[RobC]

I recently finished my Peridot kits. They were designed with the standard crossover using the ScanSpeak 8513 3/4" tweeter instead of the Fountek ribbon. In addition, the cabinet design was rectangular with the Excel midrange mounted above the tweeter. The cabinet was finished in rosewood stained oak veneer with Honduran rosewood trim. I presently have about 40 hours on them.

The Peridots produce a smooth and nicely detailed sound in my 18' X 22' HT room. The highs are very smooth without being overly pronounced. The sound reproduced by the Excel midrange driver is the best I've heard yet - especially in reproducing the female voice. The bass of the Seas Standard drivers is very good as well. It's not overemphasized and is very detailed and deep. The Peridots do very well with just about any type of music you put through them (classical, jazz, choral, movie soundtracks, etc.). I've never been a fan of loudspeakers using metal drivers because I though that they were a little harsh sounding to my ears but that's not the case at all with the Peridot. Rick's crossover design seems to have really gotten the most out of these drivers. The end result is very pleasing. The Peridot can compete with any design in (and above) it's price range and is an outstanding value as a kit.

PS: I took a picture of my Peridots but I don't know how to embed the image on a post. Can someone help me out on this? Thanks.

I think this is it:
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[RobC]

The image can be found here:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?action=gallerylastup&cat=0&pos=0

[Berndt]

Nice looking speakers, the camera flash seems to kill the finish unfortunately . You desription of veneers sounds great.

[DSK]

Hi Rob, lovely looking Peridots! I love the rosewood finish.

If I understand correctly, the original Peridot design had the Hiquphon tweeter but Rick later changed it to the Fountek CD3 ribbon used in the RC4 & RC5. Just wondering, did you have specific reasons for the Hiquphon over the Fountek or did you have an earlier kit?

[RobC]

Thanks for the compliments. The veneer I used was red oak stained in rosewood tone. I wanted to use Santos rosewood but it just was a little too pricey (I still need to build a center channel and surrounds!). I will be applying some coats of poly to the cabinets this Winter.
As for tweeters, I chose to use the Scanspeak 8513 instead of the OW1. Realistically, you couldn't go wrong with either the Hiquphon or the Fountek ribbon because the OW1 is an excellent tweeter. As for my choice, I just preferred a dome other than the ribbon and Rick had suggested the Scanspeak 8513 as an alternative to the Hiquphon. I believe that the 8513 was used in one of his highly regarded earlier designs (the Phast Est ) and it has been implemented in other high end manufacturer's designs (like the ProAc's) so it's a pretty darned good tweeter as well. It sounds very smooth in the Peridot and a lot of the credit goes to Rick's crossover design. Maybe Rick felt that the Fountek had some very desirable properties so he revised the design.

[EProvenzano]

Hi Rob, lovely looking Peridots! I love the rosewood finish.

If I understand correctly, the original Peridot design had the Hiquphon tweeter but Rick later changed it to the Fountek CD3 ribbon used in the RC4 & RC5. Just wondering, did you have specific reasons for the Hiquphon over the Fountek or did you have an earlier kit?

The RC5 uses a Seas Crescendo dome.

Rob,
Nice looking speakers!
I'm planning a 3 way build soon and I hope mine turn out nearly as nice.
Good work 

[lonewolfny42]

How's this....

[RobC]

Gee Thanks!! How'd you do that?

[Red Dragon Audio]

Gee Thanks!! How'd you do that?

the image syntax looks like this:
[img.]http://PLACE IMAGE LINK HERE[/img]

Just take that period out of the first part - that is only so it will display openly.

[Rick Craig]

Hi Rob, lovely looking Peridots! I love the rosewood finish.

If I understand correctly, the original Peridot design had the Hiquphon tweeter but Rick later changed it to the Fountek CD3 ribbon used in the RC4 & RC5. Just wondering, did you have specific reasons for the Hiquphon over the Fountek or did you have an earlier kit?

Actually the Fountek was the first tweeter I used with the Peridot design. The Hiquphon was part of the original RC4 design because the customer had requested that specific tweeter. Both the RC4 and Peridot can be customized for different tweeters if a customer has a particular preference as Rob did.

[RobC]

Ryan,
Thanks for the info.

Rick,
I stand corrected. Will email you soon about the CC!