Effect of Speaker Shape on Sound

[The Raven 509]

Admittedly, I have a bit of a thing for non-rectangular speakers - the ones that look like alien pods or dragon eggs or weird flying saucers.

 

 After seeing DCL's post of a picture with some truly odd shaped speakers, it got me wondering -

 

Does the shape of the speaker have any affect on the sound? Are there some shapes that look cool but sound awful? Are rectangular speakers so common because that shape produces the best sound quality - or because they're easier to make?

 

For that matter, does the material the speaker is composed out of - wood vs. plastic for instance - make a difference in sound quality?

[RichP714 3,169]

 

 

.....

Does the shape of the speaker have any affect on the sound? Are there some shapes that look cool but sound awful? Are rectangular speakers so common because that shape produces the best sound quality - or because they're easier to make?

 

For that matter, does the material the speaker is composed out of - wood vs. plastic for instance - make a difference in sound quality?

 

It would be cool if humans could see soundwaves (like that dude on Alphas that can see cell phone transmissions)

 

The basic idea is that sound propagates through a medium (in this case atmosphere) as a wave.  Barriers to propagation of a wave cause an interference pattern; this pattern's destructive and constructive interference patterns can be ameliorated by both shape and material choices

 

Humans typically prefer a crisp, snappy image rather than a blur of sound; arrival times of the direct sound and secondary sounds (room reflections, cabinet boundaries, etc.) will have a direct effect on intelligibility

 

I can't find a graphic explanation, but here's some text: 

 

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jan12/articles/seegg150.htm

 

 

[4krow 7,503]

Shapes, designs, building material. They are all over the page of thought. I suppose that speaker could even be designed for a specific listening room. I enjoy looking at the various ideas, but in the end, physics must be our template. So to answer your question, almost every physical parameter affects the outcome of sound from a speaker. I have always been surprised at how well rectangular boxes sell when they introduce common mode frequencies in the first place. Boxy cars to boxy houses, these are the easiest to build.

[The Raven 509]

Thanks 

 

 That's a fantastic idea though. If someone knew enough about electronics, materials and acoustics designing a speaker system for a specific room would be an interesting endeavor.