[subwoof3r]

I don't remember which ones was the bad (14.8mm) drivers, as I ordered both from same seller :
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2045541063.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32776696327.html

I did not spend much with those drivers anyway, but I agree that one or the other was sounding much better than the other one.
Can't find the link of the 64 ohm I ordered but I'm pretty sure it was from CKLewis. The only good drivers them that seller that I retained was the 150 ohm, which was my best until I had 130 beryllium

 

[robar]

I don't remember which ones was the bad (14.8mm) drivers, as I ordered both from same seller :
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2045541063.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32776696327.html

I did not spend much with those drivers anyway, but I agree that one or the other was sounding much better than the other one.
Can't find the link of the 64 ohm I ordered but I'm pretty sure it was from CKLewis. The only good drivers them that seller that I retained was the 150 ohm, which was my best until I had 130 beryllium

The docomo shell build from Chitty which you like, uses those regular pk2 speakers doesn't it?

CKLewis only sells these 64ohms, so you write about these right? The reviews say it lacks bass. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32984746103.html

I was looking at those 150ohms lately at CK, seem quite nice, I'll try one pair after I got a decent amp. Oh wait, which one? I see two different kinds, I guess you talk about the first, looks much nicer
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32983256142.html (edit: yep this is it I searched in the thread)
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32971170234.html

I've also seen this one at NSC, one of the reviews is from you isn't it? It's for classical music based on title
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32979025026.html (edit: I found this too in this thread, this is what you didn't like because of lack of bass)
Also here is another nice looking 150ohm one for a bit cheaper, which has super bass in its name
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32979616405.html

 

[endia]

I almost reached the buy button several weeks ago but the only thing that made me stop is the word "voice" coil I generally don't have much hope on drivers that have this word from sellers as they are good for voice only but not generally bassy, but who know!

voice coil is an essential part of the driver concept actually.. don't have much technical info about it but it's an electromagnet and responsible for the diaphragm's vibration if i'm not mistaken..

 

[robar]

voice coil is an essential part of the driver concept actually.. don't have much technical info about it but it's an electromagnet and responsible for the diaphragm's vibration if i'm not mistaken..

I think in this case it's more like a casual description of the general sound signature of the driver - so called "voice" speakers are generally mid centric with less bass. Clear sound/monitor ones have increased upper mids for maximum detail retrieval, and bass ones have more bass quantity/extension. In general I find the "bass" ones the most versatile because we can't really solve inherently missing bass with tuning, and many smaller shell types already have a negative effect on bass response.

 

[endia]

i prefer not to relate it with a sound signature or any kind of subjective context..
rather a technical name of a part in drivers..

more technical information could be found here as well :
https://www.innerfidelity.com/content/how-headphone-dynamic-drivers-work

 

[endia]

Anyone tried these drivers? This looks like low impedance diy flagship material for 14.8mm builds.. I have a collection of empty 14.8mm shells and I plan to build something nice with them next year. It would be nice to skip directly to the really good stuff, this is why I'm interested
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32978993535.html

And I'm also curious about these
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000177042681.html

I ordered these 15.4mm 64ohm titanium membrane drivers by the way, will post impressions after I received them
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000220039317.html

in your first link, it says "64 ohm voice coil" which means it may also responsible for the driver impedance, as i didn't know up to now..

 

[robar]

in your first link, it says "64 ohm voice coil" which means it may also responsible for the driver impedance, as i didn't know up to now..

Ah I see, you're totally right! In this case it's indeed the technical term, it confused me first because of the unusual context. In most listings a midcentric tuning is often referred to as "vocal" or "voice" (without the coil part of course). Why do they point out the voice coil specifically, when a simple "64ohm impedance" would've been obvious? So this is a balanced/clear tuning 64ohm, simple as that. Thanks for pointing it out!

For example, these are listed as voice/vocal drivers, this is the popular tuning term that I was referring to and confused me in the case above:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000272267259.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/33063234848.html

 

[GREQ]

The simplest way to understand voice coils and impedance is:

More coils in a voice coil = higher impedance
Less coils in a voice coil = lower impedance

More coils = more weight
Less coils = less weight

Higher impedance = higher damping factor
Lower impedance = lower damping factor

Higher damping factor = more control over unwanted driver movement (driver is more likely to stop moving when it's meant to)
lower damping factor = less control over unwanted driver movement (driver might move a little even after the audio signal has stopped)

Coil weight and damping factor can and do affect the tonal response of 2 otherwise identical drivers, but they will most likely be more similar than different, sharing more characteristics in the sound than not.
But as we all know, is those differences that are often more important.

 

[subwoof3r]

The simplest way to understand voice coils and impedance is:

More coils in a voice coil = higher impedance
Less coils in a voice coil = lower impedance

More coils = more weight
Less coils = less weight

Higher impedance = higher damping factor
Lower impedance = lower damping factor

Higher damping factor = more control over unwanted driver movement (driver is more likely to stop moving when it's meant to)
lower damping factor = less control over unwanted driver movement (driver might move a little even after the audio signal has stopped)

Coil weight and damping factor can and do affect the tonal response of 2 otherwise identical drivers, but they will most likely be more similar than different, sharing more characteristics in the sound than not.
But as we all know, is those differences that are often more important.

