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Looking for new speakers [message #70663] Thu, 29 December 2011 10:54 Go to next message
Rockstar is currently offline  Rockstar
Messages: 121
Registered: November 2010
Location: NY
Master
I'm looking for new speakers - what brand should I be looking at. Right now we are putting them in our new shop. We want to put them in the ceiling - out of sight out of mind. It's all pretty open right now so we can use pretty much anything. Any tips?

Let's chat!
Re: Looking for new speakers [message #70680 is a reply to message #70663] Fri, 30 December 2011 08:10 Go to previous messageGo to next message
AudioFred is currently offline  AudioFred
Messages: 377
Registered: May 2009
Location: Houston
Illuminati (1st Degree)
In-ceiling speakers are typically two-way coaxial speakers, with the tweeter mounted centrally on the woofer's pole piece. The most popular size is a 6" woofer with a 3/4" or 1" tweeter. These come in a range of quality levels. I'm including a link to a speaker pair at each level in the sections below. Hope this helps:

The least expensive, often called "contractor speakers" because they are the least expensive speakers a contractor can buy for installation in a new home. These will have cheap drivers, with the crossover consisting of only a single 50 cent capacitor in the tweeter signal path to block low frequencies. These often sound harsh, mostly because the woofer plays full range and you hear it's nasty cone breakup at about 5khz, the tweeter is crossed over too high, and the cheap drivers don't have much power handling capacity. I suppost they're ok for soft restaurant-type light jazz, but not for any other music.
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-402

Mid priced ceiling speakers will have better drivers and a more sophisticated crossover, with second-order woofer and/or tweeter crossovers, and using better quality drivers and crosssover parts. These will sound more open and natural, and will be able to play louder without distortion. This example has a better design crossover, but it still uses cheap electrolytic capacitors and an iron core inductor. http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-362

The next level will use high quality drivers with second order crossovers for both drivers, with air core inductors and polypropylene caps in the tweeter circuit. http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-470

The quality levels of the above examples vary quite a bit, and the difference between the sound of each successive level will be clearly audible. A friend recently moved into a new luxury condo which was pre-wired for ceiling speakers, and I ordered the US620C model for him. Still haven't installed them, so I can't comment on the quality, but I'll be surprised if they don't sound good. I would also recommend the ES level speakers if you don't want to spend quite so much money, but not the CS level. Remember, if they're at your workplace you will probably be listening to them 8 hours a day, five days a week, or more!
Re: Looking for new speakers [message #70681 is a reply to message #70680] Fri, 30 December 2011 08:27 Go to previous messageGo to next message
AudioFred is currently offline  AudioFred
Messages: 377
Registered: May 2009
Location: Houston
Illuminati (1st Degree)
Another option, since hearing the full stereo effect isn't as important in an office as it would be at home, is a single stereo speaker. You hook up both the left and right channel outputs from your receiver to the separate L and R inputs on the back of the speaker. Both channels play in the same woofer, but the highs from each channel are sent to a separate angled tweeter. http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-364

index.php?t=getfile&id=667&private=0

My experience with ceiling speakers is very limited, so others, please comment if you're more familiar with them than I am.
Re: Looking for new speakers [message #70700 is a reply to message #70663] Sat, 31 December 2011 09:31 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Rockstar is currently offline  Rockstar
Messages: 121
Registered: November 2010
Location: NY
Master
Holy crap! I had to print that one off. Excellent information... a lot of information to digest. The new shop is at our house but we will be spending a lot of time in there.

Let's chat!
Re: Looking for new speakers [message #70723 is a reply to message #70700] Sun, 01 January 2012 19:23 Go to previous message
gofar99 is currently offline  gofar99
Messages: 1895
Registered: May 2010
Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi, See my response on the craftsman forum. IMHO while some ceiling speakers are good quality, you won't get the super system you indicated in the other post. Response is possible, imaging is not and it is rather un-natural to hear stuff from above. Rolling Eyes

Good Listening
Bruce
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