Possible SoundSplinter 18" driver in the works

[Darren]

Hi guys,

Not sure if this has been brought up here yet or not but SoundSplinter has an 18" driver in the works and the price should be reasonable considering it's displacement. Should be very interesting. I'll see if I can get him to post about it's design here.

[soundsplinter]

Way to put me on the spot Darren!

At this point I can't reliably gauge the leadtime, and as such I don't necessarily want to get too involved in hypin' up this driver or making any firm statements, 'less I end up with heaps of people lustin' after 'em and having to wait longer than they'd like, or only to find out that certain things have changed and the drivers are not what they thought they would be. Though I suppose any publicity is good publicity, and since you got the ball rolling...

I'll just reiterate what I've stated at our new home theater forum over at the Home Theater Shack about the up and comin' 18" offering from SoundSplinter.

To be introduced within our Premium Series line of drivers, the RL-p18 will be based of the same TC9 topology as the rest of our RL-p's. This offering is in the works in no small part due to the interest expressed by IB enthusiasts, so I can only hope it will live up to (and hopefully exceed) your expectations!

The primary upgrades for the RL-p18 will be the utilization of a wider diameter dual spider suspension and a tall high-roll surround in order to accomodate improved excursion capability over the relatively smaller RL-p series drivers. Shooting for an efficient driver with 90 dB sensitivity or greater, a Q just under 0.5, and improved excursion as noted. Cosmetically, it will follow in the likes of its smaller brothers with the same style brushed black annodized aluminum cone, rubber surround, and cast steel basket. The motor depth may increase on account of an additional 0.25" - 0.5" of magnet, which may need to be implemented on account of the added excursion capability.

Of course, given that we are still working through the prototype phase, these are preliminary statements and are subject to change.

If you had to press me for an ETA - I would have to state that as we haven't even begun to source or round up all of the quantity parts we need for retail production, you'll be waiting until the end of the year and perhaps even into early 2007 before these take off and hit our website. Once we have a finalized prototype in hand, it will be much easier to provide a tighter leadtime estimate... so for now, don't hold your breath! ;D

[jeffp]

Well that should get the IB and Sonotube guys both excited. I certainly love the rlp15's i have today so I would expect nothing less from the 18's.

Jeff