# Seas 27TAFNC/D initial impression



## MrH (May 27, 2006)

I am by no means an expert on the subject of sq and everything related. These were on my doorstep Monday and finally got a chance last night to install them temporarily. They are being filtered with Koda comp set passives and being its 6th order and crossed at 3500, its not ideal. I need to boost them considerably, but then again the slope, crossover and most importantly the location is not good. Also the sensitivity is a tad lower than the previous tweeters. I haven't had many hours to listen, but this tweeter is a very good value at $29. Cant wait to relocate them and go active.

Do tweeters sound different after they've had a "break in" period?


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

IMO just about any driver needs a break-in period...

Are you sure the passives on the Koda set is a 6th order electric slope? I've never seen a passive comp with 6th order electric slope... Not the "cheap" comps anyway...

Leo


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

Straight from the owners manual

The crossover is a full 6th order acoustic solution. It features polypropylene capacitors, low 
inductance sandcast resistors, and custom wound air-core inductors. The two inductors are 
mounted perpendicularly to each other to minimize magnetic coupling. 

Frequency Response 60-20,000 Hz, ±3 dB Tweeter 1” ring dome 
Efficiency 89 dB @ 1W, 1m Tweeter Range 1500-20,000 Hz 
Crossover Frequency 3500 Hz Tweeter Dimensions 2 1/16”Æ x 1” high 
Crossover Order 6th Order Woofer 6.5” poly cone 
Power Handling 100W RMS Woofer Range 60-5000 Hz 
Impedance 4W Woofer Dimensions 6.625” Æ x 3”


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

Oh i see... acoustic... hehe...

Leo


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

300Z said:


> Oh i see... acoustic... hehe...
> 
> Leo


I know, bunch of bs hype. My wife bought them as a birthday present two years ago. I guess I should be more careful about what I research when shes around. *crosses fingers* Currently drooling over Yamaha VMax


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

MrH said:


> I know, bunch of bs hype. My wife bought them as a birthday present two years ago. I guess I should be more careful about what I research when shes around. *crosses fingers* Currently drooling over Yamaha VMax


Haha... I don't like Bikes/Motorcycles too much but the VMax is the only motorcycle that i really liked. First time i saw one i was like I WANT ONE...  badass.

Leo


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

mmmmm bikes.... nice choice btw.. i ride kawi (sportbikes though) but the vmax is def sweet


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

My last one was a Honda V-65 Magna. That was ten years ago. Got married, had kids and now it is time. Theres a 94 VMax here locally with extremely low miles. The guy wants near 8k for it. It blue books for about half that. Needless to say, I wont be getting it. If I spend 8 grand, its gonna be fuel injected. Really love the Seas tweeters. lol


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

lol i just spent 11k on the zx10r... and 2 years ago i bought the 04 zx10r.. another 11k. that one will be for sale soon though...


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

I listened a little more tonight and even though these tweeters are mounted in a horrible position, leaps and bounds better than the koda/peerless. A little TA (basic) and bump at 8 and 10k with a wide Q, sounds good to my novice ears. To me, there is more detail in the upper end than the peerless tweeters.





zfactor said:


> lol i just spent 11k on the zx10r... and 2 years ago i bought the 04 zx10r.. another 11k. that one will be for sale soon though...


I'm jealous and your crazy.


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

lol ya i know, and my 10's are modded also... the 04 will hit around 110 or so in first gear.... yeah shes a beast...

interesting i am thinking about these tweets also... love more info as you listen..


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## ArcL100 (Jun 17, 2005)

There is no way a tweeter needs a break-in period.

-aaron


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## mikemareen (Apr 20, 2006)

ArcL100 said:


> There is no way a tweeter needs a break-in period.
> 
> -aaron


ya no kidding

the midrange-midbass break in thing is also a huge myth.


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## ArcL100 (Jun 17, 2005)

*shrug*

Maybe people hear better then me.

I've been through a fair share of tweets and haven't noticed anything - maybe it was too gradual.

I don't get it - what's to break-in? The physical moving components on a tweeter don't have a whole lot of movement, and the electronics are broken in the second they see current. 

Headphones seemed to be less harsh with a little break-in, for whatever reason.

-aaron


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

I was more or less curious as to the sound of the tweeter changing over a period of time. I used "break in" for lack of a better term.


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

The "break-in" thing is just the time it takes for the suspension to soften up to its fully potential. Believe what you want, I know i do. On some drivers the difference is just subtle while on others it's more noticeable...

Leo


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## mikemareen (Apr 20, 2006)

I'm be getting my seas tweeter soon to, I'll up some reviews.