Could it also explain that higher impedence drivers could be harder to break then? (I mean less sensible to shocks usage)
Also,could it mean that lower impedence drivers could achieve better bass impact/response than higher ones ? (which is what I can really feel for now), as they are lighter, at the cost of precision.

 

[GREQ]

Could it also explain that higher impedence drivers could be harder to break then? (I mean less sensible to shocks usage)
Also,could it mean that lower impedence drivers could achieve better bass impact/response than higher ones ? (which is what I can really feel for now), as they are lighter, at the cost of precision.

Hmm... I've never read anything about voice coils affecting driver excursion (more excursion = more bass (and more distortion))
I don't know if a lighter faster coil or the heavier coil would be able to do even exhibit difference excursions on the same diaphragm.

The only thing I can think of is the lower impedance coil, being a 'less efficient motor' continues resonating and moving, effectively adding a longer bass 'decay' giving the impression of a slower, smoother bass sound - which can sometimes sound more natural than the clinical, dry, fast bass of an efficient motor.
So one theory is that it comes down to poor transients adding 'bass flavour' perhaps.

Edit - "less efficient motor" is probably incorrect, since the lower impedance means less energy is required to make sound and I'm not really sure what to replace that with.
Since it's to do with some 'natural' redundancy byproduct of the diaphragm not stopping as quickly.

 

[assassin10000]

The simplest way to understand voice coils and impedance is:

More coils in a voice coil = higher impedance
Less coils in a voice coil = lower impedance

More coils = more weight
Less coils = less weight

Higher impedance = higher damping factor
Lower impedance = lower damping factor

Higher damping factor = more control over unwanted driver movement (driver is more likely to stop moving when it's meant to)
lower damping factor = less control over unwanted driver movement (driver might move a little even after the audio signal has stopped)

Coil weight and damping factor can and do affect the tonal response of 2 otherwise identical drivers, but they will most likely be more similar than different, sharing more characteristics in the sound than not.
But as we all know, is those differences that are often more important.

Higher impedance also usually means smaller wire to go with the larger number of coils. So weight could end up equal. Just harder to manufacture.

That also means it can potentially have a stronger magnetic field with more control and perhaps better rendering of details.

Could it also explain that higher impedence drivers could be harder to break then? (I mean less sensible to shocks usage)

Also,could it mean that lower impedence drivers could achieve better bass impact/response than higher ones ? (which is what I can really feel for now), as they are lighter, at the cost of precision.

No. Shouldn't be any easier or harder to break due to shock/drops. Lower impedance would be easier to damage due to electrical load & clipping though.

Lower impedance would possibly provide more bass with low powered sources vs higher impedance. As higher impedance may require a stronger source or amp to drive properly.

 

[robar]

I received DP100 shells today. First impressions are quite good, nice fit and comfort for me and the maintenance is very easy. Compatibility is very good, I could fit mx500, steel mesh and dp100/mx760 covers just fine. It has good potential in terms of sound, it offers good bass quantity and nice mids, highs. I only tried N50 drivers so far, so I'll update my impressions after more experiments. Not as refined sounding as mx500 or qian69 shell (my favorite) but still quite good. Very nice all rounder because of the good fit and compatibility, plus its easy to obtain. (sold in a lot of places on aliexpress, cost 1-2usd/pair usually) Compared to mx500 shell with same driver (N50) soundstage is a bit smaller and the overall sound is more forward and direct, but 2-3khz area is smoother (plus the fit is a lot better ofc)
The dp100 shape is deeper, smoother compared to mx760. The fit is better for me and more comfortable. The stem is one big volume with no friction inside and the cable holes are large so its not necessary to remove the back plate for maintenance. Much better compatiblity than mx760, also there is enough volume inside to tie proper knot.
I haven't tried H180 yet but it would be interested to compare these two. I plan to buy a cheap random bud with these shells to experiment with.

My subjective comparison of my current top 3 15.4mm shells
Soundstage: Qian69>mx500>dp100
Overall SQ: Qian69 ~ mx500 > DP100
Fit: Qian69 > DP100 > mx500
Ease of DIY: mx500 > DP100 >> Qian69
Price/Availability: mx500 > DP100 >> Qian69
Compatiblity: mx500 = DP100 > Qian69

(edit) Compared to mx500, Q69 tends to have noticeably dialed back response around 3.5khz, then 5khz gets back up quickly. DP100 is more forward and less spacious (little congested), 3khz area somewhat decreased as well but not as much as Q69, bass is not as deep. I'm experimenting with possible solutions.

DP100 (transparent) vs MX760 shell

 

[robar]

Have you tried building with jvc/victor type shells? I discovered a cheap bud in a local supermarket with the same shells, I'm wondering if its compatible with 14.8mm or 15.4mm speakers. Also I heard it's hard to recable, have you any experience with this? Thanks!
This is the type of shell I'm talking about
https://forum.lowyat.net/topic/4592549/all

 

[HungryPanda]

I have never had shells like that but the look quite easy to re use in my opinion

 

[robar]

I have never had shells like that but the look quite easy to re use in my opinion

I see thanks! I'm just a bit hesitant to buy one another shell that might not be compatible with any speakers I have, but maybe I'll give it a go It's called Urbanz Spot by the way and it's sold in the local Tesco in my town for about 3-4usd equivalent.