Planar Magnetic Loudspeakers and Ribbon Tweeters

Planar magnetic drivers, ribbon tweeters and other dynamic speakers have a number advantages. Their large diaphragms require only the slightest amount of movement (excursion) and allow them to create the same sound as traditional speakers.

They also have a dipolar radiation pattern that means they radiate equally to the rear and front of the speaker.

High-Resolution Sound

Ribbon and planar magnetic speakers are famous for their ability to create precise, clear sound. They are known for their high-resolution and reveal subtle nuance in the music that other drivers can't reproduce or show.

In addition to their remarkable precision, ribbon and planar drivers have superior soundstages which allows them to recreate an expansive soundstage and exceptional clarity. Audiophiles as well as home theater enthusiasts and audiophiles will find them be a great choice.

Planar and ribbon drivers are distinguished by their dipole pattern. This pattern emits equal amounts of energy in the front and back, with an inverted phase, creating an organic soundstage. This, combined with their broad dispersion, makes them suitable for large spaces, where they can fill the room with a an expansive and natural soundstage without producing unnatural reflections off the walls and furniture.

Planar magnetic drivers also have a rapid response time, which allows them reproduce transients with more precision and speed than traditional cone drivers. This produces a clear and clear sound even at extremely high frequencies.

Another advantage of planar magnetic drivers is their low distortion. This is due to the fact that they do not employ a voice coil, but instead an electrostatic field. This allows the diaphragms move without causing vibrations that can cause distortion.

In addition, the gap between the magnets in a planar driver is bigger than the gap in a conventional cone speaker. This results in a better frequency response and less distortion at low amplitudes, and still provides good bass performance.

Despite their many advantages, planar magnetic speakers have a few limitations to take into consideration. They can be expensive and require more power to other kinds of speakers. Also, magnetic planar they can be large and difficult to fit into some rooms. They are also sensitive to the acoustics in the room and require a thorough treatment of the room to get the best planar headphones performance. There are methods to reduce the problems. For example, you can add an attenuation resistance (provided with speakers) and put it in the attenuation setting. You can also apply a variety of room treatments.

Wide Dispersion

Planar magnetic speakers also produce sound by controlling the flow of electrical currents through wires that are suspended between magnets. They vibrate a flat membrane directly, not using an electrostatic charge. This gives them an increased surface area and greater precision. This allows them to be integrated into smaller and more affordable speakers and headsets than electrostatic models.

In addition to providing large dispersion, they also deliver superior imaging and clarity of soundstage, especially in the higher frequencies where they excel. This is a huge advantage for audiophiles who enjoy listening to their movies or music in a large living room or other open space.

Planar drivers can also provide an extremely deep bass since they can be augmented with boxed subwoofers attached to or separated from the membrane-like ribbon. This is in contrast to traditional cone-type speaker woofers which are typically located at the bottom of the cabinet, which is a place that cannot reproduce bass frequencies because of the physical constraints of the woofer enclosure.

A planar driver has a low distortion rate, which is directly related to the size and travel of the diaphragm. In the end, a planar speaker can produce a huge volume of sound with minimal distortion, which is why it can produce such clear and detailed reproduction.

Dynamic drivers in standard speakers and headphone typically exhibit significant distortion when they are driven to their maximum excursion limits. As a result, dynamic drivers typically produce a boomy or hollow sound.

Planar magnetic drivers are extremely efficient. They are less energy-intensive to drive, which results in a reduced energy consumption and a less negative impact on the environment. Furthermore, their diaphragms typically made of lighter materials than conventional speakers, which in turn reduces the amount of energy required to propel them to produce a given sound pressure.

Many audiophiles have heard of planar/ribbon speakers, such as those made by Magnepan Infinity and Apogee Acoustics. However, a new brand is now available. New planar loudspeakers by manufacturers like Clarisys Audio and Diptyque, for example, incorporate the latest advancements in ribbon technology.

Low Distortion

Planar magnetic speakers have very low distortion because they don't employ a traditional cone or dome-shaped diaphragm. This is due to their unique design which eliminates voice coil inductance that is associated with dynamic driver speakers. (See U.S. patent 6,353,560). This results in the diaphragm never being out of phase with its surroundings magnetic field, resulting in an unchanging output level. Most often, distortion occurs when waveforms with large amplitudes are reproduced. With a single-ended magnetic planar driver, distortion is virtually absent at frequencies above the bass.

In addition to their low distortion and low distortion, planar magnetic planar loudspeakers provide extremely high efficiency. This enables the drive to operate with a lesser amount of power than is normally required for other speakers. This means lower costs of ownership and lower energy consumption.

Planar magnetic drivers also have a significantly lower distortion than traditional dynamic speakers and even less than electrostatic speakers. This is due to the fact that a planar magnet driver's flat diaphragm features a conductor trace that allows it react to magnetic fields created on either side.

The two magnets need to be carefully positioned to ensure that the voice element is optimally located within the magnetic field at all times. This is what allows for the extremely linear performance of planar magnetic drivers in all frequencies above the bass.

Planar magnetic drivers come with a myriad of other advantages however the most significant is that they can be built as either dipoles (radiating in opposite phases and equally in front and behind the speaker, similar to an ESL) or Monopoles (radiating in the direction of forward similar to traditional dynamic speakers). This permits a wide range of designs, particularly when used with a ribbon-tweeter.

There are a myriad of planar magnetic loudspeakers on the market in the present, from companies like Hifiman Dan Clark Audeze and Fostex. Each company has its own signature sound that is a result of their unique driver configurations and other technological innovations. The commonality among these speakers is their astonishing quality, dynamic, and a controlled directionality.

High Power Handling

Planar magnetic speakers can handle a lot more power than traditional moving coil dynamic drivers, without the audible strain and stress that they can cause. The "voice coil" is not squeezed into the tiny gap between baskets and cones like in traditional dynamic drivers. Instead it is spread out over an area larger. This gives the voice-coil an increased surface area to disperse any heat.

Another reason why planar magnetic drivers can handle so much power is that they have such a low mass as compared to conventional drivers. Dynamic drivers feature thick, heavy diaphragms which are orders of magnitude thicker and heavier than the ultra-light diaphragms found in planar magnetic drive. Because of their high mass, conventional diaphragms require a greater amount of force to move back and forth (a measure known as excursion) to create an equal amount of sound pressure.

They can't be driven nearly as effectively as a planar magnetic driver, as the voice coil will start to produce significant distortion. Therefore, it is essential to purchase loudspeakers rated for the amplifier you plan to use.

The high excursion of a planar magnetic driver enables it to generate a much wider soundstage than conventional drivers. This is because the entire diaphragm vibrates to create an even, flat wavefront instead of the more centered spherical wavefront found in traditional drivers. This larger soundstage improves the precision and detail of the speakers and allows them to reproduce subtle nuances and complex sounds.

The downside to the superior power handling of planar magnetic drivers is that they tend to be more expensive to make and require stronger amplifiers in order to operate at maximum capacity. They can be large and heavy, making it difficult to install them in certain areas. They also have a limited bass response, so you may have to add a subwoofer your system to get a satisfying result at lower frequencies.