SVS “Evolution" of Research... OR Marketing?

[@markgaches1961]

Master Class you are a true pro to speaker and filter design. The force is strong with this one.

[@MsCorbacho]

Not fair ,….my mouth was already watering ….and then ….for one of our clients !!!!! Buaaaaaaaaaaaáá

[@gotchagoing4905]

I totally agree, and that sux. I was sincerely hoping that he would have a kit available , and soon !!! I won't bother to buy this from whoever, (svs), he's doing this for because they will surely put in a shit crossover network that will NOT be close to what all of Danny's work was able to do. And probably not use NO-RES either, oh yeah, and braces etc. Dammit!!!!!

[@rothgartheviking858]

That tease was ruff. Haven't felt anything that bad since college

[@JR-ho5qm]

Wow! That’s going to be a nice measuring speaker! I think if you could come up with a pod like that to sell in a kit form with a woofer that contained a trim ring. It would look so good! It would take away from the homemade look that a DIY speaker usually has.

[@gotchagoing4905]

@@JR-ho5qm "Homemade look"- that really depends who is doing the 'homebuilding". I LOVE doing finish work on wood stuff that I made. Oh yeah, I HATE piano black, it shows lack of imagination in MY way of looking at things. Just sayin'...

[@JR-ho5qm]

@@gotchagoing4905 I love doing the finishing as well. I’m an automotive painter and also grew up finishing kitchen cabinets in my family’s business. The finishing part to me is easy, but I like the looks of the modern speakers and drivers that don’t show the screws on the baffle.

[@alexw890]

Another master class from Danny on speaker design!

[@nobody1194]

Im so glad I went with the Monolith THX over these now and saved a lot of money.

[@geminijinxies7258]

You're on to something great! Linn has been doing these rounded pods to house the midrange and the tweeters for some years now. And with very good results.

[@petenewhall511]

Beat me to the Linn comment. Their 2k and 3k array's sound amazing. Would love to get Dannys take on them but they are big and heavy and I love them as is. maybe someday....

[@geminijinxies7258]

@@petenewhall511 Linn usually prioritize musicality before a traditional hifi sound. So if your speakers gets modified in any way to "measure better", then it's a big risk they'll lose their magic. You better keep them as is.

[@carlose.martinez545]

That's why modifying the front baffle of a kit, rounding the borders as Danny showed, might be the best option to try it. Doing accurate measurements of different baffles if possible.

[@manitoublack]

That tweeter/mid pod looks surprisingly like the one in my Energy Veritas 2.3i's. 😜😉. But that one is Aluminium not soft dome. Then the gut punch... Not available 😢 As for the SVS. VAF-Speakers use foam/felt in and around their tweeters to limit/smooth reflections. Simply include the no-rez to be stuck on the front in this case. Then hide it with the dust cover🎉.

[@hoth2112]

Same manufacturer, but we opted for soft domes to avoid the breakup issues of metal dome drivers. NoRez will likely be too tall and would push against the grill cloth.

[@hifiguy77]

I immediately thought of the old Energy Veritas as well

[@evilmonstertruck]

Wow. Unbelievablely great work.

[@thomosburn8740]

Looking forward to seeing that new speaker design completed and for sale! The response graphs were perfection.

[@danab7472]

I really appreciate your videos Danny. These speakers are $2500 here in Australia. That’s past entry level and squarely in territory that should be better.

[@SonicFlare]

LOL! I love it when an actual engineer utterly dismantles marketing hyperbole and outright nonsense by manufacturers. What's even worse are all the KZbinrs who ad nauseam repeated those claims without even a single serious question being asked or posited.

[@matthewtaylor7355]

Do u ever question Dan's motivation? Like selling parts at massive markups etc?

[@RMW1982]

I hate hyperbole and outright nonsense too…like when manufacturers claim cables and power cords will provide audio nirvana without any science! Oh wait…

[@SonicFlare]

@@matthewtaylor7355 No, but I do question what your motivation is.

[@veroman007]

@@matthewtaylor7355 here's the deal Matt, the guy takes the time to design a x over and you expect him to break even when HE sells the kits AND plans? i did an upgrade and realized i could source parts for a bit less, not a massive amount, but w shipping and finding 16 g inductors i realized i was being penny wise etc. Danny is not forcing ANYONE to buys these kits, its small taters to his business as he says repeatedly. btw, Matt... the folks send HIM their speakers, he doesnt take them when they arent looking and hold them hostage. fwiw, my lrs plus are transformed for $250 so money well spent i say.

[@veroman007]

@@SonicFlare ha

[@jonesaleroy]

Danny, I've watched so many of your videos that I'm starting to finish your sentences! It caught me off gaurd! Love it. 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣

[@jeffmiller9454]

As a former ADS L810 owner I am now drooling... Love soft dome mids!

