Wall Mounted Speakers?

[tinitus]

well, I choose to be less 'categoric' about it
especially after having experienced what kind of crap sound many people seem to be 'enjoying'
even with 'hifi correct setup'
and this does not exclude myself

ofcourse you cannot compare it to absolute top quality sound (how many actually have that)
but that is not expected, is it

I only object to prejustice based on book theory
(mind you, I do not deny the theory in any way)

 

[picowallspeaker]

Well, not that particular system, which has some Toshiba satellites that do some justice in place of the original ones.
I guess it's the joint stereo of Mp3 that holds the thing together !
But exploring the 1 Watt range given by cheap amplifiers, I'm talking about the DIL ICs with or without heathsink, puts loudspeaker design in relevance. Substituting a small and cheap 5" subwoofer unit with a solid 8"+8" passive in a big solid cube brings the 3 W given by those chips in BTL a good bass; same for the satellites, from 3" to 4" ( plus piezo, which works )

 

[Philosophil]

well, I choose to be less 'categoric' about it
especially after having experienced what kind of crap sound many people seem to be 'enjoying'
and does not exclude myself either

ofcourse you cannot compare it to absolute top quality sound (how many actually have that)
but that is not expected, is it

I only object to prejustice based on book theory

That's kind of how I'm approaching this. I'm not aiming for the quality one might expect from dedicated listening speakers. I want something that will be enjoyable for listening to music in the kind of dynamic, multi-positional environment of a home kitchen (whether working at the counter during food preparation or sitting around a table when eating).

For the above-the-doorway option, think something like a shallow surround sound center speaker (the angled type), but mounted high and turned upside down.

For the corner option, think of a relatively normal speaker box, but with the front baffle angled downwards (kind of truncated pyramid or an inverted trapezoid).

 

[midrange]

To me, both your ideas seem good.

If you are going to utilise a corner position, I find it beneficial to use a box at the higher end of the internal volume range (which gives a lower system Q). This gives a smoother and deeper bass.

Also, some would disagree with this, but I find in an uncritical listening situation, when volume levels are lowish, keeping the sound absorbent in the enclosure to a minimum, helps. At low volume levels, to me, any increase in colouration is more than compensated by the livelier presentation . Something to experiment with perhaps.

 

[Philosophil]

What things should I be taking into consideration when trying to design a wall mounted speaker?

Right now I'm thinking about trying to build speakers for our kitchen and I'm playing with two possibilities: 1) A wall mounted speaker above a doorway that happens to be centered along one wall, or 2) A corner mounted speaker that would be pointed towards the working center of the room. In each case the speakers would be mounted above normal listening levels (either sitting or standing). I would then direct the sound towards the middle of the working space by angling the baffle of the speakers downwards slightly so that the baffle is not parallel to the rear of the speaker (so the driver is off-axis to the ceiling). In this way I hope to alleviate some of the problems associated with rear reflection and standing waves (as noted by midrange). I'm also hoping (though I have little to go on here) that this will also help create a wider listening area so that the speakers will sound appealing enough from a variety of listening perspectives (e.g. cooking and eating).

Any comments or suggestions relating to the kinds of things I should be considering for either of these proposals would be welcome.

Well, I guess I'll take the absence of suggestions to mean that there is nothing else that I need to take into consideration when constructing my wall-mounted speakers.

While all comments and suggestions have been helpful, including the negative ones (and I actually mean that), I'll probably follow the encouragement of midrange and tinitus and just build some enclosures, try some drivers, and see what happens...

 

[midrange]

I would suggest that you try normal boxes with backs, to try out your ideas, before you start drilling holes in your kitchen wall. Do that when you have finalised design and position. Using the wall as the rear panel seems intrinsically good. Makes the speaker shallower and a wall can be very solid. Don't overlook the fact that the seal between the wall and the speaker sides will need to be airtight.
Good luck, and have fun.