The Watkins Little Jewel Loudspeaker
Unprecedented Value:
Over forty years experience designing loudspeakers has given us the know-how to build a speaker equal in overall accuracy to (or better than) the ten to twenty thousand dollar models, and for a small fraction of that price. This in a bookshelf size speaker as well. A tall order? Here’s our track record of fulfilling tall orders:
We built Stereophile Magazine editor’s top choice of dynamic speaker*. We pioneered the first acoustic absorbers for music rooms, and they were hailed as a breakthrough by the leading magazines. We invented the Watkins dual-drive woofer. It received world-wide acclaim, and had no equal at reproducing low bass in the pre-subwoofer era. It was licensed to Infinity, and helped put them on the map. We hold three U.S. patents on loudspeakers, and have authored several technical articles.
Our goal:
A speaker unsurpassed at any price in its pure and natural tonal quality. A speaker with an extended low end that produces satisfying bass down through the lowest note on the bass violin. A speaker that presents a realistic and believable soundstage of imaging and depth. Only very expensive speakers accomplish the latter, such that with well recorded music the speakers seem to disappear, i.e. one cannot pinpoint any sound as coming from them. The sound is completely disassociated from the speakers, and instead one hears a panorama of instruments and vocals spread in their proper positions, just as at a live performance. We have achieved these attributes in our Little Jewels, such that listening is a pleasure you may not have experienced before.
Rationale:
Einstein once said in half jest; “Things should be as simple as possible, but no simpler.†In speaker design and if done right, simple can be better. Some of the most highly regarded and natural sounding speakers from the past have been simple two-way designs with no mid-range driver. The KLH six, the Advent, the EPI-100, the Spica TC-50, the Dynaco A-25, and the Epos from England. Our WE-1 was also a two-way system with built-in subwoofers. So, if it’s been done before, why again? Low and mid-frequency driver technology has advanced with better cone material and improved shaping configurations. Motors have advanced in design providing lower distortion. Tweeter dome material has improved along with better damping in surrounds and back venting. Improved cabinet design has made cabinets less prone to vibrate and color the sound. We have also come up with innovations of our own that allow better and more natural sound.
* Larry Archibald (Stereophile Magazine owner) wrote:
“As this review appears, the Watkins WE-1 remains firmly ensconced as J. Gordon Holt’s reference system. In fact, for the first time since my adoption of Stereophile there has been a respite from JGH's recurrent pleas, "It just doesn't sound real," or, "I haven't liked anything I've listened to for months." Instead I hear, "Have you noticed how these grow on you?"
Gordon Holt, editor of Stereophile Magazine wrote about the Watkins WE-1:
"The more these speakers stay around my listening room, the more I like them.â€
“I find that these speakers "wear" better than any I have lived with for many years.â€
Amplifier-speaker relationship:
Crossover inductors and capacitors store energy and don’t release it perfectly. This distorts the sound in a form that can be easily measured. It can also be heard as coloration and less detail. The reactive character of inductors and capacitors also create phase shift and actually kick back power to the amplifier, which it must overcome in addition to supplying the power that creates sound. They are used in speakers to minimize the limitations of conventional drivers, but ideally the amplifier needs a non-reactive and more resistive load for maximum clean power transfer . This problem is reduced to an absolute minimum in the Little Jewel, and is a major factor in it’s clean, open, and unstrained sound.
Simple crossover:
The average two-way speaker will have a 12 dB crossover with at least four reactive elements in the signal path, i.e. two capacitors and two inductors. Three-way speakers have even more. This creates a very reactive load for the amplifier, with the problems noted above. The result is sound that is compressed, flat, and lifeless. We have eliminated the need for three of the reactive elements by designing our drivers to roll off naturally on their own. The bass-mid driver then connects directly to the amplifier, without the signal having to go through two distortion producing elements. The tweeter low end response is designed to require only a single capacitor, eliminating another reactive element. Thusly the crossover requires only a single capacitor to filter out the low end, providing the least reactive load possible to the amplifier. Measurements and extended listening have proven this to provide low distortion and an open and transparent sound not attainable with multi-element crossovers.
A bonus benefit:
The lack of a mid-range driver allows the music in the critical upper bass and mid-range area to emanate from only one driver. This single location of sound prevents voices, for example, from shifting from one location in space to another as they move up and down the scale. This contributes to stable imaging, for a more natural and realistic sound field.
