ESB - Over Half A Century Of Electroacoustic Brilliance
Electroacoustic maestro ESB was officially founded in 1972. Fast forward over fifty years and it's still regarded as a world leader in loudspeaker design. During it's tenure this audacious Italian company has mastered the art of high-end speaker design, acquiring a wealth of experience and knowledge difficult to find elsewhere. Some of the most important milestones in the history of high fidelity audio have been marked by ESB. Whether it be ideologies, insights, applications of electroacoustic principles or just plain passion for high fidelity audio; achieving these milestones have become the very foundations of the company's history. You can read the genuinely fascinating history of ESB's fifty year reign by clicking here.

3000 Series – Research At The Highest Level
The 3000 series components were developed and assembled with great commitment to the research of materials and engineering solutions of the highest standard. The baskets have been engineered to obtain the maximum in terms of torsional rigidity. The cones offer the best marriage of lightness, stiffness and the ability to dampen any unwanted vibration. All the woofers are equipped with high grade motor and magnet, returning significantly higher performance than the classic standard designs. The soft tweeter domes provide a smooth sound whilst oversized voice coils are ventilated and damped with iron-fluid oil.

Design Ideologies
The 3000 series from ESB represent homework aplenty before designing and manufacturing this line. Not only homework researching materials and technology but also what’ll universal ideologies will work best in modern cars. As a result the 3000 stable includes multiple tweeter sizes, multiple midrange sizes and even a new concept called convertible chassis, whereby you can change the speaker from coaxial to component set with ease. ESB really making your job easy of getting it’s superior sound into your vehicle.

Convertible Speakers
Just before we gallivant off into the design aspects of the range, let’s explore the convertibles further. The 3000 series includes two convertible speakers; a 6.5” / 1” set and a 6×9” / 1” set. By removing the tweeter from the woofer, it allows the system to transform from a coaxial system to a separate component system. When using the woofer in component mode the tweeter support is replaced by mounting an ABS phase plug on the pole piece. This detail is essential to focus the high frequency information in the center of the cone. The ABS phase plug innovative design ensures that the speaker response remains linear at mid-high and high frequencies. Its concavities arranged on a very open angle help to increase linearity even at accentuated listening angles. This is very important for the reproduction of the medium and medium-high range when the woofer is installed in the lower part of the door.

Design Features
Despite the 3000 series being a little lower in the pecking order insofar as ESB speakers are concerned, they still feature some very impressive design and material technology. For realistically ESB wasn’t about to overlook all its existing know-how.

Treated Paper Cones
It’s widely recognised that cones made of paper are the best marriage of lightness, stiffness and the ability to dampen any unwanted vibration and physical distortion. The paper cone, widely known for its excellent sound attributes; is waterproof thanks to a polymer developed exclusively by ESB. The treatment does not change the appearance and parameters of the speaker like the shiny polymers do. For they can add an appreciable amount of mass to the cone itself and significantly modify the sonic result. No here though, this treatment is all but transparent. The treatment also protects the cone from water dripping inside your door panels, as well as accidental splashes on the front of the cone.

Basket And ventilation system
The ABS basket is reinforced with fiberglass and has been engineered in order to obtain the maximum in terms of torsional rigidity whilst at the same time offering the minimum resistance to the passage of air displaced by the cone from the rear face. This is clearly visible from the numerous stiffeners and ribs present. The basket plays a fundamental role in aligning the coil in the magnetic circuit, indeed its rigidity is crucial. A factor of no secondary importance is the damping of this component. Often metal baskets tend to resonate which significantly alters the final sound result of the speaker. The material used, in addition to not being as sensitive to thermal changes; is non-flammable and non-resonant. In addition, the ABS frame allows for a better clamping force torque than typical pressed steel frames and ensures that the voice coil remains well centered within the magnetic field.

Suspension System
High Damping Single Wave Perbunan Rubber. The Perbunan rubber edge is much more stable when the temperature changes than the classic rubber, its range of use goes from -20 ° to + 100 ° while maintaining its elasticity performance at a constant. Its profile ensures a dual function of high damping and great transversal stability. This means that the cone is forced only to the vertical movement, eliminating the transversal movements that could cause contact with the coil and the magnet. So these speakers can operate safely at high power and high excursions.