[@damianzaninovich4900]

Interesting. My 2nd pair of speakers were Boston Acoustics 1st generation A40. An inexpensive 6.5” standmount ac suspension with a .5” hard dome tweeter that was popular. Tweeters cost $3. I turned them upside down and covered the front with felt to soften the sound . I liked to loosen the woofer screws slightly to get a less boxy sound and a rounder more free sounding bass. They had little bass but they showed me how well a small speaker could disappear. They sold a ton of those. Bedroom speakers. I gave them to a friend who had awful radio shack speakers. I then got Celestion 3’s which had an early exposed aluminum fragile dome. I still have a perfect pair of my mom’s. John Atkinson described them as having a cardboardy midrange but liked them. Made in England, cool speakers. These all were the type of speaker that had to be a handspan from the wall behind. Like you say you have to get your speakers away from the walls to get true hi fidelity . Always enjoy your videos.

[@quikspecv4d]

My Swan M3A’s have a 2” dome midrange and I love the way they sound. They might be my favorite sounding midrange driver type. I think they make a good pairing with AMT tweeters since AMT’s can’t play down too low usually

[@johnnyhiett]

Heil AMT, the big one, goes to 700khz

[@throwaway3756]

I think I have the same midrange 2" dome midrange from the swans diy kit (with a custom crossover) and I agree. The dedicated midrange driver has me convinced to go 3 way from now on. My main gripe is the 6.5" drive leaves something to be desired. Pretty tight but not a lot of low output.

[@seanb3303]

@@johnnyhietti guess the compromise to a big AMT or ribbon would be beaming due to how tall it would need to be

[@quikspecv4d]

@@throwaway3756 you are right. They share the same 3 drivers. If the amp/electronics ever fail on mine I will build a custom crossover and upgrade the mid bass driver to make them passive.

[@dannyrichie9743]

@@johnnyhiett We have one of those big Heil AMT's in house. It will not play anywhere near that low.

[@emmet7208]

Great video as always, most other KZbinrs just don't scratch the builders itch!

[@alanwatson3367]

As always quite interesting thx Danny

[@Expedition18]

Another great teaching lesson given by an expert. 👍

[@mutatedgenome]

Excellent video Danny.

[@kejar31]

Really great video this time.. like how you covered baffle reflections with measurements etc.. Awesome work

[@scottspencer4018]

Great job with the dome mid/tweeter assembly. I don't think a lot of people realize how important the relationship of the distance of the acoustic centers and the wavelength of the crossover frequency between the drivers is, or the contribution these issues can cause if that relationship isn't addressed. An awful lot of speakers make little to no attempt to optimize that aspect, and most also take no consideration for the reflection/diffraction contributions from the cabinet either. Whatever is cheapest to make and has the most appeal is the common rule of thumb. It's wonderful that you're educating people about the little things that can separate an average speaker from a great speaker. Keep up the good work! Most big companies are profit oriented first, and concern about sound quality is a distant second at best. Buy your speakers from companies that don't have an army of vice presidents, a full corporate board of directors, and shareholders! What are the odds of pushing a midrange dome down below 100hz so you can keep the vocal range out of woofers and all in the midrange unit?

[@Pok-001]

Problem with that you also get bass in that 100-120hz. I specifically the kick drum starts in this range. Don’t know if a dome mid would have the output for meaningful bass Think Line arrays would work well. Im guessing that midrange dome isn’t the cheapest lol You thinking clearly though. That’s why so many people like small monitors or point source speakers.

[@stephenyoud6125]

@@Pok-001 I'd heard kick drum was at 50Hz

[@Pok-001]

@@stephenyoud6125 can be. FZ comes down to how the drums are tuned. Kick can go high as 120-150HZ I could have worded better I suppose and just said drums. lol. But main point is it takes some air moving to reproduce those lower drum parts. At least for me loving my metal and rock music

[@brads.9986]

ATC 3 " midrange driver seems to be pretty sweet.🤷

[@mddawson1]

For a while I was considering getting the new SVS Ultra Evolution Pinnacle speakers but then I read the reviews and got Arendal 1723 Tower THX speakers instead. The Arendals wer two thirds the price (here in Australia) yet double the build quality.

[@millenniumrun9995]

From my experience building speakers, if you have a set budget you will get the best results by using most of your budget on the best drivers you can afford. The drivers account for maybe 90% of your sound quality. The last 10% goes to the other speaker parts, amp, dac, ect. This is why most companies go cheap with the crossover parts, but a poly cap in series with the tweeter vs an electrolytic is not much of a price difference, neither is an air core vs a steel laminate. Good resistors are cheap as well. I think more companies should consider this, and throw a few extra dollars at their crossovers, but not too much or Danny would be out of a job! All jokes aside, Great work Danny.

[@MrCommunistGen]

The evolution of the tweeter/mid baffle reminds me of the design language of my old Infinity IL50 towers I got in high school... though I'm only now realizing that there were more than just stylistic reasons behind their design.

