Unusual Speaker Designs

[Vladimir Filevski]

Small in-wall speakers are great, there are some in-wall subwoofers too, but you can't stick 15-inch midbass and horn tweeter in a gypsum drywall. Because of the bulk, it must be in a separate, big enclosure. You can place it to the wall and call it "on-wall" speaker. Or, to save some space, you can make a triangular prism enclosure and put it in the corner, right?

Triangular prism loudspeaker enclosure designed for corner placement? So what? Where is the "unusual"?
Well, it is literally a corner loudspeaker! There are only two MDF plates for the whole loudspeaker enclosure - front and top, which are glued directly to the walls in the corner and on the floor also. Front plate has left and right vertical edges cut at 45 degrees, to make good joint with the walls. On the top plate, right in the corner there is a triangular opening acting as a bass-reflex vent. It works well in rooms with hard masonry walls. It is one of my published project for DIY enthusiasts.

 

[noname]

 

[NTomokawa]

... annnnnnnnd it's Venn Diagram time!

https://www.parts-express.com/small-portable-bluetooth-ammo-box-speaker-kit-components--300-7301
https://www.parts-express.com/large-portable-bluetooth-ammo-box-speaker-kit-components--300-7303

A local artisan builds these things and sells them at the flea market for $80 each. His single speaker is installed on the narrow side of the ammo box.
I guess Immortan joe needs to get his jam somehow if that giant speaker truck isn't rolling with him...

 

[noname]

 

[tuga]

Small in-wall speakers are great, there are some in-wall subwoofers too, but you can't stick 15-inch midbass and horn tweeter in a gypsum drywall. Because of the bulk, it must be in a separate, big enclosure. You can place it to the wall and call it "on-wall" speaker. Or, to save some space, you can make a triangular prism enclosure and put it in the corner, right?
View attachment 94456
Triangular prism loudspeaker enclosure designed for corner placement? So what? Where is the "unusual"?
Well, it is literally a corner loudspeaker! There are only two MDF plates for the whole loudspeaker enclosure - front and top, which are glued directly to the walls in the corner and on the floor also. Front plate has left and right vertical edges cut at 45 degrees, to make good joint with the walls. On the top plate, right in the corner there is a triangular opening acting as a bass-reflex vent. It works well in rooms with hard masonry walls. It is one of my published project for DIY enthusiasts.

Nothing new about corner speakers really, the Klipschorn is a 75 year old design and the Voigt is from 1934:

Many other manfacturers were making corner speakers in the 40s and 50s: Brociner, Vitavox, Tannoy or Wharfedale...

 

[Frank Dernie]

Small in-wall speakers are great, there are some in-wall subwoofers too, but you can't stick 15-inch midbass and horn tweeter in a gypsum drywall. Because of the bulk, it must be in a separate, big enclosure. You can place it to the wall and call it "on-wall" speaker. Or, to save some space, you can make a triangular prism enclosure and put it in the corner, right?
View attachment 94456
Triangular prism loudspeaker enclosure designed for corner placement? So what? Where is the "unusual"?
Well, it is literally a corner loudspeaker! There are only two MDF plates for the whole loudspeaker enclosure - front and top, which are glued directly to the walls in the corner and on the floor also. Front plate has left and right vertical edges cut at 45 degrees, to make good joint with the walls. On the top plate, right in the corner there is a triangular opening acting as a bass-reflex vent. It works well in rooms with hard masonry walls. It is one of my published project for DIY enthusiasts.

These were a very popular solution back in the 1960s when there were so few manufacturers of complete speakers here most impecunious hifi enthusiasts made their own using drivers from Goodmans, Wharfedale ot Tannoy.

 

[Vladimir Filevski]

Nothing new about corner speakers really, the Klipschorn is a 75 year old design and the Voigt is from 1934:
Many other manfacturers were making corner speakers in the 40s and 50s: Brociner, Vitavox, Tannoy or Wharfedale...

Yes, I know all of that...
All loudspeakers you mentioned are designed to work in a corner, but all of them have full enclosure made from five panels at least, or have rather complicated construction (Klipshorn) to use corner walls as a cabinet extension.
You missed the point - my loudspeaker enclosure design has only two panels! Super-easy to build by any DIY enthusiast and super cheap. Compare it to a Klipshorn!

These were a very popular solution back in the 1960s when there were so few manufacturers of complete speakers here most impecunious hifi enthusiasts made their own using drivers from Goodmans, Wharfedale ot Tannoy.

