Using a Klipsch KG4.5 for its cabs, new everything else - SEOS10?

I have a pair of Klipsch KG4.5 that I'd like to use as the basis for some experiments. The baffle on these is 11.25" wide, so not quite wide enough to fit a pair of SEOS12. I did a search for SEOS10 to see what info I could find, but I still have a couple of questions:


- Are there plans to make a SEOS10 in plastic?


- Can SEOS12 be cut down to 11.25" width without destroying the horn's performance?


Thanks.

 

Well, SEOS-10 is 10.6" wide. That would definitely work, but this will be an experiment, which makes that $220 worth of waveguides a big deal for me.
I don't know, I'm thinking I should get a pair of SEOS-12 and just experiment with them. I could lay the cabs on their sides, on some kind of stands. Lay the waveguides on top. That way I could get the driver centers reasonably close, and get a sense of what the combo sounds like, without investing a lot of money.

I just noticed the EOS waveguides. Those have dimensions that will work, but they are very different looking than the SEOS waveguides. For one thing, that sharp bend at the mouth, what looks like little or no roundover at the mouth. From what I've read by Wayne Parham and Earl Geddes, that sharp turn at the horn mouth could result in some of that "horn sound" that I'm trying to get away from. That DW-774Swould fit. Are there any performance data available for that one? Is it a catenary flare with a large roundover, like the SEOS-12, but a symmetrical round horn instead of asymmetrical? The DW-774S lower limit of 2250 Hz might be a deal-breaker, but the price is right. The thing that bothers me is that cylindrical throat suddenly meeting the curved horn flare. Does SEOS-12 also have that?

My quest is this -- I don't like horns. I've heard quite a few Klipsch. I can't stand to be in the same room with a pair of Heresy's. I heard a pair of KLF-20 and heard that same sound. I owned a pair of RF3's, which were very close to good enough for me, but there was that extra high-frequency sizzle, sort of an electronic hash. They were awfully close to good enough, though. I have this pair of KG4.5, which are mellower than the RF3's, but definitely not as detailed/clear. I've owned a couple of Tannoy models. One is an old pair of T185 Dorset, which is a nice, smooth speaker, but not very high resolution. I also have a pair of System 8 NFM, which are clearer, but there's something kind of "sharp" and "hard" to their mids and highs.

My all-time favorite speakers are a line array of Jordan JX6's (with extra woofers) I've heard. In other words, I don't usually like horns. But a line array's worth of Jordan drivers costs lots and lots of money. I'm experimenting with some Alpair drivers, but they are definitely low sensitivity. They seem to need a bigger amp to wake them up.I'm hoping these new waveguide horns will yield a smooth, "hi-fi" sound without the horn "blare", and deliver the high efficiency I need for my weenie little 6W-per-channel triode amps. I have a pair of Eminence B102 bass speakers, which are a drop-in fit for the KG4.5 cabs. The only thing I need to change is the port length. I chose those because they're an easy match to my cabs, and they have very smooth midrange response curves. I figure that smoothness will help make the crossovers easier to manage.

Any suggestions for me?

 

Thanks for the info. "Tannoy-like" sounds very promising. I like Tannoy.

What about the EOS waveguides?

I just saw Matt's Karma-8 with EOS-8, using DNA-150 w/ EOS-8. High-pass crossover is just a 1.5uF cap with L-pad. I love the idea of that simplicity (and the price is right!). It looks like the xover is at 1.9kHz or 2kHz. I think that's within the capabilities of the Eminence B102 woofers I have.

http://www.eminence.com/pdf/Legend_B102.pdf

(B102 freq resp curve and impedance curve are attached)

I would sub a 50-watt L-pad for the resistors Matt used on the DNA-150/EOS-8.

Would this give me a pretty good taste of what a waveguide/CD combo can do, or is the DNA-360/SEOS-12 combo vastly better/smoother sounding?

[SIZE=small]My interest in horn-loaded speakers is for their ability to play well at moderate levels with few watts. [/SIZE]Power handling and high SPL are not my concern. I'm in a 12' x 24' room filled with furniture, records and miscellaneous clutter. I sit with my head about 6.5' from the speakers. I lean in about a foot or so when I'm seriously listening, as that eliminates some nasty room modes. So call it 5' from the speakers. As mentioned before, my PP-2A3 amp makes only 6W/ch, no global NFB loop (fairly high output resistance, but not as high as a single-ended triode amp).

In the image below, Matt posted the System Impedance of the Karma-8/EOS-8 system (lower right).





It looks like there's a huge impedance peak (way over 40 ohms) centered on 3.5kHz. Is that a combination of LP and HP crossing? Or is that the woofer's steep LP doing that? I think that would be a problem for my little tube amp.

In these KG4.5 cabs, it looks like my choices are either 1) wait for SEOS-10, or get 2) EOS-8, 3) EOS-10, or 4) DW-774S. In all cases, I guess I'd start with the little DNA-150. Would SEOS-10 be the hands-down winner out of this group? [SIZE=small]

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[/SIZE]

 

Just pre-ordered a pair of plastic SEOS-10 in matte finish.



Can anyone tell me what the baffle mounting hole size needs to be for SEOS-10?


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Oh sorry, I probably used confusing terminology. I meant, what are the dimensions of the baffle cutout for a SEOS-10?


thanks

 

Well, I see the external or overall dimensions (10.6" W x 5.7" H x 3.3" D), but I don't see anything with the recommended baffle cutout dimensions. It might be that one has to have the horn in hand, and figure it out from there.


Perhaps a pre-cut baffle such as one of these (http://www.diysoundgroup.com/speaker-baffles.html) will be made available for SEOS-10?

 

Any idea when the SEOS10 in plastic will be available? I pre-ordered a pair quite a while ago, and haven't seen any updates since July. Thanks.


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