[@donjaun540]

Your design literally describes my Energy Veritas I love and still use since 2005. 👍😎 Amazing sound. Can't play to good past 100db, but I am usually a 70-85 db type of guy.

[@dannyrichie9743]

We've upgraded some of those.

[@imqqmi]

Great to see the design iterations and the measured responses! I might design and build another set of speakers with these ideas incorporated, thanks for the inspiration! Makes you wonder why speaker designers don't design and sell hi and mid range speakers in one module like that with a nice flat response. Well aside from car audio of course.

[@tee-jaythestereo-bargainph2120]

I need that Tshirt in Large please 😆 Thanks Danny

[@mcjonner]

I would have loved to see the mid dome in one of your kits and see what woofer you chose to put with it, would be a nice 3way bookshelf or tower

[@wesmiddaugh230]

My Norman Labs Model 7 has a double Philips 1" soft dome tweeters in a standoff wood plate crossing over at 1500 from a 12" Celestin woofer. My hearing is bad from about 12 years old as i hear tinnitus over everything. These speakers threw a soundstage from wall to wall and from speakers to back wall. One of my crossovers died a few years ago miss them.

[@ryanchappell5962]

Great video Danny!

[@realshaolinprince]

Marketing and paid reviews have kept SVS going for quite awhile now.

[@MaxiMovier]

the dame kali audio - kali is much worst trash than svs

[@nickburklow5212]

​@@MaxiMovier at least a lot of the Kali stuff objectively measures well, especially near field monitors.

[@chadmorris946]

It helps that they have amazing subwoofers, fit and finish is top notch, customer service is almost 2nd to none.

[@MaxiMovier]

@@chadmorris946 i have had 2 or 3 and they are average imo. not so transparent and hard

[@user-xg6zz8qs3q]

Man! This comes as a shock to me. There's a surge in direct to consumer marketing. And the online reviews love talking about direct to consumer brands. Oftentimes, these brands end up being more expensive than your typical store brands because they never go on sale. And now you're showing me that these direct to consumer brands are not better than your typical Polk speakers.

[@TheMirolab]

I'd love to mount that mid/tweet pod over a nice 10-12" woofer. You could build just a basic cube box for the woofer, and mount the mid-pod on top. Or mount the pod to a piece of stone or granite, and set that on felt or sorbothane to decouple it from the woofer box.

[@sudd3660]

if the pod is small enough you can place in front of a large woofer, coax style.

[@Stefandejager01]

Come on Danny!!! Sell us that mid-tweeter combo!!! We won't tell :-)

[@ron5493]

I enjoyed the tech talk. Hope your pod design is a big success!

[@alwayspushing2031]

Erin Audio, Wilson (testing site), Danny for actual documented results and a couple reviewers for listening as they have my similar tastes like Nemo, Jay & new record day and couple others..... put them together you can get a sensible feel, but and I get it, reviewers want/need to make a living so yes, things sometimes seem or get skewed....Now the first speaker recommendation I followed was Randy aka the cheap audio man and he was correct and have been rocking some Emotiva towers and SVS subs for a while now. I like all these reviews available and all in all we the viewing public can just scroll past or ignore as easy as a swipe if we choose! so yep... keep on rocking 🎼🎼💯💯🔊🔊 keep up the work Danny!!

[@Ioannisloungos]

At 6:01 the only i can say its right at the cross point!!!! Like have phase issues the design of the crossover! And because these drivers look very familiar i can say from my small knowledge that you will also face similar issues on the woofer- mid side one or two db gap on axis that will be a mess in 40+ degrees common issue from a 2nd to 2nd order dry (with no extra zobel or whatever ) cross... Also because mid is very good as comes from factory with the grill that is , i believe that a tweeter in smaller diameter (20mm) will be greater!!!!

[@kenthomas1613]

I was SO EXCITED about the new tweeter / mid driver pod design, I was literally shouting "Shut up and take my money" in my mind, until you said it won't be for sale by GR Research. Damn it! Perhaps GR Research can licence the tweeter / mid pod design back from your client and sell it to us with a decent markup!! Win Win!! Be sure to give us a review of the finished product once the manufacturer has released it for sale. Hope it's not too expensive. :(

[@davidhester9897]

I've commented here before about I've been experimenting with the big Heil Amt from the vintage ESS speakers, the big Heil that sits on top of the cabinet and radiates both front and rear of the speaker. I had this 3 inch foam pipe insulation just laying around so I trimmed it to mate with the edge of the housing and rounds off the edge and was stunned how much better it made that tweeter sound but wondered why as I don't have any measuring equipment and limited speaker design knowledge. Then the other day I was watching Paul McGowan from one of his videos about the big Infinity IRSV speakers and he was saying why it was designed with the big wings on the sides and that they are 1/4 wavelength of 100hz which is about where the midranges in that speaker are crossed, so that it will bring out that frequency in those speakers. So that got me to thinking about maybe that was what was happening with what I was doing with the Heil, I then measured from the center of the Heil where the ribbon is to the rounded edge of the pipe insulation that I trimmed and added to the outside edge of the housing and it was about 4-1/4 inches so I then calculated 1/4 wavelength of around 800 hz of it's crossover frequency and that was about the correct length on the sides to accentuate that 800hz frequency and thought aha, that's why it sounds so much better, and also that it is helping prevent the wrap around effect of the Heil that could cancel out at certain frequencies. That was something else that Paul mentioned about the IRSV's that the wings on the sides also prevented the wrap around effect of that speaker. Just thought I would share this here and see if anyone has any thoughts. Btw at the end of Paul's video he was saying that he was selling the IRSV's and I'm sure they are probably sold by now.

[@dannyrichie9743]

We have one of those tweeters in house. It has a really rough response. Some of the response issue could be a diffraction problem.

[@davidhester9897]

@@dannyrichie9743 I'm sure you could work with it and make it something really special, it's sonic character just blows me away, so realistic sounding. I've been listening to them lately as front mains in home theater, just incredible, really brings sounds to life like they are in the room, puts a smile on my face.

[@pagesk2001]

I found this video interesting in the tech lead up about driver placement then switching to the speaker at hand. As you demonstrated just some bits of no-res helped the tweeter response. It seems this speaker could do with a grill that helps knock off the baffle effects as well as a better crossover to get rid of the woofer ringing. You have access to 3d printer you could bang out some frames, add some treatment cut to size and cover it with some white fabric and provide a great cabinet upgrade as well as your normal upgrade to parts and cross over optimization.

[@hoth2112]

Unfortunately, grills generally tend make matters worse than better. Sadly, the customer didn't provide the stock grills with this speaker, so it wasn't something we could compare.

[@pagesk2001]

@@hoth2112 I realize many times grills make things worse. But on this episode Danny demonstrated the problem with could be improved with a few bits of no-res. He has a 3d printer so you don't need the factory grill that was the point. Make some grills with rounded edges add some foam to damp the reflection from the poorly designed box.

[@mpp9964]

Now Randy is going to release his video titled “Giant killer?! Best speaker ever?”

[@victorious85]

Lol OMG It blows away the competition… that dude’s a joke

[@will5879]

Graphs on the dome mid/tweeter assembly look amazing. Was close to pulling the trigger on the NX Studio's, but I guess those are obsolete now, comparing those curves... Shame it's not the basis for a new GR-Research series. Could have had a killer matching center channel... etc. Just a shame....

[@dannyrichie9743]

Not a shame at all. They will just be made available through another company.

[@nicodenhaak3961]

I was so happy to see al that great actual research in the beautifull tweeter/mid combo. A good baffle, i thought: yessssss!! Danny is making a threeway kit, in possibly not a too huge box! At last, the speaker a lot of customers have been waiting for! Only to find out, no?????!!!! Not a GR research kit????? I'm a little pissed of. For the first time here. Why is this? You have the knowledge, and then doing this for a manufacturer?? Yeah nice, but that speaker is becoming so expensive, normal people probably can't afford it... Edit: Now i'm thinking about it a little, this was a assignment, as you are also a research company. I still would very strongly advise you to reconsider this, not offering this as a kit. I, and i guess a lot of customers with me, are waiting for a speaker with this modern concept you just developed. Something just a bit bigger then a XLS Encore (which is great, i've heard the model with the Sonicaps), but with just a bit more midrange dynamics compared to the XLS, and some more lowend extension (not more bass), which you can get from a good 3way design. Please think about this.... Cheers from the Netherlands.

[@tomherold1685]

Yes, yes, yes! Please do not forget about your KZbin DIY fans.

[@Newrecordday2013]

Just because he’s making this particular design for a manufacturer, doesn’t mean he can’t or won’t offer similar concepts to us in the future. 😉

[@dannyrichie9743]

Did you see how the front baffle is getting shaped? That has to be CNC cut to get it to the right shape. That is well beyond the average customer. I'd have to offer it with a front baffle, and baffles with this level of complexity gets more expensive.

[@nicodenhaak3961]

@@dannyrichie9743 It all depends on how much gain there is to be had from this design. The curves look very promising, i'd be happy to spend a extra 150 Dollars, or maybe more per speaker because of this much more involving design. It all depends on the real benefits. I understand it wouldn't be the most affordable kit GR offers, but this one could be aimed at more demanding customers that understand that the extra performance comes with a somewhat different pricetag. Why not buy a brute you might ask? The outside is really, really not my cup of tea, despite i'm sure they are a very good sounding 3way. I like the XLS Encore, my M8 has build them(including all upgrades possible) about two years ago, and we have spend many hours of listning to them. I'm impressed with the soundstage depth, resolution, and the many layers this speaker has to offer. I would prefer just a little more midrange dynamics, and some extra lowend extension. Not to be confused with more bass. It has bass enough. And maybe i'm spittting hairs here... Cheers from the Netherlands.