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## tbreihan (Sep 30, 2005)

(message deleted)


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## niceguy (Mar 12, 2006)

Now to sound like a moron, but these are the new Seas neo tweets correct?

I may have to try out a set along w/the Neo3s so I can ditch my Peerless...

BTW, I have a set of the Koda passives also. They were actually driving the Peerless (Koda) tweets...ouch....seem to be the opposite of the Seas. With the Peerless you need a huge cut in the 8-10k region....

You guys make me miss my black '84 Nighthawk SC700....6 spd shaft drive...loved that bike. A friend of mine (ex pro drag bike racer) were actually in the process of turbocharging the Nighthawk (borrowed off a busted drag bike) when I ended up getting married...Wife was panicked when she found out and to ease her mind I sold it, being 75% done...I'm such a niceguy  But do I miss that bike........

Jeremy


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## mikemareen (Apr 20, 2006)

I just got done installing these ( Seas 27TAFNC/D ) and I give them a strong two thumbs up.

they are getting a passive highpass at 3500hz at 12db and have absolutely no problems at extremely high playing levels. They are installed on my A pillars and off axis, facing each other.

they make my JBL gti tweeters and my former boston pro60 tweeters sound like junk, there is just no comparison. It makes me wonder how these companies have the nerve to sell their junk comps for 400-500 bucks a pop when this 60 dollar pair far exceeds them in everyway possible.

the top end has alot of "freedom" and movement. The low end is more airy warmer in comparison to my jbl and boston tweets. 

well there u have it crayzzee diy'selfers! this is definitely the best bang for the buck tweeter today.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

mikemareen said:


> I just got done installing these ( Seas 27TAFNC/D ) and I give them a strong two thumbs up.
> 
> they are getting a passive highpass at 3500hz at 12db and have absolutely no problems at extremely high playing levels. They are installed on my A pillars and off axis, facing each other.
> 
> ...


Silky or metal dome?? Madisound?? Sorry Seas really needs to name their equipment better....you know like Ikea where everthing has a name like Tak, Kivi, or Sven 

*edit* I figured it out....you got these, right? http://www.seas.no/Product bilder/h1397_______27tafncd.htm


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

These are the ones I got http://www.madisound.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi?cart_id=3166736.8460&pid=2137

That part number on the website differs from the invoice number. I think theres a thread about it.


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

niceguy said:


> Now to sound like a moron, but these are the new Seas neo tweets correct?
> 
> I may have to try out a set along w/the Neo3s so I can ditch my Peerless...
> 
> ...


Take it with a grain of salt. I really have them located in a bad spot right now. I'm currently using simple mode on an Eclipse 8445. I have bass and mid set to flat and treble at 3, which is roughly 6db at 10k. Using the simple TA also. I did boost 8 and 10k with peq in advanced mode and it sounds good, but keep in mind I'm not running them active at the moment. 

I had an 83 550 nighthawk when I was 15. That thing was quick for scrawny highschool kid.


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## 95Legend (Jun 24, 2005)

I told you guys the seas neo's were awesome. No one wanted to bite until afterwards 

I wonder why people have alums, but not so much with fabrics.  


Seas Neo Fabric- Member #1


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

so whats the consensus on the silk vs metal with these... i love silk but most silks ive used always miss that uper send air and shimmer the metals have.. i hate a muffled type of sound where it sound kind of like you hand is covering the tweeter.. metal has always been what i went to but they can get harsh when crankes which is why i like the silk... i need a metal dome tweeter with silk character i guess...lol.. i am buying these just undecided which metal or silk...if i didnt make sense sorry had root canal today so im on lorcet 10's 2 at a time.. till tomm... damn they rock


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## typericey (May 13, 2006)

metal that sounds like silk? try the Focal TD's.


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

lol... well i just meant that its not gonna be a shrilly harsh dome.. a metal that is smoother i guess but still has that snap to it.. and the extra "shine" to it... i have had many metal domes that were just so fatiguing to listen to and were just so harsh no matter how i eq'ed them when turned up some they just were plain harsh.. i dont want these metals to be that way..but i think ill go metal's again.. like i said i was pretty out of it last night...


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## niceguy (Mar 12, 2006)

If I remember correctly, was this the set where Zaph mentioned the alum. actually sounding smoother? or something than the silks?? Or something to that effect....

I'm also undecided....the Peerless have me paranoid about anything w/a tendency toward sibilance....


