# Dayton AMTPOD-4 Ribbon Tweeter Review



## fcarpio (Apr 29, 2008)

So just for the hell of it I got a set of the Dayton AMTPOD-4 tweeters to check them out, they were cheap so why not? These are ribbon tweeters and the ribbon is about one square inch in size, encased in a plastic pod. Nothing really to talk about here, just cheap plastic, nothing impressive. I got it from Parts Express and they shipped with a set of 6.8uF caps, which was nice. To test these I replaced my ID tweeters from the CXS set. I really don't know if you have to break in ribbons but these are my impressions of the tweeters on the first hour of playback. I mounted them in the factory location of my Tundra pointing up towards the glass. As a disclosure, I am not a pro reviewing stuff so please be patient with me.

Before the test I did do some quick tuning to iron out the peaks and level match with the mids. I also had to change the crossover settings on the mids as I have to cut the Daytons a little higher (4.5k for the Daytons and 3k for the IDs).

Right of the bat, the IDs were brighter. The Daytons seem to have a veil in front of them, or maybe is that the IDs are a little bullies with their sound (not output). As far as output the Daytons are noticeably louder, so I had to tone them down a bit. The sound of the Daytons is more mellow, but louder when compared to the IDs.

What I really liked about the Daytons is that they completely opened up the depth in my soundstage. With the IDs everything is pretty much in your face, which is not really a bad thing for some music I like (Electronica anyone?). Things were as close as before but other things were further back and some recordings really benefit from it like Nik Bärtsch's Modul 47 and Alice in Chains MTV Unplugged. One thing that totally blew me away is how these Daytons handle sibilance, there is none. This was a small problem with the IDs. The bells at the beginning (and throughout the song) of Al Di Meola's South Bound Traveler sounded very detailed and defined. I always knew they were there but not like this, a pleasant surprise.

After installing and tuning I was left with little time to listen to more music, but it is for sure that I will be listening and updating this post a few more times. As of right now I don't know of the IDs are going back in my truck but at the same time I may have to consider better ribbon speakers in the near future. You see, I was already familiar with ribbon tweeters at home and my last ribbon tweeter was 36". I was a bit reluctant to get a 1" ribbon tweeter for my car but after today I came to the realization that they are very capable.

What I did not like is that these tweeters seem to have moved my soundstage down a bit, not much but it is lower. They do look cheap, but that is expected at $60 a pair. There is no flush mount, I had to get creative to mount them flat.

That is it for now, here are some pics and specs from the PE site:

Dayton Audio AMTPOD-4 Motion Transformer Automotive Tweeter Pair










Gear used:
Pioneer AVR8500 Head Unit
Helix Precision B4 (mids and highs)
NVX JAD1200.1 (sub)
Audison Bit Ten
Dayton Tweeter and ID CXS 6.5" Mid


----------



## fcarpio (Apr 29, 2008)

After another quick listen this morning on my way to work I was flipping through songs and stopped on Private Idaho by the B-52's and the tweeters sounded very metallic, not good. After my listen last nigh I think I may have loaded the wrong Audison settings file. The tweeter definitely sound louder again after I tamed it last night. I think this is my error but the metallic sound was terrible. I will post back something after I recover from the holidays.

EDIT: It was me that somehow I increased the volume to the tweeters right before I was done for the night. All fixed now and I stand by what I said above.


----------



## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

These look like good easy sail panel contenders for the Tacoma. Then do some mids in stock door tweet spots.


----------



## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

Are the tweeters two piece? Does the back pop off?


----------



## 1996blackmax (Aug 29, 2007)

Thanks for the review. I was wondering how these would sound.


----------



## fcarpio (Apr 29, 2008)

lizardking said:


> Are the tweeters two piece? Does the back pop off?


They are one piece but I have seen other similar Dayton tweeters with flat back.


