| Columns Retired Columns & Blogs |
May 4, 2007 - 2:06pm
#1
Heat on the driver basket?
| Loudspeakers Amplification Digital Sources | |
Analog Sources Accessories Featured | |
Music Columns Retired Columns | |
Show Reports | |
Features Latest News Community | |
Resources Subscriptions |
© 2024 StereophileAVTech Media Americas Inc., USA
All rights reserved
Most, if not all, use high-temp material, often kapton was a material of choice. I'm sure there is newer and better material now. Remember, it is usually under powered amps driven into clipping that can do the most damage.
Worry more about your hearing which I am sure you are. Right?????
No I do not typically play any music loud. Saving my hearing for the YoYo Ma concerts! ;-)
It was a design related question. It is going to take awhile, but I'm designing some speakers and wondered what if anything heated up on the driver. I'll ask in the DIY forums too.
In the last few years heat has become more of an issue, as speaker companies use Neodymium as a magnet material. This makes for a much smaller magnet/motor assembly with less cooling ability. To combat this, heatsinks are now added, even for tweeters. For example, Peerless and many others use this idea:
Galaxy use this elaborate idea of fins and conductive paint for their 100 Watt 5 inch driver:
Even with these new techniques, many fullrange and woofer transducers can still get quite hot to the touch with sustained very high input levels.
Peter Duminy,
Thanks, that is what I wanted to know. I was wondering if an aluminum surround or baffle similar to what Jim Thiel has on the new 3.7 would help to dissipate heat _if_ the driver body is well connected to the aluminum baffle. If the driver body is at a higher temperature than the surrounding materials and is connected solidly an aluminum baffle it should dissipate heat better than wood. This secondary benefit would be a welcome side effect, the primary one being combating resonances.
Thiel 3.7
http://www.cinenow.com/us/play-video-606.html
http://www.thielaudio.com/THIEL_Site05/Pages/news/hotnews.html#anchorA
I really like Jim's idea for the aluminum baffles and top of the 3.7. I guess some of the heat conductivity would depend on the mounting gasket material and thickness. Tannoy have taken this idea a stage further and cast the baffle and entire speaker frame as a single piece.
This transducer really stays nice and cool, even with very high sustained power levels.
I've been to your website. You have very impressive credentials and now I've got you bookmarked.
Many thanks! I try to visit this Forum as often as I can to share thoughts and ideas.
Thanks, Peter!
Great info and fun to read.