# Focal Tweeters



## Jmlogsn (Nov 29, 2009)

Nobody seems to like Focal's tweeters, especially those that come shipped with the Polyglass range.

I have spent the weekend trying various mounting locations for these tweeters to see if there is any way to curb the obnoxious harshness that they put out. 

A-Pillars - Way too bright
Firing up at the windscreen - Way too bright
In the doors near the mids - Don't bother

However....

When I placed these tweeters in an air vent, using it as a pseudo-wave guide and essentially using the curvature of the vent to diffuse the reflections, all I can say is wow. They sound amazing, detailed, crisp, with zero harshness. They sound like totally different tweeters and make my system sound phenomenal. Does anybody else have a similar experience? 

Maybe air vents / waveguides / curved enclosures (as per Patrick Bateman) are the way to go with these Focals. I am surprised that nobody has suggested this before, especially not any of the reputable installers who I have approached with this question in the past. 

BTW the car is an Australian FG Falcon with the redundant 'vent' enclosures in the dash.


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## mrstangerbanger (Jul 12, 2010)

Let me guess your using passive crossovers....

The only reason focal tweeters are bright is because the passive crossovers are playing them way to low and that is why they sound harsh...

If you run them active and run them between 5000k and up they will sound great.

Focal makes great tweeters but if they are not installed right or crossed over right they will sound harsh...

The bottom line is speaker position is key to a good sounding system...

What model are they TN47?? 

I will never go passive ever again....


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## subwoofery (Nov 9, 2008)

Jmlogsn said:


> Nobody seems to like Focal's tweeters, especially those that come shipped with the Polyglass range.
> 
> I have spent the weekend trying various mounting locations for these tweeters to see if there is any way to curb the obnoxious harshness that they put out.
> 
> ...


Any pics of your install? Would like to see the air vent curvature... 

Kelvin


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## n_olympios (Oct 23, 2008)

Me too! 

The Focals need to be placed/angled precisely as they were intended to, in order to get the best out of them. They are not forgiving at all. But when you do find the right position/angle, they reward you with ample detail and correct timbre.


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## Jmlogsn (Nov 29, 2009)

> The only reason focal tweeters are bright is because the passive crossovers are playing them way to low and that is why they sound harsh...
> 
> If you run them active and run them between 5000k and up they will sound great


I disagree, I am running them active and feel that by crossing them that high, you are sacrificing the detail lower down which I am guessing is why Focal chose this point to crossover on the passive network. 

I do agree that install is the key, and once you get that right, its amazing how good these tweeters are. 

I will get some photos of the install up ASAP


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## s4turn (Jun 17, 2009)

not sure if hes a member on DIYMA, but check this thread out on MEA
Board Message


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## mrstangerbanger (Jul 12, 2010)

Jmlogsn said:


> I disagree, I am running them active and feel that by crossing them that high, you are sacrificing the detail lower down which I am guessing is why Focal chose this point to crossover on the passive network.
> 
> I do agree that install is the key, and once you get that right, its amazing how good these tweeters are.
> 
> I will get some photos of the install up ASAP


It all depends on the Fs of the drivers...

I'm running a 3 way and run my Focal tweeters at 6000k and up and love them.

When I was running a 2 way I did 4800k and up and they sounded very detailed and smooth.. High Freqs are from 6k to 20k 

If your focal mid will play that high without falling off then your good...

Also playing with crossover slopes will help too..
It all depends on your speaker location and what sounds good to you ..


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## subwoofery (Nov 9, 2008)

mrstangerbanger said:


> It all depends on the Fs of the drivers...
> 
> I'm running a 3 way and run my Focal tweeters at 6000k and up and love them.
> 
> ...


3 way? Agreed. 

2 way? Well I've played with quite a few Focal sets over the years and I've never encountered a 6.5" that plays high enough to mate with a 5kHz Xover. 

Kelvin


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## spmpdr (Nov 5, 2009)

One thing that has worked for me to take harshness out of tweeters (not focals) is covering them with mesh or t-shirt fabric. just my 2 cents


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