[satfrat]

OK, I am intrigued. I've got a pair of 1977 Klipsch Cornwalls (horizontal tweeters). Are the surrounds a no-brainer?

Would this be your loudspeaker?




Cheers,
Robin

[efhjr]

Would this be your loudspeaker?

Yep, that's it.

[jimdgoulding]

Gene-  Hi.  You ever hang out at Luther's?  He hosts a gathering of the tribe at his house a couple of times a year.  I read and liked your review very much.  Your tweeter is imbedded in a cavity/guide.  You are getting more directivity than surface mounted domes.  But, what the hey, I'm game to try and see if you are.  We might take a shot at your midrange, too.  Will you send me a PM with the measurements of the width and height of your tweeter cavity?  I will have a few more questions and will happily answer any you may have.  Welcome to Audio Circle.  You'll like it here.  Thanks, Robin, for the photo.

[jimdgoulding]

"Yea Jim, we did (improve his bidness). It's so weird, I was very often "frightened" to play certain cd's but now it's like I can "challenge" my speakers to the "new sound" and just laugh in the face of adversity.  Friggin' great!  Question; at some future date if I deem it necessary can you send a few more packets of the velcro things?  Anyway, "Ta", as they say in England and have a swingin Christmas-Chanucka-winter solstice-wotever and may God Bless!  Daniel James O'Brien-Sthlm Sweden-PEACE!"

Thought I'd stick this little bit of feedback in here cause this guy was so much fun to deal with (Dynaudio 52's, BTW).  His mother even got into our conversations.  He lives in Stockholm and his mom who lives in Phoenix handles his financial transactions which I assume has to do with his taxes over there.  I took her personal check rather than have her make a special trip to her bank for a money order and she was appreciative.  She's in real estate in AZ which made for an interesting conversation.  The son did tell me to send as a "gift" so he could skip paying 30% import duties!  And there's that Velcro issue, again, but I'm workin on it.  Good football this weekend!  Cheers.   

[jimdgoulding]

Got to indulge you one mo time with this guy's astuteness and enthusiasm (12/26):

"Hi Jim,

Those little babies work well! In fact, I'm surprised at the magnitude of the improvement. They seem to eliminate a lot of 'hash' at the top end which allows more detail to be heard, and this has a positive effect on what can be discerned at mid and lower frequencies too. As far as I can tell, there are no negatives in the pitch, rhythm, and timing areas (PRaT) and the stage is wider, deeper, with more solid imagery without getting that horrible 'floating head' effect with vocalists.

I'll be posting a report on the Naim forum in the next few days and I'll e-mail you a copy. Thank you for a well thought out, inexpensive, and effective product.

Best Regards,"

He's more than welcome.  Positively made my day.     

[Wind Chaser]

Here’s what I’ve discovered with Jim’s Woolies…

Diffraction is real and left unchecked, it muddles the sound in a way I never would have imagined.

Simply put:

Diffraction = Distortion

This kind of distortion cannot be dealt with by room treatments, better cabling or upgrading anything else for that matter.  The only way to deal with diffraction is to nip it in the bud.  Having done that the difference is night and day.  I can’t imagine any speaker not benefiting from this simple tweak.  Until you hear it for yourself, you will never know how adverse diffraction is and how much better your system can sound without it.

I listen at very modest volumes, about the volume of a normal room conversation.  Even at that level, the magnitude of difference - before and after the Woolies - is very apparent. 

In an effort to improve sound quality, I’ve rolled costly tubes, experimented with expensive aftermarket cables, played with numerous other tweaks and upgraded every component numerous times over the years.  Like most people I did it because I know that doing all of these things makes a difference.  Sometimes those difference are incremental and other times they are substantial.  To my ears the elimination of diffraction is substantial.  Very substantial.

[yammy1688]

Updated pictures of some new woolies Jim sent me, free of charge I might add.  THANKS!!!  Looks much better now.

[jimdgoulding]

Thanks for the repost, Yam-man, but I missed the width I intended.  Must be gettin old.  Oh, they're wide enough alright, too wide.  I want to see the curve of your baffles looking head on.  I will shoot you a PM and tell you how to have them trimmed 1/2" off each side cleanly locally.  Your stands are interesting.  Are those from Mapleshade?

[Wind Chaser]

I don't have the opportunity to listen much, except on weekends, and there are always other things to do if you know what I mean.  However since installing the Woolies I am spending way more time sitting in the sweet spot.  Old familiar red book recordings are sounding much better, and though it may seem like a stretch to some, the difference is so significant it seems as if all my discs have suddenly been upgraded to SACD!  It's hard to believe how much better my system sounds exclusively on account of the Woolies.

