What are the specifics of Zu’s 10” full range drivers


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What are the specifics of Zu’s 10” full range drivers


There are two versions. One designed for a bit lower extension used in the Druid. This model is the Zu260FR/G2. It is also used in the Definition. This model has had one major change and one light change.

Zu260FR (2001—2003) Original design.

Zu260FR/G2 (2003—2007) second generation with changes to the motor and surround.


Zu260FR/G2-08 (2008—current) changes are not large but make a significant difference to sound. Changes were made to the cone treating process, assembly technique, and batching and matching process.

The other is designed for maximum shove and sacrifices a few semitones on the bottom. This model is featured in the Presence and has a model name of Zu103FR.

Zu turns and assembles the final motor work, finishes the driver frames, performs the final cone prep, binds the cone, conditions and proves the completed driver with a minimum of 160 hours of burn-in, final QC, testing, and tolerance matching. Eminence is Zu’s source for the cast basket, the ironwork, riveting of the ferris parts of the motor, top plate, magnet, yoke, and charging of the motor. Cones are based on the old Hawely design from the 30s. Hawely paper and WE had a pretty close working relationship. It’s funny that in 70 years audio hasn’t been able to really improve the basic design of a good full-range cone.

Until recently Eminence had not been modeling, or at least not implementing, any devices in the motor for controlling the AC dynamic behavior of the coil and its relationship to the fixed armature, the magnet assembly, and those that employ such features as shorting rings are not found in too many of their products, and none in their 10” drivers. The Zu driver does utilize diamagnetic materials in its motor to influence and shape the inductive dynamics under power of the interaction of static field and field of the coil. And this is not a simple little shorting ring. Considerations and design features relative to frequency, the eddy currents formed (the shape of the B fields of the coil relative to frequency and wave form) are also manufactured in to our driver. And, these features are fully operative and designed to continue to be effective even under extreme SPL demands.