twistedchild420 5,000+ posts
CarAudio.com Veteran
Original Source -http://www.soundsolutionsaudio.com/forum/topic/45084-gen-3-btls-and-btl-history/
BTL history:
Gen 1- 2 stack and 3 stack of 8.7" magnets. Flatwind and high xmax, cooling options.
Gen 2- Single 11.25" magnet. Flatwind and high xmax coils, cooling and inductance/heat ring options
Gen 3- N1: Single slab Neo magnet with integral finned heatsink. Flatwind and high xmax, cooling option 1000W low weight, lower power line
N2: Dual slab Neo magnet with integral finned heatsink. Flatwind and high xmax, cooling option 2000W low weight, similar performance to Gen2 BTL line
N3: Triple slab Neo magnet with integral heatsink. Flatwind and high xmax options. Possible cooling option, but designed more for SPL than normal daily driving. Lighter weight than older Gen1 and Gen2 BTLs, but with more motor force for SPL applications.
N-SG: Still testing. SPL only extreme class split coil sub. Light weight.
I have already had a few people ask if the Gen 3 versions will be able to play with the older Gen 2. Not 100% sure at this point. While specs are VERY similar, reactively they are different. We will have to do some testing this week to see how different they really are. We don't want to have widely varying curves, although TS params are similar, throwing amps or one speaker or the other way off. I am inclined to think it will be less of an issue than between Gen1 and Gen2.
New BTL line info will be up for N1 and N2 later this week and should be available to order on Monday (allowing people to order ahead while we finish tooling and wait for heat sink order to come in). Subs should be shipping about 4 weeks after in the order they were received.
I should have pics up by tomorrow. We are stilling working on the end cap molds and hope to have a couple of pieces by then.
Thanks,
Scott
BTL line has been the foundation for us since day one. It has been where all the trickle down tech has come from. With such a heavy change to things we felt that instead of pulling completely viable product that we should just expand things under the BTL umbrella. They are that much different...
As far as the N1 goes... it somewhat stradles the Q/BL line in terms of power and application, but it is much lighter weight. Not everyone wants a 47lb BL12 in their trunk... but something a hair under 30 seems better. Weight is weight.
BTL-N2 which is the standard BTL replacement saved a significant amount in weight. So much so that we are changing the packaging to be all foam. We purchased a larger 60W laser and are doing the foam bottom pieces cut to shape via that. This will cut shipping costs.... especially internationally. We are looking to up performance where we can and keep costs down or cut them... all without resorting to China and moving more production and parts in house.
Im working on end caps right now. Things look a little odd without them (although things look odd in general). Ill try to get things sorted for pics tomorrow. N3 is similar to original design, but with a slightly less sculpted feel. Coming from 1 1/4" plate, sculpting takes up valuable machine time and adds cost. We reduced things down some and went to just a chamfer around the edges. Saves about 20 minutes... which is HUGE.
We are reworking the site some too to give it a new feel... more in line with our industrial roots and the fact that your speaker is just a slab of steel until you click "buy" and we start flinging chips
Thanks,
Scott