You cannot expect for this level of improvement every time by spending thousands of dollars on an upgrade.  Some intended upgrades are more lateral than forward.  While they result in a different sound, that is often interpreted as an improvement when all that's really going on is just side ways adjustment that is more in accordance with ones own taste.

But the Woolies are not like that at all.  What they do is legitimate and scientific.  There no nonsense hocus pocus horse shit going on here.  With the Woolies in place you will enjoy a new level of listening pleasure.  You will also come to appreciate your existing system all the more when you discover how it sounds without diffraction mucking things up.

Jim, I'm very impressed!  Thank you for making these available and bringing them to our attention.

[drphoto]

Yammy, besides looking better, do the narrower woolies sound better on your TSMs?  (Are those the TSM-MMX?)

I have the TSM-MMe and the woolies I got look like your original tall version. Mine also extend past the curved edge of the baffle.

Can you post more on your impressions of the sound. You seem to like them. Did you think there was a loss of high end detail?

thanks

[satfrat]

I don't have the opportunity to listen much, except on weekends, and there are always other things to do if you know what I mean.  However since installing the Woolies I am spending way more time sitting in the sweet spot.  Old familiar red book recordings are sounding much better, and though it may seem like a stretch to some, the difference is so significant it seems as if all my discs have suddenly been upgraded to SACD!  It's hard to believe how much better my system sounds exclusively on account of the Woolies.

You cannot expect for this level of improvement every time by spending thousands of dollars on an upgrade.  Some intended upgrades are more lateral than forward.  While they result in a different sound, that is often interpreted as an improvement when all that's really going on is just side ways adjustment that is more in accordance with ones own taste.

But the Woolies are not like that at all.  What they do is legitimate and scientific.  There no nonsense hocus pocus horse shit going on here.  With the Woolies in place you will enjoy a new level of listening pleasure.  You will also come to appreciate your existing system all the more when you discover how it sounds without diffraction mucking things up.

Jim, I'm very impressed!  Thank you for making these available and bringing them to our attention.

I'm glad to hear the woolies are doing for you what they've done for me. Personally I hated the gray look of the wool but since I dyed mine Gold Ochre from Spinners Choice (and per Jim's dyeing instructions) to better match them with my oak Lorelei's, I'm much happier with them. I would highly recommend dying the Wooolies to match your loudspeakers,,, unless gray is your thing.

As for a loss of highs, I would say I haven't lost my highs but they are more focused as is the imaging. As a comparison, w/o them the cymbals ring thru out the room but with them the cymbals stay more focused, less scattered. I prefer a more focused sound stage from the drivers myself as I have many things (diffusers, system Bybees, RR-77) that will broaden my sound stage as it is. This is just my perception, others feel the highs are filtered from the wool,, ymmv.


Cheers,
Robin

[Wind Chaser]

Thanks for the dye tip Robin...  At some point in the up coming months, spring perhaps, I'd like to build new enclosures and that information will come in handy. 

As for a loss of highs, I would say I haven't lost my highs but they are more focused as is the imaging. As a comparison, w/o them the cymbals ring thru out the room but with them the cymbals stay more focused, less scattered. I prefer a more focused sound stage...

I agree you 100%.  The only loss of HF "information" is the absence of the distortion that previously resulted from diffraction.  With all that garbage taken out of the way, the top end is much cleaner and controlled.  I'm hearing details for the first time that were previously obscured by a series of secondary waves launching off the baffle.  And it's not just in the domain of HFs, but well into the mids as well. 

Purity isn't for everyone.  Lot's of guitar players like them little boxes specifically designed to add distortion.

[jimdgoulding]

A loss of highs?  Them's fightin words!  There is a purity to that information cause there is no invasion of it by edge diffraction and there IS a smoothing of +/- 3db peaks and valleys around the crossover (2-5kHz on two ways- higher on three's) that may take some adjusting to.  Linearity is good, unmolested time and phase is good, even if.  You'll know when you know.  Nothin to it but to do it!  Time to watch the playoff highlights, you know.

[rockadanny]

Purity isn't for everyone. Lot's of guitar players like them little boxes specifically designed to add distortion.

I find comments like these arrogant and I don't understand their purpose. I would expect to find them over at Audio Asylum, not here.

I have speakers with the same tweeters as Merlins and am experiencing the same results - the woolies muffle the sound, especially noticeable on vocals, jazz, chamber music. I waffled back and forth about this, trying to convince myself that what I was hearing with them on was a more "pure" sound, or maybe something related to SPLs, but am convinced that is not true. Too much information is not being passed along with these employed. Airiness and spatiality are hindered as well. However, I do enjoy using them for metal/hard rock, or compressed music.

