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[Rob Timmerman]

Spec sheet optimism aside, EAW makes their simulation software available for free ( https://eaw.com/software/resolution-software/ ), and it includes their measurements for the RS123.  Here's a pair of screenshots of what that tool thinks you'll get when measured at equally spaced points on a 10m by 10m grid with the speaker 10m away from the measurement grid in free space - right around 119dB at 1m on axis for the woofer, with an extra 10dB of headroom for the horn.  The "max" screenshot shows the limits per bandpass, the "flat" screenshot shows the output with the box processing.

[charles strickland]

   Thank you Rob.  Did not know that software was available. think I'll have some fun with that.

[Chris Grimshaw]

Since I wrote this: https://www.prosoundweb.com/spec-wars-looking-inside-loudspeaker-spl-specifications/

Meyer created M-Noise, and AES standards have been updated. The link above is now slightly-less-relevant than it was, but shows some of the tricks manufacturers might use to inflate their numbers.


Chris

[Ivan Beaver]

Since I wrote this: https://www.prosoundweb.com/spec-wars-looking-inside-loudspeaker-spl-specifications/

Meyer created M-Noise, and AES standards have been updated. The link above is now slightly-less-relevant than it was, but shows some of the tricks manufacturers might use to inflate their numbers.


Chris

I wanted to put a link to that article, but could not find it in the limited time I searched.

It all depends on a number of different factors.

And as Art replied, the output will vary at different freq ranges, as with all loudspeakers.

Putting a simple SPL number doe not always give a correct answer as to the particular usefulness of a loudspeaker and what a particular person is looking for.

A sub for example might be able to produce a particular SPL at the upper end of it's response, but could be quite lower at the bottom end of the response (especially if the manufacturer has included a boost on the low end to get the freq response numbers).  So the actual SPL depends on what part of the range the user is looking for.  Deep bass DJ music or kick drum rock and roll, can produce very different usable SPLs out of the same subwoofer.

[Chris Grimshaw]

I think it's one of my better pieces of work, so I can usually find it pretty quickly. IIRC, though, the original publish date was 2017. Not sure why it says 2020.


Here's a worthwhile case study for subwoofers, exactly as you describe:

Active: https://products.electrovoice.com/binary/ELX200-18SP_BDL_en.pdf
Passive: https://products.electrovoice.com/binary/ELX200-18S_18__passive_subwoofer_Datasheet_51_en_69433183627.pdf

If you like 80Hz, you'll love that passive sub. Even the active version (which clearly uses a lot of EQ to re-shape the response) is falling off at 50Hz. I suppose it'd need too much LF boost to get down to the 40Hz port tuning frequency.


Chris

[John Schalk]

Spec sheet optimism aside, EAW makes their simulation software available for free ( https://eaw.com/software/resolution-software/ ), and it includes their measurements for the RS123. 

Rob,

I didn't know that EAW's resolution software was a free download.  According to their website it requires Win 10 or 11 which I don't happen to have access to just now.  I am interested in using the software if it has speaker data for their older JFX series, specifically the JFX 260i and 290i.  Would you happen to know if these two speakers are in the product database?

[Rob Timmerman]

Rob,

I didn't know that EAW's resolution software was a free download.  According to their website it requires Win 10 or 11 which I don't happen to have access to just now.  I am interested in using the software if it has speaker data for their older JFX series, specifically the JFX 260i and 290i.  Would you happen to know if these two speakers are in the product database?

Resolution works just fine in Wine for simulation, but the database does not appear to include the older JFX series

[John Schalk]

Resolution works just fine in Wine for simulation, but the database does not appear to include the older JFX series

Thanks for checking and thanks for the link to Wine, I was not aware of this option for running PC based software on a Mac.  Have you by chance tried running Ease Focus 3 under Wine?  That's probably the audio application that I would most like to have running on my audio MacBook Pro M1.

[Scott Bolt]

SPL is a SINGLE calculated figure based on a weighting curve across the frequency spectrum.  A weighting curves were designed to outline the frequencies that cause hearing damage (higher frequencies).  C and Z rating curves are better for handling a full range speaker .... but as others said..... 138db of crap sound isn't anything we want the audience to hear.

For a while (and still in some products) an even more useless figure of amplifier wattage was being used to let the purchaser determine what speaker was louder than the next.  As a result, speaker manufacturers starting putting amps in their speakers that were 10 times more powerful than the speaker could handle (but they limited the output).  This was completely useless.

SPL is MORE useful than watts, but as pointed out, it is still has tons of glaring holes in it.

The best you can do today is to get reviews from people that have had both speakers in question.  In general, you can assume that more expensive speakers will get louder and stay composed at louder levels than a less expensive speaker.

An Alto speaker might make decent sound quality at lower volumes, but is greatly limited in how loud it can get before it quits sounding good where an RCF TT will sound great an any volume it can achieve even when in hard limit, and it can achieve many times the useful SPL of the Alto (and is priced accordingly).

The more interesting comparisons come between the speakers in the same price range and market.  For this, it has been my experience that you just have to hear them in context to know.  None of these numbers are going to be of any help.

[duane massey]

Scott is dead on. Numbers can lie, your ears don't (unless you're an old guy like me...)

[ProSoundWeb Community]