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About Vance Dickason
Vance Dickason has been working as a professional in the loudspeaker industry since 1974. A contributing editor to Speaker Builder magazine (now audioXpress) since 1986, in November 1987 he became editor of Voice Coil, the monthly Periodical for the Loudspeaker Industry, today published by KCK Media Corp. His globally acclaimed book Loudspeaker Design Cookbook is now in its 8th Edition, published by KCK Media. A life member of the Audio Engineering Society, Vance received the 1995 AES Citation Award for his long term contribution to audio education, and the 2013 Beryllium Award, Lifetime achievement from ALMA (Associating of Loudspeaker Manufacturers and Acoustics, now ALTI Association). Since 2001, he also does business as Vance Dickason Consultancy based out of Portland, Oregon, working as an independent engineering consultant to loudspeaker manufacturers.

All items written by Vance Dickason
Test Bench: Wavecor WF259PA01 10-Inch PA Woofer
June 6, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: Wavecor WF259PA01 10-Inch PA Woofer

This month, I characterized a a 10” PA woofer from Wavecor, model WF259PA01. This is an interesting driver since, until now, Wavecor has been known mainly for its high-end home hi-fi drivers. However, the company has decided to expand its coverage in the loudspeaker market and has introduced a well-designed 10” OEM pro sound PA woofer. The WF259PA01 is for now available only as an 8 Ω model, and uses a very stiff flat black coated curvilinear paper cone. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, February 2018.
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Test Bench: Precision Devices PD.CD2N 1.4” Titanium Diaphragm Compression Driver
May 30, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: Precision Devices PD.CD2N 1.4” Titanium Diaphragm Compression Driver

In this edition of Test Bench, I characterized a 1.4” titanium diaphragm compression driver from Precision Devices. The new driver from this prestigious UK Pro Sound OEM manufacturer is part of a seven model lineup of high-performance neodymium compression drivers. The PD.CD2N has a 50.8 mm (2”) throat diameter, with a radial neodymium magnet motor structure, an aluminum three-slot phase plug, and nominal 105 W (AES) rated power handling. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, February 2018.
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Test Bench: B&C Speakers Pro Sound 12CXN88 12” Coax Driver
May 23, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: B&C Speakers Pro Sound 12CXN88 12” Coax Driver

For this month's Test Bench, Dickason characterizes a new 12” coaxial pro audio driver from B&C Speakers, a design typically applied in stage monitors, studio monitors, or distributed audio in large venues. B&C Speakers 12CXN88 is unique in that it uses a single neodymium magnet assembly for both the 12” woofer and the 1.3” throat exit compression driver. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, January 2018.
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Test Bench: Volt RV3143 Studio Monitor Woofer
May 8, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: Volt RV3143 Studio Monitor Woofer

The driver for this month’s Test Bench explication comes from the UK. Volt sent the 12” RV3143 Studio Monitor woofer, which is probably the most uniquely designed woofer to come across my desk in a while — there is no frame on the back side of the driver! The Volt Radial Technology consists of a front-mounted eight-spoke proprietary cast aluminum frame that is mechanically coupled to both the back plate and to the top of the pole structure/phase plug, in contrast to a normal rear frame that is only coupled to the motor front plate. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, December 2017.
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Test Bench: Eton 4-512/C8/25 RP Bass-Midrange
April 28, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: Eton 4-512/C8/25 RP Bass-Midrange

The driver for this month’s Test Bench explication came from a German OEM driver manufacturer and is from Eton’s home audio Orchestra line of drivers. I asked Eton to send a model from this line, the 4-512/C8/25 RP, mostly because of the unique cone. All of the cones in the Orchestra line are serrated paper cones, which is somewhat reminiscent of the orange sliced paper cones in the Scan-Speak Revelator line. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, December 2017.
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User Report: Loudsoft FINE R+D Analyzer
April 19, 2018 by Vance Dickason

User Report: Loudsoft FINE R+D Analyzer

Beginning with the January 2018 issue of Voice Coil magazine, Vance DIckason implemented the Loudsoft FINE R+D analyzer into the Test Bench measurement protocol. This article provides details about the features in FINE R+D FINE R+D, a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) analyzer packaged in a 1u rack, which is used with the recommended G.R.A.S. 0.25” Type 46BE microphone capsule and preamplifier body. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, December 2017.
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Loudspeaker Measurement Tools from Physical Lab
April 11, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Loudspeaker Measurement Tools from Physical Lab

Physical Lab, based in Senden, Germany, is a fascinating company in that it not only manufactures loudspeaker test solutions directly aimed at speaker development and research, but also provides several engineering services for the loudspeaker industry. This article highlights the three loudspeaker measurement accessories that Physical Lab manufactures — the Physical Lab Mini Reference Amplifier, the Physical Lab Imp Box, and the Physical Lab ISO Box. The article was originally published in Voice Coil, December 2017.
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Test Bench: Peerless by Tymphany Full-Range 5” PLS-65F25AL01-08
April 3, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: Peerless by Tymphany Full-Range 5” PLS-65F25AL01-08

Following the review of the Peerless by Tymphany PLS 2” PLS-50N25AL01-08 neodymium motor full range, in this edition of Test Bench I reviewed the 2.5" PLS-65F25AL01-08 ferrite motor full-range model. This 2.5" 8 ohm full-range member of the PLS family, the Peerless PLS-65F25AL01-08, has some differences. Unlike the PLS-50N plastic frame, the PLS-65F is built on a proprietary stamped steel frame that is fully vented below the spider mounting shelf with four 24 mm × 4 mm cutouts for enhanced cooling. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, November 2017.
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Test Bench: Peerless by Tymphany Full-Range 2" PLS-50N25AL01-08
March 27, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: Peerless by Tymphany Full-Range 2" PLS-50N25AL01-08

The 2” to 2.5” diameter full-range drivers are unquestionably one of the most used transducers in consumer electronics. I asked the folks at Tymphany to send a couple of transducers from their Peerless by Tymphany PLS line of full-range 2” to 3” drivers. I specifically asked for the 2” PLS-50N25AL01-08 neodymium motor full range (reviewed here) as well as the 2.5” PLS-65F25AL01-08 ferrite motor full-range (reviewed separately). This article was originally published in Voice Coil, November 2017.
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Test Bench: An Updated CQ76 Ribbon Tweeter from BoZhen New Audio Lab
March 21, 2018 by Vance Dickason

Test Bench: An Updated CQ76 Ribbon Tweeter from BoZhen New Audio Lab

This Test Bench article examines the CQQ76 ribbon tweeter from BoZhen New Audio Lab. The original device BoZhen sent to Voice Coil in 2013, the CQ76 ribbon tweeter, was portrayed in the company literature as a unique (patent number ZL200820128865.6) ribbon tweeter design. “CQ” is an acronym in Chinese pinyin “Chuan-dao-pian Qu-dong,” which in English means “ribbon loudspeaker based on slice-conducted technology.” This article was originally published in Voice Coil, October 2017.
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