Music To Your Eyes
Why buy ordinary speakers when you can have works of art instead?
There is no perfect loudspeaker. Every design reflects a compromise
between the speaker cabinet and its various drive units (woofers,
midranges, and tweeters). That said, some speakers are much closer to
perfect than others—and not just in how they sound, but in how they
look. Here are six visual stunners from Stephen Mejias, an editor at
Stereophile magazine, that you won’t want to hide behind the ficus,
wedge inside a bookcase, or otherwise apologize for owning.
Best for the Home-Theater Curator
Vienna Acoustics The Music
Most manufacturers won’t let you fine-tune the sound of your speakers. This one does by positioning a drive unit—which consists of a tweeter and a midrange—on top, where it can pivot left or right, allowing you to articulate your sound to fit what you’re watching.
$27,000 per pair, sumikoaudio.net
Best for the Home Audiophile
Gradient Helsinki 1.5
These speakers use an open-baffle approach: to let the music flow more freely, the tweeters and the midrange drive units are mounted on the surface of the speaker’s narrow body, rather than inside. This means sound that’s as fluid as the speaker’s design.
$8,000 per pair, fidelisav.com
Best for the Wannabe DJ
Duevel Planets
The chrome spheres work with the speaker’s upward-firing drivers to disperse music in all directions for a truly enveloping listening experience. The narrow cabinet delivers powerful bass in a tidy package.
$1,400 per pair, duevel.com
Best for the Apartment Owner
Scandyna Minipod
Each Minipod measures a scant 13 inches tall, making them ideal if you want unobtrusive speakers. Fortunately, size doesn’t dictate sound—add the matching subwoofer ($800) and entire floors will be suffused with music. The design looks Ray Bradbury but actually helps counteract internal vibrations—meaning you’ll hear vocals and stringed instruments more crisply.
$850 per pair, podspeakers.com
The Best Speaker You’ll Never Buy
Kef Muon
Kef commissioned industrial designer Ross Lovegrove, known for his work on the Apple iMac, to dream up the world’s ultimate speaker. Made from molded aluminum, each Muon stands nearly 7 feet tall and weighs 250 pounds, but the mirrored surface and contoured shape keep them from looking huge and heavy. So, what does $165,000 sound like? Breathtaking in every way, thanks in large part to the six woofers—four in front, two in the rear—and Kef’s innovative midranges and tweeters. Kef is making only 100, which means that if you can afford the mortgage, they’re probably a fine investment.
$165,000 per pair, kef.com
Men’s Health Living Top Pick
Davone Rithm
Most speakers force you to play Tetris with your living room layout. Giant square subwoofer here. Long, skinny satellite speaker there. Now, where to put the L-shaped couch? The self-contained Davone Rithm stands on its own as a piece of furniture. Rectangular speakers muffle bass, but the bow-shaped design of the Rithm gives your thumping beats room to breathe, elevating the sound with a built-in tweeter and woofer. Result? Carnegie Hall, CBGB, or the Troubadour—in your living room. Plus, there’s room for the couch.
$6,000 per pair, thesignalcollection.com
Comments
19 Dec 2008, 08:57
30 Jan 2009, 12:05