I have made a (Tappered Quarter Wave) cabinet using Raven R2.0/PHY 12" long before the appearing of Tonian's version. Impressive at both low & high freq but the feeling was missing. It seems like the ribbon cannot intergreated with the 12" paper cone. Very different tone, projection & dispersion window. So, I've trade it with the Ocellia Caliope 0.3 Silver but I've witness that the 12" PHY cone, robs the illumination of the midrange and whatever the changes of my system, it was impossible to retain the open & clear mids that I've previously have with Proac Response 5, no matter what amp or source was in the chain.
Then I've auditioned the top of the range Tonian's and I've figured out that this dark personality is a choise by the PHY driver designer
*(It is my estimation that adding an OTL may offers some light to the 12" PHY cones but they are power limits of 25watts if I recall right).
*(Some reported great results by using an Open Baffle with PHY but after spending so much effort to my own cabinetry I didn't have the courage to just throw them at the fireplace)
so, I decide to take a different path in order to find this losted transparency at the midrange.
My first try was the DUO OMEGA but the projection was so much of another planet than my usual listening habits (it was endlessly shooting to my ears every little nuance) that was very annoying. I ended up using a Carfrae LBH with Lowther PM6A Ticonal & integral 2x10" active subwoofers and have added the SEAS Exotic T35 tweeter. By this post I want to stress the point of the strictly personal perception about what is pure or more importantly what satisfies our quest. Some are after energy & resolution while others prefer a calmer & perhaps less demanding aproach to fulfill their pleasure. I'm not a PHY fan but neither I can stand the ruthless attack of the DUO's (although there are some great speakers that integrade successfuly a compressor driver like those which using the Altec 604) and I don't think that everyone can take the Lowther in a Horn path that is very painfull in tuning. May I suggest to ask Johnk about some help.
