I guess I will have to start saving my money then
Im just a novice at this and its nice to have your input
Whats your thoughts on the weems pipes ?
I have built five pairs of these every one who hears them are quite surprised at the sound
Ive no way to measure the frequency response and find that with some types of music they tend to ring
I was going to try the dayton drivers I had mentioned for use in the thor and if that hadint of worked use them in the weems pipe instead any input would be appreciated
I have seen and read Weems' articles on his pipes. They are a version of the Voight quarter wave pipe. I built some of those pipe type speakers, as a kid. Gilbert Briggs had one in the Wharfedale line in the fifties. He has a section in them in his book loudspeakers. Drain pipe speakers we used to call them.
However the reverse tapered, aperiodically damped TL, like the Thor is significantly different. The geometry and density of stuffing are such that the line output is not suppressed, but there is one peak of impedance, like a sealed enclosure, and unlike ported enclosures, un damped pipes and quarter wave pipes. The roll off also becomes second order, like a sealed enclosure, and unlike the others mentioned which are fourth order. You end up with a Qtc of just a hair over 0.5. The bass is augmented smoothly in a uniform fashion over about 1.5 octaves by 3 to four db. So there is no kick in like you have with reflex ports. The output from ported enclosures is always resonant. In a properly designed and damped aperiodic TL the bass output from the port is entirely non resonant.
So you get all the advantages of a low Qtc sealed alignment, but the output from the rear of the cone is not absorbed and enhances output in a non resonant fashion. The F3 is generally significantly lower than for a sealed alignment.
The disadvantage, is a larger cabinet volume than for either ported or sealed for the same driver and drivers, and more complex design. However apart from that everything is a big plus.
Martin King has promoted what he calls a mass loaded TL in recent years. He has published a modeling program. I personally do not regard those as TLs. I think they are specialized ported enclosures. I think he has added to the confusion of an already confused area, for people who have not studied this form of loading in depth.
The Thor design, and the lines I design and build are in the tradition of the work carried out by the Radford amplifier company at Oxford during the sixties, by Bailey, Radford, Fried and Wright. Only John Wright ended up making a commercial success of this work. He was founder and MD of TDL. His speakers are still highly sought after. He died in the early nineties, but TDL survived until about two years ago. The Thor is the only commercial realization of this approach currently available that I'm aware of. It is a kit and self build project designed by Joe d'Appolito for SEAS . However I believe there is an Italian firm that have a license to build a beautifully crafted version. I have seen pictures, and it looks wonderful.
Really any members with a modicum of skill wanting towers in the $1800 and up range should have the Thor at the top of their list.
TLs really come into their own if you design and build them to reach well into the last octave. Very, very few have ever heard such designs. However they are truly remarkable, and have a reach clarity and articulation far exceeding anything else. It would be nice to see a commercial realization. However, I have done a production cost analysis of mine, and you would be in the realm of the exotics at around $100,000 per pair retail.
