Ribbon tweeters at Ali Express

[doctor fuse]

I'm curious to hear what the cheap ribbon tweeters sound like. I see some for $28.79 at Ali Express.

Has anyone tried these? Are they any good?

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Hig...-7116-4c1f-9189-9a05dbce3ae3&rmStoreLevelAB=1

 

[JoeESP9]

They are not real ribbons. They appear to be of the Heil AMT variety. Since the Heil patents have run out everyone and their brother is currently making pleated/folded diaphragm tweeters. You can buy a pair of the Parts Express B652 Air (for AMT) for $49.

BTW: Infinity EMIT tweeters and EMIM midrange drivers are not ribbons either. They are planar magnetic speakers.

 

[jazzmans]

That doesn't look like an AMT folding ribbon clone, it looks like a planar tweeter, like infinity's Emit or bohlanger....(whatsist)
zoom in and it's fairly obvious it's traces on a kapton or mylar back with large magnets framing it.

 

[swechsler]

While they are described as AMT on the Aliexpress page, they are almost definitely planars, as jassmans suggested. They're probably most similar to the BG Neo3, although the dimensions are different.

 

[JoeESP9]

Anytime you see what appears to be pleats in a tweeter it's a virtual certainty it's a Heil type driver. Planar drivers are not pleated. In the picture from Ali Express the pleats are easily visible and quite obvious.

 

[swechsler]

They don't look like pleats to me, they look more like traces. I think pleats would be narrower and have more space between them, like these:

Also, the rear cups aren't really deep enough for an AMT.

Here's an AMT tweeter I found on ALI Express:

 

[JoeESP9]

Sorry what you've pictured are pleated drivers. They are directly related to Heil AMT's.

Here is a picture of a true ribbon tweeter. Notice there are no vertical striations indicating pleats.

Also please note; with a ribbon driver the moving mass is also the voice coil. There is no metallic trace attached to a substrate made of a polymer film. A perfect example of a true ribbon is the Magneplanar ribbon tweeter. One other thing. With Magneplanars, even the quasi ribbon types don't have pleats.

I note Ali Express uses the letters AMT in the product description.

 

[swechsler]

Yes, I know, that's what I was saying that the pics I posted were pleated tweeters. If you use the zoom function on the original Aliexpress page, you'll see that the traces are too wide to be pleats, and they are in fact planars, or quasi-ribbons.

 

[JoeESP9]

While they are described as AMT on the Aliexpress page, they are almost definitely planars, as jassmans suggested. They're probably most similar to the BG Neo3, although the dimensions are different.

If you look closely at the picture of the tweeters it easy to see there are no vertical striations indicating a Heil/AMT type.

The tweeters in the Ali Express ad are definitely pleated. I used the zoom function to observe. I also have experience with multiple pairs of Magneplanars. The earlier models used wire bonded to the substrate. Current models use "quasi ribbon" technology. It does not look anything like what Ali is selling. The reason I'm certain is because I'm looking and listening to a pair of Magneplanar quasi ribbon speakers (1.7's) as I type this.

 

[swechsler]

Take a look at Infinity EMITs and you'll see what I'm talking about. I currently own all three types (many EMIT planars, Maggie MG-IIIs with ribbons, ESS AMTs) so I am fairly familiar with them.

 

[Tom Brennan]

Strictly speaking a ribbon tweeter has a conductive diaphragm, not conductors applied to a non conductive diaphragm. Indeed, this is what makes the difference between a ribbon and a planar magnetic. The drivers in question appear to be planar magnetics.

 

[fredgarvin]

I vote planar.