[@tomherold1685]

@@Newrecordday2013 I suspect you are right. Thanks.

[@gges1605]

Considering some of the glowing reviews that the larger evolution pinnacle are getting I wonder if their smaller ones were an afterthought or if the pinnacles are really as good as the reviews say

[@thomasschafer7268]

😅😅😅ich zahle doch keine 2100€ für ein paar und muss dann noch erfahren 450€ für ein Upgrade ausgeben zu müssen. Den scheiss können die behalten 👎🇩🇪

[@kdomster9141]

They build some solid Home Theather subs and are a Subs Company , not my favorites ones but ok for HT applications or fans of good measurements and specs over the listening tests 😉

[@tongleongsim9202]

👍 That's professionalism. If they make a perfect product, customer may not buy the next "upgraded version", commercial logic. We are in an era of capitalism in making quick profit at the expense of customer in many instances. Of course, company have to make a decent profit to remain viable.

[@Bluesharp1896]

My DIY project uses the Morel Tweeter-mid TM4055…but not the molded baffle.

[@rontempest3660]

Great Stuff! I would love to shake your hand 👍🏻

[@dsnyder0cnn]

Your measurements of the SVS 2-way, as designed, look pretty good to me. Better than most speakers I've seen on this channel. There are some engineering compromises, but nothing terrible. I've not heard them yet, but from what you showed, I expect that l that sound fine in most rooms. Will better crossover parts make a difference? Sure. But anyone who owns a pair is in good shape already without upgrading from what you showed here.

[@dannyrichie9743]

Overall not bad, with just a couple of peaked areas, and some woofer ringing, but they could have been fixed during the design stage. Yes the parts quality is very poor. That's a given.

[@Leo-tf7gu]

Lot of your money in SVS products goes towards their customer service and marketing.

[@DethFromAbove1985]

I like SVS Subwoofers... not sure about the rest of it.

[@Novilicious]

Do the Mofi 888 next. I think that’s the best speaker 🔈 under the 5K range

[@dannyrichie9743]

I've heard it. No, it is far short of our Brute or Bully models.

[@DaleCrommie]

Two inch tweeter. Wow. 👍👍🌲Good job 😊👍😊

[@hifiguy77]

two inch dome mid driver....

[@The340king]

The finished baffle looks kind of familiar. It's a great concept that just needed a little further development.

[@mrkajtar]

I think they could have just cut the corners to make the speakers something similar to the famous Avalon shape. That would have reduced surface area around the tweeter a lot.

[@scottspencer4018]

We used Charlie Hanson's Avalon Ascents at a show with Convergent tube gear many years ago. It was an amazing system, and was the first time I'd seen that speaker body style. He was quite a guy.

[@jamesmansion2572]

I'd be a customer for that module especially if the baffle comes too.

[@martinenstrom8206]

I always look at speakers with the tweeter with the same distance to the edge at the top and sides and my ears curl. This is what happens. You can simulate these behaviors and you don’t really need to make test baffles. Usually an even spread of distances to the edge gives a smoother response on and off axis. Then you can add more smoothness with the correct phasing of the sides. I’m not a fan of the dome mids. They usually peak narrow in the power response even if the response on axis is wide band.

[@peskypeet]

Nice. Now if you want to drive the Klipsch guys crazy make a kit to replace the horns with a set of your mids & tweets. Maybe their 504 center lol

[@AllboroLCD]

Good dome mids can closely imitate electrostats ive read, my towers have plastic domes with the diamond dust coating and it doesnt sound at all harsh.

[@Sebastian-gc2hc]

Cool video! I love it.

[@Take-the-Ticket]

The new pod looks great. I was really hoping they were going be sold individually...might even be great part for car audio?

[@jonathanmoore8886]

Good video but I would only use svs speakers for a home theater setup. Using those as rear speakers. For hifi I would go with a company that only does hifi or two channel speakers.

[@pizzaearthpancakesandother2549]

Finally I will admit that Dan is right about something 🥇

[@OnwiththeAction]

NHT Classic 3 has a dome mid/tweeter pod.

[@chunkycheesemonkey99]

The sony sscs5 does the pod extremely well, the units are about as close as physically possible on those

[@billd9667]

You know that many people at SVS saw Danny’s review of their previous bookshelf and tower. You know that they have deep pockets and a lot of knowledge about acoustics, yet they still use cheesy crossovers and steel terminals with a weak, questionable strap between them. I’m beginning to think they don’t give a damn. On the plus side, they are selling them at the same price as before, but that probably forced them to cut even more corners. Maybe SVS should offer a second line at a higher price called the Serious line. I’d like to add that I love the idea of a domed midrange. ATC has made a divine one for many years. I bet they are very expensive to make properly.

