2 way vs. 3 way question...
saurabh said:
I know that the full tweeter, midrange and full range speakers produce different notes of sound but is it important to have all of them in a system in order to hear each and every aspect of sound being produced by the amp or does the mid-range and full range speakers subsitute each other ?????.
There was a thread a couple weeks ago with a title similiar to "Do 3-way speakers sound better than 2-way speakers" that will probably answer many of your questions.
In a nut shell what you wondering is how many different drivers are necessary to hear the full spectrum of sound that your source/amp will reproduce. The answer is "As few or as many as necessary for that partcular speaker".
The full range of audio hearing for the average individual is from 20 Hertz to 20 KiloHertz (20to20K...gee...how'd I know that?). As you get older that 20K typically falls to somewhere 10 to 15K, and very few sources have much information below 40HZ (pipe organs being one exception). It is the job of the tweeter to reproduce the highest of these frequencies and the woofer (and subwoofer) to produce the lowest. The low and high frequencies are directed to their respective drivers in the speaker by incorporating what's called a "crossover" inside the speaker. A crossover is nothing more than a high or lowpass filter. This is what's know as a 2-way system.
Some speakers also have a midrange driver that defines a third range of frequencies, between the highs and lows. This range typically contains (but are not limited to) human voice information. This setup requires a second crossover so that the signal can be split into the three ranges. This defines a three way system.
There is nothing, in principle, that makes a 3 way system superior to a 2 way system (or vice-versa). The performance of either is determined by the quality of the drivers, the design, the construction, and the crossovers. The combination of these elements work hand in hand to determine the sound that you will hear out of the speaker and your personal preference will determine which will sound better to you.
Don't let number of drivers determine which speakers you will decide to buy. I've heard some 2 way systems blow away 3 way systems and I've heard systems with 2 drivers blow away systems with 12 drivers.
Hope this helps...
