Why not horns?


I've owned a lot of speakers over the years but I have never experienced anything like the midrange reproduction from my horns. With a frequency response of 300 Hz. up to 14 Khz. from a single distortionless driver, it seems like a no-brainer that everyone would want this performance. Why don't you use horns?
macrojack
My system is unsettled as I am playing around with parts and pieces right now. I have a slight noise, a faint rushing sound behind everything. I've been able to eliminate it by taking the digital speaker management system out of the loop but that is no solution. Because the speakers are so good, I am working to eliminate the sound. I have been using a DBX Drive Rack PA up until now but have recently learned that better units are available. This led me to purchase a British made XTA DP 224 to replace the DBX. Apparently getting home and pro audio to play nice together can be very difficult due to impedance and level matching issues. Toward this end, I have hired a professional sound engineer to do the dirty work for me as I have discovered the XTA to be over my head.
So here's the kit: I have a Technics SL 150 MK II turntable with a Rega RB 300 arm. Both are new and have not been put into use as yet. I have a Parasound JC-2 preamp going into the digital crossover and then to my amplifiers. Todaythere is a Class D Audio 60 watt stereo amp kit driving the horns and a Parasound A-23 amplifier driving the woofers. Other amplifiers that may be used in the final setup are waiting in the wings. I have a second Parasound A-23, a Perreaux PMF 1850, A pair of Audio Mirror 20 watt SET monoblocks, and a soon to be delivered Rawson clone Aleph J.
The speakers are Acoustic Horn Company AH300 horns driven by B&C DCX 50 compression drivers. These are mounted atop JBL L-200 cabinets with RCF L15P530 woofers installed.
Here's a link from the Acoustic Horn website showing a photo of my speakers back when I bought them about 18 months ago. Scroll down to "Tom from Denver" and that's my system then. The speakers still look the same. If you click on a photo, it will enlarge.

http://www.acoustichorn.com/testimonials/

I suspect I will wind up using all Parasound because the stuff is balanced, matched and has gain controls on all three pieces. I've read that there can be great advantages in using identical amplifiers in a biamp situation. Input on that theory would be appreciated.
Now about the title of my thread. There was no agenda driving the choice of words. I guess I was just responding to the seemingly prevalent bias against horns which has surfaced in some of our replies. I was a Zu owner previously and I could go back to those in a minute. Sean Casey cut his teeth on horn speakers and I think there is a horn characteristic in the delivery of Zu speakers. That shows up in their exceptional dynamics and broadcast nature.
Perhaps I should have titled the thread something like, "I like my horns. Do you like yours?". The true believer epithet is over the top, Glenn Beck caliber heckling which I would love never to encounter for the rest of my days but Atwater lifted the lid long ago and we, as a result, have become a nation of snipes. I hope this entry answers enough questions and permits us to get back to the topic of "WHY NOT HORNS?".
I am amused. Those that think every sound coming from horns sounds like air blowing through a horn have evidently never heard good ones.
If you want violins to sound like trumpets, get horns"

That statement shows a complete ignorance of what a good horn system sounds like.

The violins through mine are indeed violins. I attend the philharmonic on a regular basis and even though there is no way to completely reproduce that experience in your home, my system does a pretty good job of reproducing a symphony orchestra. I assure you it does not sound like a bunch of trumpets.

Ralph, do you wind your own field coils? I'm not sure he has them on his website yet as they may still be in development but I've listened to some that Jeffrey Jackson and Dave Slagle are developing and they do indeed sound very nice.

http://www.jeffreywjackson.com/

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Marty - I can see in theory that the problem you mention has potential to discourage. I don't personally play my system loud enough for the lagging woofer issue to compromise results. But I'm coming into geezerhood so I' may not serve as a useful bellwether in that regard. By the same token, my drivers are coaxial, yet I've never seen fit to hook up the tweeters. They just aren't needed as I don't hear anything up there.
Perhaps there is reason to question my being a useful example in any regard as I no longer hold that the best sound reproduction I can achieve should be my only goal at the expense of all else. I've reached a place in my life where I choose to balance convenience, aesthetics, cost and versatility against audiophile absolutes. Are others making those kind of choices?
" If at some point in the future I feel the need to put two refrigerator sized objects in my listening room, horns would definitely be on my list."

The size of most good full range horn designs is perhaps the biggest reason they are not more popular as I understand it. Most people do not have room for or even want these gigantic beasts in their rooms.

I asked a large Manhattan dealer rep why they carry no horn speakers among the myriad high end equipment on display in their shop and this was the reason related. Of course in big cities like NY, room is generally tighter for most.
My bass cabinets are 24 inches wide and 33 inches tall. The horn mouths are 18 inches outside diameter. Total height is 52 inches. You could hide my whole speaker behind a Magnapan 3.6.
Go measure your speakers. Certainly mine are not compact but neither are they outlandishly huge. Some people have space for them and some don't. I'm aware that horns do not have universal appeal. If they are a realistic possibility, I would urge you to investigate. If your wife won't allow it or you can't sit back far enough or your religion clearly states "Thou shall not horn", then you shouldn't tamper with your staus quo. If you have a curiosity, as I inexplicably did, then scratch yer damn itch. Take a flyer and see if you like the horn presentation the way a lot of others say they do.