Anyone here familiar with speaker Crossovers?

ThisIsWeird

Ah, phase difference between the Woof and Tweet in the same cabinet? In which case I see what you mean, and that could be an issue at some point. 

(Between cabinets, there would be a much bigger phase change simply by moving them apart or walking about?)

Anyhoo, caps on order

ThisIsWeird

Heedtheadvice said:

Man ( or woman) after.my own heart. Not telling...

I am keeping my B&W 701CDMs for the long haul !!

Nice.

Mine were the 685. I realise now how honest they were, but typically thought that floorstanders would give me 'more'... :-(

Heedtheadvice

Oops did I write that?

Should have written CDM7NTs!!

ThisIsWeird

Heedtheadvice said:

Oops did I write that?

Should have written CDM7NTs!!

Yikes!

Do they sound as good as they look?

Heedtheadvice

A bit off your original topic but...

Like most speakers the sound is a little subjective. I have seen reviews where other speakers are preferred and they are not considered the best...some are a lot more expensive too! Well out of my justifiable price bracket!

I guess they do not add much character when it is not there such as making some music zing or give really deep base.

I bought them years ago after experience with studio monitors. They do tend to sound like the input material, very clear treble, bass that is very tight (if lacking at the very extreme) and slightly on the warm side in the mid ranges. I have yet to find music that they do not handle well with a clarity and lack of apparent distortions. Not very tolerant of poor room positioning or size (when speech can become a bit 'woolly' and need to be driven quite hard so low level background music (I think) does not suit them much.

For domestic floor standers they do not take up a lot of space which is a bonus.

Cannot buy them new now but several used ones seem available.

Well you did ask....

prowla

Heedtheadvice said:

A bit off your original topic but...

Like most speakers the sound is a little subjective. I have seen reviews where other speakers are preferred and they are not considered the best...some are a lot more expensive too! Well out of my justifiable price bracket!

I guess they do not add much character when it is not there such as making some music zing or give really deep base.

I bought them years ago after experience with studio monitors. They do tend to sound like the input material, very clear treble, bass that is very tight (if lacking at the very extreme) and slightly on the warm side in the mid ranges. I have yet to find music that they do not handle well with a clarity and lack of apparent distortions. Not very tolerant of poor room positioning or size (when speech can become a bit 'woolly' and need to be driven quite hard so low level background music (I think) does not suit them much.

For domestic floor standers they do not take up a lot of space which is a bonus.

Cannot buy them new now but several used ones seem available.

Well you did ask....

...and...

Speaker placement is a thing: mine go where they have to in my room, but I went to a hi-fi dealer a couple of months ago and the chap there was trying out some speakers; just moving them a foot or so made a big difference to the sound.

Funny old thing audio gear!

ThisIsWeird

Hi HtA and Prowla - yup, all these things are true!

The B&Ws were, initially, not what I expected - I was expecting to be 'more impressed', but instead had merely more balance and evenness. Reading the booklet that came with them, I found it suggested you give them time to get 'used' to their 'honest' (can't remember the term they used) delivery, and that did become the case to a large degree. Then, like a twit, I wanted more - perhaps a bit more thumping bass?

So sold them and bought these floor-standers. I now need to cut the bass output from the amp, often right off, but I still don't 'prefer' it. (Yes, I know one tweeter is defunct - I have the two mid-woofs wired sans-crossover to that channel at the mo')

As you say, Prowla, the room makes a huge difference, and all of this malarkey did begin when I moved the HiFi into the new, larger, extension, which has bare laminate flooring... :-(

ThisIsWeird

Realised I hadn't updated this thread.

Pleased to report that a full cap swap has sorted the issue, and the speakers now sound great.

The bizarre thing is that it was not the suspected Electrolytic (C2) that had failed (these cheapos are the usual critters wot deteriorate with age) as I replaced these first to no change (including Elec C6 on the LF circuit, as I assumed that would be exiting soon too). So, it was almost certainly C1 - the 8uF Poly - all along, as that was the second-largest cap supplying the tweeter. I don't have a means of individually testing them, but swapping the Elecs made zero difference, but replacing the others did, and wow.

Because the new Metallised Polypropylene Film caps are so large, I decide to compromise a little on the uF values, whilst still remaining within the overall tolerance range. So, C2 & C4 - total value 35u3F - have been replaced by a single 33uF, and C1 & C3 - tot value 9uF - for a 10uF. That way, they all squeezed on

How do I know if the sound is what Mission intended? I don't, of course, but I felt confident that it couldn't possibly be so far out as to be audibly detrimental, at least nothing that a tweak of a tone control wouldn't sort. And, once I'd fixed the faulty crossover, I had the other original speaker to compare it by. 

Using a mono HF signal - off-station FM - the resulting hissss volume was nicely balanced between my ears, but the repaired speaker seemed marginally sharper, higher-hissed. Then music tests, swapping speakers every now and then. 

I hope I wasn't biased, but I slightly preferred the repaired speaker, with the ride-bell? on a CCR track clinching it, chiming out a touch more. If anything it was overall a bit tighter bass-wise, too, and certainly very pleasing. So, the other crossover got the same treatment.

They've been used quite a lot since. :-)

Heedtheadvice

Thanks for completing the thread and it's good to read that you have a great result.

flaneurs_lobster

Heedtheadvice said:

Thanks for completing the thread and it's good to read that you have a great result.

Yes, thanks for that. Listening to Cosmos Factory or something else?