noob with an RS

hey, i was flipping through a cruthfield catalog and noticed a couple of pairs of speakers that came with a 2-way speaker, a tweeter, and a crossover. some were in the components section and some were just in the coaxial speakers section. in the description it read that they can either be used as component speakers or as coaxials. would that mean that they would just use the two-way speakers without the crossover and tweeter to use it as coaxial? why would someone want to hook up coaxial speakers rather than having a component system? an example of such speakers are the MB Quart Premier speakers.

EBP_SI

one advantage the coax design has (on paper at least) is because the center of the mid and the center of the tweeter are perfectly inline, you dont have a phase shift between the mid and tweet. the downfall of that is the tweeter is now an obstruction in the path of sound coming from the mid. the best way to go is a component set with the mid and tweet mounted close together.

kontai69

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by noob with an RS &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">hey, i was flipping through a cruthfield catalog and noticed a couple of pairs of speakers that came with a 2-way speaker, a tweeter, and a crossover. some were in the components section and some were just in the coaxial speakers section. in the description it read that they can either be used as component speakers or as coaxials. would that mean that they would just use the two-way speakers without the crossover and tweeter to use it as coaxial? why would someone want to hook up coaxial speakers rather than having a component system? an example of such speakers are the MB Quart Premier speakers.</TD></TR></TABLE>

"Components" by definition are speaker sets in which the tweeter, midrange, and crossover are separate units. "True" coaxial speaker sets have an integrated tweeter, midrange, and crossover which are nonseparable. With some models (the MBQ you referred to, Image Dynamics Chameleons, to name a couple), you have the option of mounting the tweeter and midrange in a coaxial configuration, with the tweeter "on top" of the midrange. The advantages and disadvatages of doing so is well described by EBP_SI. However, I would say most people, including myself, prefer to mount the tweeters of their component speakers away from the midrange driver because this is what sounds best to them.

Component speakers sets are more expensive than their coaxial counterparts within a given manufacturer's model line. Therefore, they are better constructed and have more sophisticated crossover networks than coaxials. That is why they sound better and can handle more power.

noob with an RS

ahhh i see clearly now. thanks for the great input guys.. i am now one step closer to 'leet audiophile' status.. oooh yea.

EBP_SI

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by kontai69 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
However, I would say most people, including myself, prefer to mount the tweeters of their component speakers away from the midrange driver because this is what sounds best to them.
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i think partly it has to do with a lot of people thinking thats where they should be because thats where the factory puts them. also when they're up high you dont have to worry about your legs obstructing the sound. thats a general rule i like to use but it doesnt always have to be like that. it depends a lot on the component set you choose, just look at Rcurley's setup with tweets mounted on the pillars.