# Scan-Speak d3004-6600



## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

*Scan-Speak literature:*

"Scan-Speak D3004/6600 Textile dome tweeter

The new D3004/6600 builds on the experience of the one-inch R29 ring radiator, resulting in low resonance frequency, but further provides the extended dispersion characteristics of a ¾-inch dome. Tymphany’s unique AirCirc Magnet System -- named for the way it optimizes air flow within the chamber – rearranges the traditional magnet structure from a single magnet to an open magnetic circuit comprised of six separate neodymium slugs. This, in combination with the chamber, results in the elimination of the reflections and resonances that compromise the performance of traditional motors. The D3004/6600 gives engineers improved control over critical midrange performance, for superb vocal rendition and excellent imaging at all listening locations."

The use of an open magnet neo motor with tweeters is nothing new. Seas uses a somewhat similar design in their Millenium and Crescendo tweeters, with few if any measurable benefits. The wide roll surround however is certainly interesting, and according to Scan-Speak measurements is a dramatic improvement in top end dispersion *without* a rising on-axis response. Beautiful  I would still suspect the 7100 variant to be the better choice however, as it incorporates the SD-2 motor with dual copper shorting rings, albeit the neo motor/chamber is an older design.

Build quality is typical Scan-Speak... in other words very solid. The frontplate is about a 1/4" thick aluminum, and the 2 drivers I received were matched within +/- 1db. Madisound sells these for $440/pr., a somewhat decent savings over the $540/pr. the 7100 commands.

*Listening impressions:*

I think this is the first Scan-Speak tweeter that I've liked in a long time. Many of their past designs, although low in coloration and distortion had pretty poor top end dispersion. This resulted in a sound that was for me, overly robust, velvetty, and utterly boring. The 9900 Revelator was somewhat better, although it could be a bit unforgiving and spitty on certain recordings. I didn't find the 7000 ring radiator to be a vast improvement either, although it was IMHO their best implementation to date (although lacking the low end extension of a typical Scan-Speak tweeter).

The 6600, although appearing to lack the SD-2 motor (higher inductance, no mention of it in their literature?) still shows excellent distortion performance, and significantly better tonal balance IMHO. The FR above 10khz is flat both on and 30 degrees off-axis to nearly 20khz. Many tweeters with good top end dispersion (LPG, Hiquphon) also tend to have a rising response on-axis which can sometimes lead to a hot, aggressive, or fatiguing sound. Although the 6600 is still a bit "rich" sounding vocally, it's exceptionally smooth top end is both spacious and detailed.... quite a nice surprise. The tweeter also has no problem with dynamics, far surpassing any of the compact domes I have laying around here. Although it has flat response to around 500hz, I would recommend a highpass filter no lower than 1.5khz.

At this point, I wouldn't hesitate to say this is perhaps the best tweeter I've heard so far. Effortless dynamics combined with a nearly perfect tonal balance. 

*Measurement Data:*
Distortion: Drive level - 2.8V ~ 2 watts ~ 95-96db @ 1m
Decay: Ignore anything below -30db


































































































Nearfield plot for fun:










BL curve is perfectly symmetrical and centered. Almost no high order distortion products. 3rd order distortion is in all cases lower than 2nd order. Some energy storage centered around 3khz, but otherwise excellent. Compared to the Seas Crescendo, 2nd order distortion is slightly better and 3rd order is worse by a fair bit (2v comparison Scan plots not posted). Crescendo has better decay results.


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## kevin k. (May 5, 2005)

Thanks for posting the results, Nguyen  It would seem the D3004's performed quite well. I think they are excellent tweeters and, at this point, are one of my absolute favorites...  


Btw, they got back home safely...


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## low (Jun 2, 2005)

whoa. thats one nice looking tweeter. too bad these tweeters arent going to be in the rotation.


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## NaamanF (Jan 18, 2006)

I actually tried to purchase a pair from Madisound and they said the production is now on hold till the end of the year due to some technical issues. Hope they fix the problems.


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## kevin k. (May 5, 2005)

NaamanF said:


> I actually tried to purchase a pair from Madisound and they said the production is now on hold till the end of the year due to some technical issues. Hope they fix the problems.



I'm curious to know just what these "technical issues" might be...  

Something to investigate further...


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## tktran303 (Dec 30, 2005)

NaamanF,

When did you try and purchase it?


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## NaamanF (Jan 18, 2006)

Last week and this week. I actually canceled my order the first time I heard they would be a while. But I really wanted a pair and will still want one when they come back out. From what they tell me at Madisound the problem is on the production line, not with the speaker. I hope they hurry up and fix the problem. Looks like I am stuck with these crummy Focal Be tweeters for now.


