• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

Is there such a thing as an adjustable crossover?

D

drpepper

New Member
What I mean by that is, say I have 3 or more speakers. I want to filter the tweeter to a certain frequency range, then the next two are a larger and smaller midrange drivers which will have slightly different frequency ranges that I want to filter on and so forth. I don't want to design the crossover components, just dial in the filtering.

Am I making sense?
 
Register to hide this ad
What you need is a bi-amp'd system. I think you are talking about two way speakers. So you would nedd two amplifier channels for each speaker. Then a two way active (electronic) crossover. You connect your audio signal to the crossover. It splits the signal into high and low frequency bands that you can adjust yourself. Those two signals drive the two amp. channels and that's it. Now you do need to know what each speaker's drivers can handle , frequency wise, to properly set the crossover.
 
Of course there are adjustable crossovers I have three and use two. The two I use (Behringer, DBX) are aimed at the "pro" market in that they both have XLR connectors for signal in and out.
 
Last edited:
Yes active crossovers are really fantastic and nowadays almost cost effective ,I have seen caps and inductors costing in the hundreds ,if you are experimenting with multiple speakers and different designs,most pro companies use the standard 24 db linkwitz Riley,but some like the beringher can do much higher filter slopes ,some dsp also do almost brick wall filtering over 120 db per octave
The rane also has a time delay that helps to get subs time aligned ,rolls makes some simple 12 db ones that are decent for some designs,and available at parts express for $100
The bad part you need lots of amps and cables,for example I use a 4 way horn system with 2 active crossovers one tube and another ss (Marchand) so I use 6 mono blocks and a stereo amp ,thats so many cables my cats get confused.
Sound wise nothing beats active and I have been using them for 30 years
 
The aforementioned MiniDSP and these things are the emerging technology for doing this with relatively little fuss and bother.
https://www.parts-express.com/dayto...nal-processor-for-home-and-car-audio--230-500

Multiple amplifiers are required, though, as has been implied in this thread -- but maybe not emphasized enough.

Also be aware that a calibrated microphone and an real time analyzer (RTA) package will also likely add significant value to the endeavor. Such things are not prohibitively expensive any more. :)
http://www.hifihaven.org/index.php?...ware-rta-spectrum-analyzer-apps-windows.3832/

Gettin' ready to try some old-school, but very configurable analog active XOs with my Frankenaltecs here, as it
happens.

upload_2018-8-8_18-5-28.png
 
I use a Rane AC23 with good results, 3 way stereo or 4/5 way mono....The new version is the AC23s, and has an internal power supply.
 
HowlerMonkey said:
I use a Rane AC23 with good results, 3 way stereo or 4/5 way mono....The new version is the AC23s, and has an internal power supply.
Click to expand...
Looks nice! :)
https://www.rane.com/ac23s.html
ac23sfp1k.jpg


Nice thing about the Rane (and the EV) XOs is adjustable time delay to permit time alignment (or at least, to improve time alignment ;) ) of the tweeter, midrange and LF sections of the loudspeakers.
 
I used one of these with a stack of Crown Micro-Tech 1200s in a sound reinforcement setup for many years.
There are more modern units now but this served me well.

ashly-way-stereo-crossover-xr77-18_360_5323013ba4362d61016e4d9fd7addff0.jpg

May I ask what you have in mind? What speakers? What amps?
Not that there is anything wrong with experimenting. Just curious.
 
I've got a marantz 2226B right now that is just blowing me away sound wise. I had a pretty nice receiver in the 70's but I don't recall it sounding this good. I've been toting around these Quasar speakers, from high school through college and on up until now and I just replaced the midrange and tweeters. Now I might build something larger and I want to play with more speakers per cabinet.

I was hoping there was a passive solution but I suppose not. Something like you would stack adjustable filters per speaker. I'm liking what you guys have posted however.


So are these stackable? What if I had ten speakers per cabinet as extreme example?
 
Last edited:
You wouldn't be able to adjust each band with a passive x-over.

Keep in mind, each transducer will need it's its own input. So, a 3 way cabinet needs 3 inputs.
But, you can combine like bands to parallel speakers by simply piggy backing them together with cables and adapters. This will affect the ohms draw from the amp, though.

So, that 10 speaker cabinet might be 2 tweeters 5 mid range speakers and 3 sub woofers, you can still use a 3 way cross over and combine the tweets, mids and subs per band.
Also, each band needs its own amp. If doing stereo, that can add up quick.
This has been my experience. Not home hi fi, obviously.
 
Last edited:
noisefreq said:
You wouldn't be able to adjust each band with a passive x-over.
Click to expand...
Well, that's not utterly true. One could, for example, envision building a passive XO with tapped inductors and an array of capacitors, and a couple of switches, that could allow tuning, but that approach would yield discrete XO points (frequencies).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom