Voice Coil March 2022 Focus on Speaker Enclosures

The March 2022 issue of Voice Coil offers a complete overview of loudspeaker cabinet design options, plastic enclosure materials, and production techniques, as well as an updated directory of Speaker Enclosure Vendors. This month, in Test Bench, Vance Dickason characterizes the Mundorf U80W from its latest U Series of Air Motion Transformers. And addressing demanding professional audio applications, this issue also includes a Test Bench on Eighteen Sound’s NSD1095N Compression Driver and XT120 Horn. Start reading online. Printed copies are on the way.

This Test Bench article characterizes Eighteen Sound’s AMT200P Air Motion Transformer and accompanying XMT200 6.5” waveguide. This driver is the brand's latest entry into the high-frequency transducer category, specifically designed for the pro sound community. The Eighteen Sound AMT200P includes a rectangular throat with a Kapton diaphragm with a neodymium magnet structure, and is rated for a power handling of 90W AES above 1.2kHz, with a sensitivity of 105dB, and a recommended crossover frequency of 1.2kHz at 48dB/octave. While the AMT200P can be used as a standard planar device it can be also coupled with a dedicated constant directivity horn, the 90°x 20° XMT200, featured in the characterization.

This edition celebrates 35 years of Voice Coil, the Periodical for the Loudspeaker Industry. We discuss a new earphone technology for Balanced Frequency Range, Mike Klasco writes about Subwoofers and Bass, and James Croft reviews a new loudspeaker patent from Tymphany. Finally, Vance Dickason places Purifi Audio’s PTT4.0X04-NFA-01 Home Audio Midbass, and Eighteen Sound’s AMT200P AMT driver and XMT200 waveguide on the Test Bench. Now available in print or download.

The new AT60NC-4 AMT tweeter from SB Acoustics’ Satori Line follows the recent “renaissance” of Air Motion Transformer (AMT or Air Velocity Transformer aka AVT) over the last several years. The Satori AT60CN-4 is targeted at high-end audio applications. Its features include a damped foil and Kapton 43mm × 29mm pleated AMT diaphragm, with an optimized rear chamber, and two-part face plate. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, March 2021.

In its August 2020 edition, Voice Coil featured an article by experienced speaker designer Igor Levitsky, highly recognized in the industry for developing some of the best planar magnetic speaker and headphone drivers for some of the most reputed brands, focusing precisely on this type of technology. It seems clear that we will see more and more headphones and speakers using thin-film drivers, as the industry is now perfecting the use of different types of diaphragms and materials. The August 2020 edition of Voice Coil includes the first part of this article, completed in the September 2020 edition.

In this speaker review, Oliver Masciarotte and Kent Peterson (of Warkwyn) listen, measure, and listen again to the PureAudioProject Trio15 Heil AMT speaker system. This is a fascinating modular system, in this case designed using an ESS 6" Air Motion Transformer (AMT) and two Eminence 15" drivers, specifically optimized for use in open-baffle applications. This article was originally published in audioXpress, September 2019.

Kanto is a Canadian audio company specializing in colorful powered bookshelf and desktop speakers, designed for modern lifestyles. These compact speakers are not only good sounding and affordable, but they have all-in-one features such as an integrated USB DAC, phono preamp, Bluetooth and optical TOSLINK inputs, and can be connected with one of the Kanto powered subwoofers. But Kanto also wants to promote high end sound quality in the same form factor, and that’s why they launched the Kanto TUK speakers and had a dedicated demo room at RMAF 2019.

Since its formation in 2012, Boston, MA-based audio design firm Andover Audio has provided its design and manufacturing services to the most recognized brands in automotive, telecommunications, and high-performance consumer audio. Andover is now focusing its approach on its own line of products that artfully blend premium audio technologies with distinctive design. At RMAF 2019, Andover introduced the Model One Record Player - an advanced record player and entertainment system.

The September edition of audioXpress is our always popular Speaker Builder - Speaker Focus edition. Once again, audioXpress focuses on loudspeaker building, design, and testing and for this issue we have combined two great DIY articles with a review of the PureAudioProject Trio15 Heil AMT speaker system. Ward Maas reports from the High End 2019 show in Munich, Jan Didden met with Purifi Audio's Bruno Putzeys and Lars Risbo and comments on the company's research, and much more.

A headphone that is based on a real AMT driver, as used in professional studio monitors? The first presentation was at the 2019 High End show in Munich (May 2019), followed by another recent series of demonstrations at the CanJam London 2019 show (July 2019). Now HEDD Audio has announced that, before the end of 2019, the company intends to ship the new HEDDphone – the first full-range headphone design based on HEDD / ADAM founder and speaker veteran Klaus Heinz’ world-known Air Motion Transformer driver.