KG 5.5 update & 2.5way conversion

[Maz4bz]

Hi there,

Good on you for having a go here.

 

When you say you used my last design I'm not really sure what you mean by that because the crossover you've posted is somewhat different to it.

 

Perhaps you might expand on what your objective is?

 

Cheers.

[DoctorGoose]

On 7/30/2019 at 10:34 AM, Maz4bz said:

 

2.5 Way Crossover.dxo 169.76 kB · 4 downloads

Sure! My design looks worse in hindsight, but here goes.

 

Taking the original XSIM and putting in the v0.23 values:2.5WayMazzV0.23.dxo

My changes/rationale: 
Tweeter (S1): L1 from 0.6 to 0.84 mH. The response seemed smoother from 1-2 kHz. Left R2=7 by accident, meant to indicate it as being variable from 1-10 for some high end control.

Top Woofer (S2) you can ignore, nothing I changed made it better

S3, I felt like L3 was knocking this woofer out a little early. 3.3 mH might be extreme, but I was trying to get a little more work out of it.  

 

Edited July 28 by DoctorGoose
missing words

[Maz4bz]

Hi there,

It seems you've reverted to an earlier version of the crossover that I would not recommend as it is less efficient because of the way to woofers are crossed. I don't seem to have actually posted the crossover I recommend that you work from  (last version 0.23) so I've attached it here to this post inclusive of all the latest measurement data as a better starting base to work from.....

 

 

2.5way crossover V0.23.dxo

[ncfyrfyter]

Maz4bc:

Thank you for sharing your journey with the 5.5’s. I have done similar upgrades to mine as well (bracing, Crites crossovers and tweeters and insulating the cabinet.

With everything that I have done to this point, I still cannot tame the tweeter in them. I do not have an electronics background, and was wondering if you could describe how to build the L-pad attenuators that you made? Specifically, what parts do I need, and how to assemble them. 
Any assistance that you give me would be appreciated.

[Maz4bz]

Hi there.

Maybe reread this...

 

 

and let me know what you'd like me to expand on specifically?

 

This is what I recommend, but it's entirely a personal taste matter how much attenuation you go with....

[ncfyrfyter]

14 hours ago, Maz4bz said:

Hi there.

Maybe reread this...

 

 

and let me know what you'd like me to expand on specifically?

 

This is what I recommend, but it's entirely a personal taste matter how much attenuation you go with....

Yes! I would like to attempt making 3, 4 and 5db attenuators. I have no knowledge of how to construct them, and was hoping that you could tell me what I need, and how to put them together. 

[Maz4bz]

See the post I linked for the schematic and calculator. Easy peasy!

[ncfyrfyter]

11 hours ago, Maz4bz said:

See the post I linked for the schematic and calculator. Easy peasy!

I apologize, I did not see the links when I read this thread. Thank you for the help. One further question, did you input 100W into the calculator? I know that is the rating for the speaker, but wasn’t sure if that would be correct for this application. 

[Maz4bz]

I used 5w resisters, same as in the original crossovers so I don't think high wattage is really important for this application.

[JohnVF]

Dear Maz:

 

   Like many others, I appreciate all the work that you put into your crossovers and your sharing the details.  I have a had a pair of KG 5.5's for about 28 years (!) that I bought new and have enjoyed through the years.  Lately, I was wondering if I might upgrade sound and also perhaps reduce the size of my speakers, so I tried KEF R3 Metas and MoFi Sourcepoint 8's and ending up sending them back, as well as B&W 703 S3's which also could not beat them to my ears.  One thing that the comparisons did reveal was that upper end intensity, which is *part* of what I like about them but maybe just too much.  At any rate, I would like to build your crossovers for my speakers.  My question is how you decided on what level of components to use.  From the photos you show, it looks like electrolytic capacitors and ferrite-core inductors.  HarryW talked about using film caps and air cores.  I know that there is a lot of controversy about to what extent the quality of such components (perhaps other than tolerance) matters for audio, with some swearing by it and others dismissing it (like audio cable quality!).  Did you consider that in making your choice or just go with what you had/could get easily?

 

Thanks very much,  John 

[Maz4bz]

Hi John,

Thanks for your question and very kind compliments!

 

TBH I'm no expert on the sound of different quality parts so I'd probably defer to others that are better experienced to answer this. There's so much written about the subject it's all a bit much for me to follow.

 

What I would say is about my objective with the KG5.5's -

1. it was my opportunity to learn how I could deal with the overly hot top end that to my ears and preferences made listening a bit fatiguing after a while; and
2. to achieve a better balance so that the bass potential of these terrific speakers could be realised. 

 

The other outcome I think the new crossover achieves is better off axis response by improving the integration between the woofers and tweeter, in part achieved by going with a 2.5 way crossover. This outcome makes the KG's sound better in more places in my room.

 

Thinking about my objectives in the context of your question then, my focus was on making some pretty gross changes to haul down the tweeter. From this perspective I didn't need to use expensive parts to achieve that.

 

The other consideration for me was validating a design, without spending lots on parts that might have gone to waste if I didn't achieve my objectives. So to answer that part of your question I just used what I had on hand and purchased basic parts where needed. I was so happy with what I got I simply left it there. 

 

TBH as a single dad, spending big on expensive parts that I didn't seem to be able to hear, and that would be hidden away in the cabinets never to be seen again, just wasn't much of a priority.  🤷‍♂️

 

Hope this helps.

Cheers.