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## mikemareen (Apr 20, 2006)

B-Squad said:


> Silky or metal dome?? Madisound?? Sorry Seas really needs to name their equipment better....you know like Ikea where everthing has a name like Tak, Kivi, or Sven
> 
> *edit* I figured it out....you got these, right? http://www.seas.no/Product bilder/h1397_______27tafncd.htm


they are the metal ones, I only do metal tweets, I don't like soft-fabric-silk or whatever u wanna call them.


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## mikemareen (Apr 20, 2006)

zfactor said:


> lol... well i just meant that its not gonna be a shrilly harsh dome.. a metal that is smoother i guess but still has that snap to it.. and the extra "shine" to it... i have had many metal domes that were just so fatiguing to listen to and were just so harsh no matter how i eq'ed them when turned up some they just were plain harsh.. i dont want these metals to be that way..but i think ill go metal's again.. like i said i was pretty out of it last night...


they are a very NON HARSH metal tweeter, even less harsh than my jbl gti and boston tweeters but with more freedom and movement on the top. 

I am gonna be demo-ing to a mb quart QSC216 tweeter set soon, I will do a comparo with them within a week. From my expierences with quart, they have the best imaging among all packaged component set.


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

anything else new on these??


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## amator (May 3, 2006)

would these seas tweets fit any mounting cups sold by anyone else?


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

amator said:


> would these seas tweets fit any mounting cups sold by anyone else?


I just got some yesterday. They look to be the standard 25mm size. I was pretty surprised by the build quality...right on par with any other Seas product I've used. They looked kind of cheap in the pictures...especially the diffuser. But it is solid as hell and have a nice weight to them.

I thought I'd get some mounting hardware from Madisound, but I just got the tweets shrink wrapped in some styrofoam and that's it. I used a couple of extra amp speaker terminal screws to mount them.


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## solacedagony (May 18, 2006)

How low can either tweeter (fabric/alum) safely go?


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

solacedagony said:


> How low can either tweeter (fabric/alum) safely go?


_Seas 27TAFNCD ($29) - Smooth response with a mild Qts bump at the bottom. Multi-chamber neo magnet allows lower Fs than many other neo tweeters. Good but not great HD, but should have no problem crossing over at 2kHz._ http://www.zaphaudio.com/tweetermishmash/

Fs= 1170 hz...so about double that would be 2.3k. I have them at 2.5k at with a 12db/oct slope. 

Cool thing about these tweets is that they are 4 ohms


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

But you haven't told us how they sound...  c'mon man give us your opinion about them...  

Leo


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

300Z said:


> But you haven't told us how they sound...  c'mon man give us your opinion about them...
> 
> Leo


Who moi?  

Expect a detailed review in the next couple of days. I've only listened to them for a couple of songs....but so far so good. They sound like metal dome tweeters so far :blush:

Here's some of my expert photography work to hold you over in the mean time....yes, yes, yes....alright, beautiful, talk to me baby....NO NO!!!


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

kewl...


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

BTW, look at the sticker....these are tweeters from the future biotches!!!


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## 300Z (Mar 20, 2005)

hahahaha... thanks for the pics...


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Hold up, give me a few more days for that review...one of me tweeter got brokeded today  There is a very, very fine copper strand that connects the voice coil to the terminal and it is super easy to break if you are not careful handling them. I called Madisound and the woman I spoke to was totaly cool and is going to Priority Mail me one right away. She said that there has been a few that have come back with the same problem. So careful installing these if you get them. Better yet, wrap the outside in tape or something so that you don't accidently do what I did.


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

B-Squad said:


> Hold up, give me a few more days for that review...one of me tweeter got brokeded today  There is a very, very fine copper strand that connects the voice coil to the terminal and it is super easy to break if you are not careful handling them. I called Madisound and the woman I spoke to was totaly cool and is going to Priority Mail me one right away. She said that there has been a few that have come back with the same problem. So careful installing these if you get them. Better yet, wrap the outside in tape or something so that you don't accidently do what I did.


Doh!! Yeah, that was actually the ony gripe I had with the build quality.

As for the previous poster asking for mounting hole size...its just under 1 13/16 or roughly 46mm.


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## typericey (May 13, 2006)

how do these tweets compare to the ones that come with the Lotus Reference sets?


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

they probably mean the 12th week of 06... so does madisound have these back in stock?? thanks


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## jay (Sep 12, 2005)

june 12th


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Talked to Madisound on Tuesday and they said they were sending a replacement out Priority Mail. It should be no more than 2 days from Madison to Minneapolis. No tweeter as of Saturday 

In the mean time I managed to break the lead on the other tweeter too. I suck at installing things I guess. I did mangage to solder it back to get it to play, but I will still be sending both back once the new one arrives. Just a word to the wise, be careful with these damn things! :blush:


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

If you're trying to press fit them, that's a HUGE problem... those leads are so tiny and exposed on the side of the driver. You might want to run a lil solder over them to secure them to the terminals so that they don't bend when you push it in.


