[SSgfunk]

I'd like to do a 3way with a dedicated 8" midbass in the door. But I'm not sure what would I should do for the mid and tweeter. I was thinking of going with some utopia drivers but I've heard they don't take well in an active setup. What would you guys suggest?

I'd like to use qlogic kicks so I guess that means 5.25" and a reasonably small tweeter...

 

[daitrong]

first of all, i would suggest you measure the mounting depth of your doors. I've seen alot of ppl purchase 8in mids only to find out it won't fit.

the Vifa mg10 gets raved reviews from the 2 speaker guru's on this forum. Might want ot look into that. In fact skim through the review section, alot of nice drivers that can be had for cheap.

 

[racerraul]

I was thinking of going with some utopia drivers but I've heard they don't take well in an active setup.

The Utopia are excellent speakers. As a matter of fact some of the referrence cars I use to compare mine used them... but man are they pricey... hang around here & you will get many excellent recommendations...

As a matter of fact I too am using QForms in my truck, you'll need to make em a bith stronger though. I am currently using this driver in the QForms...

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&PartNumber=295-362&DID=7

I removed the shield & bucking magnet for added depth clearance. And compared to the Utopia 5" I am convinced the performance is equal if not better... At the moment I am using the LPG 25nfa tweeter but will be replacing it with the Dayton RS tweeter later on.

As for whoever said that Utopias are not good in active systems, he must not have any experience what so ever with it. Because it is not true.

 

[DS-21]

The Utopia are excellent speakers.

Not really. Their distortion measurements are average to below average, and interestingly Focal woofers' performance is inverse to their price: their polyglass tend to perform best, with by kevlar and "W" cones being a notch worse. But all of them are worse than Excels, or much cheaper drivers such as the Peerless HDS and basic-line Seas. Dayton RS, presumably, too.

 

[racerraul]

I can't tell you how many times I underestimated the possibilities of a driver by looking at graphs...

Through personal experience I know better now

I will agree, as I already stated, the Utopia line is pricey...

 

[DS-21]

I can't tell you how many times I underestimated the possibilities of a driver by looking at graphs...

Through personal experience I know better now

If that is the case, then the obvious answer is that you're looking at the wrong graphs, or not knowing what you're interpreting. (The alternate explanation is that too many people in audio suspend rational judgment when presented an outlandish price-tag. All of a sudden the mediocre speaker becomes excellent, the preamp with a 2.5dB channel imbalance provides "an unsurpassed window into the soul of the music", and other nonsense.) A nonflat frequency response is benign because it's easily fixed. A cone mode, surround resonance, or motor design that is inherently higher in distortion than others is not fixable except by using a better driver.

My personal experience is that a speaker can perform worse than its measurements would indicate, but not better. Or to put it in more precise language, good measurements are necessary but not sufficient for high performance.

That said, some people prefer distortion to the lack thereof. An awful lot of them, especially in professional car audio...

 

[racerraul]

If that is the case, then the obvious answer is that you're looking at the wrong graphs, or not knowing what you're interpreting.

No, the obvious answer is that I gave my opinion of the Utopia based on a complete setup. A referrence vehicle that YOU have yet to listen to... actually 2 of them. I did not look at any graphs or tried to interpret anything in this case...

The car sounded phenomenal, despite the fact that the said drivers happen to have "higher distortion measurements" when compared to others. In both vehicles the 5" Utopia was used as midrange & one with the 6.5" was used for midbass duty while the other used 8" OZ free air subs for midbass.

Now without you as so much as having a damn clue of how good or bad the vehicles sound, you quickly dismiss what I posted because you have seen graphs???

You see the car environment is not consistent. Nor will you be able to duplicate your measurements outside the car with the drivers installed in it. It really serves as a great equalizer & all drivers perform much worse in it, thus masking what you might get in graphs outside of the vehicle. Imagine that... the great DS-21 actually has his favorites in his car & hears no distortion from them... yeah in your dreams pal... Your ears are no better than anyone else, don't flatter yourself... your lack of insight of the car audio environment is obvious.

 

[racerraul]

SSgfunk...

I apologize for your thread getting derailed... I can only assume that you actually had some seat of the pants experience with the Utopia in a quality setup to be interested in them.

I posted a quick review on the Dayton RS 6", using the Utopia as referrence since the vehicle it was installed in was actually a national event winner in it's class. And to be honest with you, I told the owner of the car he would win the SBN event prior to him entering it when I heard his car... I was that impressed with it & at the time I did not know what drivers I was listening to. I actually found out recently when a friend of mine borrowed the mids from that vehicle to test in his car.

I will soon get a chance to do a comparison with some referrence material again to see how the Dayton RS 6" stacks up... But I can tell you, if my memory serves me right, the Dayton is quite a bargain @ less than $30 a piece, & I feel it surpases the performance of the Utopia.