# 4'' midrange recommendation please



## bcodemz (Feb 7, 2013)

Can someone recommend me a good 4'' midrange? So far I have the Dayton RS100-4, and it sounds OK to me. How is the Scanspeak 10f/8424G? How far off are the 10f compared to the Revelator 12M?

The budget is under $100 per driver. It will be crossed over with a quality tweeter (So far that is the Dayton RS28F) and (not as high quality) woofer.

Thanks


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## 1996blackmax (Aug 29, 2007)

The 10F gets high marks, I plan on going this route soon.


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## edouble101 (Dec 9, 2010)

The Dayton is a good if not very good driver. How are you using it?


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## Grindcore (Dec 12, 2012)

I had the 10fs..really didnt suit my application...i needed something to cross around 250-315hz...400hz and up they are a great driver...also they are closer to a 3.5 inch speaker...i replaced some fr88ex and they 10f werent much bigger at all...

with your budget the 10f would be the go if they will suit your application...really it would help if you know what woofer...what size? 6",8"?

From what i have read the tang band w4 are good for the price also...


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## MacLeod (Aug 16, 2009)

I've got the 3" Tang Band bamboo drivers and they're very good and the 4's are gonna be a little better. Not sure if they're the best out there but they're worth checking into. I think their 3's are the best 3's on the market right now at least that I've heard.


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## Grindcore (Dec 12, 2012)

Yeah im running the 3s also...like their sound..i had the founteks first then the 10f then the w3...very pleased with them....

Next step i was gonna lash out on some higher priced speakers...maybe HATs or audible physics...if going 4" was gonna try out the E430 dyns..


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## foreman (Apr 18, 2007)

There are some xtants 4 inch on ebay. Morel made drivers. I have the coax version and im running them from 600 up and they sound very good


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## Pitmaster (Feb 16, 2010)

Grindcore said:


> Yeah im running the 3s also...like their sound..i had the founteks first then the 10f then the w3...very pleased with them....
> 
> Next step i was gonna lash out on some higher priced speakers...maybe HATs or audible physics...if going 4" was gonna try out the E430 dyns..


If you're going to lash out and go right to the top go with the Dyns.


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## thehatedguy (May 4, 2007)

Well, first of all...what is it that you don't like about the Daytons?

We need to know what you like and don't like before we can recommend stuff.

I haven't heard the Scan, but the TB 3" bamboo is nice.


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## bcodemz (Feb 7, 2013)

I don't mean to say the Dayton RS100 sounds bad. It's a good sounding driver. I just wasn't blown away by it like people say about Dayton Reference drivers. I read the 4'' midrange comparison, and the RS100 was only in the 4th tier of the comparison, seems like there's a lot of room for improvement. I kinda have to agree with them that they sounded kind of lifeless.

The usage is a little strange. I'm trying to see how much sound quality I can extract out of an extremely small speaker with a large but not an insane budget. The woofer is either the TB W4-1720 or Dayton ND105-4. I have both drivers on hand, just need to experiment with them. The Dayton will most likely have higher max SPL while being significantly lighter and shallower, but the W4-1720 is a must with the Scanspeak 10F because it needs to be crossed at 300-400Hz, and the ND105 lacks in SQ.

What is the model number of this 3'' bamboo TB driver you guys are talking about?


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## MacLeod (Aug 16, 2009)

It's the one in my sig. W3-1364SA

They run $32 each on Parts Express but are currently out of stock til April 3 it says. They'll do full range pretty well too. I'm not running tweeters in my system right now and while I haven't hit any SQ competitions with them yet or done any serious tuning on them, I don't have any complaints. 

Tang Band W3-1364SA 3" Bamboo Cone Driver


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## claydo (Oct 1, 2012)

I ran the 4" bamboo for several years and loved em. They had some energy storage around 2.5-3k but they were easily tamed with a lil eq. Peoples were always stunned after listening that they were a tang band driver.


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## Zippy (Jul 21, 2013)

bcodemz said:


> Can someone recommend me a good 4'' midrange? So far I have the Dayton RS100-4, and it sounds OK to me. How is the Scanspeak 10f/8424G? How far off are the 10f compared to the Revelator 12M?
> 
> The budget is under $100 per driver. It will be crossed over with a quality tweeter (So far that is the Dayton RS28F) and (not as high quality) woofer.
> 
> Thanks





bcodemz said:


> I don't mean to say the Dayton RS100 sounds bad. It's a good sounding driver. I just wasn't blown away by it like people say about Dayton Reference drivers. I read the 4'' midrange comparison, and the RS100 was only in the 4th tier of the comparison, seems like there's a lot of room for improvement. I kinda have to agree with them that they sounded kind of lifeless.
> 
> The usage is a little strange. I'm trying to see how much sound quality I can extract out of an extremely small speaker with a large but not an insane budget. The woofer is either the TB W4-1720 or Dayton ND105-4. I have both drivers on hand, just need to experiment with them. The Dayton will most likely have higher max SPL while being significantly lighter and shallower, but the W4-1720 is a must with the Scanspeak 10F because it needs to be crossed at 300-400Hz, and the ND105 lacks in SQ.
> 
> What is the model number of this 3'' bamboo TB driver you guys are talking about?


