changing faceplate of tweeter?

XC-C30 · 04-02-2008, 10:22 PM

Hi,

It's been a long time since I've been here, but now it's time again to slowly gather new components that should be built in the upcoming car.

I got a small question to our fellow SQ-freaks (Red, scott, durwood,... I'm sure you could give me an answer).

Does it drasticaly affect the sound and parameters if I change the (plastic) faceplate from the peerless HDS tweeter to cupper or plexi? I want them to match with the theme of the car which is gonna be either a smooth orange or blue glow(that's why plexi is an option, because I would be putting an LED in each tweeter pod, behind the magnet, so it's glowing through the plexi), or cupper trim throughout the vehicle.

Grtz,

Xenia

AWehmeyer · 04-03-2008, 06:19 AM

That depends on what the tweeter faceplate is designed to do. If it's simply protection from fingers, changing it won't be a problem. If the faceplate includes a small disc placed very close to the center of the dome--the disc may have a small hole in the center, then changing it may be a big problem. If it's the little disc, it's designed to reflect some of the sound back to the dome which will boost some frequencies and attenuate others. The frequencies affected depend on the size of the disc and its diameter. If it's one of those, you'd have to replicate it precisely to have the same frequency response.

XC-C30 · 04-03-2008, 11:07 AM

Problem is I don't know. That's why I asked if it would affect that specific tweeter. Tearing it apart to see if it's only there for protection would be risky if it's not.....

scott_fx · 04-03-2008, 02:46 PM

i think there is a bit of a 'wave guide' built into that tweeter faceplate. one thing you can try is to remove it and pull a mold of it. then you can get some clear acrylic resin and cast the new piece. It isn't hard to do at all.

i've used this with great results for making molds:
http://www.smoothonsecure.com/store/...594d30127efb10

and then all you need is the clear acrylic resin and you'll have a clear replica.

i'm not sure about the clear smooth on resin but last time i checked into it it was very expensive. I used a different product and had great results. you can also buy tint for the clear if you want to go that route.
this is what i used:
http://www.pearlpaint.com/shop_detai...sku~967495.htm

boomintrac · 04-03-2008, 02:49 PM

Bro I would toss an e-mail to peerless just to be on the safe side, I looked at a pic of the Tweet and it doesn't look like it would be very difficult to make an exact replica of the piece in question. The difference in hardness, type, and texture of plastic used may alter the sound but I don't know enough about large format tweeters to say for sure.
Aron