Ribbon tweeters

[dannyarcher]

As part of my speaker hunt last year, I happened to listened to a speaker which I didn't know anything about.
It was a Quad speaker (don't remember the model) and I was told that this brand is a league above the rest and it has a ribbon tweeter.

I didn't even know what that was except for the fact that it looked different (rectangular shape with perforations) from the regular tweeters.
The sound that I heard from this was heavenly. I haven't heard this level of smoothness from a speaker before (in the limited few that I have auditioned!)

Is the mellifluous sound, a quality of the ribbon tweeter? Or, is it the Quad speaker itself?
What has been your experience with speakers with ribbon tweeters? Are they really that good?

 

[alpha1]

Quads are in general known to have extremely sweet and smooth high end.
They have a midrangey sound without losing out on the high frequencies.

 

[arunkvivek]

I owned Elac BS-243. They have sparkle and fast transitions. So the clarity increases multifold! I felt it was too bright and overwhelming for me. But my dad loved them. They did not beam so there was overall experience was good even away from listening position. Need a careful pairing of amp, I'd say!

 

[Zeusgoddin]

(6.5” (179mm) aluminum alloy diaphragm + 107 x 107mm Planar silk diaphragm) Vs (6.5 inch Aluminum Cone Underhung Design Mid-Woofer + Horn Loaded Ribbon Tweeter)
Which one is the better bookshelf speaker?

 

[DB1989]

I owned Elac BS-243. They have sparkle and fast transitions. So the clarity increases multifold! I felt it was too bright and overwhelming for me. But my dad loved them. They did not beam so there was overall experience was good even away from listening position. Need a careful pairing of amp, I'd say!

That's probably because his sensitivity towards treble has gone down due to age. Just harks to the fact that there's a speaker out there for everybody and there's no such thing as the best speakers per se!

 

[Silencer]

Just harks to the fact that there's a speaker out there for everybody and there's no such thing as the best speakers per se!​

Word. .

 

[aljojohn]

Aurum Cantus is making ribbon tweeters for most eurupeon brands, but their own speakers are not that famous.

 

[Hari Iyer]

I would prefer a compression drivers over a ribbon tweeter. RT always sounded shrill for my ears. Again that's me.