A good speaker is 50% science and 50% art. That's my claim. And it is especially the artistic qualities that are perceived as the real difference between speakers.
Soon, our development project will move away from the classic engineering virtues and into a more unscientific world. For several months we have been making calculations, simulations, and electrical and acoustic measurements. Technical drawings have been made, samples have been built and measurement setups have been made. We have now come as far as science can take us. We may not have used all the measurement methods in the world, but we have traveled far and wide and now have finished drawings and precise recipes for four loudspeakers. I would argue that this is the end of the development process for most of the world's loudspeakers. Here, where the measuring equipment can tell us that the product is both sound and good, it takes more than ordinary persuasion skills to convince, for example, the management of a Far Eastern group that there is still more to be gained in the designs. For just what would that be?
Testing in the listening room. This is where we find out how the wall speaker really sounds. The speaker is the Q113 Revolution wall.
I guess you can measure everything
Is there anything important that cannot be measured? Is there anything in the world of loudspeakers that cannot be described by acoustics, electronics or mechanics? After all, the measurable constitutes a large part of the product's characteristics. The loudspeaker is in itself a piece of technology and a success criterion for the design can be, for example, to surpass its predecessor in a number of comparable points. This can all be measured, so what can reasonably be weighted at the level of measurements?
Human beings can
When all the big words about science are said, we are left with the fact that we still don't know enough about how humans perceive sound. There is a range of properties that are measurable, but there is no summary of the complex way humans experience sound. The experience simply cannot be measured and the brain is still a black box that science has yet to unlock. Therefore, we need to listen and experiment with the speakers to shape their sound.
We need to get started with voicing
As you have read in the previous section, all four versions of Speaker Q113 are now built like real loudspeakers, but with their crossovers built as temporary bird's nests on the outside. The team of permanent staff and volunteer engineers now set about listening to the speakers and assessing their sound. Is it natural? Is it alive? Or is there perhaps a tonal range that needs to be toned down or emphasized a little? The process is called voicing, and it's designed to trim the speaker's sound into place, using adjustments to the speaker's crossover. Each component has its own role in shaping the speaker's sound, but scientific measurements cannot tell us exactly what electrical value each component should have. Nor can the measurements tell us how much damping material should go into the cabinet. Or exactly how long the bass reflex tube should be. Only our ears can do that.
Tightening. A small dab of damping cotton wool just behind the woofer can tighten up a slightly imprecise bass response. But it can also have a stifling effect on the sound. Only your ears can tell the difference.
That is the art
When I claim that science is 50% of a good loudspeaker and the remaining 50% is art, it means that the good loudspeaker contains more than science can contain. The experience of atmosphere, nerve and presence can be perceived by a human being, but not by a measuring microphone. The participants in the listening panel use their ears to assess the tonal balance of the loudspeaker and its ability to bring the music to life. The measuring equipment can't do that. The adjustments that shape the sound can be quite extensive. The sound can go from dark and stuffy to bright and punchy, and in both cases look pretty good when you look at the measurements. That says something about the importance of adjustments. And the importance of judging speakers with your ears.
Bird's nest. Changes in the components change the sound of the speaker, but also its properties in other areas. We therefore make measurements to ensure that the speaker does not overload the amplifier, for example.
Q113 will need test subjects
By the time the Open House invites are issued, the Q113 loudspeakers will have undergone numerous tests and adjustments. However, this does not mean that the sound of the loudspeakers will be fixed with two lines under the final result. On the contrary, there will be an opportunity to participate in a comparison of the speakers and give your own assessment of the sound. Your opinion means a lot to the project and the test persons' opinions will influence the further progress of the project.
Habits can stand in the way of development
This is a very interesting aspect of Speaker Q113. Who doesn't dare to admit that work at work runs in some familiar routines? That you do what you usually do, in the same breath as you call yourself willing to change. That you have the same attitudes, come up with the same results and thus face the same old challenges over and over again. I readily admit it. But what happens when the product is evaluated by people who have no agenda other than that it is fun and interesting to play with? In which direction will they influence the project? I am very excited. There's an opportunity for a spontaneity and a diversity that doesn't exist when there's a No Access sign in the development department. What do you think? Are people you don't know the best gauge of all? In the next section, I'll go through some of the words we use to describe sound. Some of them are funny