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## car1990 (Apr 20, 2006)

NaamanF said:


> Looks like I am stuck with these crummy Focal Be tweeters for now.


Darn! You called Utopia BE "crummy" !!! I think those Focal guys will be sad to hear that, they are supposed to be the best tweeters Focal ever come up with (granted those TN52/TN51 sound like crap to me, I know some people are going to get really upset with this statement). A few weeks ago, I did listen to a full Utopia Be 3-way set-up with F1 status HU no less , they are excellent speakers but I did not get blown away though. Be tweeters are a lot smoother than TN52/TN51 for sure and they are defintely NOT "crummy".


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## NaamanF (Jan 18, 2006)

It's hard to convey sarcasm over the internet.  I also have the 3W2 mids and the Scan mids. I was looking forward to mixing and matching to see what I liked best.


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## car1990 (Apr 20, 2006)

My bad!

Which mid do u like between the Focal 3W2 and Scan 12M/4631? I heared the 3W2 but not the Scan mid.

BTW, what driver are u using for mid-bass? I am in the process of looking to mix and match a 3-way system too. Focal, Scan, Morel , and Seas are all possible choices.


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

I dunno... the Be tweeters in the Grande Utopia sounded pretty crummy to me


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## NaamanF (Jan 18, 2006)

I am going to be doing some listening between the Scan/Focal/Legatia mids within the next couple of days. For now I plan to use a pair of Dyn MW-170 based on the fact that I already have them and have been happy with them in the past. If they don't do it for me this time I really don't know what I will use for a midbass.


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

It's still available at Madisound? Perhaps you're referring to the 7100 which was removed from their catalog?


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## Rivers (May 11, 2006)

If you click on the details, it seems to say production has been delayed and that it will only be ready early 2007.

I wonder if there are any problems with the existing ones? Also, how big are these tweeters? Comparable to the 130 Morel Supremes? I hate big tweeters! lol


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## Dulyman (Jan 25, 2007)

These are almost in!!!
its March!Has anyone got 'em yet, or ordered?


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## ahboy (Jul 20, 2005)

10 pairs of the above tweets landed in malaysia, they r having group buy n the results is positive.

I agree on what npdang's review, very good for vocals n 2 way front system.


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## t3sn4f2 (Jan 3, 2007)

Madisound - In Stock


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## bdubs767 (Apr 4, 2006)

I just order two     should be perfect to go with the seas w18nx i just got


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## joemoe (Oct 31, 2006)

Bdubs767, how much for a pair? Give us feedback how it sounds in your car.


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## bdubs767 (Apr 4, 2006)

joemoe said:


> Bdubs767, how much for a pair? Give us feedback how it sounds in your car.


well havent recieved em yet, will take pics of them once I get them and post.

I ordered them from madi so I paid for em $440


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## joemoe (Oct 31, 2006)

Woah $440! At least it's slightly cheaper than the RR7000 and based from the reviews... "better."
Can't wait to see the pics of them installed


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## bdubs767 (Apr 4, 2006)

GOT THEM TODAY...Ill post pics of them next to a HDS tweeter


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## bdubs767 (Apr 4, 2006)




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## bdubs767 (Apr 4, 2006)

also i think they come as matched pairs....

both metered out to 3.0 ohms


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## kappa546 (Apr 11, 2005)

those look really nice, i've wanted to play with some for a while. is the back a seethrough plastic?


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## bdubs767 (Apr 4, 2006)

kappa546 said:


> those look really nice, i've wanted to play with some for a while. is the back a seethrough plastic?


yep....w/ a little bit of the "smoked" color to it


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## kappa546 (Apr 11, 2005)

bdubs767 said:


> GOT THEM TODAY...Ill post pics of them next to a HDS tweeter


PLEASE do an a/b with those two. very interested to hear opinions and conclusion. the hds seems like the best alternative...


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## kaineilsen (Jan 31, 2007)

Anyone going to check out the tweeter implementation in these?

http://www.svsound.com/news-news.cfm


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

Errrr now we know why they were out of stock for so long.

"So, the tweeter in the MTS-01 speaker family, shown above? Well, if you can even find one (sorry, we bought the entire first production run available to the US)"


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## kevin k. (May 5, 2005)

npdang said:


> Errrr now we know why they were out of stock for so long.
> 
> "So, the tweeter in the MTS-01 speaker family, shown above? Well, if you can even find one (sorry, we bought the entire first production run available to the US)"


Apparently, not quite the 'entire first production run'...


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## the other hated guy (May 25, 2007)

I'd love to try these in my kicks....see how they do against the revs....


