Unusual Speaker Designs

[DanielT]

Half a century ago it wasn't unusual to have the speaker drivers placed on the baffle in a way that looked like they were shot out by a shotgun. But nowadays? It's unusual, at least with as many drivers as these Coral BX-1500.

Problems with driver integration, lobing problems, difficulties with putting together a good 6-way passive crossover perhaps?:

 

[mhardy6647]

The funny thing is: Coral, like many Japanese manufacturers, made some fine drivers and loudspeakers... but not too many of either made it to the US market of the era, which was far more interested in what have come to be derisively (mostly ) referred to as Kabuki speakers.

Lafayette Radio Electronics, e.g., in the US sold some (Japanese imports, but most likely made to LRE's spec) that looked like a canine ate a bunch of drivers and barfed them up onto a baffle.


Since I am shameless , I'll mention a thread on Kabuki loudspeakers that's right here on ASR:

Vintage loudspeaker musing: those boomy 1970s sealed box loudspeakers -- and a suggestion :)

I realize that some of y'all are fortunate enough not to remember the 1970s. This thread topic may, or may not, be for you! ;) I was just reading a thread at audiokarma which contained a link to an "explanation" of sealed (and, by implication, acoustic suspension -- as opposed to other sealed...

www.audiosciencereview.com

source: https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Catalogs/Lafayette-Catalogs/Lafayette-1970-700.pdf

Rectilinear in the US was guilty of some superficially similar abominations (FWIW):

e.g., the Rectilinear III
source: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/9470-my-highboy-story/

 

[jkasch]

The funny thing is: Coral, like many Japanese manufacturers, made some fine drivers and loudspeakers... but not too many of either made it to the US market of the era, which was far more interested in what have come to be derisively (mostly ) referred to as Kabuki speakers.

View attachment 484414

Lafayette Radio Electronics, e.g., in the US sold some (Japanese imports, but most likely made to LRE's spec) that looked like a canine ate a bunch of drivers and barfed them up onto a baffle.


Since I am shameless , I'll mention a thread on Kabuki loudspeakers that's right here on ASR:

Vintage loudspeaker musing: those boomy 1970s sealed box loudspeakers -- and a suggestion :)

I realize that some of y'all are fortunate enough not to remember the 1970s. This thread topic may, or may not, be for you! ;) I was just reading a thread at audiokarma which contained a link to an "explanation" of sealed (and, by implication, acoustic suspension -- as opposed to other sealed...

www.audiosciencereview.com

View attachment 484415
source: https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Catalogs/Lafayette-Catalogs/Lafayette-1970-700.pdf

Rectilinear in the US was guilty of some superficially similar abominations (FWIW):
View attachment 484416
e.g., the Rectilinear III
source: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/9470-my-highboy-story/

The Rectilinears were highly regarded and got great reviews in their time. Not sure why.

 

[Brent71]

The funny thing is: Coral, like many Japanese manufacturers, made some fine drivers and loudspeakers... but not too many of either made it to the US market of the era, which was far more interested in what have come to be derisively (mostly ) referred to as Kabuki speakers.

View attachment 484414

Lafayette Radio Electronics, e.g., in the US sold some (Japanese imports, but most likely made to LRE's spec) that looked like a canine ate a bunch of drivers and barfed them up onto a baffle.


Since I am shameless , I'll mention a thread on Kabuki loudspeakers that's right here on ASR:

Vintage loudspeaker musing: those boomy 1970s sealed box loudspeakers -- and a suggestion :)

I realize that some of y'all are fortunate enough not to remember the 1970s. This thread topic may, or may not, be for you! ;) I was just reading a thread at audiokarma which contained a link to an "explanation" of sealed (and, by implication, acoustic suspension -- as opposed to other sealed...

www.audiosciencereview.com

View attachment 484415
source: https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Catalogs/Lafayette-Catalogs/Lafayette-1970-700.pdf

Rectilinear in the US was guilty of some superficially similar abominations (FWIW):
View attachment 484416
e.g., the Rectilinear III
source: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/9470-my-highboy-story/

Rectumlinear?

 

[mhardy6647]

The Rectilinears were highly regarded and got great reviews in their time. Not sure why.

Ditto, although, in full disclosure, I've never encountered any of the big ones in the field.

 

[jkasch]

Ditto, although, in full disclosure, I've never encountered any of the big ones in the field.

I heard a pair that a friend brought home after serving in the Navy. I thought they were the best thing ever, but I was about 17 years old and had never heard anything halfway decent before.

