How Speakers Make Sound

[dim_span]

a good site showing/explaining how speakers work, using Animation ....

http://animagraffs.com/loudspeaker/

 

[chebby]

a good site showing/explaining how speakers work, using Animation ....

http://animagraffs.com/loudspeaker/

Worth making this link clickable.

The 2nd animation alone dispells the notion that current and electrons flow in one direction and makes the idea of 'directional' cables ridiculous!

 

[basshound]

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/i-found-informative

 

[scene]

Great animation.
Really good way to understand speaker mechanics.

 

[RobinKidderminster]

I believe their next animation shows how wires work. (Sorry couldnt resist)

 

[andyjm]

Good animation. Anything that raises the understanding around here of what actually goes on inside hifi equipment can only be a good thing.

To be picky, one of the animations shows the voicecoil leaving the airgap of the magnet, and at higher frequencies cones don't move in a uniform way like nice 'pistons' but those a very minor points and don't detract from the overall explanation.

 

[SteveR750]

a good site showing/explaining how speakers work, using Animation ....

http://animagraffs.com/loudspeaker/

Worth making this link clickable.

The 2nd animation alone dispells the notion that current and electrons flow in one direction and makes the idea of 'directional' cables ridiculous!

But they mst be biased by the earth's magnetic field, in the way the moon interacts with the Earth to create tidal variations. So if you lay your cables in a North - South direction they'll have a different impedance to East - West? And that's before we consider the effect of the moon's gravity on the pull of electrons to be phase overlayed? Surely?

 

[Vladimir]

...and at higher frequencies cones don't move in a uniform way like nice 'pistons' but those a very minor points and don't detract from the overall explanation.

Which is why dome midrange drivers (that don't have a spider) are a PITA getting them to behave. Or so I heard.

 

[margetti]

Great link! *biggrin*

 

[TrevC]

Great link! *biggrin*

Primitive devices really. You now know why they are always the weakest component of a hifi, and should always have the most cash spent on them.

 

[Infiniteloop]

Great link! *biggrin*

Primitive devices really. You now know why they are always the weakest component of a hifi, and should always have the most cash spent on them.

In my experience, I've found that the more you spend on the Amp controlling these primitive devices, the better.

Speakers need to be ruled.

 

[Vladimir]

Primitive devices really. You now know why they are always the weakest component of a hifi, and should always have the most cash spent on them.

In my experience, I've found that the more you spend on the Amp controlling these primitive devices, the better.

Speakers need to be ruled.

Harbeth's owner Alan A. Shaw disagrees. Clicky

It dawned on me yesterday when I posed the above question, that one explanation for the nonsense claims about amplifiers must be that of a serious misunderstanding of the extremely simple job that the amplifier actually does. And the greatest misconception must be, and seems to be, a belief that the amplifier is somehow in command of the loudspeakers. The opposite is true. The amplifier is most definitely not in command of anything[/u]. It is as dumb a piece of circuitry as you can ever have. It has no intelligence, no inspiration, no personality, no empathy, no knowledge or interest in the signal (music or test tones) passing through it. It is the original henpecked husband. It is totally at the mercy of, and under the thumb of, the loudspeakers connected to it. They bark: the amp jumps. They bark more: the amp jumps more. Until, of course, the dynamics of the music command the amp to jump higher than it has the energy to do so, and the best it can do is make a pathetic, half-hearted attempt to jump. The result is dynamic compression (accompanied by lots of distortion) as the amp shrieks in agony with the effort.

How does this seem so far? Counter intuitive perhaps?

 

[SteveR750]

Primitive devices really. You now know why they are always the weakest component of a hifi, and should always have the most cash spent on them.

In my experience, I've found that the more you spend on the Amp controlling these primitive devices, the better.

Speakers need to be ruled.

Harbeth's owner Alan A. Shaw disagrees. Clicky

It dawned on me yesterday when I posed the above question, that one explanation for the nonsense claims about amplifiers must be that of a serious misunderstanding of the extremely simple job that the amplifier actually does. And the greatest misconception must be, and seems to be, a belief that the amplifier is somehow in command of the loudspeakers. The opposite is true. The amplifier is most definitely not in command of anything. It is as dumb a piece of circuitry as you can ever have. It has no intelligence, no inspiration, no personality, no empathy, no knowledge or interest in the signal (music or test tones) passing through it. It is the original henpecked husband. It is totally at the mercy of, and under the thumb of, the loudspeakers connected to it. They bark: the amp jumps. They bark more: the amp jumps more. Until, of course, the dynamics of the music command the amp to jump higher than it has the energy to do so, and the best it can do is make a pathetic, half-hearted attempt to jump. The result is dynamic compression (accompanied by lots of distortion) as the amp shrieks in agony with the effort. How does this seem so far? Counter intuitive perhaps?

Quelle surprise

 

[Infiniteloop]

Primitive devices really. You now know why they are always the weakest component of a hifi, and should always have the most cash spent on them.

