Changes at Mach 5

[mrogowski]

Hi Everyone,

Forgive the plug, but I figured what I have to say may be worth its white space to a few of you.

We have decided to re-release the FTW-21 and offer up a pre-order price of $440 each (the price of a UXL-18) with a $200 deposit per driver. Tell me the unit(s) will be used for IB and I will customize the motor for a Qt close to the desired 0.7 for you.

www.istonline.ca/mach5_ftw_21.html


Also, a new IXL-18 will be released specifically for IB configurations. Simply dubbed the IXL-IB, this unit will have the same great characteristics the original IXL-18 had, but tailored for your environment. I intend to keep this unit affordable for all.

Thank you for the bandwidth.
Best,
Mark

PS. Thomas, shoot me an Email....

[stxrc]

That is great news Mark. Good luck!

[mrogowski]

Thank you kind sir

[FOH]

This is fantastic, I always think highly of a mfr taking the time to find the enthusiasts and interact. So thank you for that.

I appreciate the heads up, this is good news. More players on the scene is always better for all involved.

Do you have an ETA on the IB config'd 21, or the similar 18?

Also, not ever have owned any of your offerings, I'm not familiar with your design choices. I am aware of many owners quite happy with their purchase, but a couple more questions. I'm interested in the physical limitations, the behavior between Xmax and up to and at Xmech. Will these be hard bottom, soft bottom designs? Are they magnetically limited, suspension limited, etc.?

Again, thank you for taking the time to post, and best of luck with your new products.

[mrogowski]

In all honesty, I always feel uncomfortable going on a forum and posting in a "promotional" fashion like this. I feel it is unfair to the forum owner/operator.

So to answer your questions, a close-off date for the pre-order has not yet been set, and is dependent on the number ordered.

Limitations are as follows: Xmax is 34mm one way; Xmech is 45mm; the physical "limitation" occurs when the spider hits the rear plate of the basket. If the coil ever hits the back plate, the former keeps its shape and will not bend because it is not metal. "Raw" tests performed by a third party showed that the FTW can withstand 3700 watts of power before signs of serious stress.

Hope this helps,
Mark

[ThomasW]

Apr 12, 2013 17:16:45 GMT -7 mrogowski said:

In all honesty, I always feel uncomfortable going on a forum and posting in a "promotional" fashion like this. I feel it is unfair to the forum owner/operator.

I have no problem with informational threads like this, how else would we know about product development/availability?

[mrogowski]

Apr 13, 2013 6:40:51 GMT -7 ThomasW said:

I have no problem with informational threads like this, how else would we know about product development/availability?

I see. So long as I have your blessing I'm cool with it

Many people have been Emailing asking what the shipping costs would be. I crunched the numbers and decided that, for this pre-order only, there would be a flat shipping fee of $50 per driver, which means that Mach 5 will cover the rest. This is for Canada and lower 48 only.

Best,
m

[FOH]

Mark, I appreciate the quick response.

I've got no say so, but regarding the Q&A here, forum style, no problem on this end

As Thomas stated, this is the ideal manner for us to get a better grasp on the product's characteristics, and the company's vision.


I know several mfrs quite active in forum Q&A in their respective offerings. Here at the Cult, I'm sure there's been a handful for sure, I remember discussions with Scott from Fi, John from AE, and perhaps Thigpen and others. I know elsewhere Seaton has discussed his Eminence based designs. Kevin Haskins was quite transparent and forthright regarding all his designs and subsequent Maelstrom flux-demod shorting ring adhesion problems, he experienced thru his build house, ... that eventually ruined his operation.


There's so few actual driver mfrs, or designers out there. So anytime one does take the time to participate here in our specialized area of interest in sub-woofing, it certainly is a welcome addition.


Seemingly, everyone here begins with "what driver do I use". There have been times in the recent past whereby there were no IB specific drivers available, that we could recommend. One can employ an un-necessarily stronger small box driver, but it can be a waste of money.


Anyone can employ a set of TC Sounds LMS5400 into an IB sub system. But all that incredible motor force* is wasted. The linearized inductance across the entire stroke is nice and tidy, but all that magnetic capability isn't needed.
*(for those not familiar, the LMS has ample magnetic design to perform well in the smallest of boxes, .. no bigger than needed to house the driver.)


So anytime a mfr brings a viable new design to the market, it can easily have an enormous impact because of the scarcity of IB drivers. Certainly, the results remain to be seen regarding the IB driver. However, your existing drivers have an outstanding reputation within the DIY community, so all is promising.

Apr 12, 2013 17:16:45 GMT -7 mrogowski said:

tests performed by a third party showed that the FTW can withstand 3700 watts of power before signs of serious stress.

3.7kw is impressive at any subwoofer freq, but without the other parameters, that figure can't be utilized. Unique to IB designs, we're not that focused on thermal capability of a particular design. We're merely interested in it's bottoming characteristics, @xpower@xfreq.


Often individuals inquire about 20hz, but 10hz is a more reliable metric. The last I checked, Fi rates their IB specific IB-3 drives at 550w@20hz. IMO, this isn't very helpful for HT applications. There's significant energy below 20hz,..significant enough to hard bottom and damage the VC/former. HT enthusiasts (also electronic music devotees) are better off considering 10hz signals, and how much a stimulus at 10hz

Apr 12, 2013 17:16:45 GMT -7 mrogowski said:

Limitations are as follows: Xmax is 34mm one way; Xmech is 45mm; the physical limitation occurs when the spider hits the rear plate of the basket. If the coil ever hits the back plate, the former keeps its shape and will not bend because it is not metal.

Ok, thanks.

As you know, it always interesting to learn a particular drivers characteristics at it's limits. It's nice to hear the former won't suffer catastrophic failure encountering the back plate. The best are some of the pro designs, that are magnetically designed to never encounter any physical limitations,..but a those T/S parameters don't work for the bottom octaves of HT.


Again, thanks for stopping by, and I hope these new offerings are a success. I'm interested in finding a way to experiment with some. I don't need them, but the 21's would be fun

[mrogowski]

Surprisingly, I found the 21's fun to build. Not sure why; possibly because it was not a 'normal' size

Lugging those things around is a different story though. Pulling them off the magnetizer is always a joy....

[stxrc]

Apr 13, 2013 18:03:29 GMT -7 mrogowski said:

Surprisingly, I found the 21's fun to build. Not sure why; possibly because it was not a 'normal' size

Lugging those things around is a different story though. Pulling them off the magnetizer is always a joy....

I think I know what you mean ;D. My father and I ended up with some serious low back strain after mounting those monsters in the baffles. Despite that we had some fun and enjoyed the experience.

Thanks guys for keeping the conversation going and sharing technical info with us.

[FOH]

I'll bet they would be somewhat unwieldy, but quite likely a huge payoff once in place.

[mrogowski]

Hi folks,

With the FTW pre-order now over, any of you who jumped on board, please Email me. I need to know who wants a high Qt version of them.

Thanks,
Mark