[knut_the_viking]

The nice UPS man delivered my pair of Tekton Design 4.5 over the weekend.
They are being broken in now...
Some observations and questions:
1) They look funny on my 26inch stands. Some new, shorter stands are clearly needed.
2) The sound out of the box is very strange. Bass is surprisingly good, but highs all but missing
3) More sensitive than my Insignia's

So a question:
How long will the Fostex 4.5 inch driver need for break-in?
They will be matched with my new Tec-On model 55 tube amp shortly. Suggestions on speaker cables?

[planet10]

How long will the Fostex 4.5 inch driver need for break-in?

At least 100 hours to get over the biggest part of the hump, and then more slowly for 100s of hours after

dave

[rjbond3rd]

Are the drivers in question the FE126E's, or FE127E's?

[knut_the_viking]

Are the drivers in question the FE126E's, or FE127E's?

They're the FE127E version.

So far, after about 20 or so hours, they do actually sound pretty good   

The first hour was rather bad, but high and low ends came in after the first couple hours.

I'm still using my Sonic Impact Super-T amp, and will put in my brand new Tec-on model 55 later this weekend. 

[rjbond3rd]

Hi knut,

I trust you already know the old break-in trick (wire them out of phase, pointed at each other, CD player on repeat, cover speakers with a heavy blanket, let it run for a solid week if possible).

I'm looking at building the exact same thing.  May I ask what kinds of music you listen to, and whether the speakers are on stands, or sitting on a shelf perhaps, and how are they positioned relative to the listener?  Also whether you think a sub would be useful? Thanks in advance!  I'd be very interested in anything you'd care to share.

[knut_the_viking]

1) They look funny on my 26inch stands. Some new, shorter stands are clearly needed.

My new 24 inch stands looks much better.
Upon measuring it turns out that my old stands were a full 29 inches tall.

[knut_the_viking]

Hi knut,

I trust you already know the old break-in trick (wire them out of phase, pointed at each other, CD player on repeat, cover speakers with a heavy blanket, let it run for a solid week if possible).

I'm looking at building the exact same thing.  May I ask what kinds of music you listen to, and whether the speakers are on stands, or sitting on a shelf perhaps, and how are they positioned relative to the listener?  Also whether you think a sub would be useful? Thanks in advance!  I'd be very interested in anything you'd care to share.

I did wire out of phase and place them on the floor, facing each other. No covering with blankets, however. Impatience would only allow me one day of doing this...
(Also, I have a Squeezebox(stock, but considering upgraded power supply), no CD players to be seen anywhere).
Now, they're sitting on my cheap 24 inch stands, rear of speakers 28 inches from the wall, inside of speaker fronts 6ft apart. Not really gotten around to experimenting with placements or anything.

I did also connect my little Tec-on model 55 tube amp this weekend, and I will have to say it sounds pretty good. There is likely additional break-in needed for both the speakers and the amp. Sound with my T-amp is also good.

If the old expression of "truth or beauty" in hi-fi/sound reproduction has any value, I must say this setup is further towards "truth" than anything I've owned (keep in mind I've had Celestion DL8/ii and Cambridge Audio P70 since 1991, and recently BestBuy Insignia/Sonic Impact Super-T).
Already more detailed, and less 'cotton'. I think I will enjoy this combination for a long time. Maybe I'll look into an external DAC (from Channel Islands Audio) and maybe even a turntable...

As far as the built-in USB DAC in the Tec-on amp, I've only gone so far as to connect to my laptop, it was recognized as "USB Speakers" and worked right away. The noise from the spinning CD-Rom drive was unbearable, plus I have all my CDs on the SB anyway.

So all in all, I'm a happy camper right now.

[rjbond3rd]

Hi knut, do you have any plans for a sub?

[knut_the_viking]

Hi knut, do you have any plans for a sub?

Currently, no plans. I have to see what the Tektons can do without a sub. Chances are, they will be just fine, as I listen mostly to jazz/acoustic blues, some classical. The occasional rock album too, but I feel right now that I may be fine without.

[rjbond3rd]

Hi Knut, I am getting the same speakers and they'll arrive next week.

The twist is that I have a whole lot of FE127E drivers, including planet10 treated / eNaBLed versions.  So it will be fun to swap those around and compare after everything's broken in.  I'm assuming the Tekton's do not have BSC so presumably placing them on a shelf or table would give a big boost to the bass, as opposed to stands.

I hope we can share info!

[knut_the_viking]

Hi Knut, I am getting the same speakers and they'll arrive next week.

Excellent! I'm sure you'll enjoy them very much!

The twist is that I have a whole lot of FE127E drivers, including planet10 treated / eNaBLed versions. 

Not familiar with any of those, also these are my very first single driver speakers

I'm assuming the Tekton's do not have BSC so presumably placing them on a shelf or table would give a big boost to the bass, as opposed to stands.

Not sure what you mean by BSC... sorry

I hope we can share info!

Absolutely!

What kind of amplification do you have?

Knut

[rjbond3rd]

Hi Knut, I have a Bottlehead S.E.X. (maybe 2 watts) and a Dared MP5 (little tube hybrid, maybe 8 watts).

BSC (baffle step compensation) is whatever tactic you adopt (if any) to counter the tendency of frequencies wider than the baffle to "sneak around" to the area behind the cab, when the baffle just isn't wide enough to prevent that.  Putting the speaker on a table against a wall gives those low frequencies nowhere to go but forward, though some people feel this positioning sacrifices imaging.  Placement is one strategy, but a very simple circuit is another way.  (And a bipole is another.)