Why this occurs for me and drphoto, I do not know. I think I recall Jim stating that they may not work for all speakers. Maybe this is the case for EgglestonWorks Fontaines and Merlins, or maybe for Dynaudio Esotar tweeters. I am not arguing the science behind the product. Enough experts out there concur on their use. But they DO muffle the sound for ME, MY speakers. And I am NOT one who prefers distortion.

It is not an all or nothing experience. I hear benefits from them. I would guess they are reducing diffrations. I just also hear deficiencies as well. Perhaps a different shape or wider opening for me would help? Like anything audio I doubt they are perfect for every set up and to assume otherwise would be naive.

[BPT]

Another easy tweak that will improve high frequency performance (and this is related to diffraction as well) is to replace the round head tweeter mounting screws with a flat head screw that will sit flush with the mounting plate. You will instantly hear a smoother top end.

Also, try covering the entire front baffle of the speaker with wool felt (not just around around the tweeter) with appropriate cut-outs for the drivers. This will help the speaker box sonically disappear, so just the music remains.

Chris H.

[Wind Chaser]

I find comments like these arrogant and I don't understand their purpose. I would expect to find them over at Audio Asylum, not here.

Danny Boy, this isn't the first time that I've said something that's flown over the orbit of your head.  Instead of making assumptions and erroneous judgments... try to figure it out.

There's a lot of people who'd rather not see this thread trashed or sent to limbo on account of your antics.

[BobM]

Also, try covering the entire front baffle of the speaker with wool felt (not just around around the tweeter) with appropriate cut-outs for the drivers. This will help the speaker box sonically disappear, so just the music remains.

Chris H.

Well, for sure you will change the tonality of your speakers by doing this. It's OK if a speaker was designed for this kind of baffle treatment, or perhaps if they are too forward, bright and in your face. But it could (and did in my case) result in a deadening of sound and a lifelessness. I even went so far as to only put a small dot of felt on the screwheads, and even that tiny bit was noticeable. I guess my speakers were designed well, with a tweeter that is integrated and blended seamlessly with the rest of the speaker. Any felt tweak to the baffle was sound degrading, and not improving.

Not to begrudge any improvements that others may have. Quite the contrary, I applaud experimentation. Just be prepared to put it on and take it off in an attempt to truly judge if it is an improvement to your ears and a benefit overall.

Enjoy,
Bob

[rockadanny]

.

[drphoto]

I don't want to sound like I'm trashing the product. There is however a bit of muffling of the high end as Danny points out. Now this may or may not be a bad thing. I've never had speaker of the quality of these recently rebuilt Merlins. I will therefore admit, I might be having a short term infatuation with the perceived level of detail that will fade with time and ultimately decide they are more 'natural' w/ the woolies in place. I'm still experimenting.

It was shown w/ Yammie's Merlins that our pads were cut too large. I was just wondering if they were smaller if the balance would be better.

[jimdgoulding]

Danny-  What prompted that?  You even brought drphoto in to this and implied that listeners with Merlin speakers are experiencing what you are experiencing.  Some things ARE being removed.  What is being reradiated by your baffles and some of what is spreading to your nearest walls.  The former is not uniform in your case because of the shape of your enclosure (Eggleston's if I recall).  And this is precisely why they are shaped that way.  It isn't purely for cosmetic reasons.  Merlin's, however, are conventionally shaped.  And it has nothing to do with your tweeter on anyone's tweeter, it has to do with the enclosure and how waveforms interact with it. 

Two frequency response studies were sent to me in the design stage.  One on some GR Research AV1's and another on some Dynaudio Special 25's.  The latter was a very high resolution study using DEQX.  Robert Greene wrote in a two part article about digital room correction in The Absolute Sound some years ago (which I have) that +/-1/2 db is audible.  Both studies showed a smoothing of peaks and valleys of up to +/-3 db (!) in the area of the crossover with the addition of what I make.  That's what I was refering to in my short quip above.  That's a place (2 to 5kHz or higher) said to be where our hearing is particularly sensitive.  That deviation in the frequency response and subsequent correction is what is being heard and misinterpreted.  Listen to a violin concerto.  More exciting without the pads?  A bump will do that for you but it is an aberration to the absolute tonality of the instrument.  And that's what's missing. 

I don't mean to try and persuade you to like what you are getting with the surrounds, you like what you like, but to say that it changes tonality needs some understanding.  That it's for the worse in a case is subjective.  Not objective.

There is one other thing to consider.  When waveforms are reinforced as they would be by nearby surfaces to include the nearest surface, our baffles, the sound is subjectively louder.  But that reinforcement is at the expense of the minute info present in good recordings.  It's delayed in time.  Turn it up.  Your signal is cleaner.