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Volt, like ATC, is a highly regarded British manufacturer of professional studio
drivers. Unlike ATC, Volt specializes in woofers and subwoofers optimized for
vented enclosures. All recommended units have paper cones plus symmetrical field
magnets and dual rear suspensions (spiders) for improved linearity. Like some other
premium drivers (e.g. Dynaudio), my respondents have told me that Volt drivers can
be driven well past their rated Xmax without audible signs of distress. All Volt
drivers have been recommended, but some units of particular note are:
- The BM220.8 8" woofer features
an extremely smooth, extended midrange response, allowing it to be crossed over
higher than most and reducing coloration at the high end out to 3.5 kHz.
Although this is higher than you'd want to cross over an 8" driver (due to
beaming), it does simplify crossover design. This driver is a favorite 8" among
manufaturers of studio monitors.
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- The B250.8 10" woofer features
an extended magnet structure for extreme linearity. It is other wise similar to
the BM220.8, although lacking the extreme high end extension.
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- The BM2500.4 10" is described as
a "bass midrange" driver. Despite its 32 Hz Fs, this unusual low-Q design is
pretty much useless in a sealed box below 100 Hz or a reasonably-sized vented
box below 60 Hz. However, it has been highly recommended as an extremely
neutral, uncolored driver. With an Xmax of 8 mm, it is well suited to a sealed
system designed to be used with a separate sub woofer, or even in a TL design.
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- The R3143 12" woofer features
Volt's patented "Radial chassis" design. Rather than a conventional chassis
which sits behind the cone, the Radial chassis mounts the chassis in front of
the cone, cantilevered between the mounting ring and a central phase plug. Volt
claims this design greatly increases heat dissipation from the coil. Other than
the Radial chassis, this unit is typical of the other Volt units previously
described.
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- The R3853 15" woofer also uses the Radial chassis to the same effect as
in the R3143. Other comments and details also apply.
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- The R4504 18" woofer also uses
the Radial chassis to the same effect as in the R3143. Other comments and
details also apply. It's also worth noting that the R4504 is extremely well
suited to ELF designs.
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