The bass-mid driver:
During the past 30 years the expertise and precision in driver fabrication has migrated to companies in Denmark and Norway, and almost all high end speaker manufacturers now have their drivers made there. Our bass-mid driver in made in Denmark. The cone is constructed from a propriety material using a laminate of different polypropylene films and adhesives. This creates a stiff but well damped cone giving low breakup and low distortion. The unique cast aluminum low resonance basket is open behind the rear suspension, thus eliminating the pressure chamber found in conventional drivers. This allows more linear cone movement and cooler operation. The motor incorporates an aluminum shorting ring and a long-throw voice coil to reduce both reactance and distortion. Neck vents also reduce distortion. Last but not least, the dome cap is our own custom damped design. It is fitted into a resonance prevention truncation in the cone to allow a natural, smooth, and peak-free roll-off in the high end. Then as noted, no reactive inductor is needed or used in series with the voice coil and in the signal path to roll off the high end response. Non-usage of this customary and reactive element prevents out-of-phase voltage being kicked back to the amplifier, allowing a sound that’s audible as being more clear and transparent. Voices and instruments have an open non-confined sound that float in the air in their proper position in the sound-field.
Damped reflex:
A look at the response curve of most all bookshelf size speakers shows a bump of 3 to 6 or even 8 dB around 100 Hz, with response falling off below that. This contributes to “one-note bassâ€, i.e. poor bass definition of low bass notes, plus they are down in volume and don’t have that low deep soul-satisfying sound. The Little Jewel uses our proprietary damped reflex principle to remove the 100 Hz bump and channel that excess energy down lower where it belongs. The result is extended and well defined bass response down only 3 dB at 39 Hz. Bass notes are reproduced with clarity and realism down through the lowest note on the bass violin, or bass fiddle as it is often called.
A second and very important advantage of the damped reflex benefits voice and instrument reproduction in the mid-range area. The conventional bass reflex system uses very little or no sound absorbent inside the cabinet. Since an equal amount of sound emanates from the rear of the bass-mid driver as from the front, it builds up a tremendous turbulence in the confined area inside of the cabinet. This is echoed back against the cone and modulates it, smearing the ongoing sound. Closed box type systems use absorbent material inside the cabinet to absorb the internal sound and prevent this smearing. The damped reflex principal in the Little Jewel utilizes absorbent material also, but implemented in a way to not interfere with bass reproduction. This allows the clarity of tone and the detail of a proper closed box system, plus the advantage of a reflex system.
Tweeter tweeks:
The Little Jewel tweeter is a one inch dome unit made in Norway. It is one of the most respected tweeters made regardless of price, plus it features our custom damping modification. Metal dome tweeters are capable of more piston-like movement with greater clarity and detail than the fabric type. The drawback is they inherently have a rather large high frequency peak in their response. The dome of the Little Jewel tweeter is constructed of an aluminum/magnesium alloy combination, and it allows only an eight dB high-end peak, which is about half that of other metals. Our custom damping modification then damps this peak completely, stopping modulation of lower frequencies, and allowing better tonal quality. The tweeter also features a wide, soft polymer surround for linear excursion and a rear chamber behind the dome. This rear chamber is damped with absorbent felt, thus eliminating reflected sound against the rear of the dome for less distortion. The voice coil is immersed in magnetic fluid for cooler operation which reduces compression of higher level passages in music. Dome tweeters have their input wires running through an opening in the front plate assembly creating an air passage into the space behind the dome. There are also other minute air passageways between the front plate and motor plate, allowing air to flow into the rear of the dome. We have enclosed the entire rear assembly of the tweeter in a rigid and airtight cup. Thus air compression and decompression from the rear of the bass-mid driver cannot reach the rear of the dome and modulate it. This is unique in speaker design and it prevents some major non-linear distortion. The result of all the above is a tweeter second to none regardless of cost. It contributes to the pin-point imaging and natural non-harsh tone of higher notes on violins and horns. With cymbals, instead of a splattering or gritty sound, you hear a life-size image with detail and a natural shimmer that’s a pleasure to listen to.
