Westminster 12" fronthorn DIY ...

[h-man]

Good evening,

I am glad that I am allowed to visit this forum.
At first ... I apologize for my grammar mistakes and wordplays (... i favor german lyrics).
I am living in northern germany.

Today I am looking for a plan of the westminster 12" fronthorn (diy).
I would like to modify my Tannoy DMT12 for 'lowmidtohighs' ... ( add with a fronthorn ... in combination with a BR 12"or15" for bass ).

Did someone has special knowledge and experience in the field.

Kind regards


(... just moved from 'welcome' to 'blank canvas'.)

[Reffc]

Welcome Mic

Your DMT drive units were designed to work efficiently with ported enclosures and not really intended for use in front horn loaded designs. Also, the Westminster cabinet design was intended for 15 inch drive units. It will work using 15 inch HPD drive units or some of the later K series (as actually used for the Westy). It is not a good idea to partner this with a separate driver for bass. You will struggle to get them phase matched and the crossover would be very complex, not just because of the phasing issues, but also because you'd be trying to match a front horn loaded efficiency with a bass unit into the same cabinet, which just wouldn't work very well, and it would also affect the loading of the main horn drive unit....a very very messy design which just wouldn't work properly imho. You'd also have to waste the efficiency gained from the horn loading to pad it down to match the output of the 2nd drive unit. No doubt some DIY enthusiasts have tried it and proclaimed their fondness for it, but it's not somewhere I'd chose to go with design personally speaking nor could I recommend it.

Rather than make life complicated fro yourself, you would be better using the appropriate 15 inch drive unit and proper Westminster build plans, if it is a Westminster that you have your heart set on. Having these custom built these days is not cheap. The cabinets alone would set you back well over £10K, but they do make for an interesting and challenging DIY project.

[h-man]

Hi Reffc,
thank you very much for your assessment.

I agree with you ... but I think a special xover were able to compensate phasing and spl.
Naturally the DMT will work in his own enclosure ... above the bass unit.

With all due respect ... IMO everyone eat his own cakes and would like them more if other people like these cakes too.
So I will do my best to try and find acceptable solutions - that is science ... it is diy.

As you mentioned, some diy enthusiasts have tried it and proclaimed their fondness for it ...
did you know someone who has special knowledge and experience in the field?

[Reffc]

Hi Reffc,
thank you very much for your assessment.

I agree with you ... but I think a special xover were able to compensate phasing and spl.
Naturally the DMT will work in his own enclosure ... above the bass unit.

With all due respect ... IMO everyone eat his own cakes and would like them more if other people like these cakes too.
So I will do my best to try and find acceptable solutions - that is science ... it is diy.

As you mentioned, some diy enthusiasts have tried it and proclaimed their fondness for it ...
did you know someone who has special knowledge and experience in the field?

Errrr...yes?

[h-man]

@ Reffc:
Sorry ... I can't see what you mean ... never heard that phrase before.

[Reffc]

@ Reffc:
Sorry ... I can't see what you mean ... never heard that phrase before.

You asked "...did you know someone who has special knowledge and experience in the field?"

To which the reply was "...yes".

I specialise in Tannoy DCs and loudspeaker design. I have given a fair assessment already and wouldn't chose or advise you to go the route you're suggesting for a number of good reasons based on sound loudspeaker design principles and knowledge, not on personal subjective opinion.

I can only offer advice though, not force people to take that advice. I have offered what I consider to be good advice to you without wishing to write a dissertation on loudspeaker design. Otherwise, I'd have to go into detail explaining things like how the Westminster cabinet works and why things like T&S parameters of the proper drive units needed for proper matching to that cabinet design matter, and also why using a separate woofer for that cabinet design is simply a bad idea. Honestly, that is a complex enough project for an experienced loudspeaker designer, let alone someone without the know how needed, so I was simply trying to save you time, money and grief by pointing you in the direction of just sticking to the Westminster design as intended if you want a challenging but rewarding project. As for the crossover design, that's a whole new can of worms if you did wish to press ahead with the design and I'm just not convinced that it would work well nor that you would be able to properly integrate the design without some major drawbacks and compromises to sound quality. Good luck with it though if you decide to press ahead.

[h-man]

Paul, thank you for your response.
You may rest assured that I have heard that message and I share your view.

However, I want to find a way to integrate my DMTs in my new larger living room (3500cubic feet).

Forgive me .. it is not easy for me to find the right words for my thoughts regarding my idea.

In short,
I am searching for a way to relieve the DMTs in the bass/lowmid response.
Thus the idea ...
add DMTs with a fronthorn ... in combination with a BR 12"or15" for bass.

I have experiences in loudpeaker design and I am looking for constructive suggestions ... and a Westminster construction plan.

[Reffc]

Paul, thank you for your response.
You may rest assured that I have heard that message and I share your view.

However, I want to find a way to integrate my DMTs in my new larger living room (3500cubic feet).

Forgive me .. it is not easy for me to find the right words for my thoughts regarding my idea.

In short,
I am searching for a way to relieve the DMTs in the bass/lowmid response.
Thus the idea ...
add DMTs with a fronthorn ... in combination with a BR 12"or15" for bass.

I have experiences in loudpeaker design and I am looking for constructive suggestions ... and a Westminster construction plan.

You received constructive comments Mic, after asking for them from someone with experience & knowledge but clearly your mind is made up anyway. Sorry it's not what you wanted to hear. Good luck with the project

[PaulStewart]

Hi Mic,

There are people on this forum with closed minds who think they know best. I find it better to seek out those with a more open attitude. Speedy Steve of Magna Audio does a 12" Gold/HPD scaled GRF and is well versed in horn construction. Why not drop him a Personal Message and see if he can advise? He made some bits for the refurb of my Lockwood academies and I can vouch for the quality of his work.

Good evening,

I am glad that I am allowed to visit this forum.
At first ... I apologize for my grammar mistakes and wordplays (... i favor german lyrics).
I am living in northern germany.

Today I am looking for a plan of the westminster 12" fronthorn (diy).
I would like to modify my Tannoy DMT12 for 'lowmidtohighs' ... ( add with a fronthorn ... in combination with a BR 12"or15" for bass ).

Did someone has special knowledge and experience in the field.

Kind regards


(... just moved from 'welcome' to 'blank canvas'.)

[Reffc]

Hi Mic,

There are people on this forum with closed minds who think they know best. I find it better to seek out those with a more open attitude. Speedy Steve of Magna Audio does a 12" Gold/HPD scaled GRF and is well versed in horn construction. Why not drop him a Personal Message and see if he can advise? He made some bits for the refurb of my Lockwood academies and I can vouch for the quality of his work.

And there are those who just think that they know it all, all the time. No one has all the answers but an honest answer was given with the reasons spelt out and there's nothing closed minded about that. I was trying to do the guy a favour FFS! If that's the direction he wants to go in, then he was wished "good luck" with it. I'm well versed in horn design too Paul, and contrary to your "closed mind" mantra, was pointing out the real pitfalls and challenges of such an arrangement. There's a damn good reason why such designs are not prevalent. Nuff said.