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## tbreihan (Sep 30, 2005)

B-Squad said:


> Talked to Madisound on Tuesday and they said they were sending a replacement out Priority Mail. It should be no more than 2 days from Madison to Minneapolis. No tweeter as of Saturday
> 
> In the mean time I managed to break the lead on the other tweeter too. I suck at installing things I guess. I did mangage to solder it back to get it to play, but I will still be sending both back once the new one arrives. Just a word to the wise, be careful with these damn things! :blush:


The SAME THING happened to both 27TAFNC/Ds that I got as well. Madisound was great and refunded my money (plus shipping) as a manufacturer's defect. Personally, I think that this defect (it looks more like a design flaw to me) is totally unacceptable in a tweeter at any cost.

IMO, anyone running these should 1) solder that tiny lead to the piece of metal it runs over, 2) reinforce the solder with a bit of hot glue, and 3) solder some leads onto the terminals so that you are not connecting/disconnecting the terminals directly. That might give them a modicum of reliability.

They do (did) sound fantastic, but built-quality seems to be


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## ATB (Aug 30, 2005)

Gee, jsut like the 880PRS, the problems only get reported once I order something  Someone want to post about some well known but previously unreported problem with the CA18s too?  

Thanks for the info though...I will be sure to do this before attempting the install.


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## ludlamtheory (May 31, 2005)

has anyone with these also had any experience with 27TBFC/G's ?
I'd love to go back to a small format. Having kicks just for the sake of tweeters is kinda annoying.


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## floats (Nov 23, 2005)

ATB said:


> Gee, jsut like the 880PRS, the problems only get reported once I order something  Someone want to post about some well known but previously unreported problem with the CA18s too?
> 
> Thanks for the info though...I will be sure to do this before attempting the install.


In the Miata, it's not a press fit so it's not something you'll need to worry about. I didn't have any problems installing the 27FFNCs into my 10AE. The old tweeter has a bracket that screws into a plastic mount. That plastic mount has two screws that attach the the door skin. You won't use the old tweeter's bracket. The LPGs with mounting cups fit nice and snug inside the the plastic mount. I'm not sure if you can get mounting cups for the Seas or not. I ended up using some foam to make up the difference.

In regards to the Seas CA18s, I seem to recall some people having issues with tinsel lead slap. I did have some noise issues with my system with the Pioneer, but running the RCAs through the center console instead of down the sides of the doors resolved the issue. As such, I'm not convinced that the issue was with the P880PRS.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

tbreihan said:


> The SAME THING happened to both 27TAFNC/Ds that I got as well. Madisound was great and refunded my money (plus shipping) as a manufacturer's defect. Personally, I think that this defect (it looks more like a design flaw to me) is totally unacceptable in a tweeter at any cost.
> 
> IMO, anyone running these should 1) solder that tiny lead to the piece of metal it runs over, 2) reinforce the solder with a bit of hot glue, and 3) solder some leads onto the terminals so that you are not connecting/disconnecting the terminals directly. That might give them a modicum of reliability.
> 
> They do (did) sound fantastic, but built-quality seems to be


I also think it's a manufacturers defect. I mean the Lotus tweets are built like tanks. I spoke to Adam at Madisound and he said the Lotus line was discontinued a few years ago. I said nay, check out www.seaslotus.com there fella. He was a nice guy and is shipping me another one, but he basically said that I need to be more careful. I said, no **** Sherlock...and told him that I would do what Seas should have done in the first place and either tape or glue the leads down so that they cannont be broken during installation. My Dynaudio tweets are built similarly but they have a piece of tape for this very reason. 

After a while of going back and forth on it, I finally said that I would pay for shipping on the second tweet as we weren't really coming to a compromise. So I sould have the pair back up and running in 3-4 days....finally!!


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## tbreihan (Sep 30, 2005)

B-Squad said:


> I also think it's a manufacturers defect. I mean the Lotus tweets are built like tanks. I spoke to Adam at Madisound and he said the Lotus line was discontinued a few years ago. I said nay, check out www.seaslotus.com there fella. He was a nice guy and is shipping me another one, but he basically said that I need to be more careful. I said, no **** Sherlock...and told him that I would do what Seas should have done in the first place and either tape or glue the leads down so that they cannont be broken during installation. My Dynaudio tweets are built similarly but they have a piece of tape for this very reason.
> 
> After a while of going back and forth on it, I finally said that I would pay for shipping on the second tweet as we weren't really coming to a compromise. So I sould have the pair back up and running in 3-4 days....finally!!