[@PBA8]

Were you expecting more likes other than your own? Lol

[@Pok-001]

@@billd9667 comment I was looking for. lol First thing I thought of when he brought the dome mid out with the baffle. I Can get that awesome midrange like ATC for fraction of the cost. Can’t wait for this wonder who is going to make it?🤔

[@billd9667]

@@PBA8 is that projection? I don’t “like” my own posts, though it seems that you do yours. Grow up

[@PBA8]

@billd9667 you don't have to lie. Also, nobody cares. You had one like the day I left this comment, and you barely posted it. I just now liked my own comment hence why I have 2 likes

[@billd9667]

@@PBA8 yeah, I got 7 without a self like, so I win! 🏆 Try to stop being a troll for awhile. If you have nothing to contribute to the conversation, you don’t belong in it

[@chelillingworth9466]

That was very cool to see the development of that tweeter mid-range pod, can't wait to see a product that uses that! One thing about front baffles that I was curious about is if you have a horn loaded tweeter and mid, like in a Klipsch Forte, does the horn push everything out into the room and away from the baffle in a way that would minimize the diffraction issues or are the same issues present that you described with a dome tweeter?

[@dannyrichie9743]

Horns and waveguides can minimize diffraction effects, but can also come with new limitations and challenges.

[@robertmoi8400]

Maybe you should inform people not to bother with high-end crossover upgrades if they are powering their speakers with cheap electronics. Some cheap electronics have electrolytic dc blocking caps and ferrous materials in the signal path. This means that the whole frequency range is going to be affected by the nonlinearity of the electrolytic cap before reaching your speakers thus it will mask the crossover upgrades. I used to have a midbudget AVR which had smooth midrange and good imaging. There was a huge night and day improvement in imaging when I replaced laminated iron-core with air core inductor. In my current DIY setup, I don't hear a difference between iron core and air core inductors. In fact , iron-core sounds better because of higher gauge wire and higher value. Since the DIY DAC chip is high-end and the amp is powerful, I get more details, bigger soundstage, better bass, better treble but terrible edgy midrange and fuzzy unfocused imaging. Tube preamp smoothens the midrange a bit. The imaging issue is caused by the PA amp parts. It has carbon resistors and electrolytic capacitors(not in signal path) with steel legs. Not bad though since I am comparing a less than $150 electronics setup with a $1000 AVR.

[@mcjonner]

Could you explain in a brief way pros and cons to dome mid to a cone mid out of curiosity? Is this something you may or may not consider implementing in a future design? Looking forward to seeing your upcoming bookshelf design you mentioned in a previous video

[@dannyrichie9743]

The advantage of the dome mid is super light weight and fast settling times.

[@mcjonner]

@@dannyrichie9743 thanks. Are there advantages to come based mid maybe air movement

[@johnbarsby8382]

Would love to see something on the Arendal 1523 line.

[@hanksta34]

Can you break down an SVS SB series subwoofer? I bought my first one and it does well in my smaller family room.

[@dannyrichie9743]

There is nothing we can do for those subs other then supply you with No Rez so you can damp out some of the cabinet noise.

[@hanksta34]

@@dannyrichie9743 Sorry, I meant can you review one? :)

[@mocomike01]

Came for the SVS review, but now all I'm interested in is the new "commercial speaker"!!! When? Who? Etc.!

[@dannyrichie9743]

I know, but there is still a lot of development ahead. We are also working on three models.

[@hafgrim.]

​@dannyrichie9743 an mtm by any chance?

[@JR-ho5qm]

@@dannyrichie9743hopefully one of the models is a big 12” woofer jobbie!

[@stillaliveandwell5291]

SVS=WTF?

[@Atheistic007]

@@hafgrim. Yes please!!! I "need" more speakers.

[@MrSumancherry]

Wish to see measurements of Magnat signature series speakers, which uses a dome mid and tweeter on a same faceplate

[@yuckysamson]

oh man; when the 3" dome midrange gets made, I'm slapping down the plastic.

[@jespersort1]

B&o of Denmark made some very interesting front baffles in 1980s to reduce the reflections. Have you tested any of this generation speakers from the firm greetings from Copenhagen)

[@khoi83]

Dome midrange! Old but new =D

[@khoi83]

for example Canton has produced several of their older models 80-90s with a softdome tweeter midrange, like the GLX100, or the Fonum 90.

[@sandwaves5642]

Some speaker - in the 80s had 45° down angled grid ( 4 - 5 lines ) on the tweeter. Maybe try those ? 🤔🤔

[@tomreidy1237]

I have always wondered if a pyramid shaped baffle would be the best shape to reduce edge reflection. Watching this leads me to believe it would work

[@hoth2112]

it helps, to an extent, but you really need to round off or chamfer sharp edges to really benefit.