 

[DSJR]

Memory from the UK. I cut my young 'audiophile/audiophool teeth' on JBL L200 and better for UK use, IMF transmission lines. Crown driven, they could fill a reasonable space with ease, the KEF mid driver well sorted and not a hint of 'Bextrene Quack' in these models, the overall tonal balance interesting in that the cancellations that lines give, was the mean level for the midrange upwards, the bass below 90Hz then lifted by 5dB or so in models before the RSPM IV in 1976. Not hugely efficient and most domestic grade integrated amps of the time just couldn't control the bass driver at all (DSOM's heartbeat put pressure waves into one's ears, this from a Dolby A master tape not simply wobbly old vinyl). I'd love to know how these would sound today with digital and modern properly-sorted vinyl sources, as I have such fond memories of favourite albums of the time played through them?

 

[EERecordist]

I am not a fan of Jeff Koons. He was wealthy and bought his way into the art world. But some like him.

Do you need a $750 each speaker shaped like a balloon dog?

Maybe ASR needs to test it, 360 degrees.

Lexon x Jeff Koons Balloon Dog Bluetooth Speaker | The Broad

Lexon x Jeff Koons Balloon Dog Bluetooth Speaker | The Broad

shop.thebroad.org

The same company also makes clear plastic Koons balloon dog lights in the Broad Museum Shop with LED neon. So the truly demented Koons-o-phile could have a 5+.1 sound and light system of dogs filling their room(s).

 

[kemmler3D]

Driver placement is aesthetically sensible, but very questionable otherwise...

 

[egellings]

Driver placement is aesthetically sensible, but very questionable otherwise...

That hound! That hound!

 

[Keith_W]

Driver placement is aesthetically sensible, but very questionable otherwise...

Some speakers are not meant to be speakers, they are meant to be art or sculpture that happens to produce sound. I am sure it would measure terribly and sound just as bad, so we should judge it on its merits as sculpture.

Sadly, on that it also fails.

 

[Sal1950]

Maybe ASR needs to test it, 360 degrees.

Seriously ? For why?, Better not to waste the time and measure some things that actually have a chance of moving the SOTA goal posts.
These are just a pile of crap designed to attract buyers looking for something that is a visual conversation piece.

 

[Sal1950]

Some speakers are not meant to be speakers, they are meant to be art or sculpture that happens to produce sound. I am sure it would measure terribly and sound just as bad, so we should judge it on its merits as sculpture.

Sadly, on that it also fails.

Dang Keith, you beat me to it..

 

[kemmler3D]

we should judge it on its merits as sculpture.

Yes, an uglier, cheaper, overpriced version of a famous sculpture that is controversial to begin with...

 

[kemmler3D]

Half a century ago it wasn't unusual to have the speaker drivers placed on the baffle in a way that looked like they were shot out by a shotgun. But nowadays? It's unusual, at least with as many drivers as these Coral BX-1500.

Problems with driver integration, lobing problems, difficulties with putting together a good 6-way passive crossover perhaps?:
View attachment 484233

This looks like a children's museum exhibit where you could demonstrate every type of driver in one place. Just hook it up to a little display where you hit a button that looks like a bird and the tweeter makes a tweeting noise, etc... are those coaxial drivers or do they just have weird dustcaps that look like them?

 

[EERecordist]

Seriously ? For why?, Better not to waste the time and measure some things that actually have a chance of moving the SOTA goal posts.
These are just a pile of crap designed to attract buyers looking for something that is a visual conversation piece.

To me the point of testing, even on axis, is to

1 Compare to early computer speakers, Apple or KLH, small drivers in a similar plastic shell.
2 To understand what those drivers do in that kind of enclosure.
3 Possibly embarrass the designers and collectors. Hey maybe it sounds good?

Since it is a dog sitting on a table, you are not going to be able to eliminate the table reflection from the chirp.

 

[DanielT]

This looks like a children's museum exhibit where you could demonstrate every type of driver in one place. Just hook it up to a little display where you hit a button that looks like a bird and the tweeter makes a tweeting noise, etc... are those coaxial drivers or do they just have weird dustcaps that look like them?

Not coax:

On axes FR, if you can believe this graph it looks ok:

Coral of CORAL BX-1500 specifications

Off axes however. Who knows. You can guess.

It would actually be fun to listen to a pair of CORAL BX-1500s. If you sit in the sweet spot, they might sound decent, or at least entertaining.
They probably won't sound like new with their around fifty-five year old drivers and crossover though.

 

[Urubamba]

AI think the singer is Leonard Cohen... through my AKG headphones, his voice lacks a bit of a "guttural" sound...

 

[Azrael]

Kill it before it lays eggs...!!!

 

[egellings]

AI think the singer is Leonard Cohen... through my AKG headphones, his voice lacks a bit of a "guttural" sound...

Too many drivers. How well are their efforts coordinated?