Acoustically Transparent Fabric

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Alan Hope

Alan Hope

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Joined 2004
#1
From the web ...
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Radio Silks specialize in supplying loudspeaker grille cloth, the material is supplied in a pack containing 1.42 square meters of cloth, enough to cover the grilles of most domestic loudspeakers.

The cloth is specially produced for loudspeakers, it is acoustically transparent and is as currently used by a number of major hi-fi manufacturers. It is perfect for replacing damaged grilles, or if you just want to change the colour to match a new colour scheme.
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I am undecided as to final finishes, but may consider some of this stuff for the front of a Sachiko Horn. While 100% acoustical transparency is obviously impossible - would I notice any difference in a double blind test?

Most horns in the galleries proudly display their woodwork and drivers - which is OK. But Plenty of high-end speakers have fabric, so cant be total sonic poison!
 
#4
adason said:
Often the problem is not the fabric, but the frame itself, which is causing diffraction.
Click to expand...
good point! So what if you used a very thin but strong material with little ductility, as the frame for the fabric, with four pegs on the corners (or more) to mount it on the enclosure and space it out to allow woofer excursion?
 
#5
adason said:
Often the problem is not the fabric, but the frame itself, which is causing diffraction.
Click to expand...

indeed it is the frame that causes the most problems.

Most hi-end speakers advise you that they are best without the grills -- the big Focals had/have solid wood grills for instance.

Regular doubleknit makes pretty good grill cloth.

dave

PS: how much they charge for 1.42 m^2 that stuff?
 
#6
planet10 said:


indeed it is the frame that causes the most problems.

Most hi-end speakers advise you that they are best without the grills -- the big Focals had/have solid wood grills for instance.

Regular doubleknit makes pretty good grill cloth.

dave

PS: how much they charge for 1.42 m^2 that stuff?
Click to expand...

UKP 29.38 inc VAT and Carriage

Re the frame - well the fe206e does not stick its whizzer above driver profile, so a tiny baton round the entire speaker edge would be enough to lift the fabric out of harms way.

My current TLs have removable covers on a wooden frame which goes round the entire front edge of the speaker. I have listened both on and off. I cannot (and I have very fussy ears) hear a difference.

But I will be experiencing - as I can already hear as the fe206es break in - a new level of transient response, detail, and mid-range transparency.

Perhaps I will build them ... try my current speakers covers on (would only cover the centre part though) and then decide. This is a Spring project.

Our local DIY store also has various wire-mesh panels available. These might look cool - but I have not seen mesh on speakers - (apart from the protective plastic mesh on stage gear). Any thoughts?
 
#7
#8
The problem with a lot of commercial speakers is that the grille is included as an afterthought for appearance reasons. If designed as part of the speaker from the beginning, with proper attention to the frame, diffraction, etc, it would be less acoustically intrusive.

Linn (I think) had a neat system where the frabric had elasticated edges and a groove was rebated into the sides and top/base of the enclosure - a sort of hifi hair net. No frame needed, just some felt to offset the fabric and stop it touching the drivers.
 
#9
Oh yes, regarding mesh. You need to be very careful that it doesn't resonate. Depending on the design, it can also be 'sided' - Peter Baxendale produced a design in the 1960s which had a wire mesh front and he commented that it would attenuate treble less if used one way rather than the other. (The mesh had a slant to the individual holes.) On the whole, I think I'd avoid it for hifi use.
 
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