[@fwiler]

Or you know, don't put the tweeter in the cabinet.

[@hoth2112]

@@fwilerdepends on how you mount it. A circle with a sharp edge is about the worst shape possible. A "pod" or horn with very smooth/gradually rounded edges is always your best performer, but may also limit how close you can mount woofer to the tweeter.

[@vicg5323]

Cool video.

[@ywsx6489]

6:35 most realistic sounding driver for Danny's voice.

[@hom2fu]

do not know they do compression of Danny voice

[@timpit164]

I could possibly be very interested in that specific midrange and even the tweeter. Will it be for sale to us speaker tweaker audiophiles?

[@dannyrichie9743]

Nope, only in the product that we are designing it for.

[@scottypalmer2158]

Literally hundreds of great sounding speakers with no rounded edges and all drivers placed down the center...KLH model 5 for example. And this loudspeaker has a recessed front baffle! Weird things can start to happen once the sound leaves the drivers and measurement tools can only partiallyl predict how these frequencies will interact 🤔

[@dannyrichie9743]

The KLH suffered from the same problems. We have an upgrade for it too. The measuring tools don't really "predict" anything, but they do show exactly what is happening.

[@scottypalmer2158]

@@dannyrichie9743 : Then all speakers that measure flat and with basically the same size drivers should sound the same 🤔

[@dannyrichie9743]

@@scottypalmer2158 Not at all. Not even close.

[@scottypalmer2158]

@@dannyrichie9743 : I once installed a Dayton AMT driver on a baffle with a 6 inch woofer that measured ruler flat. I replaced that woofer with a Dayton 6 inch woofer that also measured flat and it produced a totally different sound and personality. Measurements can only go so far in predicating what we hear. My experience DIY-ing loudspeakers has been a crapshoot! Smooth frequency spikes then play around with different capacitor brands then hope for the best. I also like the sound of the GR speakers recorded by New Record Day which speaks volumes about. your products. 👍

[@DonnieMulligan]

Another good one Danny. I saw a podcast with a Dayton Audio designer talking about their new pod style mid/tweeters soon to be released. Is this just a coincidence?

[@dannyrichie9743]

Yes, coincidence.

[@adamfrost9048]

Super interested in what that pod product will be, looks like the pod would be awesome for a home theater center channel.

[@mortimersnerd1348]

Danny, I'm wondering if you've had either a Buchardt or Arendal speaker come through your shop? Both manufacturers use a "wave guide" feature for their tweeters and apparently don't use cheesy parts in their crossovers. Would like to get your take on some of their stuff. Curious minds want to know.

[@dannyrichie9743]

I actually did a little design work for Buchardt. I have heard the top Arendal model over at Ron's, but one has not been sent in for upgrades.

[@jockstrappery]

Scandyna mini pod cabinets were near spherical

[@Bob-hq5lj]

Didn't NHT do the close baffle with dome mid and tweeter back in the day?

[@will5879]

Ya. And check out the XDS stand mounts, very tight M-T spacing a big smooth radius on the baffle. Not many speakers made like that...

[@Bob-hq5lj]

@@will5879 My Infinty Kappa 600 from the mid 2000s are kinda like that

[@rob0kopp203]

NHT Classic Three and Classic Four.

[@jasonm3871]

I tried their Ultra Bookshelf’s a few years ago. Their most offensive attribute was the soundstage; it was a garbled mess. Looks like these didn’t really improve on much.

[@billd9667]

Yup, the forwardness in the upper mids collapsed the soundstage. I tried them twice, returned them both times

[@jasonm3871]

@@billd9667 They sounded great for low background music (given their decent bass and brightness), but in the sweet spot, everything just kinda came from everywhere. Nothing was placed anywhere.

[@Nihil1st1347]

Interesting content. What you think about having your back hair grow shoulder long?

[@dannyrichie9743]

Hopefully you are talking about the hair on the back of my head and not the hair on my back. I've had some long hair in my day. At this point in my life it is whatever makes the wife happy.

[@gregsunderland6394]

Is there a downside to putting absorptive material on the front baffle? Even if it only affects sound above 1k, I'd think it'd help with many of the issues mentioned in the video. I can see it be an aesthetic issue, but surely that can be dealt with somehow.

[@SGIABC]

That's disappointing on the SVS. Their a great company, and have wonderful customer service. I would be curious to see if their floorstanding models have the same issues.

[@justasimplefox]

I don´t understand why you call it a great company, they build speakers to a specific price point with a maximum profit, this result in cheap parts and similar build quality. Of course they know this and they don´t care. All the rest is marketing like so many other companies 🫡

[@dannyrichie9743]

Probably, and if the baffle gets wider it could be worse.

[@SGIABC]

@@justasimplefox There are plenty of companies out there that provide a worse product than what they have to offer and would stiff you if something went wrong or you weren't satisfied. SVS actually wants their customers to have a good buying experience and enjoy their products. They let you try their stuff for free before you buy it. I don't think you're being quite fair in your statement.

