# Review: Alpine F#1 dome tweeter, a.k.a Scanspeak D2904/6000(half year impressions)



## mvw2 (Oct 2, 2005)

Specs:
http://www.madisound.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi?cart_id=1197941.7164&pid=1143
Sensitivity 2.83V/1M 90.5dB
Free air resonance Fs 750 Hz
DC resistance 3.5 ohm
V.C. inductance 0.02 mH
Power [email protected] [email protected]
Effective cone area 8 cm2
V.C. diameter 28 mm
Lin. & max. excursion ±0.25 / ±1.3mm
Force factor BL Product 2.7 Tm
Moving mass incl. air 0.4 g
Net weight 0.13 kg

I bought this tweeter as a replacment for the Morel TW-1 tweeters I initially paired with the PG Ti Elite component set I got(woofers + x-over). The high midrange of the Elite woofers were too robust for the Morel tweeters to keep up. As well, in an active configuration, I would need to be able to run the woofers below 2kHz to keep them tame and neutral. These were two things my Morel tweeter couldn't do. After inquiring on the forum about possible replacements, the Scanspeak D2904/6000 tweeter was suggested. As well, the Alpine variation had been available for $60 a piece not too long ago, so affordable availability was promising. I picked up a set for $150 and never looked back.

*mpressions:*
This is a solidly built tweeter. It looks and feel sturdy, and it actually has a little weight to it. The tweeter's also tiny...well for a cambered tweeter that is. It's tremendously compact for a driver that can play down to 1kHz, although I've seen mention of lower. Initial sound impressions were exactly as described, just smooth and robust. It's definately a full-bodied tweeter.

*Build Quality:*
Build looks a feels top notch. The solid metal structure feels heafty and so far is durable. The wire tabs on the back are ok, but I'd like something more...rigid. There is a single screw on the back side to help in mounting, and I find it to work slick. The Alpine version seems to have a scrrew-lock type of thing aroud its perimeter. It's not too intrusive if you don't have the Alpine mounting hardware. I'm sure it's useful if you did have the right mounting pieces. One nice touch is they did apply a nice foam/felt/something? gasket around the underside of the top lip of the tweeter. When flush mounted, this aids in getting a nice seal or at least would take care of any vibration issues that may arise. It's a nice touch.

*Sound Characteristics:*
Tonality:
Sound comes across and warm and full. These tweeters have a lot of presence. I asked for robust, and I got it. Luckily, the tweeters don't come across as too colored. The sound is a little too smooth and warm to come off as realistic, but the presence is natural enough and the sound refined enough to make the music believable. It just has a luscious flavor to it. Partially why the tweeter comes off as warm is that top end is somewhat lacking. High end response fades off quickly from around 10-12kHz. The trebble range above this is very laid back. Maybe faint is a better word.

Detail:
Detail is not really what this driver does. It doesn't come across as muddy or vague, but sound is not crisp either. The lower trebble range shines from a strong presence as this tweeter can play deep and with authority. However, a lot of the upper range details, all the things that would create a sharp, detailed presence is just faded out and not really played. The tweeter just has no bite. This isn't necessarily a bad thing as it produces a more pleasing sound. Over time, you tend to forget that top end detail you're missing and you just enjoy the smooth, rich sound.

*Usability:*
Wow. You know what? I don't know. I have yet to hit this tweeter's limits. I even breifly had these hooked up in passive with 300w rms and crossed at 1.6kHz, the lowest my HU's tweeter high pass x-over. The low end power of these tweeters are amazing, and they get LOUD. I have yet to hear them strain. I think I'd have to find some woofers that can keep up. Given adeqaute power, they will simply belt out whatever you give them and sing and wonderfully smooth song doing it. I've seen 1kHz as the lower limit. I've come across someone stating they've ran theirs to 800Hz with no problems. Frankly, I don't know. I'd almost think of it as a 2" dome but not quite. It's just impressive what this little thing can do, with authority, and cleanly. It's the kind of tweeter you can get away with building a 2-way 8" comp system and not worry about midrange. Heck, that's probably their best application, grab an 8" woofer, play up to about 1kHz, and pair it with one of these. 

The only limitation with these tweeters is top end. They tend to roll off somewhere around 10-12kHz. You also can't really EQ this range back it. It takes a LOT of EQing and the end sound is not great. You might consider adding a compact tweeter to cover the top end, maybe come in at 10kHz and play on up to really bring back the detail. The extended bottom end is an admirable trade-off for a little bit of the upper range, but how appropriate and ultimately this tweeter choice will depend on your particular install.