In my experience, I've found that the more you spend on the Amp controlling these primitive devices, the better.

Speakers need to be ruled.

Harbeth's owner Alan A. Shaw disagrees. Clicky

It dawned on me yesterday when I posed the above question, that one explanation for the nonsense claims about amplifiers must be that of a serious misunderstanding of the extremely simple job that the amplifier actually does. And the greatest misconception must be, and seems to be, a belief that the amplifier is somehow in command of the loudspeakers. The opposite is true. The amplifier is most definitely not in command of anything. It is as dumb a piece of circuitry as you can ever have. It has no intelligence, no inspiration, no personality, no empathy, no knowledge or interest in the signal (music or test tones) passing through it. It is the original henpecked husband. It is totally at the mercy of, and under the thumb of, the loudspeakers connected to it. They bark: the amp jumps. They bark more: the amp jumps more. Until, of course, the dynamics of the music command the amp to jump higher than it has the energy to do so, and the best it can do is make a pathetic, half-hearted attempt to jump. The result is dynamic compression (accompanied by lots of distortion) as the amp shrieks in agony with the effort. How does this seem so far? Counter intuitive perhaps?

So what?

He never heard my Amps and speakers with my ears and like I said, 'in my experience', that's what I have found.

Play music through a great Amp through average speakers and chances are, the speakers will perform at their best.

Play the same music through an average Amp through great speakers and the speakers will do an excellent job of letting you know how avearge your Amp is.

I recently bought a Devialet 200 and the SQ of my system took massive leap forward from my Unison Research S8 Valve Amp (which is certainly no slouch) using the same source and speakers.

I seriously doubt the same would have happened if I'd spent the same money on some new speakers instead, using the same source and Amp.

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

 

[Vladimir]

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

How much did your amp cost compared to your speakers?

 

[Infiniteloop]

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

How much did your amp cost compared to your speakers?

£6K Vs £4.5K (Inc stands).

 

[Vladimir]

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

How much did your amp cost compared to your speakers?

£6K Vs £4.5K (Inc stands).

Therefore, slim are the chances of me convincing you that speakers are the most important link in the hi-fi chain.

 

[Infiniteloop]

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

How much did your amp cost compared to your speakers?

£6K Vs £4.5K (Inc stands).

Therefore, slim are the chances of me convincing you that speakers are the most important link in the hi-fi chain.

They were before I'd spent anything like that on my system.

Simply because of my previous experiences with various systems over many years.... But go on, have a try...

 

[Vladimir]

They were before I'd spent anything like that on my system.

Simply because of my previous experiences with various systems over many years.... But go on, have a try...

No reasoning or facts can sway the happy consumer from believing his Veblen goods are worth it. I've tried it more than once.

 

[chebby]

They were before I'd spent anything like that on my system.

Simply because of my previous experiences with various systems over many years.... But go on, have a try...

No reasoning or facts can sway the happy consumer from believing his Veblen goods are worth it. I've tried it more than once.

We didn't all study sociology Vlad. A bit of linkage might be helpful sometimes ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Theory_of_the_Leisure_Class

 

[Infiniteloop]

They were before I'd spent anything like that on my system.

Simply because of my previous experiences with various systems over many years.... But go on, have a try...

No reasoning or facts can sway the happy consumer from believing his Veblen goods are worth it. I've tried it more than once.

Thought not.

If you've tried and failed several times, could it be that you are wrong?

 

[Vladimir]

Thought not.

If you've tried and failed several times, could it be that you are wrong?

Yup. There's always that pleasant option.

 

[iQ Speakers]

I'm firmly in the speakers make "the" most difference. I also think cables that reach the speakers are like night and day.

 

[TrevC]

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

How much did your amp cost compared to your speakers?

£6K Vs £4.5K (Inc stands).

You could swap your amp for a far cheaper one with the same power output and it's likely you'll hear little difference, but do the same with your speakers and the difference would be far greater. Speakers are always the weakest link in any system. Compare the abberations of frequency response and distortion produced by any expensive speaker to that from, say the keenly priced Behringer A500 amplifier and you should be able to see the point.

 

[Infiniteloop]

Oh, and don't you think that the owner of Harbeth might be somewhat biased towards more expensive speakers?

How much did your amp cost compared to your speakers?

£6K Vs £4.5K (Inc stands).

You could swap your amp for a far cheaper one with the same power output and it's likely you'll hear little difference, but do the same with your speakers and the difference would be far greater. Speakers are always the weakest link in any system. Compare the abberations of frequency response and distortion produced by any expensive speaker to that from, say the keenly priced Behringer A500 amplifier and you should be able to see the point.

Have you ever heard a Devialet - or know what it does to a speaker with SAM enabled?

I also have a Unison Research S8 Valve Amp which cost £5.5K some years ago and it sounds very different to the Devialet using the same source and speakers.