[izotope_jeremy]

Hi there,

I'm looking for a loudspeaker that has a relatively flat frequency response between 200 Hz and 30 kHz. The problem I'm running into is that nearly all loudspeakers only specify their frequency response up to 20 kHz. Does anyone have any ideas about where I might look or brands which might have good high-frequency response? I'm looking for a loudspeaker that is as small as possible as well.

Thanks in advance for any info!

Regards,
Jeremy Todd

[pearsall001]

Hi there,

I'm looking for a loudspeaker that has a relatively flat frequency response between 200 Hz and 30 kHz. The problem I'm running into is that nearly all loudspeakers only specify their frequency response up to 20 kHz. Does anyone have any ideas about where I might look or brands which might have good high-frequency response? I'm looking for a loudspeaker that is as small as possible as well.

Thanks in advance for any info!

Regards,
Jeremy Todd

I've been extremely pleased with my AAD 2001 monitors. Nothing as tickled my fancy as much as these have. A truly superb sounding speaker that just gets everything right. Not too terribly big (13x13x9) but very heavy (approx 48lb.)
http://www.questforsound.com/speakers/spkrs_aad2001.htm

[Toka]

The Salk HT3's may fit the bill...search their forum here on AC, as Jim posted a response graph fairly recently.

[ctviggen]

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp;jsessionid=LMH43MMYXA5V3KC4D3MVAHA?skuId=6625547&type=product&id=1151657258796
http://www.kellyindustries.com/speakers/tannoy_reveal_6.html
http://freeq.wordpress.com/2005/11/12/av123-extended-frequency-response-super-tweeter/

[TheChairGuy]

izotope_jeremy,

The range of human hearing doesn't extend anywhere near 20kHz...and men, in particular, fare poorly in high frequency hearing over the years. 

40 is about the start of the precipitous decline.  So, if your close to it, save your money, enjoy your current speakers - it probably won't matter much soon 

Hey, tongue-in-cheek a bit, there are many that think response above 20kHz Can be felt, perhaps not heard, so more extended treble response might not be bad thing at any age - sonically speaking.

Most speakers with ribbons have better/flatter extension out to the limits you are looking for...most domes don't.

You didn't mention a price range for these small speakers, but speakers with ribbon treble transducers tend to be a bit higher priced then domed counterparts - all other things being equal.


Hey, welcome to AC, too 

[konut]

http://www.av123.com/products_product.php?section=speakers&product=74.1

These are the Onix Rocket ERT (Extended Response Tweeter). They are an add on tweeter, with built in adjustable crossover, that extends to 45khz.

[dorokusai]

I would bet you could find alot of speakers in that freq range, but if they don't sound good to you, what's the point. I'm with The Chair Guy in regards to the effects of hearing loss and age, plus too much sound is placebo anyways.

Good luck, but you'll get infinite suggestions with only one course of action....pick one. I don't have any suggestions as I listen to a clock radio.

Mark

[RuSsMaN]

Harman Kardon was the first to make a series of amps back in the 70's, that touted 100Khz response.  They had a tag line for them, I can't for the life of me remember what it was.  I'll have to dig through the files.... Ultrawide Bandwidth, Ultra Band, or some such.

I believe the theory they were stating was that even though you can't hear out to 50K, 100K, etc - if there is fundamental information 'out there' and it is reproduced, then you can hear the harmonics that result from the fundamental that fall within the human range of perception. 

Cheers,
Russ

[SET Man]

Hey!

    Welcome to the AC Jeremy!

    As for your question. Well, I see... you know if you give us what price point you are looking to spend it be more helpful to narrow down the list.

    I think there are couple makers that do have speakers with ultra sonic respond. A few that come to my mind are JM Labs, KEF, Tannoy (they also make add on supertweeter with super $$$) and etc.

    Anyway, as for why anyone want to have 20Khz+ is a very interesting subject. But from my own experience I have to say that it is worth having. Well, I added a pair of Fostex FT17H to my Single Dirver Fostex 167E TQWT with 1st order xover that have -6dB point well in  18-20Khz and maybe more. With the FT17H respond rated up to 50Khz. I'm very impress with the sound.