Here is the precise problem that I had; there is a circumferential slot that is molded into the plastic tweeter housing that the terminals are pressed into, right? Unfortunately, the terminals are simply _pressed_ into these slots--not glued, no tabs, no mechanical bond or attachment of any kind. Well guess what; when you attach a regular press-fit spade connector on the terminal, chances are that the spade connector is going to grab the terminal more tightly than the plastic housing does. Hence, when you try and remove the connecter, the speaker housing gives way first and the terminal pulls out of the slot, breaking the tiny lead.

This happened to both tweeters.

Soldering a pair of leads to the tweeter terminals would eliminate having the attach/detach the spade connectors from the terminals and hopefully solve the problem. However, this is still an unforgivable design flaw, IMO. How hard would it be for Seas to use a tab, or some glue, or a tiny screw to secure the terminal in the housing? Or even cast it in the housing when the plastic is injection-molded?

Bottom line? Great sounding tweeter, lousy build quality.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

tbreihan said:


> Here is the precise problem that I had; there is a circumferential slot that is molded into the plastic tweeter housing that the terminals are pressed into, right? Unfortunately, the terminals are simply _pressed_ into these slots--not glued, no tabs, no mechanical bond or attachment of any kind. Well guess what; when you attach a regular press-fit spade connector on the terminal, chances are that the spade connector is going to grab the terminal more tightly than the plastic housing does. Hence, when you try and remove the connecter, the speaker housing gives way first and the terminal pulls out of the slot, breaking the tiny lead.
> 
> This happened to both tweeters.
> 
> ...


Hehee...so YOU'RE the guy!! He told me that another called with that same problem just recently. Funny.

Agreed, good sounding tweeter....but it seems they made few shortcuts to sell these for 28 bucks a pop.


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## tbreihan (Sep 30, 2005)

B-Squad said:


> Hehee...so YOU'RE the guy!! He told me that another called with that same problem just recently. Funny.
> 
> Agreed, good sounding tweeter....but it seems they made few shortcuts to sell these for 28 bucks a pop.


Yep. I think I was the first one to return them. Dubious distinction there!


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## zfactor (Oct 19, 2005)

i still want a set lol... ill solder pigtails on them and then use those for connection


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## ATB (Aug 30, 2005)

I got my set yesterday and I see what everyone means by the fragile wires...yikes, why would a speaker be designed this way?

Anyway, what is the prefered method to protect these: put tape over it, put solder over it, or both?

Also, which way should the driver be orented? large part of the waveguide "V" facing the front of the car, or the back (or top/bottom I suppose)?


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## tbreihan (Sep 30, 2005)

ATB said:


> I got my set yesterday and I see what everyone means by the fragile wires...yikes, why would a speaker be designed this way?
> 
> Anyway, what is the prefered method to protect these: put tape over it, put solder over it, or both?
> 
> Also, which way should the driver be orented? large part of the waveguide "V" facing the front of the car, or the back (or top/bottom I suppose)?


The problem isn't _only_ the fragile little wires; it's that fact that the speaker terminal wants to pull out of the plastic tweeter housing.

I'd solder the little wires down and then use tape or hot glue to cover it. The most important part, though, is that I would then solder some pigtail leads onto the speaker terminals so that you are not connecting/disconnecting from those directly. _That_ is what is going to cause problems for you.


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## ATB (Aug 30, 2005)

tbreihan said:


> The problem isn't _only_ the fragile little wires; it's that fact that the speaker terminal wants to pull out of the plastic tweeter housing.
> 
> I'd solder the little wires down and then use tape or hot glue to cover it. The most important part, though, is that I would then solder some pigtail leads onto the speaker terminals so that you are not connecting/disconnecting from those directly. _That_ is what is going to cause problems for you.


Okay..just to be 100% certian, it is safe to solder the wire to the big (well, in comparison) piece of metal behind it?

Also, anyone with thoughts on how to orient the tweeter? I assume that the waveguide design is not jsut for show and will work better with the tweet oriented a certian way.


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## tbreihan (Sep 30, 2005)

ATB said:


> Okay..just to be 100% certian, it is safe to solder the wire to the big (well, in comparison) piece of metal behind it?


Why wouldn't it be? It's already soldered to it in a another place.



> Also, anyone with thoughts on how to orient the tweeter? I assume that the waveguide design is not jsut for show and will work better with the tweet oriented a certian way.


