No more screwed in drivers

[JohnnyAudio]

It's time to rethink how drivers are mounted. Since the beginning of time the speakers frame has had holes for screws and that is pure ugly.
I'm asking this creative community to think about a new way to mount drivers without screws or clamps.
A clean mounting method will polish up our art of audio.

 

[sergeauckland]

I completely disagree. Fixings should always be visible and accessible to make servicing and repair easier, or indeed possible. Far too many things have hidden fixings or are glued/bonded together such that they can't be dismantled without causing damage.

Why anyone should object to seeing good quality hardware is quite beyond me.

S

 

[mhardy6647]

As it appears is @sergeauckland, I, too, am 100% in favor of accessible/removable drivers. Screws, bolts, accessible retainers.
Serviceability is key.
A decorative but easily removable gasket or trim ring is OK.
There's always the nuclear option, too -- grille cloths.

 

[coonmanx]

Not a big deal if you use the speakers with grills on. However, my Speakerlab 1's have woofers held in place with clear silicon. The tweeters are screwed in but the screws are black so no big deal. Each to his own...

 

[DVDdoug]

What can we do about it? If you are a driver manufacturer or a speaker manufacturer working with the driver manufacturer you could come-up with something different.

Trim rings are sometimes used to hide the mounting hardware.

My DIY speakers will have grill cloth whenever I get around to finishing them.

 

[Raxumit]

If you were to suggest banning Philips screws in favor of hex, or even Torx, I'd be with you. Otherwise, nothing wrong with them in my opinion.

 

[Count Arthur]

That's what grills are for.

In seriousness, there are plenty of speakers that have a "beauty ring" that covers the screws that surround the driver, or that have the driver mounted to the front baffle from within the speaker.

It's all a matter of taste though. Personally, I quite like some of the more utilitarian, brutal, looking speakers.

 

[Sancus]

Yeah this seems like a solved problem? There's plenty of speakers with solutions to this. And I agree, I like the clean mounting of things like Genelecs and Neumanns over exposed screws on eg some Revels.

Not everyone likes this though, as this thread demonstrates, so it's good that there's choice!

 

[AudiOhm]

I think screws look good in a flush mount driver.

Alternatively, make sure your cabinet is air tight, no screws needed, place the cabinet under vacuum...

Ohms

 

[Ken Tajalli]

That's what grills are for.

In seriousness, there are plenty of speakers that have a "beauty ring" that covers the screws that surround the driver, or that have the driver mounted to the front baffle from within the speaker.

View attachment 383199

View attachment 383200

It's all a mater of taste though. Personally, I quite like some of the more utilitarian, brutal, looking speakers.

View attachment 383201

Yeah - the ATCs look good to me, sound good too, go very very loud too.
But then again, Philips screws are ugly! Allen bolts look a lot better, and your screwdriver won't slip and go through the diaphragm.

 

[Sokel]

I'm on the two edges.
Either make it Rockport Orion:



...or make it Kyron Audio Gaia:




Anything in between...

 

[MAB]

Screws are great.
I have speakers with glued in drivers (Rauna for instance), I like the speakers but don't care for the unserviceability.
KEF has trim rings in an attempt to conceal the screws, the trim rings looked noticeably off center when I went to listen to them in the store, several models. I'm not the only person to see this:

KEF R3 woofer or trim ring not centered : (

First time posting, long time reading - and for better/worse I decided that the KEF R3 was a good choice for my room, placement, size and financial constraints. So I pulled the trigger and a pair arrived today. I immediately noticed that one of the woofer trim rings, or the woofer itself is...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Even if centered, the trim rings don't help the look of many KEF models. I do love the way many of them sound though.

I would like to see more manufactures make good looking and functioning grills. Wharfedale is a great example:

 

[mhardy6647]

Consider, e.g., the very popular and long-lived DCM timewindows.
The earliest version of the timewindows sported an enclosure made of MDF baffles attached to Sonotube (cardboard forms for pouring concrete footings) and woofers that were glued in with (most likely) an RTV silicone product.
They are oh-so-much fun to work on.

Here is one of my unspeakably ugly but fine sounding (and inexpensively acquired) pair of original series timewindows. The timewindows originally sported an open cell foam "sock" covering that made them quite attractive (at least by late 1970s standards) but which succumbed rather rapidly to the ravages of time.

 

[Bcarroll]

It's time to rethink how drivers are mounted. Since the beginning of time the speakers frame has had holes for screws and that is pure ugly.
I'm asking this creative community to think about a new way to mount drivers without screws or clamps.
A clean mounting method will polish up our art of audio.

Monitor Audio uses drivers mounted via a bolt that runs from the rear of cabinet threaded to the rear of the driver. They include a hex key to tighten the drivers, and recommend an occasional check of the bolts. Once tightened, I’ve only had to slighty re-tighten the bolts. This deign accomplishes two things: secures the driver to the cabinet, and also serves as a brace to the cabinet structure.

 

[MAB]

Consider, e.g., the very popular and long-lived DCM timewindows.
The earliest version of the timewindows sported an enclosure made of MDF baffles attached to Sonotube (cardboard forms for pouring concrete footings) and woofers that were glued in with (most likely) an RTV silicone product.
They are oh-so-much fun to work on.

Here is one of my unspeakably ugly but fine sounding (and inexpensively acquired) pair of original series timewindows. The timewindows originally sported an open cell foam "sock" covering that made them quite attractive (at least by late 1970s standards) but which succumbed rather rapidly to the ravages of time.

I have these too.
I occasionally think about refurbishing them. I did make new socks. Like you say, the lack of screws makes it really inconvenient to work on, retrieve lost objects stuffed or crawled into the ports, etc...

 

[restorer-john]

I would like to see more manufactures make good looking and functioning grills. Wharfedale is a great example:

Exactly.

Design the loudspeaker to perform with the grille attached. Exposed drivers are really an eyesore. An eyesore that has become somewhat normalized in the land of audiophiles.

 

[mhardy6647]

Those new "Gen Z" JBL loudspeakers are nice looking, I'd opine.

 

[restorer-john]

Those new "Gen Z" JBL loudspeakers are nice looking, I'd opine.

I agree. Not my cup of tea, but I'm not their target market.

 

[Ron Texas]

Stick the drivers on with chewing gum.

 

[Chrispy]

Those new "Gen Z" JBL loudspeakers are nice looking, I'd opine.

View attachment 383228

What makes them Gen Z? The horrible white finish?