[bob_m]

Hi All

I understand that ACI uses sealed subs for many reasons.  Good transient response of a lower Q system, gradual roll off…… is something ACI values.  Why does this not carry over to speakers such as the Emeralds or the Sapphires?  Does a sealed system not matter as much when you move up into the higher frequencies?

Thank you

Bob

[WerTicus]

sealed systems take a lot more power to drive to reasonable volumes... the sub's probably have built in power suitable to do what it needs to do... but its a lot easier for mid bass that a tower would do to be done with a port

and no higher frequencies arnt affect by this just the bass ones... eg tweeters are usually sealed.

[bob_m]

>but its a lot easier for mid bass that a tower would do to be done with a port <
I agree but is easier a good reason for speaker design.  ACI goes to great lengths to talk about a low Q design for subs.  I am just not sure why this does not apply to the higher freqs.  If you have $1K+ to through down on a set of Sapphires you can surely afford a good receiver.  NHT has been doing this for years.  I have the NHT S1's which blend nicely with the Titian.

Thanks
bob

[Mike Dzurko]

Hi All

I understand that ACI uses sealed subs for many reasons.  Good transient response of a lower Q system, gradual roll off…… is something ACI values.  Why does this not carry over to speakers such as the Emeralds or the Sapphires?  Does a sealed system not matter as much when you move up into the higher frequencies?

Thank you

Bob

Bob:

We have had many sealed or aperiodic systems over the years. In fact, we still have many sealed system, (other than the subs), the Essence, Veritas,and Protege series are all sealed. They also have much higher cutoff points that are perfect for integration in systems with subwoofers. The Sapphire, Panorama, and Emerald use ported systems to extend the bandwidth making subs an option rather than a necessity. Note that all three utilize some variant of EBS (extended bass shelf) tuning which yields both a low extension and the best transient response possible from a ported system.  This tuning requires a larger box than a common Butterworth vented system. These systems are also designed to work very well with the ports plugged. In fact this is the preferred setup when used with subwoofers. Hope this answers your question!

[WerTicus]

the best speakers I have ever heard, with the most detailed bass imaginable -down to 22hz with a cabasse 10inch woofer (amazing woofer, honey combed paper design)  were ported.

then i hear a 4x 12inch phl sealed system that used the raven 3 tweeter also.
that had pretty awesome bass... much more slam, for obvious reasons but not as detailed.

tightness and detail has more to do with quality of components than alignment... capacitor quality on the cross over afects this big time... more than spikes in the carpet would.  

How light and ridged the cone is and how much head room you have on the amp are big big factors.

You should be looking at these factors more than alignment for speakers.

Alignment is more important when it comes to sub's imo.  I wouldnt have anything other than a sealed sub.  As the drivers are usualy heavy and need the back up of air pressure to be tight.  However cabbasse do have a  21inch woofer of similar quality to their 10inch for 3k so i might have to give that a go!  apparently its not much heavier than their 10inch muahahahah

[thugh]

Bob:
These systems are also designed to work very well with the ports plugged. In fact this is the preferred setup when used with subwoofers....

Mike,

So when I get my system together, you recommend plugging the ports on the Panoramas?  So what crossover point do you recommend when plugged?

Thanks,

[Mike Dzurko]

Bob:
These systems are also designed to work very well with the ports plugged. In fact this is the preferred setup when used with subwoofers....

Mike,

So when I get my system together, you recommend plugging the ports on the Panoramas?  So what crossover point do you recommend when plugged?

Thanks,

Tom:

You will definitely want to try your Panoramas both plugged and unplugged. I’d start first with them plugged and the crossover around 80Hz.

[thedeskE]

I suppose we'll be looking around for the right sized foam plugs for this option? Makes perfect sense for movie setup, but the little bass devil on my left shoulder hates the idea. The guy on my right shoulder is very open minded about such things.

E