I think that referring to it as a waveguide is going a bit far. The concentric ring in the middle is some sort of acoustic lens. The cosmetic thing that holds it in place is, AFAIK, just that; cosmetic. I don't think it matter which way you orient it.


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## ATB (Aug 30, 2005)

I managed to swap these for the LPGs yesterday. So far they sound good, but I can't give much real feedback since I don't even have my gains set properly yet...I am just happy to have 2 working tweeters for the 1st time in almost a year.

I re-used the mounting cups I bought for the LPGs. The Seas are much deeper but also slightly smaller in diameter, so I had to cut out the bottom of the cup and use a bit of hot glue to keep the tweets in place.

Also, the LPGs seem to suffer from the same mini wire/ weak terminal issue that that Seas do. I destroyed my good LPG removing it becase the terminal pulled put of the tweeter when I was trying to pull out the connecter. Oh well, at least I now have a set o non-functional LPGs


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Well I mangaged to swap both of mine for new ones. The same woman I spoke with on my initial order called me today to confirm what was wrong with the second one they sent me. I told her that I did mangage to get it working by soldering the lead back together, but I returned it anyway due to the manufacturer's defect. She then said "Yea we've been having a lot of problems with them." 

Anyway on my replacements I just soldered some pigtail wires directly to the terminals so that the other "issue" didn't happen like it did with tbreihan. I also hot glued the entire gap where the leads are exposed on the side and it worked great!! IMO this is what Seas should be doing in the first place.

Other than that  these are pretty nice sounding. I was just listening to some of the more sibilant tracks I have and they pretty well. Not harsh at all but a little tin sounding. Maybe they need to break in a bit and warm up?? Not sure if I love the actuall sound of them in their present location in the factory sails. So more experimenting and listening to come.


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## tryin (Sep 23, 2005)

I'll be putting these in pretty soon, probably this weekend if they get here in time. I will be mating them with some PPI tubedriver mids in a two way. 

Never installed tweeters before. I am planning on installing them in the door panels close to the window. I am assuming that when it says press fit that it pretty much means cut hole in door panel exact size as tweeter and press in? Use any glue or anything to hold it in?


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

Go with a hair of wiggle room. You'll thank me later. Just use a piece of flat spring steel to hold it to the panel with the threaded hole on the back of the tweeter. As long as you can get it not to move once installed.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

So I ended up getting both tweeters replaced by Madisound. They were a little reluctant to replace both since I did the same thing twice. But i made a deal with the guy and volunteered to pay for the shipping on the second one ($4.05) if he replaced it.

As soon as I got them I filled the opening in the plastic housing where the exposed thread is with hot glue. Here are before and after pics:


















It does look a little better now that I soldered wire directly to the terminals...the heat remelted the glue and cleaned it up. 

Review for those interested coming up!!


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## dazz (May 24, 2006)

ive tested them in my car for a day so far, but im going to start trying to tune them (once i swap my 880 in)... how low can these go safely? i know 2 khz is a good point, but is 1.6 khz too low? i'm mating these to dayton rs180s thats why im asking... also b/c this is my first active setup but it sounds impressive to far without any eq'ing...


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

dazz said:


> ive tested them in my car for a day so far, but im going to start trying to tune them (once i swap my 880 in)... how low can these go safely? i know 2 khz is a good point, but is 1.6 khz too low? i'm mating these to dayton rs180s thats why im asking... also b/c this is my first active setup but it sounds impressive to far without any eq'ing...


See post #35 in this thread


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## tryin (Sep 23, 2005)

Well I got mine in tonight. I used a hole saw and a dremel to nock off the burs and just pressed them into place. I soldered on some leads to prevent any breakage issue like you guys suggested. 

Haven't equed or time aligned yet, I'll do that after I install my mids. So far I think they are going to be pretty good. They have great detail for sure, I'm hoping I can do some eq'ing and take some of the brightness out. I don't think they are harsh at all but a little to bright for my ears. I'm sure equing and a little time I can get them just right.


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

Been listening to the silk domes all afternoon, and I have to say I prefer the metal. Vocals aren't as rich perhaps, but the metal has better resolution and is smoother sounding to my ears. The silk can be a bit edgy or hot sometimes.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Initial impressions of the Seas Neos are two thumbs up :2thumbs:

The sound is accurate, 'airy' and they are a good match to my articulate midrange and midbass. There is no harshness, but they can be a little bright. They are sort of neutral on bad music....detailed, yet somewhat forgiving. Nothing an EQ can't fix I guess. With high quality disks, they can really shine.

At high volume, there is some sibilance...especially with female vocals. Go figure. My test for this is some selected tracks off the Celtic Women CD. Lots of chances for ringing, harshness, and 'shhhh' and 'sssss' sounds. Overall they did quite well, but not perfect.