One additional note is that these tweeters aren't all that directional. Some tweeters are very sensitive to where you point then. These tweeters don't care so much. Dispersion is great and the tweeter _almost_ disappear. So, not only is their sound forgiving, so is their physical placement and aim. It makes them very usable almost anywhere you want to stick them.

*Power:*
It's rated for 150w rms. I ran it passively feeding the x-over 300w rms, and it belted out music effortlessly. I'm sure it wasn't seeing 300w, but it's plenty happy with the power and is very capable of using it. You'll have a harder time finding a woofer that can keep up though. 

I'm running these active off 75w rms, and they do wonderfully. They don't need all that much to play and are decently sensitive. You'll still get quite a lot out of these tweeters with less than rated power.

*Design Comments:*
It looks a feels like a tank, just solidly built. It's clean, simple, and compact, very compact. The mounting depth may yield some difficulties for some, but it's overall small size should keep it very useful for most.

I'm not too particular about the tabs on the back. I actuall broke them off one tweeter simply playing around with them too much. I ended up just soldering right to the tweeter where the tabs connected.


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## kappa546 (Apr 11, 2005)

great review. thats exactly why only last like a week with this tweeter. yes its very smooth, robust and great xover flexibility, but the top end just didnt do it for me. you are completely correct about the placement... it never sounded any different really whether it was in the kicks or up in the pillars angled in any way. maybe if it had a top end i would notice something but it wasnt there in the first place. i a/b'ed them with a switch of a dial directly against the Aura ring tweets from the MR62 set and these were clear winners. they were just crossed off their passives but these were just as smooth and had great air to match my metal coned drivers i was running. After that night i put them up for sale as i didnt see them worth $130 to ME (and yea i got them at the super cheap price on that pacparts sale) when the auras could be had for $20 at the time.


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## mvw2 (Oct 2, 2005)

About the only thing I noticed was that you get a tiny bit more top end extention of you faced them directly at your, or at least very near directly. That loss of top end detail is one of those thinigs that is imediately noticable with the tweeter. At first you wonder if you can live with the loss of that top end detail, but after a while, those memories fade away and you just don't care.

I am personally a fan of the warmer, fuller sound, and have an accute dislike for harsh(unrefined) highs. This tweeter fits very well with my personal tastes, not quite a 100% fit, but it's definately a good enough tweeter to make me think twice before ever giving it up.

There are a TON of options out there. I see this tweeter as a nitch tweeter. It fits that spot between a 2" dome mid and a traditional 1" dome tweeter. It can play almost as low as a 2" mid and almost as high as a traditional tweeter. It lets you get away with 2-way options that would normally require a 3-way with a small midrange speaker.

The only issue is, do you need this capability? Most don't and other options fair better. Yet, this kind of flexability is nice to have.


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## MIAaron (May 10, 2005)

*Re: Review: Alpine F#1 dome tweeter, a.k.a Scanspeak D2904/6000(half year impressions)*

I also had issues with the mounting tabs and had to solder a pigtail on. The lack of top end bothered a bit. I couldn't take them when mounted off-axis, as they lost too much response. They got a bit harsh during the cold part of winter as well.


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## The Blue Blur (Sep 14, 2006)

*Re: Review: Alpine F#1 dome tweeter, a.k.a Scanspeak D2904/6000(half year impressions)*

crap. I wish I could hear a set before I hop onto the group buy. I like sound a bit more natural and less sparkly but i don't have much of a reference. Focal tweets in the K2P set bit my head off. From what I remember I loved the type of sound DYN MD100s have. Can you compare the 6000 to either of those?


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## MIAaron (May 10, 2005)

*Re: Review: Alpine F#1 dome tweeter, a.k.a Scanspeak D2904/6000(half year impressions)*

Try them out. For the price you get them for in the group buy, you won't lose much on resale.


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

*Re: Review: Alpine F#1 dome tweeter, a.k.a Scanspeak D2904/6000(half year impressions)*

Very impressive review. I really agree with alot of things you mentioned. Thanks for putting in the extra effort and taking the pics and organizing it the way you did, it really made it alot easier to read and digest.


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## andycph (Dec 21, 2005)

I heard someone mention that that these Alpines were somehow different from the Scans. Any comments from anyone who has heard both these tweeters?


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## mvw2 (Oct 2, 2005)

Other than the obviously revised casing, I'm unsure. I too have "heard" things, but nobody ever really seemed dead certain.


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