Cabinet size and solidity:
Everyone agrees that small speakers image better. This is because the smaller front baffle creates less diffraction and scattering of the sound. Also with a given type of construction material, a smaller cabinet is more solid and vibrates less. Now a speaker’s basic function is simply to move air back and forth, and cabinet vibration can become a significant contributor in doing this, especially at resonance points. This of course is very undesirable, as it adds to and colors the sound from the drivers themselves. Cabinet vibration is reduced to a minimum in the Little Jewel. The cabinet is constructed of extremely high-density MDF board, and has an additional full-size baffle plate (with two holes for air flow) in its center. This provides exceptional bracing for the sides, top, and bottom. The rear panel is braced with a steel rod. The front is 1½ inch thick and also of high density MDF. Swept tone tests prove the solidity pays off, such that the music does not suffer from coloration due to cabinet vibration. Lastly, the front baffle has rounded edges to prevent refraction from creating distortion.
Miscellaneous considerations:
The quality of the crossover capacitor is the equal of any available, with a DQ (dissipation factor) of below 0.0001, the limits of our GR 1657 RLC digibridge test instrument. Internal wiring is 100% pure copper and oxygen-free, with all connections soldered to insure long term low resistance. Input connectors are gold banana jacks on standard ¾ inch centers, and are the direct feed-through type.
Icing on the cake:
Time alignment can be the icing on the cake in a good speaker. In a two way system this is aligning the two drivers such that a given sound being shared in reproduction by both drivers arrives at the listening position at the same time. In the Little Jewel, the alignment is such that the start of a transient signal being reproduced by both drivers arrives at the same time, instead of the often used method where the transients peak at the same time. Our rational is this; suppose you’re at a live performance and if a drummer hits his kick drum at the same instant he hits the cymbal, that’s the way your ear will hear it. The kick drum will not be delayed until it’s sound builds up to its maximum level. Accordingly, we have aligned the tweeter (reproducing the cymbal) and the bass-mid driver (reproducing the kick drum) such that both sounds start at the same time, rather than the cymbal being delayed until the kick drum reaches its maximum loudness. Our listening supports this, there being a slight coloration of artificial brightness when aligning to peak levels.
Technical data as related to performance
Frequency response, phase response, and impedance are shown below. This is free-field response measured in the world’s largest anechoic chamber (outdoors), at one meter distance, on the tweeter axis, and radiating into 180 degrees. Several things are worthy of mention as related to performance.
First, note that the Little Jewel reproduces the lowest note on the bass violin (41 Hz) at almost full power, quite unusual for a speaker of its size. This allows the bass in recordings to be reproduced properly, giving music a solid foundation and full-bodied sound. The response is also smooth and without any major peaks and dips, allowing instruments and voices to be reproduced with correct timbre and tonal accuracy.
It’s common knowledge that low impedance is a difficult load for an amplifier. While many speakers will dip below 3 ohms, note the Little Jewel does not fall below 6.7 ohms from 20 through 8,000 Hz, which is 85% of the musical range. Even above 8,000Hz the impedance remains above 5.3 ohms. The benefit here, along with 88 dB sensitivity is an easy load for the amplifier, such that monster amplifiers with high wattage are not required. A quality 100 watt per channel amplifier will suffice for realistic listening levels in the average size room, and 60 watts per channel is adequate in most small rooms.
Equally important is the absence of the usual four or five sharp peaks and dips in both the impedance and phase, which may be found in some of the most expensive speaker systems. This again makes amplifiers happy with a very low reactance load that kicks less power back at the amplifier. This is somewhat analogous to pushing a wheelbarrow up a smooth incline versus pushing it up that same incline but with bumps in the pathway.
Finally, the smooth characteristics of the Little Jewel’s low reactance load do not change the amplifiers frequency response, whereas speakers exhibiting high reactance can change the response of some amplifiers by as much as 4 dB, which is quite audible. Thus the tonal balance of music is kept in its natural perspective.
In summary, we believe the Little Jewels reproduce realistic and natural musical images that are unsurpassed by other speakers regardless of cost.
Specifications and Price
Type: Two-way dynamic in damped reflex mode.
Drivers: One 6 ½ inch woofer-mid and one 1 inch magnesium alloy dome tweeter.
Frequency response: 30 Hz to 28 kHz. Minus 3 dB at 39 Hz and 22 kHz.
Sensitivity: 88 dB at one meter with 1 watt input.
Impedance: 8 ohms nominal. Minimum 5.3 ohms, maximum 20 ohms, 20-20.000 Hz.
Finishes: Cherry (semi-gloss) and piano (glossy) black.
Dimensions: HWD 14â€x 8 ½ “x 13 ½â€.
Net weight: 24 lb each. Shipping weight lb each.
Recommended stands: 28†– 32†height.
Price: $1,800.00 per pair.
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Holographic, scarey good...I'll be a 'stat man till the put me on a real slab 
