Home » Audio » Speaker » bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes
bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes [message #19633] Thu, 18 December 2003 17:21 Go to next message
jim denton is currently offline  jim denton
Messages: 162
Registered: May 2009
Master
Gentlemen, Probably posted my request on the wrong forum so I'll try here--just ordered a pair of Fostex FE206E's and am getting plans for a simple bass reflex as reccommended from the Decware site---but got antsy waiting around and went to the Fostex.com site and there they had the darnest back loaded horn cabinet I'd ever seen---this bass refles is a snap to build but man o man---this loaded horn work bust the chops on a cabinet builder!!!---Tell what the heck is the difference in sound??? I like this whole project as it has upgrades to a 2-way and on to a 2-woofer & a tweeter too---lots of options to build and listen to a lot of things but man---you got to look at this horn box!!!!---Jim

Re: bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes [message #19636 is a reply to message #19633] Fri, 19 December 2003 14:20 Go to previous messageGo to next message
akhilesh is currently offline  akhilesh
Messages: 1275
Registered: May 2009
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
HI Jim,
A horn simply makes bass differently than a bass reflex. If properly designed, I seriously don;t think ther eis much difference.
If you want to extend the bass of the driver (like in lowther) the horn may be the way to go. You will get some coloration with a horn.
With a bass reflex, if poorly designed, you will either get no bass, or a dip in upper bass. If well designed, you will get adequte bass, but not as much as a horn. However,, you wil lalso get better coherence ( i think tighter group delay) than a horn, since the sound is not travelling thrugh a tube.

IMHO, a lot depends on the driver you select. I'd rather select a good driver which will give decent bass in a bass reflex, and do a well designed bass reflex box; than select a driver doped with magic dust and then flog the bejesus out of it by building a humongous horn.

Just my 2 cents.
thanx
-akhilesh

Re: bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes [message #19638 is a reply to message #19633] Fri, 19 December 2003 18:37 Go to previous messageGo to next message
JLM is currently offline  JLM
Messages: 69
Registered: May 2009
Viscount
Jim, what FE208E cabinet plans from Decware are you referring to?

With the FE208E's low Qt (0.18) common wisdom would be to look for horn loading. Qt of 0.4 is more in line with bass reflex or transmission lines. Bob Brines (http://geocities.com/rbrines1/) sells plans for smaller Fostex drivers, but it's a transmission line based design that looks much like a bass reflex cabinet. Tom Zurowski (http://audio-resolution.com/zhorn/) of Z-horn fame sells a rear loaded horn cabinet for the FE208E called "Garuda".

Steve has his new High Definition Tower design that uses the FE208E, but that's perhaps the most complicated design I've ever seen (has lenses, port, two passive radiators, and a transmission line). Classic Audio (http://www.oldhifi.com/) sells bass reflex design for the FE208E in a variety of sizes and Steve built a rather small standmount bass reflex for it as well. We heard all of these at the 2003 DecFest:

Steve's HDT uses modified FE208E's (treated = ??). The prototype sounded pretty good, but the untreated driver was still breaking in.

The Classic Audio 2.5 sounded less flat, more boomy, and the side panels resonanted when struck, but received less play from the new drivers.

Steve's small standmount I thought sounded quite promising if used with a sub, but received little play from the new drivers.

Re: bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes [message #19643 is a reply to message #19636] Sat, 20 December 2003 15:24 Go to previous messageGo to next message
jim denton is currently offline  jim denton
Messages: 162
Registered: May 2009
Master
Akhilesh----
Thanks for your reply---I'm starting at the simple to build point and then listen and go from there---I already have some ideas of my own but can't start until I get 2 pairs built to listen and compare---but must agree with your comment about trashing the driver to cover too wide a range---I met 2 EE's (by sheer accident) in a Radio Shack and they were both into PA systems---and I got an interesting idea of building 2way speakers and bi-amp directly to them ---then learn how to build a Xover and compare ---anyway isn't just about everybody using a Sub to get the bottom end bass covered ? Jim PS Wayne invited me to your january meeting and I hope to bring a pair then (if Santa is good to me) and spend a few minutes on that computer program

Re: bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes [message #19648 is a reply to message #19643] Mon, 22 December 2003 08:44 Go to previous messageGo to next message
akhilesh is currently offline  akhilesh
Messages: 1275
Registered: May 2009
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
Hi Jim,
You are welcome to the Jan get together! The name of the game is to learn from each other's experiences. Wayne is a great guy, and a great resource as well, he really helped me out a lot and he also knows a lot!
-akhilesh

Re: bass reflex vs back loaded horn boxes [message #19664 is a reply to message #19648] Sat, 27 December 2003 11:17 Go to previous message
jim denton is currently offline  jim denton
Messages: 162
Registered: May 2009
Master
Starting to pick up on a few things and already have a fostex speaker project underway---but I'm needing to get up to speed on tube testing--I think my little amp went down but can't figure if it is the amp or the pre-amp---it's always something ---looking forward you
guys in January Jim

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