# TBI TWEP51 car audio tweeter review - by bobditts



## bobditts (Jul 19, 2006)

*PART 1*


I received my TBI tweets in the mail yesterday and decided to start my review. I dont have them installed yet so that part will have to wait for "part 2" of my review. Part 1 will be reviewing the packaging/shipping and the physical inspection of all the parts. 

The package was shippind in a very well sealed box (every opening was taped shut so no possible water could penetrate easily). The box itself is as shown below. 










Here is a parts list

2-TWEP51 tweeters for flush or surface mounting
2-surface mount enclosures with angle adjustment
2-surface mount enclosures with fixed angle
2-flush mount enclosures for use with retaining rings
2-flush mount enclosure retainer rings
1-hardware bag - flush mount hardware 4 screws -4 capture nuts- 2 foam pads​2-wiring harnesses with 6db crossover network included (6.6uf film 100 v)

Opening the box

























The following pictures show all the different type of mounting brackets. There are 3 different mounts total.

Adjustable angle mount









standard angle mount









Flush mount









Flush mount rings









Flush mount adapter with rings applied









wire harness with supplied capacitor(crossover)










elbow connectors









Misc hardware









Supplied directions

















Tweeter specifics








(more detailed info can be found at their website - owners manual and tweeter diagram)



*INITIAL THOUGHTS*

Im very impressed with the overall aesthetics. Build quality looks nice. great selection of mounting adapters. Im a little dissapointed in the lack of directions for using the mounting adapters. While it was obvious to me how to use them, it might be confusing to some (especially the flush mounting adapter and rings). Also, the supplied specs do not state what slope the supplied crossover is set to. 

In general I am very excited to try these out and compare them to my current OZ audio silk tweets. 





***UPDATED 29 Jul 08****

So I was able to toss the tweets in for a few minutes in the kick area text to my OZ matrix 4" mids and give them a quick listen. I was very impressed with the initial sound. Keep in mind the tweets are not properly broken in yet. I did not have any EQ or level adjsutments set on my processor. What I was listening to was raw tweeter sound. While listening to tracks 9 and 15 on my IASCA disk, I noticed that the sound was very natural and almost as if I was at a concert with someone standing on the stage. With a little bit of tuning and proper install, these tweets should sound exceptional. Once I return from my 2 week road trip, I will be conducting a much more thorough and detailed review.


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## dejo (Jan 3, 2006)

looks to be a nice quality tweet from the pics. interested in the review


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

I'm not a big fan of the labeling on the tweeter housing.
Adjustable angle mount is "interesting". 

Looking forward to reading your review Bob


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## rdv (May 14, 2007)

the adjustable angle mounts look like the ones for the lpg's


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

bobditts said:


> *PART 1*
> 
> 
> I received my TBI tweets in the mail yesterday and decided to start my review. I dont have them installed yet so that part will have to wait for "part 2" of my review.
> ...




Mount them and review em ​


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## bobditts (Jul 19, 2006)

I will continue to update the first post as I have info to add.


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

any updates to this review bob?


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Bump.. Bob. 
Any updates? We are all waiting for your review!! Specially Jan from TBI..

ANT


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

"Auld Lang Syne" 

R.I.P.


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## bobditts (Jul 19, 2006)

So Ive FINALLY gotten a chance to properly review these tweets and here is the bottom line....


The tweets sound slightly better than my OZ silk domes without any EQing. Straight out of the box they win hands down. For whatever reason I was able to EQ my OZ tweets better in the end. The mounting hardware with the TBIs I am not happy with. The tweets dont seem to fit into the cups properly which makes it difficult to properly aim. Not a problem with the flush mount which is what I typically use anyways. So you are thinking to yourself, "are these tweets worth the cash"? For a high end tweet, you bet ya! The company has definitely done their research in reguards to the recommended crossover point. I tried several different crossover frequencies both above and below the recommended, and none sounded anywhere near as good. I also tried A-Pillar mounting with the mids in a the kicks and could not get them to sound quite right either. 

For someone who is looking for a high quality silk tweet that is going to be mounted directly next to their mid, the TBI is definitely up near the top of the list!


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## el_chupo_ (May 27, 2007)

Thanks for the update Bob.

Are the pics still arround?


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

I've noticed on mine that after breaking them in the bottom end fills out alot nicer while the top end still remains detailed. I just swapped out my Hertz HSK mids for my DLS Iridiums and the Iridiums are a much better match. They don't have as much harshness/intensity above 2KHz and therefore allow the TBI tweets to produce all the detail. I'm still running the TBIs in my sail panels with the mids in the lower doors.


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## TheDavel (Sep 8, 2006)

Thanks Bob!


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## snaimpally (Mar 5, 2008)

Bob, nice to see you are still around. Apparently reports of your absence on this forum have been greatly exaggerated.


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