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EPI/Human Speakers - Are Huw Powell's (Human) Tweets as Smooth as EPI Originals?

gammarabbit

gammarabbit

New Member
Hey all, title is pretty self-explanatory.

I've browsed around a bit and it seems like quite a few people have tried Huw Powell's EPI replacement parts from over at Human Speakers. I read maybe 2 or 3 posts comparing his aluminum dome tweeters to the original EPIs, but nothing particularly informative.

I have a couple pairs of EPI 100s now, and one pair has a failed tweeter (magnet detaching and all that), and the other tweeter will probably soon follow suit. I am considering trying to have them refurbished, but Huw's brand new replacement is also very enticing.

My only concern is that I LOVE the way these original tweeters sound, and can't help but have the neurotic suspicion that the new ones won't be quite as polite or silky smooth (which is what I love about the EPI sound).

Any experiences out there?
 
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I've wondered about the "new" v.s. 'old' also. I believe Huw is working off the same basic blueprint but with materials that Wilson Burhoe could only dream of. My opinion of the originals are kind of 'meh', though that is based two very old tweeters of the same vintage. I would be surprised if Huw's tweeters aren't superior, but I've been surprised before. While I don't think Huw's prices are out of line with quality modern tweeters I have too many other current projects competing for cash and time to spend any on this comparison.
 
Observation: Winslow's Silent Speakers (current model) are built by Huw, however, the drivers are not Huw's, despite it being a 2-way design. I asked someone else on AK (who owns a pair) what brand they are, but never heard back- I also asked Huw, but of course he never replied - the photos clearly reveal they are not Huw's drivers.
 
I don't know about the tweeters, but a friend of mine has replaced EPI woofers with Huw's and swears they are better, so I would not be surprised if the tweets are also.
 
Yeah, I guess it's not notable that Winslow's contemporary 201 influened design doesn't incorporate Huw's drivers. Nothing to consider here.
 
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nniemiec said:
Yeah, I guess it's not notable that Winslow's contemporary 201 influened design doesn't incorporate Huw's drivers. Nothing to consider here.
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I believe this is called sarcasm?? lol.

Burhoe is a real genius. I've heard my Epi Model 20's hang neck and neck with Vandersteens, Yamahas, and many others. Such a great design.
 
onwardjames said:
I believe this is called sarcasm?? lol.

Burhoe is a real genius. I've heard my Epi Model 20's hang neck and neck with Vandersteens, Yamahas, and many others. Such a great design.
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I agree. I'm about to experiment w/ bypass caps on mine. Not expecting much, but can't help myself. Always tweaking....
 
nniemiec said:
I agree. I'm about to experiment w/ bypass caps on mine. Not expecting much, but can't help myself. Always tweaking....
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Good luck. I tried that on some PSB400's, and I'm not certain if the sound didn't get poorer. Jury still out.
 
i have speakons on the amp side & I don't want to deal w. disassembling the speaker cables to achieve that, but thank you for point that out.
 
nniemiec said:
Yeah, I guess it's not notable that Winslow's contemporary 201 influened design doesn't incorporate Huw's drivers. Nothing to consider here.
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My point: Different cabinet setup so different drivers.
"The complex internal cabinet chambers extract the bass frequencies from the low frequency driver and feed them out through a slot in the bottom of the cabinet. Low frequency performance is greatly extended with minimum turbulence."
 
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nniemiec said:
i have speakons on the amp side & I don't want to deal w. disassembling the speaker cables to achieve that, but thank you for point that out.
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Can you do it from the source to the preamp?
If you have a y cable send one channel to both L and R inputs.
 
regarding the original question about Huw's aftermarket drivers: I have noticed that the older original Epicure woofers do leak air after sealing the cabinets up. I'm not sure if that's by design or is the result of aging cone paper? I recall Huw mentioning on his website the use of modern materials making his woofers less prone to leakage. I've never been clear how air tight an acoustic suspension cabinet should be & how significant this is to adhering to specifications?
 
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Guido57 said:
My point: Different cabinet setup so different drivers.
"The complex internal cabinet chambers extract the bass frequencies from the low frequency driver and feed them out through a slot in the bottom of the cabinet. Low frequency performance is greatly extended with minimum turbulence."
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I know this is an old thread, but I thought this blurb about the "complex chamber" of the Direct Acoustics Silent Speaker was a bit funny. And I mean no disrespect to Winslow etc., and certainly not discounting any math or engineering that went into the design, but mine were very basic inside the cabinet. Basically a piece of thin ply curved from about 1/3 or so of the bottom of the cabinet down to the slot for the front. The rest of the cabinet save for a bit of poly-fill was all open, nothing so intricate or complex. Then again, I thought they sounded very good, so what do I know?

I do kind of wonder about the drivers themselves, and would have liked to see the speaker tweeked a bit for using Huw's tweeter and bass driver in this cabinet. I think Huw's drivers are very good for the money, can they be bettered, probably, but at what cost? In the end, I think most speakers are a product of the sum of parts, not just drivers themselves. I have to give kudos where it is due, and Huw at least providing new drivers to update old, worn out, broken ones is a good thing in my book. One can chose to use them or not.
 
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