Horns & Drivers for Cornscala

[oldtimer1954]

Hey guys, I am finally ready to start ordering the parts for my Cornscala build! But first, I would like to get some opinions on different driver and horn combos as I am on a budget. I will be building 3 of these and would like to keep the cost down to $800, or below, per speaker. Anyway, here are my questions:

1. Is the Selenium D405 as good as the B&C DE85? The Selenium is so much cheaper, I just want to make sure that the differences are too great because if they are, I can possibly upgrade from the D405 to the DE85.

2. Is Dave Harris' Eliptrac 400 horn all that much better than the JBL clone M2380 from Bob Crites? If so, would the D405 work with the Eliptrac 400?

3. Is the Selenium D220Ti the best tweeter for the money? If so, is the Selenium HM11-25 horn a good horn to use with this tweeter? Is the D220Ti a pretty good step up from the CT125?

4. Assuming that I use the D220Ti + HM11-25 with the D405 + Eliptrac 400 and the CW1526 woofer, what would be a good crossover to use? Would the "new style" cornscala crossover from Bob Crites work well with this? Or would there be a significant step up in performance by going with Alk crossovers?

Looking forward to hearing your responces!

[coolhandjjl]

I did lots of research as you are doing. One important consideration is matching driver output to each other. By using the combo's listed on Bob Crites Cornscala page, you are assured there are networks available to keep the drivers all working together properly with regard to not only output levels, but dispersion patterns, and whole host of other things. ALK Engineering also mentions driver, horn, and network combinations that work well together. If you try to mix and match to combination that is not listed, you may be venturing into uncharted waters.

The 2380 horn is one that people either love or hate based on my research. I went over to Audio Asylum's High Efficiency Forum. That is where I learned about the advantages of tractrix design over bi- radial and constant directivity horns. (The 2380 is a constant directivity horn)

The majority of horn discussions today revolve around tractrix designs. Computer audio modeling software combined with CNC fabrication allow one to enter the realm of tractrix designs with great precision and reasonable cost.

I went with the Eliptrac 400 in kit form. I did not want to use a driver with a titanium diaphragm, so I went with the Radian 950PB. I am also tri- amping, so getting SPL' s to even out was much simpler.

[The Dude]

The 2380 is listed as flat front bi-radial, I don't know how much of a difference it makes if it is one or the other. Just a heads up there is a pair of JBL 2380's on ebay for bin at 200.00.

I can't answer your questions as far as all the tech stuff goes but I am using the Selenium d220 di on the hm17-25 I think it sounds pretty good.

[kevinmi]

I am using both the Selenium D-405 and the 220-TI in my highly modified Khorns, and they sound great. They are utilized on custom tratrix horns built by me. I also have the Crites tweeters, but found that I like the Selenium tweeters a tad better with the Selenium mid drivers. The only problem you might run into is the fact that the Selenium drivers are very efficient, and you will need a way to attenuate them, either with an active crossover or a passive crossover that provides this feature. I haven't compared other mid drivers to the Selenium D-405's, but I'm sure other people have. For "budget" drivers, the Selenium line is a good line. The Selenium D-405 I use has the Phenolic diaphragm, which goes lower that the titanium version. Something I needed in the Khorn because it crosses over at 400hz. I believe the Cornscala can cross over a little higher, which will give you more options on a mid driver also. I'm planning on trying the Faital Pro 200 for a mid driver as soon as I gather up the funds. I know Bob Crites has crossed it over at 400 hz without problems, so it should be a good choice also.

[ZombieWoof]

I would agree with coolhandjj ,

there are recipes that are proven to work

mixing & matching outside of those proven systems is a risk that the items are not going to play well with each other

& it seems to me at least that costs are a issue to you .

You need to pick option

#1 The Crites Cornscala a 3 way

#2 ALK & the Eliptrac

Dave has a drawing of a network that will work as well if ALK networks are outta your cost range

#2 has dual options of a 2 way (which is cheaper ) or a 3 way .

Unless you want to reinvent the wheel & deal with testing drivers ,horns,crossovers

I suggest picking what you can afford

[oldtimer1954]

So do you guys think that the B&C DE85 for use as a mid-range driver in the 3 way configuration, matted with a pair of Eliptrac 400 horns, would this sound all that much better than the Selenium D405 matted with the 2380? This is the question that I am trying to figure out. If the B&C DE85 + Eliptrac400 combo is worlds better or a complete night and day difference then I will go with them, if they are not all that much better than the Selenium D405/2380 combo then I will go with the later.

So basically what I am trying to figure out is:

B&C DE85 +Eliptrac400

versus

Selenium D405 + M2380

[ZombieWoof]

I'd go a 2 way system with the ElipTrac-400 a crites 15" woof , B & C DE85

& ALK 's AP12-500 crossover

The 85 goes high enuff that a tweet is not needed BUT if needed then you can still add the tweet later

just need the add on HF crossover board & a tweet horn/driver at a later date

ALK has these network boards set-up that you can add a switch to toogle between 2 way & 3 way if you the need

[Arash]

I hardly suggest to go for Autotech horns. build a good bassbin, take a pair of Autotech horns. I'm pretty sure Bob is kind enough to build custom XOvers for the application. the result will be a better-looking (than CS) and world class horn speaker.

maybe something like this:

[Coytee]

I'd go a 2 way system

What ever you choose, I'd also urge you to consider going 2-way.

My experience going from 3-way to 2-way is the sound comes together sooner/closer to the speaker with 2-way than the 3-way, ultimatley sounding better.

[Arash]

I'd go a 2 way system

What ever you choose, I'd also urge you to consider going 2-way.

My experience going from 3-way to 2-way is the sound comes together sooner/closer to the speaker with 2-way than the 3-way, ultimatley sounding better.

actually I've sold my CW and all I got now it a Bob's XOver and a pair of his woofs. I'm looking for ideas to go for. I want to use Radian 950-PB but I wanted to go for 3-way. do you think 950-PB will work in a 2-way?

thanks,

[The Dude]

Man I just saw, I think on the diyaudio.com were a fellow used those drivers on some really big horns. I would think that with the right horn you should be able to.

I'd go a 2 way system

What ever you choose, I'd also urge you to consider going 2-way.

My experience going from 3-way to 2-way is the sound comes together sooner/closer to the speaker with 2-way than the 3-way, ultimatley sounding better.

actually I've sold my CW and all I got now it a Bob's XOver and a pair of his woofs. I'm looking for ideas to go for. I want to use Radian 950-PB but I wanted to go for 3-way. do you think 950-PB will work in a 2-way?

thanks,

[Daddy Dee]

Arash,

very nice looking speaker. would love to hear that.

[coolhandjjl]

I tried a test with my Radian 950PB on the Eliptrac 400 and I got unimpressive results. Response fell off rapidly at about 8kHz. Not sure if the problem lies in my active crossover, or if the drivers need breaking in. Anyway, I had to boost the highs an obscene amount and still couldn't come even close to a satisfactory 2- way. I didn't save any graphs.