Test Bench: Wavecor WF275BD01 10.75” Home Audio Woofer

Part of a new series of drivers announced in October 2020 by Wavecor, this woofer could also be advantageous in high-powered studio monitors. This high-power design targets home audio and home theater applications, including two-way (with larger ribbon/AMT drivers, or compression driver/horn combinations) and three-way speakers. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, January 2022.

Charlie Hughes knows about directivity control and how a loudspeaker system should sound good and measure accordingly. This article offers basic recommended guidelines that will not only help to develop good equalization and tuning practices, but also will go a long way in improving the overall sound quality, regardless of the application. This article was originally published in audioXpress, January 2022.

TPCD is the acronym for Thin-Ply Carbon Diaphragm, which is essentially the technology developed in Sweden by Oxeon to create a new-generation material with properties that are now well-proven for speaker cones and domes. The Satori MW13TX-4 TPCD cone 5” woofer is the fourth TPCD diaphragm transducer to be explicated in Test Bench, and this one has a substantial feature set, including a single piece bowl-shaped TPCD cone and NBR surround. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, January 2022.

The Olive Pro Hearing and Bluetooth Earbuds were brought to market by Olive Union during 2021. These are 2-in-1 true wireless earbuds and smart (FDA-Registered class II) hearing aids, featuring a modern design that was intentionally conceived to look like futuristic Bluetooth earbuds to combat the social and economic barriers of hearing loss. When the company temporarily paused its sales efforts in the US, Brent talked with the company to find out what happened and their plans to adjust and return to market. This article was originally published in audioXpress, January 2022.

When a speaker development project is initiated, one of the first decisions is usually the magnet type — ferrite or neodymium — each one with its associated benefits, and problems. This article introduces the most promising alternative based on Iron Nitride (FeN), soon be available from Niron Magnetics, and offering the best characteristics of neo, without the supply chain drama, at a price point that rests somewhere between ferrite and neodymium. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, January 2022.

Loudspeaker designers can look forward to a couple of exciting materials that have been in stealth mode but are about to step into the spotlight. A lightweight military aviation-grade nanocomposite from Alpine Advanced Materials, HX5 may be an alternative to beryllium and high-performance aluminum alloys used in woofer, midrange, and full-range cones. Compared to aluminum, cones can be made at half the weight with comparable strength. This article was originally published in audioXpress, January 2022.

We're off to a great start in 2022. Starting with details about the promise of Iron Nitride (FeN) magnets, followed by an article about Liquid Injection Molding Silicon for Next-Generation Headphone Surrounds. Next up, James Croft reviews a surround speaker patent granted to Klipsch, and Vance Dickason characterizes the Satori MW13TX-4 TPCD-cone woofer from SB Acoustics and the high-power WF275BD01 10.75" woofer from Wavecor. All articles now available to read online, PDF and print.

Great articles, practical projects, reviews, and audio technology previews start the year in full force! That's what our readers will find in audioXpress January 2022, starting with an update on new materials and engineering approaches for loudspeakers, and articles by Charlie Hughes, Scott Dorsey, Frans de Wit, Ken Bird and Mike Harkins. Brent Butterworth reviews the Olive Pro earbuds, while Raj Senguttuvan from Knowles discusses differentiation for True Wireless Stereo (TWS) design and development.