I currently have them HP at 5kHz @ 12dB/oct. I did try them in a two way with the Lotus Reference mids and they sounded best at about 3.15kHz @ 12dB/oct slope. I don't remember the other x-over points right now...but I think I have the Usher's LP at 4kHz or so.

They are mounted exactly where my Dyn MD100's used to be in the pic below....angled about 30* up from the dash with the left tweet at 30* off axis and the right tweet at 60* off axis. Together they are aimed at eye level directly above the front edge of the dash.











Dispite the poorly thought out design, for 28 bucks a pop you can't go wrong.


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## shinjohn (Feb 8, 2006)

B-Squad said:


> Initial impressions of the Seas Neos are two thumbs up :2thumbs:
> 
> They are mounted exactly where my Dyn MD100's used to be in the pic below....angled about 30* up from the dash with the left tweet at 30* off axis and the right tweet at 60* off axis. Together they are aimed at eye level directly above the front edge of the dash.
> 
> Dispite the poorly thought out design, for 28 bucks a pop you can't go wrong.


So my question for you: do you like them better than the MD100s? If so/not, where do you think they do better/worse? I only ask because I know the MD100 very well..... TIA!


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## PlanetGranite (Apr 12, 2005)

Thanks for the review B-squad. Greatly appreciated. Just out of curiosity, do you have a dash mat installed?

Also, how are you liking the mids????


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

I like the Dyns because they just sound great - like in tonal characteristics....kind of hard to explain I guess. They are not as detailed as any metal dome I've owned...including the Neo's...but they very solid. Maybe because they are neutral, easy on the ears and not agressive?? I also like them because they can handle power well, do nicely with a shallow slope, and are 4 ohms. 

Next step is to a/b them with a set of Rainbow Cal25's, which is another one of my favorite fabric tweets. 

The Lotus Ref mids are the best I've owned. I have not owned many midbass drivers so it's not exactly saying much. Anyway...I thought about going with a better bang for the buck deadicated midbass., but they a performing so well that I can't give them up. I have them HP at 56 Hz with 215 watts rms on them currrently. They pound with some authority. Plus the midrange on them is great...so I have them to fall back on if I decide to go back to a 2-way front stage.

And, no....I have no dash mat. I did do a slight cut at 12.5kHz and that seemed to eliminate the bit of the offensive brightness they have.


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## paulpassat (Aug 4, 2005)

What about mating them with the seas 27TAFNC/G.I have some CDT EF 6.5's that i would like to retire.Would the seas carnx be a good match.


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## shinjohn (Feb 8, 2006)

B-Squad said:


> I like the Dyns because they just sound great - like in tonal characteristics....kind of hard to explain I guess. They are not as detailed as any metal dome I've owned...including the Neo's...but they very solid. Maybe because they are neutral, easy on the ears and not agressive?? I also like them because they can handle power well, do nicely with a shallow slope, and are 4 ohms.
> 
> Next step is to a/b them with a set of Rainbow Cal25's, which is another one of my favorite fabric tweets.


Thanks! Appreciate the input. It helps put your comments in perspective! I like the Dyns too, but haven't tried these Seas yet.


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## tryin (Sep 23, 2005)

Just wanted to give you guys an update. I have my gains set, did some TA, and a little EQ. These tweets are not to bright at all. I love the detail. I was really afraid that I screwed up and that metal wasn't for me but I really think that my gains where just to high and causing some harshness. Now I just hear the sweet voices and instruments, it is awesome to hear the hands slide down the guitar string on some songs and symbols are just so clear. 

I really don't see the design flaws of this tweeter either. I admit, the looks really are not the best but besides that I don't see any quality concerns.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

I noticed that they took a few days to 'warm up' as they sounded thin and metallic to me at first. Guess that's the break-in many have mentioned.


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## MrH (May 27, 2006)

From the start I had a lot of the highs boosted. I've been listening to the front stage flat lately and I like them even more. Listening to a flat system takes some getting used to. When it cools down, I'll trial and error different placement and try and get them active. Should really shine then.


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## BodegaBay (Dec 16, 2005)

I'm not impressed by neither the Aluminum or Silk/Fabric versions. Granted I've only compared them for only 5hrs., they failed to impress me vs. the LPG Silk/Fabric tweeter. They are thin, metallic (yes, even the the fabric sounded brittle), and no where airy as the LPGs. To my ears, they are just dry and lifeless. Sure, they're a great value at $26/ea. but ultimately unimpressive compared to other offerings.

