Think of a loudspeaker in your head. Got it? Now what did
that image look like? Just about
everybody will have imagined a wooden box with conical drivers of various sizes
pumping out their specific frequency range.
Those with a bit of audio knowledge might conjure images of a dome or
horn shaped tweeter but the speaker is nonetheless the same. Though it is by far the most popular, the
dynamic loudspeaker design (as it is called) is not the only method to go about
reproducing sound. A myriad of options are
currently available to consumers making use of electrostatic, magnetic plane,
ribbon, and other technologies. Many
manufacturers utilize multiple methods in their products to get the best of
both worlds, so to speak.
Personally, the
design I enjoy the most is an electrostatic/dynamic hybrid loudspeaker such as Martin Logan's Electromotion ESL. Never
have I heard a horn so clearly defined and realistic as I have through such a
speaker. However, my audiophile-grade
listening experiences are few and far between.
Unfortunately, I have yet to receive the opportunity to listen to MBL Audio's
unique loudspeakers. They have developed
a proprietary technology called Radialstrahl which aims at radiating sound in
360 degrees. The reproduced sound has been hailed by journalists as "float[ing]
effortlessly in three-dimensional space as with no
other speaker."
Which design do you use? Which design would you use in a
price-no-object system? And which design offers the best value?
Sources:
Hometheater.com
Mbl-audio.com
Martinlogan.com
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