[@SGIABC]

@@dannyrichie9743 Yea, I'm sure you'll have someone send them in. Thanks for the reply Danny.

[@justasimplefox]

@@SGIABC I´m not discussing their customer (and general) service but I regret it that they keep using the cheapest parts while making you believe that you are buying ´high end´ speakers in their marketing campaign. But no offense, I stopped buying commercial speakers a long time ago since I have chosen for DIY.

[@captainwho1]

When you showed the response curves of the different pod arrangements I would've expected the one with the more asymmetrical arrangement to be smoother and the one with the 4.3kHz suckout to be the symmetrical one. Did you get the graphs reversed?

[@dannyrichie9743]

The graphs are not reversed. That is a valid assumption, but the symmetrical one was sloped back on all sides (including the top).

[@captainwho1]

@@dannyrichie9743 Thanks. I feel better now lol. I made a 1.75" radius roundover frame (top and sides) for my Polk 7Bs (pretty large baffles and symmetrical drivers) a couple years ago that were a huge success IMO.

[@jameskeele6882]

What about the grills? I have a pair of Lintons and know that the grill is designed to help with the surface refraction. Could that help with this speaker?

[@hoth2112]

The customer didn't send the grills with this speaker unfortunately, but more often than not the grills great more problems than they solve.

[@JodyM2]

Like a Kicker Snowman pod

[@NotSure723]

What's the difference between clarity, resolution, and detail? Sounds like all the same thing to me.

[@vicg5323]

Danny, Erin, cheapaudioman, audioholics and others gave the SVS Ultra high marks, and rave reviews. I wonder if they got paid?

[@dannyrichie9743]

I don't think those guys are on the take, but what they may be comparing them to is likely to be other speakers made just as cheaply.

[@dougclendening5896]

Is there a way to measure warmth or spl from a tweeter that plays at 1khz vs a midrange or larger woofer that plays at 1khz? I can't imagine that a little tweeter would make 1khz sound warm and filling. One big thing that took me a while to realize is that if your woofers are too small, they can't fill the room with a warm energy, even if they're playing the frequencies accurately. Compare that with sitting next to a 6-8in woofer in a door that you can really feel. Sometimes audiophile room setups can feel hollow to me.

[@hoth2112]

A "warm and filling" tone is going to be found a lot lower in frequency than 1000Hz. In reality, it has a lot more to do with the overall balance of the speaker as a whole than how a given driver sounds at 1 frequency.

[@dougclendening5896]

@hoth2112 that's makes sense, but I still wonder about timbre etc, and if it can be measured or compared. A flute sounds very different than a saxaphone.

[@dougclendening5896]

@hoth2112 I thought of something else too. Those old 80s style big box speaker's mid bass felt a lot more present and in your face due to the large, unpowered woofers. Lioe i could taste their energy on my mouth. The lower end feels pushed to your body. You just can't that feeling with 5-6in woofers and a powered sub. Obviously, those old bigger uncovered woofers still need a powered shbwoofer for sub bass, but yeah. Not sure what my point is, but my theory is that woofer size drives a lot of warmth (I know, I know), and these skinny bookshelf and tower speakers don't cut it. Hell, maybe it's just the huge baffle difference. That becomes part of the instrument, like a drum shell.

[@hoth2112]

@@dougclendening5896 they sound very different because they use different harmonic structures which are built in to the design of the instrument, that is they are playing multiple notes at once. A tweeter playing a 1000Hz sine wave will sound identical to a woofer playing a 1000Hz sine wave. Drivers are designed to not add additional harmonics in the same the way that instruments are.

[@hoth2112]

@@dougclendening5896 those are often elements of using larger woofers which are designed to have more impact down low, and often add a "thickness" or weight to the sound, while softening the top end of their range. A lot of large older speakers were also unbraced, so they added a fair bit of coloration to the sound especially in the midrange. Some people like that additional "bloom" while others will find it distracting as it smothers the intended sound of the music itself.

[@psyphonyxaudio]

The Audio Anal-ist. Thanks for showing the inside. I wouldn't be opening mine. =)

[@dominicdiclemente8877]

Anyone else notice gr research mentioned in fine woodworking magazine oct 2024 ?

[@dannyrichie9743]

Am I? I did not know that.

[@dominicdiclemente8877]

@@dannyrichie9743 yup , 9 page article about building an X-Bravo

[@jeffreybritton3338]

I hope your customer chooses an 8” bass driver or maybe a 10” sealed.

[@adaboy4z]

Dang no other manufacturer is using research, engineering and stuff except Danny. Shut them down!!

[@johnshore3095]

1:20 Danny - Morel already do a mid tweeter single faceplate with a close gap.. TWEEMID TM 4055-8

[@dannyrichie9743]

Oh yeah, we tested those years ago.