Descartes II

After the Descartes (I), his first masterpiece, Dennis Frank developed the Descartes II. His goal was to produce a loudspeaker with an extremely high efficiency. For this the Alcone AC 15 with 94 dB (2.83V/1m) is just the right thing.

The two Alcone AC 6.5 HE also reach the required efficiency. Since this driver does an excellent job in a speaker like the Pascal, it was the natural choice for the Descartes II.

There was still the question which bass driver should be used: sure, there are quite a few that have an efficiency of 94 dB, but then the cabinet might get too big or there is not enough low bass. Dennis Frank chose a different way. The bass had to be active. Two Alcone AC 8 HE are the perfect solution.

The Descartes II shows the following characteristics: extremely clean bass excellent bass peak handling well balanced sound and exemplary three-dimensionality exceptional transparency extremely low bass Technical data: Masse (HxWxD): 1345 x 258 x 630 mm power handling: 140 / 250 W continuous/programme with active bass 80/160 Watt continuous/programme frequency response: adjustable-20 000 Hz (-8dB) crossover frequencies: 150 and 2200 Hz average SPL: 93 dB (2.83V/1m) impedance: 4 Ohm

The Alcone Descartes II kit contains: 1 x Alcone AC 15 tweeter 2 x Alcone AC 6.5 HE midrange / bass drivers, 8 Ohm 2 x Alcone AC 8 HE bass drivers, 8 Ohm 1 x subwoofer module Mivoc AM 80 1 x pair gold plated brass binding posts 1/2 x mat nap foam N30 3 x bags damping material for upper chamber 2 x bags damping material for lower chamber 1 x crossover, see below 28 x PAN screws 4x20 for drivers foam sealing tape for drivers 6 m cable for internal wiring 2x2.5 mm2) description and building instruction The crossover consists of: 5.6 mH core coil 0.82 mH air core coil, 1.4 mm 0.15 mH air core coil, 1 mm 0.27 mH baked varnish coil, 0.9 mm 100 μF + 2x 82 μF ELCO non-etched 2x Mundorf MKP capacitors 15 μF / 400 V Mundorf MKP capacitor 6.8 μF / 400 V Mundorf MKP capacitor 4.7 μF / 400 V MOX10 resistor 1 Ohm

- not available

If you prefer to mount the crossover components on a universal PCB instead on wood:
PCB, non tin plated, Order No. I-8805002,     Price   EUR 11,41 excl. VAT: € 9.59 / $ 11.02

Building Instruction

Descartes II, high-end version with digital signal processor

The Descartes II is available with a digital signal processor and two power amplifiers (one for each subwoofer channel).

The DSP plate amplifier provides:

• 2x 90 Watt RMS into 4 Ohm
• or 180 Watt RMS into 8 Ohm (bridged)
• The possibility to adapt the amplifier to the loudspeaker or subwoofer.
• In addition the possibility to tune the DSP according to room conditions.
• We would like to help you tuning the signal processors for your room.
• Or we delivered them tuned for your room.

Additional information on digital signal processors (DSP): what is a DSP?, Tuning according to room conditions and Examples Of DSP use (e.g. in subwoofers).

In addition we deliver for the mid speaker and the tweeter a highend passive crossover.

The crossover consists of:

• 5.6 mH air core coil, 1.4 mm
• 0.82 mH cfc14 copper foil coil
• 0.15 mH cfc16 copper foil coil
• 0.27 mH baked varnish coil, 0.9 mm
• 100 μF + 1x 82 μF ELCO non-etched and
      82 μF MKP in parallel
• 1x Mundorf MKP capacitor 15 μF / 400 V (bass driver)
• Mundorf MCAP Supreme capacitor 6.8 μF / 400 V
• Mundorf MCAP Supreme capacitor 15 μF / 400 V
• Mundorf MKP capacitor 4.7 μF / 400 V
• MOX10 resistor 1 Ohm

For internal wiring 6 metres of Inakustik Premium Silver (silver plated) with 2x2.5 mm2 are included.

Price per high-end speaker without cabinet - not available

If you prefer to mount the crossover components on a universal PCB instead on wood we recommend 2 PCB's per speaker:
PCB, partly non tin plated, Order No. I-8805002,     Price   EUR 11,41 excl. VAT: € 9.59 / $ 11.02

Building Instruction
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