Hybrid Audio Technologies Legatia SE - Manual (Page 10)

Legatia SE User’s Manual ©Hybrid Audio Technologies Page 10 of 73
will also significantly improve the final installation, no matter what type of baffle and enclosure
configuration is chosen.
Dipole Applications
While infinite baffle or resistive sealed enclosures are highly recommended for this driver, you might
find that in the rare instance that the Legatia SE drivers can be placed in a completely open baffle, i.e.
dipole. A word of caution: Legatia SE drivers mounted in an open baffle have to move more air than
a similar Legatia SE driver mounted in a resistive sealed enclosure, or infinitely baffled, just simply for
the fact that there’s a progressive acoustic short circuit between front and back waves below the
speaker’s resonance frequency (Fs) in the open baffle configuration. Great care must be taken in this
instance, because there is no acoustic compliance afforded in a dipole configuration, and the speaker
will reach its mechanical limits much quicker (and will net increased distortion). However, in certain
instances, a dipole-style midrange may work well in a vehicular installation, in that radiation from the
rear of the baffle, having undergone enough phase shift as it comes around to the front, adds to the
total sound at off-axis angles. Of great importance in the dipole midrange configuration is the setting
up of crossovers and weighing the negative effects of distortion of elevated amplitude levels.