# my DIY 5 way frontloaded hornsystem with round tractrix horns



## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

hi

i want to present my speaker system, which however is not finished yet.

Consisting in

Sub: Aura 1808 ; 50hz, active with rhytmik plate amp.
Upper bass : front loaded basshorn , active, with RAS300 bassmodul, driver JBL 2206h 50hz - 150hz
Lower midrange: 38" tractrix horn, with Fane Studio8M 150hz - 700hz
Midrange 23" constant directivity wave guide with Vitavox S2 500hz - 10khz
Tweeter Coral H104 > 10khz , 10db
crossover passive first order, 6db.



more pictures at my forum and my blog

http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/page1/

http://www.audiovoice-acoustics.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=16

Angelo


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## Anthony (Oct 5, 2006)

That is really cool, Angelo. How did you make those? Were the horns pre-fab, or did you have to cut/shape them yourself?

Oh, and welcome to the Shack!


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

hi Anthony

i design them , and have a big lathe, to turn them. Here a video :

http://br.youtube.com/user/AudioVoice888

i have edited my above post, there you have now the link to my blog and forum.

Angelo


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## Ricci (May 23, 2007)

Very cool Angelo! Are The Aura 1808's still available there?


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

_Very cool Angelo! Are The Aura 1808's still available there? _

hi Ricci

i bought them last year in Germany. They are very rare. I have never seen them offered again. The McCauley 6174 is a good alternative.

Angelo


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## JCD (Apr 20, 2006)

Beautiful work.. :hail:

Warning, loaded question coming up...
Was the system your own design? Or are you following something?

The answer to THAT pair of questions will release a tidal wave of follow ups.

Again, very impressive work!

JCD


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

hello JCD

yes, i design the speakers and horns. The drawings on my blog and forum, are mine. However, i do not do the woodwork. I have professional people making the cabinets and horns, under my supervision.

Angelo


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## Ricci (May 23, 2007)

Angelo888 said:


> _Very cool Angelo! Are The Aura 1808's still available there? _
> 
> hi Ricci
> 
> ...


I've been looking for a pair of 1808's for a long time. The 6174 McCauley is good but I don't think it's in the same league as the 1808/8196/NS18. Anyway great project.


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## JCD (Apr 20, 2006)

As promised, a plethora of inane questions:

How did you come up with a design for the horn itself? 
Is there a generally accepted form? 
Or was it something you modelled?
What electronics are you using for the crossover?
Have you tried vertically aligning the speakers to see how that sounds yet? I'm referring to the drawing I'm assuming is you final design.
When do you think you're going to start/finish work on the horn for the lower mid-range drivers?
Do you have any concerns about the upper bass not being vertically aligned with the other drivers?


I still can't get over how pretty those horns came out! :unbelievable:

JCD


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

_[*]How did you come up with a design for the horn itself? _

well, you know, italians have good taste. I am italian.... :bigsmile:


_[*]Is there a generally accepted form? _

Well, the horn flare is tractrix. This is one of the more often used flares for horns. 

_[*]Or was it something you modelled?_

No. Only the ouside form was my developing.

_[*]What electronics are you using for the crossover?_

The sub is active driven with a Rhytmik plate amp, and the upper bass horn with a Inosic RAS300 plate amp. Both have crossover.

The satellites have passive crossover, all 6db.

_[*]Have you tried vertically aligning the speakers to see how that sounds yet? I'm referring to the drawing I'm assuming is you final design._

Yes, see my blog, i am listening with vertical alignment now, and almost time aligned, the mid channel, and the tweeter, and it sounds better. 

_
[*]When do you think you're going to start/finish work on the horn for the lower mid-range drivers?_

in about a month, the whole system should be finished. 

_[*]Do you have any concerns about the upper bass not being vertically aligned with the other drivers?_

time alignment is most critical above 1000hz. 

see Bruce Edgars comments :

http://www.audiovoice-acoustics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=89



best regards Angelo


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## mgboy (Jan 17, 2007)

That is REALLY impressive stuff there Angelo! You did fantastic work on that, and I'm sure it sounds just amazing - just as good as it looks.


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

yes,

it get's every day better. 










that's my system for now. The horns are not painted, because they are for a client, and he bought them unpainted. Next week they are shipped out.


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## drf (Oct 22, 2006)

I must admit that I've never really been taken by the asthetics of horns. I have never actually heard any but for some reason I have always imagened a trilly 50's sound from them. are they really that good and if so why aren't there more horns on the market? Also is there anywhere near melbourne I can go to hear some?


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## imbeaujp (Oct 20, 2007)

Hello I think that there are no horns speakers on the market because their WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor) is too low ! 

Seriously, space is a major concern. Tall speakers with many little dirvers make more sens not because they sound better, but because they look better.

Personaly, I prefer big drivers. But you need a larger room to enjoy them.


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## Bill Fitzmaurice (Jun 14, 2008)

imbeaujp said:


> Hello I think that there are no horns speakers on the market because their WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor) is too low !


This is a horn loaded subwoofer:










It relegates all the usual arguments against horns to the dustbin. As for the lack of horns in the marketplace, it's a matter of simple economics: due to the amount of labor required to build them they're less profitable than other designs. That should not be a concern to a DIYer.


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

you are right. the bigger the speakers, the more difficult a wife to accept them. 
There are actually a good number of manufacturers of hornspeakers. have a look here :

http://www.hifi-directory.com/loudspeaker-systems/horn-wideband-high-sensitivity-loudspeakers

i am also building a back and front loaded slim sized hornspeaker with a single source, using a 8" coax driver :










here some pictures of the make of :

http://www.audiovoice-acoustics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=225


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## Bill Fitzmaurice (Jun 14, 2008)

Angelo888 said:


> i am also building a back and front loaded slim sized hornspeaker with a single source, using a 8" coax driver :


You can make life a lot easier by eliminating the rounded bends. While rounded bends are critical to extend the passband much above 600 Hz in a folded horn, below 400 Hz they're of no benefit, so with a rear loader they complicate the build for no good reason. For that matter even reflectors are unnecessary if the pathway from bend to bend is less than 1/4 wavelength.


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## Angelo888 (Jun 23, 2008)

hi Bill 

i made the bend's on the client's request.


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