# Tec planar tweets, Trius, Extremis 6.4, Lotus SW250 review



## Finleyville (Jun 17, 2005)

(Sorry if this review is too long)

Anyway,

Here is my review of my meager DIY system. Much time and energy was devoted to researching, designing and fabricating what you see here. This site was an invaluable resource; thanks Npdang. Because of my space limitations I was nervous at first but now very satisified with the results. The following opinions are made with very basic level matching and time alignment but no EQ changes from my H701 processor.

The Tec planar tweets were a perfect mate for the Trius mids. (Thanks Rbsarve for the idea!) The sound of the planar is very "effortless." They add the appropiate amount of high freq information without becoming shrill or spitty at any volume. At low volume levels they sound just a touch "thin" on cymbals but start to shine at louder levels. The designed frequency range for these are from 7kHz-30kHz. A little passive x-over is included with each driver; although, I am running mine active. The Tec's should not be used in a 2-way setup. Think of them more as a high freq fill or ambient tweet. They are _very_ small and thin which lends to very flexible mounting options. Planar drivers are usually very sensitive and do not require much power to play. However, I have 100W going to them, and they seem to like it. (I know the tweet is only using a fraction of the power ) 

I could not be happier with my Trius midranges. They are perfect for my application. I never heard such clear and colorless music before. Their characteristics are similar to the Seas Lotus line IMO. They sound lively, accurate and detailed. Poorly recorded material will stand out. Other small midrange options seemed to have a warmer sound than the Trius. Their smaller size allowed me to seal them in pods mounted on top of my dash. This in turn caused my very accurate soundstage. The lead vocal originates from a single point instead of an area. Other music instruments have their definite point across the dash. I can detect no smearing of the separate elements of a song. I definitely can tell the difference when these are sealed versus IB or free air. The lower mid-range frequencies (200Hz - 1kHz) are reproduced with more authority and mass in my sealed pod. The recommended enclosure space is 2 liters. I am guessing (using the very scientific "packing peanut" method) that my pods are around 1.5 l each. The designer of the Trius commented that these were built to have great off-axis response. Some members on this board reported disappointment with this trait. All I know is that in my car they sounded better on axis. YMMV.

By choosing a midrange driver that can play so low, I was free to select a midbass driver that excelled in this area without making any compromises. That is why I chose the Adire Extremis 6.4's. In terms of sheer output I have yet to find a better driver _for its size._ The visceral impact these drivers create is fantastic. You can feel the kick drum in your chest. And this is without the sub. I can throw any type of music at them without problems. They sound very tight and still musical. These sound more like 8's instead of 6's. IMO, I wouldn't use these above 800Hz. There are better choices out there when you get into the midrange frequencies. Also, because of their poor sensitivity, you better bring a bunch of wattage to the table if you expect a good response. I'm guessing if you use anything less than 150W each then you might be disappointed. However, if you do not have much driver space and have ample power on tap then you cannot go wrong with these speakers.

The Seas Lotus SW250 (10") sub is probably the most accurate and unassuming sub I have used. Other 10" options I have heard (Image Dynamics IDQ and Adire Koda) definitely sound like a classic sub should. The Lotus seem to just blend in without making itself known. It sounds like a natural extention of my Extremis': very smooth and precise. This sub is not for pounding. It is more for hearing a slight note change on an upright bass instrument. Unless Npdang releases a DIYMA 10" (I WISH I could fit a 12") I do not think I will ever change this sub out.


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## newtitan (Mar 7, 2005)

wow very thorough review, id agree with almost everything you said about the trius from my limited test, sure wish I could have had those tec planars 

wonder why the company doesnt want to sell them to the US DIy'ers


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## KP (Nov 13, 2005)

Congrats on the system! Glad it is working out for you.

Kirk


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## Rbsarve (Aug 26, 2005)

Glad to hear that you are pleased with your selections!


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## xencloud (Aug 26, 2005)

how's the dispersion and off axis response on those Tec's?


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## Soundsaround (Apr 22, 2006)

Finleyville said:


> Here is my review of my meager DIY system.


Meager? More like Bad-ass!

Any chance that you were able to compare the Tec planars to the BG Neo3 planars?
I'd also be curious about how much the top end 20-30k response is adding to the system. Perhaps by playing something with a lot of complex upper harmonics like pitched bells and gradually raising the crossover point.


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## epifant (Jul 26, 2005)

NewTitan: the TEC`s are just a PM away


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## Finleyville (Jun 17, 2005)

xencloud said:


> how's the dispersion and off axis response on those Tec's?


To be honest I don't know. I never listened to them in any other location besides the sail panels. All I do know is that they sound good in my install. I will be trying out different x-o points soon to see if they can sound better.


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## mitchyz250f (May 14, 2005)

What other tweeters did you look at or recommened for work above 6000hz?


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## WLDock (Sep 27, 2005)

Finleyville,
Sounds like a nice system you have going there...would love to hear it.
Glad to hear you like the TRIUS...given the work you went through to get them here

I was breaking my TRIUS drivers in...had them connected to my home system in boxes and they were sounding quite nice...then...a BAD thing happened!

I now need another set. 

Rbsarve, you have a PM.


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## Weightless (May 5, 2005)

WLDock said:


> I was breaking my TRIUS drivers in...had them connected to my home system in boxes and they were sounding quite nice...then...a BAD thing happened!


  

What did you do?


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## WLDock (Sep 27, 2005)

I feel like a dumb butt already ....don't want tarnish Finleys post with my crap...
Well??? This what happened....

I put them in boxes connected to my home system(125 watts x 2). I had the Chesky Jazz Sampler and Audiophile Test Compact Disc, Vol. 1 playing the music portion. The volume was moderate.
I went up stars for a little bit and forgot that the test tone portion of the disc was coming up. From two floors up I could hear the music just a little bit but when the 1 KHz square wave(Track 38) started...IT WAS LOUD! The TRIUS did not make it throught the 30 seconds...they fried soon after. I could not get downstairs fast enough.

Besides poking a hole in a subwoofer surround, connecting speaker leads with power connected(and frying the amp), and buying a bunch of new equipment and never installing it then selling it for much less than what I paid for it...This has to be one of my dumbest car audio goofs.

If I did not love music so much, Iwould be done with car audio by now(since '88).
Oh well..I might try a two-way setup for now them maybe try again on the TRIUS later?


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## low (Jun 2, 2005)

can you provide more info on your lotus sw250 setup? what size box, power, etc? and if it sounds different since break in?, thanks


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## Finleyville (Jun 17, 2005)

low said:


> can you provide more info on your lotus sw250 setup? what size box, power, etc? and if it sounds different since break in?, thanks


The Lotus sub, I believe, is in a 0.5 cu.ft. box 100% polyfill filled. I have channels 3&4 off the QAA 4250 bridged into 500W powering it now.

As far as break in, I do not know. I bought the sub lightly used already. Since I only drive this car about 6 hours a week, I have not pushed it _too_ far. I have not heard a difference with it yet. I wish I had a bigger box to open up the lower end a little. It wouldn't be an extreme difference, but just a little more is all it needs anyway.


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