See recent comparisons of similar drivers:
http://www.zaphaudio.com/nondomes/Here is some of the meat of it:
Aurum Cantus G3Si ($213) - Of the three true ribbons, the G3Si has the best low end performance. This isn't saying much since low end distortion is still horrible by dome standards. High tall order harmonic distortion, which is more evident in the single tone spectrum plots. Poor vertical off axis response.
LCY 130 ($199) - Very low sensitivity. Excellent vertical off axis response. Very close in on-axis performance to the Fountek, but at a much higher price.
Fountek NeoCD2.0 ($118) - Comparitively durable ribbon element. Of the three true ribbons, this has the best performance above 4kHz. It has the worst performance at 2kHz, rendered somewhat irrelevant because they are all terrible at 2Khz. It's excellent 4kHz+ performance is more obvious in the HD sweeps than the single and multitone spectrums however. Smooth response curve. Poor vertical off axis response.
Bohlender Graebener Neo3 PDR ($55 w/flange) - This B&G tweeter outperformed everything here, in most cases by a large margin. Response curve is ok, but linear and nonlinear distortion is excellent. This is a very clean and natural sounding tweeter.
Silver Flute YAG20-1 ($40) - Every test has to have a loser. This is it. Fairly flat and controlled response, but the distortion kills it.
Vifa D26NC55 ($29) - This cheap little dome tweeter outperforms everything here except for the B&G Neo3 PDR. It works well at 2kHz like the B&G, but has ever so slightly higher HD everywhere else.
Summary
None of the three true ribbons have very distinguished performance. They are more similar than different. But if I had to choose one, it would probably be the Fountek NeoCD2.0 because of it's durable ribbon, smooth response and clean top end performance. I'm not sure if I could live with that vertical off axis response. Generally, these ribbons do not live up to their price and hype. This point is driven home by their comparison to the cheap little Vifa neo dome.
None of the true ribbons should be used below 2.5kHz. The higher you cross them, the better you will avoid low end distortion. On the other hand, these are all large flanged tweeters, and as you cross higher, lobing at Fc becomes worse.
I often hear people babble on about the shimmer, sparkle and air of ribbon tweeters. These tests show where these "special effects" are coming from - distortion. This revelation isn't going to sit well with those who spent big money on ribbons with expectations or false beliefs that they are the best performers. What can I say except that I call them like I see (and hear) them.
The B&G and Silver Flute are both planar designs, but they are also polar opposites. The YAG20 is probably one of the worst performers I've ever seen, while the B&G performs on level with the best domes. It's hard to say what went wrong and what went right in their designs.
Folks, we have a winner - The Bohlender Graebener Neo3 PDR.
It also has a new face plate.
![](http://www.gr-research.com/images/newneo.jpg)
You can order them straight from our web site here:
http://www.gr-research.com/drivers/bg_planar.htm