JE Labs: May 2016

Hot on the trail from the 1" compression driver survey, I set forth to re-evaluate my open baffle mounted Altec 605B. This Duplex system is essentially an Altec 416A woofer + Altec 806A compression driver with an integral short horn. I wanted to address a mild honk and try to squeeze out more "air" in the top end from the horn/driver combo.

605B as a 416A woofer

Since my modus operandi has always been to listen carefully to each component as a separate entity, I disconnected the compression driver from the N1600C crossover and listened to the woofer rolling off at about 1100 hz as well as bypassing the crossover, in full range mode.

After several days of listening with and without the crossover, I realized that the "honk" actually emanated from the woofer. Perhaps this was due to the typical midrange impedance rise in a woofer exacerbated in an open baffle by the lack of a true enclosure? So I winged and auditioned a few Zobel EQ values and ended up with 10 ohms + 11uf in parallel with the woofer terminals as the "best compromise." This circuit cost a couple of dB in efficiency but did not significantly affect dynamics while minimizing the honk.

Towel damping

Not scientific, but hanging a towel behind the driver focused the sound a bit further ;)

+ Altec 32C horn

For kicks, I did another round of listening with the 605B acting as a woofer coupled to the Altec 32C horn using the same drivers (except the Beyma) and crossover options discussed in the previous survey. But unlike the 12" Altec 414A which has a smooth roll off characteristic, the 605B woofer had to be configured as outlined above. In this configuration, the woofer blended nicely with all four drivers. In fact the 605B woofer section + 32C/802D horn combo had a similar midrange tonal balance to the Altec 2-way. Could that be a 32C horn coloration? ;)

Altec 16 ohm diaphragms

The Altec 605B was factory fitted with the aluminum voice coil 20275 diaphragm. By the time I acquired it, the diaphragm has been replaced with the newer 34852 with a copper voice coil. I've swapped the 34852 and the 20275 (from my 802D) in and out of the 605B and always preferred the midrange oriented 20275 over the more extended high frequencies from the 34852. Thus, to my ears the 34852 and 20275 cannot be used as a stereo pair. Alas, NOS 20275s are very scarce but fortunately GPA is reproducing original 34852 diaphragms. Just to make sure my 34852 is an original Altec item I posted a query at the Altec Users' Board.

34852 vs. 20275

Having confirmed that my 34852 was genuine, I compared the JEL/N1600C XO to the stock N1600C in search of more sparkle and air from the 806A. The JEL/N1600C with EQ circuit did augment the top end a bit, but not to the same degree achieved by the other drivers with more powerful magnets used in the 32B horn experiment above. With or without the Zobel network, I found too much depression in the midrange of the 605B. This was most notable in the vocal range but not as audible with instrumental music. Switching to the 20275 diaphragm improved the midrange a smidgen but I was still not fully convinced that using the JEL/N1600C XO was the proper course.