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Building Passive crossovers

Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=21702
Printed Date: May 15, 2025 at 11:41 AM


Topic: Building Passive crossovers

Posted By: tray262
Subject: Building Passive crossovers
Date Posted: November 20, 2003 at 9:31 AM

I was hoping to someone chould explain the process of building a passive crossover. And explaing the Pros and cons. Thanks.



Replies:

Posted By: EzekialPhoenix
Date Posted: November 20, 2003 at 9:42 AM
Check this page out: https://web.njit.edu/~cas1383/proj/main/  Go to the bottom

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Posted By: auex
Date Posted: November 20, 2003 at 5:32 PM
Pro, you have complete control of crossover points.

Cons, expensive, confusing, can get very large, and generally wastes upto 50 percent of the power put into them.

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Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: November 20, 2003 at 6:03 PM

I've been building passive Xovers for many years.  Here's a few other pro/cons:

PRO: Generally a warmer, more natural sound can be achieved; driver inefficiencies can be corrected; complex setups can be easily created (like line arrays or multiple tweeters, etc) without multiple amps; SQ can be created that is far superior to that found in most electronic xovers; any Xover slope or Xover point can be acheived (not just factory pre-sets); does not require 12V power or remote turn-on...

CONS: You REALLY have to know what you're doing to get it right; adjusting Xover points or slopes requires removing and replacing components; can add noise or harshness if low-quality components are used; the Xover can be the limiting factor in system power handling; cannot easily swap drivers or setups without also physically re-buildig the Xover...

That being said, I prefer the sound of passive Xovers and use them in my own setups.  The notion that they can rob 50% of amplifier power is a bit extreme, but they do use some energy that would otherwise be available for the drivers.  Usually about 2% for a properly built Xover network, in my experience.

Get the Loudspeaker Cookbook for a great introduction to designing and building crossovers.






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