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Tiny full range drivers..like 1-2" tiny.

flameworker

flameworker

Guest
Jun 15, 2014
1,842
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Landenberg, Pennsylvania
Disclosures
one day....
#1
I'm digging the piranha 5", Always liked 8's ala baby blue...And I grew up where 15" speakers were the norm, we though 10's were odd and had to be matched with an 19 or a 15..

So, I researched full range drivers, found out about the crazy 10,000$ ones...but thats a different story
a=pi X r2
so a 15" speaker has 46.8" of paper
18" is 56.16
12" is 37.44
2 12 is 74.88
a 2 10 has 62.4
a 4 10 has 124.8
those 4 x 5 piranhas are 62.4, exactly the same as a 2x10 speaker if my math is right, and I like them, and I like the 151 markbass...single 15. the piranha is a little better.

got me thinking, if I used 2.5" full range speakers, 10 of them would be 62.4" of paper too, and there are really nice neo full range chinese speakers cheap.

if I wire 2 sets of 5 2" speakers together in sires, and then wire those groups to each other in parallel will that get me to 8Ohms?

how about 20 1" drivers?

If I want an overall 4 ohm cabinet , Do you guys think this logic will fly? I doubted the 5" til I heard them. If nothing else it will be a freaking cool looking cabinet.

Any Idea what kind of speakers those 5" are? They Boom.
Also, does anyone know a cheaper alternative to the BagEnd 8" SWR used to use? Not celestions, I tried em, blah.
$_57.JPG
 
#4
B-string said:
Important to note, speaker "sizes" are the basket diameter not the cone area. That speaker photo has more frame and outer suspension than actual useable cone area to calculate.
Click to expand...

derp, I didn't think of that...
And that pic isn't the driver I found, but it looks similar. the ones I found were like 10$, I will hunt them again and post a proper pic. that one is from the same company tho, different set up now that I look at it.
 
#14
flameworker said:
a=pi X r2...
a 2 10 has 62.4...
those 4 x 5 piranhas are 62.4, exactly the same as a 2x10 speaker if my math is right....
Click to expand...

Check your math on the 4x5 cab. I think one 4x5 = one 1x10 as far as cone area goes.

To compare air-moving capability (which is related to fartout threshold), you need to compare displacement, which is cone area x linear excursion. Make sure you compare one-way linear excursion; some home audio driver manufacturers use peak-to-peak.

To really compare low-end performance you have to model it using the drivers' Thiele-Small parameters, and then take into account displacement-limited power handling and thermal-limited power handling.

flameworker said:
if I wire 2 sets of 5 2" speakers together in sires, and then wire those groups to each other in parallel will that get me to 8Ohms?
Click to expand...

Yes, that will work.

flameworker said:
how about 20 1" drivers?
Click to expand...

Series-parallel wiring will work there as well.

Make your best calculation for effective cone area (for the effective cone diameter, use the actual cone diameter + 1/2 of the surround) and multiply that by the driver's linear excursion to get displacement, and compare that with the displacement of other cabs. Eminence posts the displacement of their woofers on their website so that makes it easier to make the comparison.

You may come to the conclusion that itty bitty drivers aren't cost-effective if you want gig-worthy low-end extension at gig-worthy sound pressure levels.
 
Last edited:
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#15
If you really want to make a cab with multiple small drivers I would not go smaller then 4" drivers since the smaller drivers can't be designed to have a large enough xmax. I have enough experience with small drivers in the homeaudio-world to tell you that.
Btw. a Bose 800 type of design is a good starting point, with better drivers it can work pretty good as a bassguitar cab.
If you're looking for 3.5" - 4.5" drivers with enough xmax you should try one of these.

Invalid Link Removed (excellent driver IME)

http://www.parts-express.com/dayton-audio-rs125p-4-5-reference-paper-woofer-4-ohm--295-371 (good choice IMO)

http://www.parts-express.com/dayton-audio-ds115-8-4-designer-series-woofer-speaker--295-424

Invalid Link Removed

Don't expect such a design to be able to handle a low-B, a normal 4-string should be doable.
I would at least build two Bose 800 type of enclosures (16 x 4" drivers in total) else the SPL will be to low.
Btw. another problem with most of these small drivers with low enough Fs is their suspension properties. Most of them have a "linear" supsension and for PA/Basscab use, you want it to be "progressive" at least from the moment the voice-coil starts to leave the airgap. This will protect the driver from mechanical abuse.
 
Last edited:
#17
dincz said:
The results of the calculations look like pi x diameter.
Click to expand...
Good call! His calculations are actually comparing the perimeters of the drivers.

I've made worse mistakes than that. At least he hasn't started spending money and cutting wood yet.

Flameworker, in addition to the drivers Arjank suggested, you might look at Faital's 5FE100, 5FE120, and 6FE100. I have no experience with the 5FE100 but like and use the other two. But same as what Arjank said about the drivers on his list, these are better suited for low-E than low-B tuning.
 
Last edited:
#18
DukeLeJeune said:
Check your math on the 4x5 cab. I think one 4x5 = one 1x10 as far as cone area goes.

To compare air-moving capability (which is related to fartout threshold), you need to compare displacement, which is cone area x linear excursion. Make sure you compare one-way linear excursion; some home audio driver manufacturers use peak-to-peak.

To really compare low-end performance you have to model it using the drivers' Thiele-Small parameters, and then take into account displacement-limited power handling and thermal-limited power handling.



Yes, that will work.



Series-parallel wiring will work there as well.

Make your best calculation for effective cone area (for the effective cone diameter, use the actual cone diameter + 1/2 of the surround) and multiply that by the driver's linear excursion to get displacement, and compare that with the displacement of other cabs. Eminence posts the displacement of their woofers on their website so that makes it easier to make the comparison.

You may come to the conclusion that itty bitty drivers aren't cost-effective if you want gig-worthy low-end extension at gig-worthy sound pressure levels.
Click to expand...
A.k.a giving you the rope (to hang yourself)
 

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