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## kevin k. (May 5, 2005)

the other hated guy said:


> I'd love to try these in my kicks....see how they do against the revs....


Hey, girlfriend... err, I mean Randy

To my ears, with my measurement equipment, in my car, with my install (kicks at the time)... have I qualified my experience with them enough yet...?  







I like 'em better!  

Once again, congrats on your car, my friend.


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## the other hated guy (May 25, 2007)

kevin k. said:


> Hey, girlfriend... err, I mean Randy
> 
> To my ears, with my measurement equipment, in my car, with my install (kicks at the time)... have I qualified my experience with them enough yet...?
> 
> ...



girlfriend is fine  ....and thanks...hopefully many more wins to come!!!!!


well.....maybe when finances get better I can try a pair....


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

Did any1 else notice the where link in this sentence from the SVS website takes you to? 


> Frankly, we couldn't have designed a better tweeter ourselves, and some influential enthusiasts would probably agree (and understandably, are praising this as one of the finest in the world, at any cost).


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## kaineilsen (Jan 31, 2007)

"Influential enthusiasts?"

There's no reason for the name calling.


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## jaserene (Aug 8, 2008)

Hi there, I am Jason and this is my first post.
Sorry to bring this thread up as it has been slightly more than a year ago.
However, i do have a slight problem with the tweeter and wanted to seek opinions.

I am currently running an active 2 way front system in my car with the above mentioned tweeter and the revelator midbass.
They are powered by a Steg 401.
In addition, I am running a Peerless XXXL sub powered by a RF 450.2.
My problem is whenever piano tracks are played, I get sibilance whenever the high keys are struck.
Not sure what the freq range is though. 
This is a rather new system, havong run in for about 50hrs or so.
Do I need to let it run in further before it will be eliminated or is the tweeters blown?

Once again, my apologies for bringing this old post up again.
Thks bros.


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## kevin k. (May 5, 2005)

Another good review to bring back...


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## mvw2 (Oct 2, 2005)

It would be helpful for you to narrow down the frequency range that is problematic. Is it only the tweeter or perhaps across the x-over region or maybe the top end of the woofer's range?

One suggestion I have is to run a pink noise track. Then run through the EQ and boost or cut as needed to get the overall response across the entire frequency spectrum to sound equal to your ears. No frequency range should overpower another. Doing this should point out some specific spikes or dips in the response. The sibilance could be a range that is simply too loud and overshadows the other frequencies. It could be some resonance in the car like nearby panels. It might be your physical location and simply being in an area that has peaking response at that frequency point. 

Does this sibilance vary if you move around in the car? 
Is it just one note or a range of notes?
Is this in the recording, i.e. only a specific song and repeatable on other hardware?
Have you tried moving or re-aiming the drivers at all to see if there is a change?


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## jaserene (Aug 8, 2008)

Hi there, bros... thks for replying to my query.
I have since narrowed down the problem... I think.
The suspension over the voice coil is not centrally aligned thus when it resonates, esp in the 2khz to 4khz region of piano tracks, it distorts.
When I hold down the suspension slightly, the distortion stops at that range of the piano track.
I went back to the dealer and he said its the tuning, x-over setting, overpowering amp problem, etc. 
He recommended I set my x-overs for the highs at -18hz slope and to turn the gain from my amp down slightly.
Did that and the distortion has reduced but the details are lost!
Even at zero gain, I get the distortion occassionally from piano tracks.
Wrote to Tymphany a couple of times and no response at all!
I think this is clearly a production defect but sadly no one wants to owe up.
Quite disappointed with Tymphany over their non response so far... sigh.
Wonder if any bros here faced the same problem or if anyone can point out if I have made the wrong assumption?
Thks bros!


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## less (Nov 30, 2006)

Hmm,

I bought a set used just a few months back and I really think they are about as nice of tweeter as one could ask for... I'm running mine active from 5k up. The sound is very relaxed and unstrained no matter what I am playing or how loud. They image incredibly from my kicks and are just sweet and airy! I put them head to head on and off for a few weeks against my Hiquphon OW1 f's but while in some aspects it was close, for some reason the Scans were just more to my tastes across their range.

Sorry you are having trouble. I too have requested information from Scanspeak and peerless both and have not even received a reply... very disappointing. I know Madisound would at least answer but they don't know what the manufacturer knows. When you sell one of the most expensive range of drivers on the market, is it too much to expect a friggin answer to an email?

(EDIT - just noticed your issues are below my xover point - but I have also crossed these much lower just to try and see what the change would sound like... and still didn't notice this kind of issue)
Bum deal... sorry your having troubles but I don't think that your troubles are the norm with this driver. I listen to a lot of music with a variety of types of piano and get no trouble at all.

Less...


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