Orthodynamic Roundup - Page 1010

Um so, even though I've read that planar drivers should not have standing wave issues as the plane moves in unison, but in reality, standing wave issues still exists at the edge of the diaphragm? I've always wondered, if the point of maximum excursion exists at the center of some planar drivers, does it not behave like a cone under those conditions?
 

How about instead of damping the reflections, we break them up into smaller nonlinearity across the spectrum? Something like this? http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/multi-way/100399-enabl-processes.html

 

 

perhaps the traces are too uniform?

 

 

here.
 

After some fiddling I know what is wrong with my HP1: the jack only gives you stereo sound if you plug it in in exactly the right way. 

 

Maybe a new jack plug... I can still live with this minor quibble though, including the fiddling.

Wualta, the only thing that amazes me more than your seemingly endless knowledge is your ability to communicate it to the uninitiated.

Again, trying to wander into the realm of perfect driver..

 

The 'stats still have the edge in highs, details, transparency and spatialness. Until there is enough low frequency content to push their dynamic range capabilities to the limit.

 

Orthos, on the other side, lead in low frequency, plain SPL, and drive. That's what seem to split people's opinions on Omegas and LCD's.

 

The electrostatic driver can be remedied of these problems with careful overprovisioning, but still there would be limiting factor - even if total volume excursion of some electrostatic driver is equal to some isodynamic one, the 'stat would be also limited by air's maximum dielectrical strength - you may still have some space left, but you can't crank any more voltage - it would just discharge away.

 

The ortho driver can be designed to have more open area, more uniform magnetic field, that is what can be done nowadays with some insightful engineering. The key part - the membrane, though, would require some materials advancement. If (well, when) the voice coil would be made of graphene, the diaphragm's weight would be able to equally rival that of the 'stats. Plus, iron-nitrogen magnets should appear and increase sensitivity somewhat.

 

Sadly that you can DIY an 'stat driver, but to be driven properly, it would require an overpowered amplifier with insane slew rate.

Sadly that an ortho doesn't need an monster amp, but you just can't DIY the diaphragm with at least decent quality.

 

It's the world of compromises.

I just received a pair of YH-100's after moving from YH-3's, to YH-1's and now onto YH-100's. However there is a problem that I can't seem to pinpoint on the right channel driver. I can't see any visible damage to the diaphragm or the contacts. Anyone with extensive experience with these drivers have any ideas?

 

 

The DIY eXSTatA already has slew rates that exceed all perhaps but one other publicly available 'stat amp and they are equal to or exceed the speed of the mighty Beta 22.  It's not terribly difficult to get relatively high levels of power from a 'stat amp too as 200mA at 350V is a powerful 'stat amp, but the PS and heat rejection become big factors and the costs go up very, very quickly as you try to achieve higher power levels above 250mA over 350V.  That's why KG's T2 could heat a house and had two huge chassis.  One for the PS, one for all the tubes and heat sinked transistors and I couldn't imagine it's cost if it was commercially available since the KGBH SE is already at $5K or $6K with RK50.

 

I believe a well executed DIY diaphragm using a couple of patented techniques could achieve a decent quality, but difficult to say if it would be better than a T50RP, however, the Audeze guys started out with an idea and basically DIY'ed their own design, then continue to improve it.  They just had financial backing to help offset the costs.  Initial costs for a budget DIY ortho would be over $300 for the magnets and diaphragms, maybe a little less, maybe more.  Orthos do generally need more power and I suspect a DIY unit would need more power than other commercial offerings initially.  Just my gut feeling from experience with vintage and current ortho offerings. 

 

I feel things are still more constrained by budgets and what an individual is willing to spend to achieve those goals.  I love my vintage orthos, my TPs, and I plan to add LCD-2s sometime next year after I get a few other tools that are a more pressing need which can generate the funds to buy the LCD-2s.  That said, my current audio/headphone budget is being spent on a custom, one-off hybrid 'stat amp and a set of custom HE60s to go with it, of which the combined cost may be very close to 2X the LCD-2s.  I hope the HE60s performance will be better than the LCD-2s, but they will have different sound signatures so I plan to acquire the LCD-2s anyway and keep both.  So much so, that I have a hybrid silver cable for the LCD-2s already and I'll be adding a new Warren Audio LCD-2 cable to the collection in anticipation while taking advantage of a special offer from Rick. 
 

Edited by BoilermakerFan - 8/11/10 at 7:53pm

argh! so you won that auction! Did you grab a ohm meter and test out the continuity? Do you see any rust under the driver?

 

 

Would a little red dot in the center of the driver on the positive contact be rust?  otherwise no.  if it is, its a spec size dot.

 

If it helps I had both drivers working the day I got them, now only the left channel works.  yes there is continuity through the driver. 

 

The guy who had these had the polarities reversed on them when I received them.

 

 

What is the resistance through of the bad driver?

wow  no joke, ~60kohms

 

 

 

The other driver is 150ohms.

Edited by Rick - 8/11/10 at 8:20pm

?

the poster to whom I was responding did not mention "irregular" polygon, they seemed to be asking about a regular (symetrical) polygonal configuration.  Yeah, I think I've heard of resonance once or twice before.  Thanks. 

Well, the cable probably not shorted internally, but check without it to be sure anyways. probably a bunch of traces on the diaphragm was shorted somehow... Post some pictures?

Well the cable is one of my own that I took off my yh-1's, its definitely not shorted. How do you propose I take a photo of the diaphragm? There's no clamp around the magnets on these drivers, not sure how I'd secure the driver back together afterwards.