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After my disappointments with the Dayton DA215 and the DS215, I need to purge their bass from my mind. The best way to erase their imprint is the Seas U22REX/P-SL. This is the 8″ woofer that meets my expectations of what bass should sound like. Therefore, she serves as my reference. I loaded her into a 35 liters bass reflex tuned with a PVC tube of 3″ in diameter, cut to a length of 7-1/2″. This gives an Fb of about 41Hz. What attracted me to this woofer is my previous experience with her slightly smaller sister, the 7″ U18RNX/P. I was hugely impressed by her responsiveness so I committed on this U22REX hoping that she will share the same characteristics.
As before, a 10.0mH iron core inductor is used as a Low Pass. The extension of the U22REX is quite smooth, so there’s no need for additional response correction.
This woofer is “fast”. Her attack is instantaneous. So is the braking. This translates to a highly responsive bass. The beat starts and stops cleanly. No “thud” at the end of the bass notes that I find so distracting in the Dayton DA215 and the DS215. You can hear the quality of the bass in Donna Summer’s People, People. The bass clarity, transient, decay are extraordinary. For texture, it’s Stop, Look and Listen. The “Brrr” in the bass can be clearly heard. Another track is Woman. Notice how the bass draws you in. In the middle of the track, there’s a bass solo which is simply captivating.
The Seas U22REX/P-SL is what all woofers should emulate. Her responsiveness, clarity and articulation are incredible. At $190, she’s not cheap but she’s worth every penny. There are drivers around the same price, like the Satori MW16P but she’s not at the same level as this Seas U22REX. Frankly, I think that Satori is over-hyped and over-priced. Unless otherwise stated, all measurements were made in Full Space (4pi). Mic at 36 ins, tweeter axis. Impulse Window=5ms. No smoothing applied. |
January 31, 2024HIFI DRIVERS, Projects