Motor Centering
When it came to the spider design ESB’s research department spent a lot of time researching the ideal shape of this fundamental suspension component. For it must guarantee the perfect and linear travel of the cone at both low and high power. However it must limit its excursion before it can get out of control. The material used is a special balanced cotton impregnated with phenolic resin that ensure a perfectly symmetrical excursion already from the first mW of power, and then attenuate it when it reaches the value of Xmax. The design of this component ensures perfect ventilation of the voice coil, evacuating the heat from the lower part of the speaker whilst at the same time avoiding any counter-pressure given by the movement of the cone.

The Magnetic Motor
The voice coil of the woofers uses an aluminium support and a winding with a double layer technology of copper wire with an aluminium core. The long stroke design was chosen to improve sensitivity and efficiency while keeping distortion to a minimum. All these speakers are equipped with a motor with a grade Y-35 ferrite magnet, a type of magnet with significantly higher performance than the standard strontium ones. The metal parts of the engine use low carbon steel and have been designed to obtain the maximum magnetic saturation, which guarantees the best electroacoustic parameters.

Sweet Tweeters
3000 series tweeters use a silk-impregnated thin fabric dome diaphragm for a smooth sound, with an outer suspension covered with a high-loss damping material to eliminate edge vibration and resonance. Both feature voice coils that reside on aluminium supports and very light copper-coated aluminium wire. The coils are ventilated and damped with iron-fluid oil.

Both use high-grade neodymium magnets such as N-42, optimized with computer simulations to get better efficiency and improve linearity. The special SVS (Surround Vented System) ventilation design provides two benefits. Firstly there’s optimal cooling of voice coil, and secondly it avoids compressing the air at the back of the dome.

The 3000 Series UMA Plate
Then there’s the totally new UMA design. This special and exclusive component driver is a concept born way back in 70’s, its aim is to concentrate medium and tweeter emissions in a single virtual point. This minimizes phase delays and irregularities at the crossover point. The speaker is composed of the 1″ tweeter and the 3.65” midrange, with a special dust cover to ensure the midrange function does not interfere with the tweeter frequencies. Read more about the concept by visiting ESB’s phase page.

Electrical Specifications
– Nominal configuration: two-way 6.5” & 1” passive convertible set
– Continuous power handling: 120 Watts
– Maximum power handling: 240 Watts
– Voice coil diameter: 25.4 mm
– Frequency response: 65 Hz – 25000 Hz
– Sensitivity: 88.5 dB
– DC resistance (Re): 3.11 Ohms
– Resonant frequency (Fs): 64.98 Hz
– Xmax: +/- 4 mm
– Compliance (Vas): 13.93 l
– Total Q (Qts): 0.611
– Mechanical Q (Qms): 3.026
– Electrical Q (Qes): 0.766

Physical Specifications
– Mounting diameter: 145 mm
– Mounting depth: 64 mm
– Weight: 1.9 kg

Documentation
– Specifications sheet

Important Disclaimers
Given the dynamic nature of electronics industries these days; below are listed some very important specifics you need to be aware of.

Brand Authorization And Stock Sourcing
We are a fully authorised Australian dealer of this brand and all stock is sourced through legitimate channels. It therefore enjoys full Australian warranty, backing and support.

Pricing Structure
Whilst we endeavor to offer the best price possible, we ask that if you do find a better price elsewhere from an authorised dealer; please contact us. Also be aware that we regularly conduct group buys and sales, therefore pricing can sometimes be subject to change without notice.

Stock Structure
Being a dynamic store is conducive to our inventory constantly changing. We list only a small portion of our stable online, usually products most popular. Aside from these we also stock numerous other variants and configurations of these products, hence if you don’t see what you’re after please contact us.

Shipping
All our products are shipped with registered and insured postage. Upon ordering you’ll be issued with a receipt, a consignment note via which you can track your order, and we’ll also SMS you photos of the package for identification purposes.

Technical support
This last one we cannot emphasise enough! Please contact us if you require any further information or assistance with the setup and use of this product, especially pertaining to aspects more technical. As we want you to get the very best from this product.