IMO, if you already own the LPGs and are happy with them, there's no need to look at these Seas. Different but definitely not any better.


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## 3.5max6spd (Jun 29, 2005)

BodegaBay said:


> I'm not impressed by neither the Aluminum or Silk/Fabric versions. Granted I've only compared them for only 5hrs., they failed to impress me vs. the LPG Silk/Fabric tweeter. They are thin, metallic (yes, even the the fabric sounded brittle), and no where airy as the LPGs. To my ears, they are just dry and lifeless. Sure, they're a great value at $26/ea. but ultimately unimpressive compared to other offerings.
> 
> IMO, if you already own the LPGs and are happy with them, there's no need to look at these Seas. Different but definitely not any better.


  Pssst!...you and your spoiled ears..


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## dazz (May 24, 2006)

i guess i'll be more specific with my question... anyone think it would be ok to run these hp at 1.6 @ 24 db/oct?


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

dazz said:


> i guess i'll be more specific with my question... anyone think it would be ok to run these hp at 1.6 @ 24 db/oct?


IME no. But others might have had success with it that low. Why do you want to play it that low in the first place??


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## dazz (May 24, 2006)

im using them with the dayton rs180s... most ppl have said they are only good to about 1.4 - 1.6 khz... maybe 2 khz, but apparantly its pushing it... 

ive had a very short time playing with them... it seems to lift the stage right up on the dash more so then at 2 khz... but i havent played with them enough to know...


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## JLS24 (Jul 7, 2006)

Stupid question, but is there a directional preference to these?? What I mean is The grill shape is odd so I didnt know if their was a certain way...leads on top or bottom.


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

With the 180's, the compromise is in tonality. The metal cone begins to take on a hint of "metal" the higher you cross it. If you can't hear it, or it doesn't bother you then by all means


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## floats (Nov 23, 2005)

JLS24 said:


> Stupid question, but is there a directional preference to these?? What I mean is The grill shape is odd so I didnt know if their was a certain way...leads on top or bottom.


I'm pretty sure the reason the "grill" is shaped that way is because it mimics the Seas logo.


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## BodegaBay (Dec 16, 2005)

3.5max6spd said:


> Pssst!...you and your spoiled ears..


Now, now Manny. You'll be happy to know that my curious phase is now over as I'm back to the Profis (in active of course) full-time.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

BodegaBay said:


> Now, now Manny. You'll be happy to know that my curious phase is now over as I'm back to the Profis (in active of course) full-time.


Right, like he said, spoiled ears. Once you taste the Rainbow you wanna keep coming back for more. I know that's what happened to me.


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## shinjohn (Feb 8, 2006)

My quick impressions on the Seas AL domes... I bought mikemareen's set off this board, and spent a few minutes listening to these tweeters in my car over the weekend. I had them installed in my kicks, running off a simple 6db/oct passive crossover ~3KHz. Overall, I was impressed by this new offering.

Having read this thread, I see where different people are coming on their comments about these. To me, I think this says that there are some really great choices for people who only want to spend ~$30ea for tweeters.

The Seas AL dome is probably the most neutral sounding *compact* metal dome I've heard to date. These don't scream at you like most "big brand" car audio metal domes. If I had to compare their sound to something I've heard in person, I would liken them very similar in characteristic to the tweeters used in Energy's Veritas line of speakers: smooth yet still quite detailed. Not exactly the same, but similar in character, if you know what I mean.

I would heartily recommend this tweeter to those who listen to classical and other acoustic music. They have a laid back presentation that to me was not at all fatiguing. Unlike my Dynaudio MD100s, they had very little to no hint of sibilance and didn't bring instruments "too close" to you, giving you a sense of separation or space between you and the music. If you like a more "in your face" sound, these are probably not for you. I also liked that the lower range of this tweeter was quite pleasing and warm on vocals, both female and male. I found these tweeters to be just a little less efficient than the MD100s and LPGs too.

The downside to this tweeter, as many note, is probably the top end. The LPG silks, as noted before by others, have more top end sparkle and "air" to them, by far. As a result, micro detail in many instruments/music get rendered with greater clarity then on the Seas. On the other hand, I think the LPGs get spitty in the lower octaves when driven harder, whereas the Seas IMO stayed smoother and more neutral.

So in the end, I think if you are considering budget compact domes, I think the LPGs and Seas should both be considered, and your choice should be primarily driven by musical tastes and listening preferences. If I had to pick between the two, I'd probably say I like the LPGs just a tiny bit more overall.... Then again, I'm still sticking with my MD100s. I guess I'm just an old horse....

Hope this review is helpful for others looking and shopping around.


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