Ok, from what I see here, you are planning a three way up front. You have a good tweeter and midrange already(Dayton RS) and a bad midbass. So why not use the $100 per driver and get a better midbass? The Silverflute drivers from Madison's and PE are arguably the best SQ per dollar midbass you can buy at $30-35 each. They are available in 5.25", 6.5", and 8". If you can adjust the midbass crossover point to around 500 to 800 Hz, I think you would be much happier with the Dayton Audio mid and tweet.


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## gregerst22 (Dec 18, 2012)

I've haven't tried or listened to the dayton because what I've seen has steered me away from them. Namely, high 3rd order distortion as compared to other midrange drivers. distortion rises steadily from about 400Hz with some nasty peaks. 
The 10f could be considered the reference midrange to beat at the $100 (and higher) price point. While the fountek fr88's rule the $50 price range.


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## cajunner (Apr 13, 2007)

depending on placement, maybe a Kef Egg driver would serve double duty?

there is a lot to be said for Kef's Uni-Q arrangement, if your install can use them.

and, if that option is available I'd look into the Audience A3S, as a possible bank breaker.

there's a chance you could source the A3S from a forum member without having to buy a pair of the bookshelf boxes.


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## MacLeod (Aug 16, 2009)

gregerst22 said:


> While the fountek fr88's rule the $50 price range.


Just my opinion but I think the Tang Bands beat the Founteks hands down. I had a set of the 88's and never did like them. Tried to make them work for several weeks and never could get them to where I could live with them. The TB's were a night and day difference that I noticed immediately. The 88's may perform on graphs better but to my ears at least they're not in the same league as the TB's.


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## thehatedguy (May 4, 2007)

Ditto, I would take the TB over the Founteks too.


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## bcodemz (Feb 7, 2013)

Zippy said:


> Ok, from what I see here, you are planning a three way up front. You have a good tweeter and midrange already(Dayton RS) and a bad midbass. So why not use the $100 per driver and get a better midbass? The Silverflute drivers from Madison's and PE are arguably the best SQ per dollar midbass you can buy at $30-35 each. They are available in 5.25", 6.5", and 8". If you can adjust the midbass crossover point to around 500 to 800 Hz, I think you would be much happier with the Dayton Audio mid and tweet.


Oh the choice of woofer is definitely not because of budget but because of a 5'' outer frame restriction. The Dayton ND105 was chosen for its max bass SPL capabilities. The W4-1720 was chosen to compensate for the ND105's lack of SQ in the lower midrange at the expense of less max SPL, 4x more weight, almost 2x the mounting depth, and 10% less internal volume due to the sheer size of its ridiculous motor system. 

If there's a better woofer with a <5'' outer frame, please point me to it. I lived at parts express for too long and didn't know the world of Scanspeak and other high end drivers exists until now.


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## Zippy (Jul 21, 2013)

So, what's the vehicle it's going into? Is there room for kick panel mounts?


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## bcodemz (Feb 7, 2013)

This is for home audio. I wouldn't spend this kind of cash for my car audio system.


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## Zippy (Jul 21, 2013)

Then why are you asking a car audio forum under general car audio discussion? There are plenty of home audio forums and even a home audio section here which this is not in. I take it the cabinet has a 5" restriction?

Never the less, take a look at the morel drivers for midbass. They make a good 4" & 5" woofer. Make sure to isolate the woofer and mid airspace from one an other. Put a divide wall between the two.


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## 1996blackmax (Aug 29, 2007)

......


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## bcodemz (Feb 7, 2013)

Zippy said:


> Then why are you asking a car audio forum under general car audio discussion? There are plenty of home audio forums and even a home audio section here which this is not in. I take it the cabinet has a 5" restriction?
> 
> Never the less, take a look at the morel drivers for midbass. They make a good 4" & 5" woofer. Make sure to isolate the woofer and mid airspace from one an other. Put a divide wall between the two.


I didn't see a home audio section of this forum (turns out it is at the very bottom). For some strange reason there isn't a lot of info on home audio forums on high end drivers. I lurked on there for months and the word "Scanspeak" (or "SEAS") *never* came up in any of the threads I posted, and I don't think I recall them even being mentioned in the threads I read. Everything I read about the high end drivers are in a car audio forum.


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## gregerst22 (Dec 18, 2012)

MacLeod said:


> Just my opinion but I think the Tang Bands beat the Founteks hands down. I had a set of the 88's and never did like them. Tried to make them work for several weeks and never could get them to where I could live with them. The TB's were a night and day difference that I noticed immediately. The 88's may perform on graphs better but to my ears at least they're not in the same league as the TB's.





thehatedguy said:


> Ditto, I would take the TB over the Founteks too.


So I bought some fountek 89's to try and I'm not at all impressed. I may give the tang bands a try next.


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