----------



## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

In viewing them up close in pictures it looks like there is a seam towards the top? I figured they had to come apart somehow and that looked like the place. I just figured they may have been pressed fit together. The only one that I can find very similar are the PPI version. However, I don't care for the big "Precision Power" stamped on the front.


----------



## fcarpio (Apr 29, 2008)

This is the one I was talking about, almost same price:

Dayton Audio AMT Mini-8 Air Motion Transformer Tweeter 8 Ohm


----------



## fcarpio (Apr 29, 2008)

lizardking said:


> In viewing them up close in pictures it looks like there is a seam towards the top? I figured they had to come apart somehow and that looked like the place. I just figured they may have been pressed fit together. The only one that I can find very similar are the PPI version. However, I don't care for the big "Precision Power" stamped on the front.


You are right, they look very much the same. I wonder if the PPI tweeter is made by Dayton and it is indeed the same unit.


----------



## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

I believe they are both made by a Chinese Company. I can't remember the website, but you can order stuff in mass quantities.


----------



## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

I think this is the outfit you can get them from. Not sure if they act like a broker or what. 

Amt Tweeter-Amt Tweeter Manufacturers, Suppliers and Exporters on Alibaba.comSpeaker


----------



## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

Can't wait to see who picks these up as their own design......LOL
Mini Air Motion Transformer Car Tweeter Car Speaker Amt40-08 - Buy Car Tweeter,Small Car Speakers,12v Car Speaker Product on Alibaba.com


----------



## ATOMICTECH62 (Jan 24, 2009)

I was trying to build a system using these tweeters back when they first came out.
The problem I encountered,they really can only be used from 7khz up because they have a Fs at 3.5khz and there is a 10db dip at 6.5khz after a big hump at about 5.3khz.
So they really are more of a super tweeter.
8khz is probably the best crossover frequency for these.

http://www.parts-express.com/pedocs/specs/275-095s.pdf


----------



## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

Who wants to buy these to give them a shot??

Interiorly car tweeter haier car audio tweeter high pitch car-inTweeters from Automobiles & Motorcycles on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group


----------



## fcarpio (Apr 29, 2008)

ATOMICTECH62 said:


> I was trying to build a system using these tweeters back when they first came out.
> The problem I encountered,they really can only be used from 7khz up because they have a Fs at 3.5khz and there is a 10db dip at 6.5khz after a big hump at about 5.3khz.
> So they really are more of a super tweeter.
> 8khz is probably the best crossover frequency for these.
> ...


Mine go down to 4.5k-ish, then roll off sharply (with the supplied cap).


----------



## reker13 (Oct 26, 2007)

Nice review thx for posting


----------



## Orion525iT (Mar 6, 2011)

The Daytona are made by Chinese company Tianle. They make few other larger ribbons too.

Plan to use mine with Aurasound Whisper arrays.


----------



## ClassicGreenCamry (Feb 28, 2016)

The Dayton Audio AMTPOD-4 Air Motion Transformer Automotive Tweeters caught my eye since we have Magnepan speakers at home.

1. What 6.5" woofers & XOs are well-suited to these tweeters?

I looked at the large selection of 6.5" woofers offered by Parts Express. Using the following criteria: <3" deep, 4-ohm, 90dB sensitivity, and a upper-freq limit of 5kHz to match the AMTPOD-4 I found the following: Goldwood GW-S650/4 6-1/2" Poly Cone Woofer 4 Ohm.

2. How are these woofers? I'm not familiar with this brand. I found one diyma review of them.

3. Would the AMTPOD-4 and the GW-S650/4 be a good combination?

The currently included capacitors with the tweeters are Dayton Audio DMPC-6.8 6.8uF 250V polypropylene 5% tolerance. They also offer 1% tolerance polypropylene capacitors.

I'd welcome any and all suggestions.

Thanks!


----------



## motomech (Nov 12, 2014)

lizardking said:


> Are the tweeters two piece? Does the back pop off?


The pod is pressed together.
You can carefully pry them apart with a utility knife.
The face can be glued to the tweeter element then flush mounted.


----------

