Wilson's Chronosonic XVX loudspeaker over 3/4 of a million US dollars

My question was meant to be aimed at why it took so very long for Dave W to come to the realization that the old tweeter was such a weak part of his design. IOW, what precipitated the change ( for the better) after all those years?

Well,l I can't speak for any successful speaker maker, at all, but my guess is that his personal tastes changed, much like mine have.

Wilson Sr. always chose tweeters based on sound alone.  He liked bass, he liked extreme imaging. He liked the color in the Focal metal domes.

It is hard to sell a high end speaker that sounds like every other. That means, truly neutral speakers are a hard sell. Perhaps the Wilson brand feels it's so powerful that it is OK to be a neutral speaker?

Best,

E

As for the Focal tweeter, I've experimented with it a little.  Not Wilsons, but in Focals.

I think Wilson did two things which worked really well.  Surrounded it by felt, and put a custom rear chamber on it, which I believe extended the low end down, making it play a larger part in the speaker response.

Best,

E

The early Wilson Focal inverted dome Tweeter
was shot loaded and Tube trapped
--this helped I gather to smooth it out. I sorta like the attack and "snap"
of it in my Watt 3’s at the time.

Best,

D