Напольная акустика — YG Acoustics CARMEL 3

The Carmel 3 is the smallest floorstanding loudspeaker in YG Acoustics' Reference range, built in the company's workshop in Arvada, Colorado, from aerospace-grade aluminium machined in-house. It is the third generation of the Carmel, a two-way tower whose earlier versions used modified Scan-Speak drivers before YG moved to its own. Compared with the Carmel 2, it brings a new hybrid Lattice tweeter and a revised crossover, drawing on technology from YG's larger XV, Sonja and Hailey models.

Key specs that matter

The Carmel 3 is a passive two-way design combining a 26mm Lattice hybrid tweeter with a 185mm (7.25-inch) BilletCore mid/bass driver using neodymium motor magnets. The Ultracoherent crossover operates at 1.75kHz, holding the relative phase of the two drivers within +/-5 degrees from 700Hz to 3.3kHz. Usable output extends from 32Hz to 40kHz, sensitivity is 87dB and impedance is 6 ohms average with a 3.2-ohm minimum. Each speaker measures 103 x 23 x 31cm and weighs 39kg. Standard finishes are silver and black.

Engineering and use context

Each BilletCore diaphragm starts as a 2kg billet of aircraft-grade aluminium and is machined down to a cone 0.2mm thick weighing about 10g. YG machines rather than stamps the cone because stamping leaves microscopic stresses and irregularities, while machining gives more uniform, rigid structure with very tight tolerances. The Lattice tweeter keeps a fabric dome but reinforces it with a bonded alloy airframe, machined from an 80g billet into a lattice weighing only 0.03g, adding stiffness to the dome without significant mass; YG says this lowers distortion and widens dispersion. YG states that its in-house machining is precise to better than 0.001mm. The low crossover point relies on the tweeter's wide bandwidth and keeps the mid/bass driver working below the range where its directivity narrows. The crossover, designed with YG's own software to optimise frequency and phase response together, uses custom capacitors including pure metal-foil types, copper-manganin foil resistors and resonance-damped inductors, on a circuit board laid out by computer to minimise interaction between components. Pairs are closely matched.

Pairing

With moderate sensitivity and a low impedance minimum, the Carmel 3 needs a capable amplifier with good current delivery. Its compact aluminium tower suits medium-sized rooms, and its weight and rigid enclosure call for a solid floor coupling.

Alternatives

YG Acoustics' own Hailey is the larger three-way Reference tower, with more drivers and a bigger cabinet for larger rooms.