What are full-range speakers, crossover speakers, and coaxial speakers？
Mar 03, 2023| What are full-range speakers, crossover speakers, and coaxial speakers？
In the speaker system, speakers (speakers or horns) are mainly divided into two categories, one is full-range speakers, and the other is crossover speakers. So what exactly is a full-range speaker? What is a crossover speaker? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
What is a full-range speaker
Full-range speaker: It is a speaker made of only one full-range speaker. There is only one speaker. In fact, it is impossible for a speaker to cover all frequency bands. Generally speaking, full-frequency is actually broadband, that is, the frequency range is relatively wide. , the frequency range covered by the previous full-range speakers is 200-10000Hz. In recent years, with the continuous improvement of acoustic technology, now the general full-range speakers can reach the frequency range of 50-25000Hz, and the low frequency of some speakers can dive to 30Hz.
The frequency range that the human ear can hear is 20-20000Hz. The full-range speaker can basically cover all the frequency ranges that the human ear can hear, but unfortunately, the current full-range speakers on the market, although they are Full-range, in fact, most of its frequencies are concentrated in the mid-range range, and its expressiveness in subwoofer and treble is slightly weaker, so the sound heard is relatively flat, and the three-dimensional effect is not so strong.
Features/advantages of full-range speakers: point sound source, so the phase is accurate; the timbre of each frequency band tends to be consistent, and it is easy to bring better sound field, imaging, instrument separation and layering. Due to the strong expressiveness of the medium-frequency stage, it happens that most of the voices produced by people are mainly in the medium frequency. Therefore, full-range speakers are very suitable for listening to human voices, and the distortion rate of in-ears is low, and the human voices are quite full and natural.
Disadvantages of full-range speakers: Because the design needs to meet the needs of different frequency bands, the design and final performance of each frequency band will be constrained. The extension at both ends of the high and low frequencies is relatively limited, and the transient and dynamics are relatively compromised.
What is a crossover speaker
A crossover speaker means that its frequency range is divided into stages, and the signal frequency is more focused. Crossover speakers generally have built-in dual-frequency speakers or three-frequency speakers or more. Why do you say that the frequency of the crossover speaker is more focused? In addition to being related to the number of its speakers, there is a frequency divider in the crossover speaker, so how does the frequency divider work? Take the three-way speaker as an example. This frequency divider can send the bass part to the woofer dedicated to the low frequency, the midrange to the midrange speaker, and the treble to the tweeter. In this way, each speaker performs its own duties and brings out its own advantages, which can extend the treble and bass to a wider range, so it can usually cover a wider frequency range than a full-range speaker.
Features/advantages of crossover speakers: Each frequency band is sounded by an independent unit, so each unit can work at its best. The extension of high and low frequencies is easier to do better, the independent intermediate frequency unit can bring extremely high playback quality, and the overall electro-acoustic conversion efficiency is relatively high.
Disadvantages of crossover speakers: Because there are many units in crossover speakers, there is a certain difference in timbre and phase difference between them. Then, the crossover network introduces new distortion to the system. The sound field, imaging, separation, and layers will all be more easily affected, the sound field of the sound will not be so pure, and the overall timbre will also deviate.
What is a coaxial speaker
Coaxial speaker: It is a special form of crossover speaker. The tweeter of the speaker is cleverly placed in the center of the mid-bass diaphragm, so that the mid-bass unit and the tweeter are on the same axis. The front looks like two Concentric circles, so the acoustic center of the treble and bass can be guaranteed to be the same point, so it is called a coaxial speaker. We often hear friends confuse coaxial speakers with full-range speakers. Of course, these two speakers have something in common. They both build a point sound source, but the structure of the coaxial speaker is different. The two speakers are in the frequency division state, and have their own division of labor, respectively responsible for the operation of treble and mid-bass.
Coaxial speaker features/advantages: The design structure and form of the coaxial speaker can be said to be painstaking. It not only has the characteristics of high phase fidelity of the full-range speaker, but also realizes the output in the form of a standard point sound source. A more natural sound. At the same time, in terms of hearing, it also has the strong expressiveness of the crossover speaker in the high and low frequencies. The bass is realistic and cohesive, the energy density is relatively large, and the transient state can be received and released well, making the sound layer more distinct and the sense of detail more prominent. .
Disadvantages of coaxial speaker: Although the coaxial speaker has so many advantages, it also has defects, because its high and low coils are on the same axis and share a magnetic circuit, so there will be a certain mutual generation between the two voice coils. The interference of the two voice coils may cause the two voice coils to not move correctly, making the sound not so smooth and balanced. Although the coaxial speaker solves the problem of phase fidelity, the timbre performance has not been better improved, and the other shortcomings of the ordinary crossover speaker still exist in the coaxial speaker.