Speaker/Driver/Cab Question

[SurferJoe46]

I'd like to know if the ratings on a speaker/driver are what one can expect when it is mounted in a cabinet.

Obviously, there is going to be a great difference in a naked out-on-the-bench rating for a speaker - greatly different for one mounted in a well-designed cab.

Is there a real baseline in the ratings of the naked speaker and can there be a corollary extension of those manufacturer's ratings to what one can expect when mounted in a good cab?

In other words - under what circumstances is a speaker evaluated (in the 'perfect situation' or is it just generally bench tested) and would any difference be all that evident?

Does the cab make it better or worse for the ratings and is there any rule of thumb when a manufacturer buys something and installs it in different cabs on their assembly line?

Can a cheap speaker sound good under very near to perfect circumstances?

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by SurferJoe46

Can a cheap speaker sound good under very near to perfect circumstances?

It's possible for an inexpensive driver to sound very good when mounted in a superior enclosure. It's also possible for an expensive driver to sound like poo in a poor enclosure.

Is there a real baseline in the ratings of the naked speaker and can there be a corollary extension of those manufacturer's ratings to what one can expect when mounted in a good cab?

Speaker modeling software can predict the outcome to a tolerance considerably better than what the ear can detect.

[SurferJoe46]

So - should a driver just be bought for it's naked ratings - and is this not the best way to rate a driver - EG: without any interference or improvement from it's potential cabinet?

Wouldn't that be a more fair way to rate a driver as opposed to what it can potentially perform IF the cab it is going into is just right for the job?

[fdeck]

Originally Posted by SurferJoe46

So - should a driver just be bought for it's naked ratings - and is this not the best way to rate a driver - EG: without any interference or improvement from it's potential cabinet?

Wouldn't that be a more fair way to rate a driver as opposed to what it can potentially perform IF the cab it is going into is just right for the job?

I'm not a pro speaker designer, but here's how I approach it as a reasonably technically inclined amateur. Every driver should be rated by modeling it into a box, and then rating the overall design based on what you want.

Some candidate speakers will drop out of consideration because they are crummy speakers, for example ones with insufficient Xmax for bass amplification. Others will drop out because they only work well in a giant box. Gradually, you will home in on a short list, and maybe even just one driver / box combination that looks like it will make you happy. You buy that driver.

The pro's can probably look directly at the ratings, such as the Thiele-Small parameters, and make a pretty good guess of which drivers are worth considering. But I'm not that smart, so I went ahead and modeled all of them.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by SurferJoe46

So - should a driver just be bought for it's naked ratings - and is this not the best way to rate a driver - EG: without any interference or improvement from it's potential cabinet?

Wouldn't that be a more fair way to rate a driver as opposed to what it can potentially perform IF the cab it is going into is just right for the job?

If you're not experienced at cabinet design you find a design that meets your needs and load it with the drivers recommended for it by the designer. If you already have the cab in hand choosing the right driver for it if you don't know what you're doing is an uphill climb.