Can you share a photo of the same design (only two panels, glued to a corner walls) from that era, please? I am quite confident that my design is original and never seen before. There were open baffle designs (only one panel) from that era, but we are talking about proper vented enclosure here.

 

[Frank Dernie]

Can you share a photo of the same design (only two panels, glued to a corner walls) from that era, please? I am quite confident that my design is original and never seen before. There were open baffle designs (only one panel) from that era, but we are talking about proper vented enclosure here.

People started off like your design but to get a bigger volume, required for deep bass they of then cut the corners off so the front baffle could be further into the room without getting excessively large. It was also common to make the front baffle hollow and fill it with sand to make it less resonant.
Your layout was common in the 1950s and 60s, here is a design page from a Gilbert Briggs book of that era developing the idea with added sophistication including vents. Not as simple as the earlier ideas, but superior for dead and effective cabinet volume.
I saw lots like yours in the early '60s, mono of course as this would have been

 

[Vladimir Filevski]

I stand corrected! Thanks for sharing this info. I am aware of old Wharfedale Sand Filled Baffle, but that was an open baffle design, I have never seen before a design like above.

 

[tuga]

I stand corrected! Thanks for sharing this info. I am aware of old Wharfedale Sand Filled Baffle, but that was an open baffle design, I have never seen before a design like above.

There was a sand-filled version of the project posted above by @Frank Dernie :

 

[FrantzM]

Small in-wall speakers are great, there are some in-wall subwoofers too, but you can't stick 15-inch midbass and horn tweeter in a gypsum drywall. Because of the bulk, it must be in a separate, big enclosure. You can place it to the wall and call it "on-wall" speaker. Or, to save some space, you can make a triangular prism enclosure and put it in the corner, right?
View attachment 94456
Triangular prism loudspeaker enclosure designed for corner placement? So what? Where is the "unusual"?
Well, it is literally a corner loudspeaker! There are only two MDF plates for the whole loudspeaker enclosure - front and top, which are glued directly to the walls in the corner and on the floor also. Front plate has left and right vertical edges cut at 45 degrees, to make good joint with the walls. On the top plate, right in the corner there is a triangular opening acting as a bass-reflex vent. It works well in rooms with hard masonry walls. It is one of my published project for DIY enthusiasts.

Where did you published it? It could be interesting project, my room being all concrete and my woodworking skills, at the abysmal level...

 

[Vladimir Filevski]

There was a sand-filled version of the project posted above by @Frank Dernie :

Yes, the version posted by @Frank Dernie (post # 408) is with sand filling, it is in the drawing (upper right) in the cross section, and also in the text below the picture: "Space between the plywood sheets filled with tightly-packed dry sand.", that is why I mentioned Wharfedale SFB.

 

[Vladimir Filevski]

Where did you published it? It could be interesting project, my room being all concrete and my woodworking skills, at the abysmal level...

It was published 8 years ago in the Macedonian popular science and DIY magazine EMITER: https://emiter.com.mk/napis/10936
Measured frequency response with 1/12 octave smoothing, gated above 300 Hz, scaled at 1 m/1W:

15-inch midbass P.Audio E15-200S (old version) and P.Audio PHT-408 tweeter. Crossover is minimal - midbass directly connected, tweeter via third order high pass.

 

[Inner Space]

People started off like your design but to get a bigger volume, required for deep bass they of then cut the corners off so the front baffle could be further into the room without getting excessively large. It was also common to make the front baffle hollow and fill it with sand to make it less resonant.
Your layout was common in the 1950s and 60s, here is a design page from a Gilbert Briggs book of that era developing the idea with added sophistication including vents. Not as simple as the earlier ideas, but superior for dead and effective cabinet volume.
I saw lots like yours in the early '60s, mono of course as this would have been
View attachment 95006

I remember these well. My great-uncle Wyn built one. The 10" x 3" slots in the bottom corners were reflex ports, positioned to clear the room's baseboards ("skirting boards" in UK English) which in a middle class home at that time might be elaborate Victorian confections about 9" tall.

 

[noname]

 

[Vladimir Filevski]

Maker and model? Or original DIY project?

 

[YSC]

View attachment 94819

It somehow freaked me out and intimidated my unknown type of fear, especially when lights are dim

 

[noname]

Maker and model? Or original DIY project?

I don't know. I found it on facebook.

 

[Dmitri]

Looks like Neo when the Lady in Red walked past... ; )

View attachment 107062

 

[noname]

Anyway, it really looks like a Cappellini Revolving Cabinet.