Editing Tweeter (section)

===Cone tweeter===
[[Image:Conetweetermarantz.jpg|thumb|right|The cone tweeter from a [[Marantz]] 5G loudspeaker]]
Cone tweeters have the same basic design and form as a woofer with optimizations to operate at higher frequencies. The optimizations usually are:
* a very small and light cone so it can move rapidly;
* cone materials chosen for stiffness (e.g., ceramic cones in one manufacturer's line), or good damping properties (e.g., paper, silk or coated fabric) or both;
* a suspension (or spider) that is stiffer than for other drivers—less flexibility is needed for high frequency reproduction;
* small voice coils (3/4 inch is typical) and light (thin) wire, which also helps the tweeter cone move rapidly.

Cone tweeters were popular in older stereo hi-fi speakers designed and manufactured in the 1960s and 1970s as an alternative to the dome tweeter (which was developed in the late 1950s). Cone tweeters today are often relatively cheap, but many of those in the past were of high quality, such as those made by Audax/Polydax, Bozak, CTS, JBL, Tonegen and SEAS. These vintage cone tweeters exhibited very flat frequency response, low distortion, fast transient response, a low resonance frequency and a gentle low-end roll-off, easing crossover design.

Typical of the 1960s/1970s-era was the CTS "phenolic ring" cone tweeters, exhibiting flat response from 2,000 to 15,000&nbsp;Hz, low distortion and fast transient response. The CTS "phenolic ring" tweeter gets its name from the orange-colored edge suspension ring that it has which is made from phenolic. It was used in many makes and models of well-regarded vintage speakers, and was a mid-priced unit.

Cone tweeters have a narrower dispersion characteristic that is the same as a cone woofer's. Many designers therefore believed this made them a good match to cone midranges and woofers, allowing for superb stereo imaging. However, the "sweet spot" created by the narrow dispersion of cone tweeters is small. Speakers with cone tweeters offered the best stereo imaging when positioned in the room's corners, a common practice in the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.

During the 1970s and 1980s, the widespread introduction of higher quality audiophile discs and the advent of the CD caused the cone tweeter to fall out of popularity because cone tweeters seldom extend higher than 15&nbsp;kHz. Audiophiles felt that cone tweeters lacked the "airiness" of dome tweeters or other types. Nevertheless, many high-end cone tweeters remained in limited production by Audax, JBL and SEAS until the mid-1980s.

Cone tweeters are now rarely used in modern hi-fi usage and are routinely seen in low cost applications such as factory car speakers, compact stereo systems, and boom boxes. Some boutique speaker manufacturers recently have returned to high-end cone tweeters, especially recreations of CTS phenolic ring models, to create a vintage-sounding product.