Adire Extremis 6.8 Questions

Ok I am trying to get going towards improved interior sound. I think I'm gonna do the setup suggested a while back with Tweeters/Midranges/Midbass/Subs. Concentration is gonna be the Hi's/Mid's for now. Subs are gonna be put on hold, the L5s are good enough to keep me happy until I got a hell a lot for higher end.

Basically I am looking at the Adire Extremis 6.8 Midbass Drivers for the midbass. 100wRMS and it has an 8 ohm impedance. Obv I'm not gonna look at pushing it that hard, but I want a decent setup. Alto was suggested there, and to be honest, I'd like to, but convenience is necessary. Right now getting Adire product lines is hard enough(over an hour drive to the nearest dealer, which has no demos.) Now according to Stephen on here the enclosure for it will matter. I tried to ask him what would be best. Personally I'd like to stick with sealed. In which case, how do I find out how much airspace would be needed? That leads me to the next question, location. I got 6x9s in the back that will get yanked, knowing this is kinda midbass, I was wondering, if I rebuilt the panel for it and designed a sealed compartment in the holes, would that work fine? How much of an advantage would a kick panel have over this spot? Remember, I got VERY little floor room. I'm also going to look at new door panels, if they'll work better there than the rear deck I'd be content on that. Just wanting to get an idea. The kick panel is a concern for me since there is little floor room in this Monte Carlo. Plus I'd KINDA like to put the tweeters/midrange drivers up on the dash or something. Basically I'm just getting an idea of location/amount of custom work I'll put in to get this in optimal/feasible positions in the car. I want very little to no back fill. Thanks for any help!

Current List:

Obviously amps are still open, I want to know what I am going to need to power first. Then I'll look at best fit for powering. :)

Check out the sticky thread above about advanced front speaker setups.  It should give you a direction to go with based on your skills and commitment.  Once you figure out what you want to do, then we can help you with choosing the right speakers and how to install them.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Steven Kephart

Adire Audio

I would not waste my money on the Morel Supreme tweeters in a car.  Indeed, I will never again waste my money on them for any use.  They are fine tweeters, but way overpriced and entirely too fickle and no clear benefit to justify their over-the-top price, IMO.  Any detail or response extension improvements they may claim to offer over standard tweets would be lost in a car's interior anyway, so you are unlikely to hear that extra $100 no matter what you do.  Plus since they are so picky the crossover can be a bitch to get right.  Go for a much less critical tweeter in a car.  I have never heard the Usher dome mid so cannot comment on it except to recommend that you listen to them before you install them.  Do you like the sound of dome mids?  I do not, so maybe this is just my bias showing.  IMO a much better match to the excellent Extremis driver would be the CSS WR125.

Or just run the Extremis as a midrange as well.  That will GREATLY simplify the crossover design as well as installation.   And to be honest, the modest increases the added midrange would provide would be lost in the car environment as well IMO.  Well maybe except for the increased output, but then I've never heard a two-way set that couldn't get loud enough to damage your hearing anyway.  So that's just adding more potential to do harm.  In vehicles where space is limited I prefer K.I.S.S.

Steven Kephart

Adire Audio

I absolutely agree, Steven.  I am loving the vocal characteristics of the Extremis more and more in the 2-ways I built with them (crossed at about 3KHz.)  The Extremis is one of the most outstanding drivers I have heard in many years, and I am liking them a lot more than I like my much more expensive Revelators.  I know of at least one person using a single Extremis in his car as a SUBWOOFER ported at 40Hz, and the amount of output is pretty damn amazing.

But back to the question at hand, a 2-way in a car with an Extremis crossed at about 3-4KHz to a good car audio soft dome would be a great component set... assuming one has the mounting depth for the woofer.  By the way, Mr. Kephart, what's the status of the rumored 4-ohm car-audio Extremis or is that just an unconfirmed rumor?

It's not a rumor, there are actually prototypes out there.  But to be honest, I have no idea on when they will be available.  And thanks for your kind words about the Extremis.  It's funny because on another forum we have a guy (who has never heard or played with them BTW) claiming that they are just mediocre speakers.  I think he's basing it on those nearfield measurements that showed up a while ago.  Anyway it's good to hear feedback from someone with your experience and knowledge. 

Steven Kephart

Adire Audio

Hmm, Jon Marsh?    If so I'm not surprised.  I'm not just puffing about how nice I think they sound.  If I didn't like them I wouldn't say anything!

No, the starter of this thread: http://www.caraudioforum.com/vbb3/showthread.php?t=225671  But he's basing his position on Marsh's measurements I believe.  BTW, you have mail.

Steven Kephart

Adire Audio