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The Past
Enclosures often contribute more colorations than any other element of the
loudspeaker system, and as such constitute a prime limitation in ultimate
loudspeaker performance. Thus in our quest for enhanced system performance,
we deemed radical improvements over conventional box designs to be imperative.
Enclosures adversely affect the sound of the loudspeaker system in three
principle ways. They resonate structurally in response to the movements of
the drivers mounted upon them, they return energy reflected from their own
interior surfaces back through the driver, and they diffract the frontal
radiation of the drivers. All three failings result in measurable phase and
amplitude anomalies and audible colorations.
The first failing is unquestionably the hardest to address with effective
countermeasures, and it is scarcely addressed at all by most manufactures;
and little wonder, as the problem is practically inherent in the construction
techniques used by well over ninety-five percent of the loudspeaker industry,
including most manufacturers within the perfectionist wing.
The Present
Most loudspeaker cabinets are made of veneered or lacquered fiberboard
composite, a wood product consisting of sawdust and glue. Compared to solid
wood panels, fiberboard is fairly inert acoustically, but it is far from
perfect, and in standard panel dimensions, fiberboard tends to resonate very
strongly square in the midrange where it lends the familiar "boxy" or
"packaged" sound to music reproduction. Standard practice among high end
designers is to use thicker panels and add cross-bracing and damping
applications, but at best these tactics reduce only slightly the magnitude of
the resonance, unless the box is made unacceptably heavy.
The real solution is better materials technology.
The Future
Come the Proklaim II where we fashion the cabinet from multiple layers of
molded polymer that itself is loaded with damping fillers. This substance is
virtually dead acoustically across the entire audio spectrum and the manner
in which it is formed in the mold provides further enhancements in resonance
suppression. We further enhance the performance of the enclosure by
combining this nearly ideal material with a close to optimal cabinet shape
comprised of conic sections that betray no panel flexure whatsoever. The
resulting cabinet is not inexpensive, but its performance is the best in the
industry.
Specifications
Cabinet:
Molded proprietary polymers. Completely inert, non resonant. Permits all energy to be directed into the listening enviorment.(ESL)*
Color:
Medium granite gray, highly polished.
Woofer:
8.75" Kevlar cone, treated foam surround. 3" voice coil, precision
spider, cast magnesium frame.
Tweeter:
1" ceramic concave dome. Very quick, very smooth. The very best
available. Cast square frame.
Crossover:
True fourth order series electrical yielding 7th and 10th order
mechanical roll offs at 1800hz.
Frequency response:
29-20,000 hz + - 3 db.
Sensitivity:
True 90dB 1Watt/1 Meter. Zero insertion loss and very low
series resistance yielding much higher system sensitivity.
Power handling:
1 watt - 200 watts. Operates comfortably on 300B single ended
amps or very high quality solid state amps of any power rating.
Dimensions:
Truncated cone, 23"H, 10"W (at top) 12"W (at bottom) 8"D (at top)
13"D at bottom.
Weight:
88lbs.
Warranty:
6 years conditional, exclusive of any abuse, physical, mechanical
or electrical.
*(ESL) Energy Source Loudspeaker
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