with these legacy drivers, but maybe worth it. The giant Alnico is quite amazing and GPA still offers it.

@lint8391 5 ай бұрын

It's not that the 288 sounds like high end speakers. It's high end speakers that sound like 288's - if the high end speakers have been done right (some speakers are high end by price but not by sound quality). BTW, what's with the turntable being placed on a floor mounted supported so close to your speaker? Looks like you have a large enough room to get it well away from the speaker. Placing my turntables right up the far corner of my room from my speakers was a nice, easily audible, nearly free upgrade.

@HarpBaldfellow 10 ай бұрын

Would your experience hold true for any full range driver: for example a folded voight pipe with the driver in the top of the cabinet facing upward? It would be quite easy to test it out, perhaps another retirement experiment for me!