The circuit couldn't be simpler -- usually it's a coil and resistor (wired in parallel) which are then wired in series to the speaker's + terminal.  The coil determines the freq. where to start 'lowering" the mid and highs (based on baffle width), and the resistor determines how much to lower them by.  If you like, you can add a capacitor of a certain value which will let very high freq's "sneak by" and add some sparkle.  The tradeoff for all this magic is lower efficiency and max SPL but with this speaker, you're probably not rocking out too loud (I'm not, anyway!)

It's nice to know there is this simple "tone control" option.  My feeling is "skip it if possible, but use it if necessary."  You still have the single-driver midrange magic, except now, you can have them on stands in the middle of the room and still have bass.  There are lots of calculators that will help you zero in on the values of each component.  Here's one site:

http://diyaudioprojects.com/Technical/Baffle-Step-Correction-Circuit-Calculator/

[rjbond3rd]

Hi Knut, my Tekton 4.5's arrived in perfect shape.  Nice build quality on these very straightforward, affordable enclosures.  Eric was very friendly and helpful.

They are said to contain the FE126E's.  I'll verify that and then finish running in a pair of stock FE127E's and a pair of FE127eN's with the planet10 tweaks and eNaBLe treatment.

I am crossing to a sub at 120Hz, which is not a bad starting point.  (The integration isn't perfect because there is a gap between baffle step and where the sub rolls in, to be fixed later, probably by a circuit, eventually via bipole.)

Knut, how are yours treating you?  Mine are a bit sibiliant but really, not nearly as harsh as other 6" and 8" Fostex I've broken in.  I have them on 20-inch stands 18" from the back wall.  Pretty nice first impressions, I have to say!

[knut_the_viking]

I asked him about FE126 vs FE127 in my setup (small room, office/den)
and he said: "The FE126E really needs to be supported by a subwoofer. So, I would recommend going with the FE127E based model."

I am doing quite well without a sub.
They are sounding fine, but may still be breaking in. I can't really tell from day to day anymore... (between day 1 and 2 was a big difference, day 2 to 3 noticeable also, by now there's nothing that immediately stands out to me)

I'm torn between the sound of my Tec-on model 55 tube amp and my Sonic Impact Super-T.
They do sound different, the Super-T is brighter and the bass is less 'loud' but more 'punchy' (Does that even make sense?)
The Tec-on is smooth, and quite a bit more laid back. Lows are smooooth deep. Maybe it has less detail, but for now it doesn't bother me

[rjbond3rd]

Hi Knut, cool.  My other Fostex always took a few months total to break in, but then again, I didn't have them cranked the whole time (my setup is at my office).  Now that my coworkers are gone, I've had them cranked for a while and at higher volumes, the initial raspiness and sibilance is more noticeable.  No worries as it will go away soon enough (March? eek.)

I'm swapping amps around as well.  Your characterization makes sense to me.  The Super-T seems very "accurate" and is probably flatter than our respective tube amps. But whatever works.  I like the tubes better, accuracy is overrated to me

[capace]

Tekton has a new 4.5 model. Open baffle version. Very nice sounding. Deeper bass, and better sound staging. More expensive though.

Here is the ebay link if anyone is interested seeing what it looks like.

On another topic. I'm thinking about making a fostex 207 setup, and want to add a horn tweeter. Any suggestions? Even though I know my speakers don't end up sounding as good as tektons, I enjoy learning the stuff.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tekton-Design-4-5-Full-Range-Open-Baffle-Hybrid_W0QQitemZ250341636327QQcmdZViewItemQQptZSpeakers_Subwoofers?hash=item250341636327&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50

[rjbond3rd]

Hi folks, I definitely have the FE126E in my tekton 4.5's.  So my bass response is going to be utterly different (since my driver is really best suited to horns due to the inherently has weaker bass / larger magnet / lower Qts).  So that's probably why I feel the need for a sub compared to knut -- my version just has less bass than Knut.  Sounds plenty nice though!

Overall, I'm glad to have ended up with the FE126E because I already have the stock FE127E and the modded FE127eN, and can compare.

[knut_the_viking]

<snip>
The circuit couldn't be simpler -- usually it's a coil and resistor (wired in parallel) which are then wired in series to the speaker's + terminal.  The coil determines the freq. where to start 'lowering" the mid and highs (based on baffle width), and the resistor determines how much to lower them by.  If you like, you can add a capacitor of a certain value which will let very high freq's "sneak by" and add some sparkle.  The tradeoff for all this magic is lower efficiency and max SPL but with this speaker, you're probably not rocking out too loud (I'm not, anyway!)

Turns out my Tekton does have this BSC stuff in it!
Peeked inside, and there is indeed a coil and a resistor on the speaker terminal.

The designer knows what he is doing...

[capace]

New tekton website up

[Arlo]

I can't really tell from day to day anymore... (between day 1 and 2 was a big difference, day 2 to 3 noticeable also, by now there's nothing that immediately stands out to me)

This is the heart of the matter.  Most will and have disagreed with me on this, but I do not believe in 'break-in'.  Sure, 'spiders' change compliance over time but not substantially.  What people see as the driver changing is in fact their mind changing.  You become accustomed to the sound.  It is different than what you had before so the first few days are fresh and new and odd.  Then you get used to it and your memory of the sound of your old speakers fades while the sound of the new speakers becomes 'normal'.  THIS is break in.  It's brain break in.  There is a huge difference between your perception of the sound quality of new speakers at day 2 as compared to day 32.  I've noticed that my perception of the sound varies quite alot with just my emotional state at the time of listening as well.