    If you are planing to have tweeters with ultrasonic and only use them with Redbook CD play back than you are wasting your time and money. True that my supertweeters also make my CD play back sound better. But it was just adding upper high that I've been hearing from my main driver without the supertweeters. Keep in mind that Redbook CD are limited to only 22Khz I think.

    But! With my vinyl LPs play back the result is stunning! With some LPs something strange happen... they added depth, dimension, and sense of space. And also... this will sound funny but I do feel that the lower frequencies sound better too.

    In short.... I'm a believer in speaker that goes beyond 20Khz... of cause only if you are using formats that contain frequency that high.

   Hmmm... haven't ask Mr.Bubble my cat if he think the sound of my system is better now with the supertweeters on when playing back my LPs...

Take care,
Buddy

 

[JohnR]

I think anybody who makes a speaker using a (small) ribbon tweeter could probably help. These have responses (according to published graphs anyway) up to around 40 kHz. Off the top of my head, Selah Audio and RAW Audio who have circles on this site use them.

[WGH]

Here is a test to see if you really need ultra high speaker response. I sure don't, but my neighbor's 16 year old son can hear this clearly.

17 kHz Mosquito Ring Tone
http://www.jetcityorange.com/MosquitoRingtone.html

[dorokusai]

Its clear as a bell to me and I long for the days of youth and audio naivety. That being said, I really cannot wrap my head around a frequency spectrum that is beyond my actual capability....e.g. 40kHz.

[rabpaul]

I do not doubt that most of us can't hear above 20Khz but I have often wondered about the speakers that are rated well above the 20hz and super/hyper tweeters. You can't dispute that you can hear a difference if you actually added a super tweeter. My take is that you can't hear those frequencies but they do affect the frequencies you can hear.
Questions:
A 5Khz tone + a 25Khz tone = 15Kz tone?
If you placed two tuning forks of different frequencies on your head (which is how they test hearing) you will hear a different frequency?

[jaybit]

Our way of hearing is not as simple as only receiving the right frequencies....although we are not like bats, it has become clear that our way of hearing is way more complex than a simple hearing test would indicate. A scientific experment some years ago clearly indicated that test subjects hearing a +20 khz tone could not point out the test signal "over" silence, but when the signal was added to another sound below 20khz, they could clearly indicate the difference. 
I have always found it strange that audio lovers only look at their hobby from one end (specs of amplifers, speakers, etc) and forget about the complexity of the "machinery" on the other end - their own ears. Reasearch about deafness and how our hearing works, is for me as essential to this hobby as understanding what RMS, Ohms and THD stand for... This being said, there is no simple answer to how we perceive audio signals...but there's more at work than our ear drums - deep bass tones are rather felt than heard with our internal organs and skeleton, the highest frequencies seem to get their own interpretation as secondary harmonics, but also as some kind of complex spacial placement.
I have a pair of KEF hypertweeters in a separate enclosure, after testing and trying i ended up with a crossover around 17 kHz (just beyond my own hearing limit, AND I am 39 so all is not lost yet!!) and i have to agree with an earlier comment - vinyl records are spectaculary improved indeed, especially fifties decca et al. CD's get an extended hig frequency range, but stereo placement get blurred a little - which seems obvious since adding the tweeters transforms the existing stereo image into a different one - I may tak some time out to twist  and turn my speakers a little, but only when the wife's away.... Analog instruments but also hammond organs get a fuller, more separate placement between the other nstruments, electronic music seems to become more "crowded".

I guess in the end that using supertweeters has it pros and cons, it is sometimes a trade-off, but i see a definite future in the concept.

This is my first comment on this forum, and I hope my comments contributed a little to this interesting topic.

[BrunoB]

Here is a test to see if you really need ultra high speaker response. I sure don't, but my neighbor's 16 year old son can hear this clearly.

17 kHz Mosquito Ring Tone
http://www.jetcityorange.com/MosquitoRingtone.html

Ouch! This sound hurts (I had to remove my headphones right away). I am 43.

I like to have a tweeter that has a very extended freq response. I think that a tweeter that can play 40 KHz will reproduce 10-20KHz better than a tweeter that can only reach 20KHz. Here is my analogy with a car. A poweful car that can reach a speed of 150 mph will be smoother at 75 mph than a  car that has just the  power to reach 75 mph.

Bruno