Crossover (speaker)
A crossover is the internal electrical filter that splits an incoming audio signal into frequency bands for each driver (woofer, midrange, tweeter). Well-designed crossovers give smooth transitions; poor ones cause audible dips or peaks at the crossover point.
Every multi-driver speaker has a crossover network – a passive filter (usually inductors, capacitors, resistors) that splits the incoming full-range signal into frequency bands for each driver.
Common types
- 2-way – one crossover point (typically 2-3 kHz) splits between woofer and tweeter
- 3-way – two crossover points, separates woofer + midrange + tweeter
- 4-way – rare, adds super-tweeter above the standard tweeter
Why it matters
The crossover point and steepness determine how smoothly frequencies transition between drivers. A poorly designed crossover creates dips, peaks, or phase issues at the transition frequency. This is one of the most difficult and expensive parts of speaker design.
The HiVi-Swans M300 MKII uses an active 3-way crossover (digital signal processing) – more precise than passive.
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