thebes Posted September 18, 2007 Author Share Posted September 18, 2007 http://www.engadgethd.com/tag/speakers/ Taka a look at some of these new winners. Industrial Design in all shapes and sizes... Thansk for sharing that Professor. sure it's my own personal taste but of the ones shown I really liked the Boyng and the KEF XQ's. But, the Logan's look like lampshades, the LG are vaguely insectisoid, the Met's remind me of water faucets, and the Audio Cedia looks like a billiard ball squatting on a bowling ball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryC Posted September 18, 2007 Share Posted September 18, 2007 I heard that speaker once (i.e., Marty's giant seahorse). It was on clearance at Ultimate Electronics as they were going out of business. Sounded just OK for the price. A hifi shop owner once told me that literally thousands of new speakers appeared each year, and very few were ever heard from again. Makes one appreciate Klipsch all the more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian_Dude Posted September 18, 2007 Share Posted September 18, 2007 Found this is your link -> http://crave.cnet.com/8301-1_105-9686804-1.html?part=rss&tag=feed&subj=Crave. This seems like a cool idea to me, probably doesn't sound so good though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted September 19, 2007 Share Posted September 19, 2007 That last one was probably not the right speaker to choose Marty - go listen to them if you get a chance and report back. These speakers - when originally launched - threatened to turn the audio world on its head - just check out the reviews. As far as I can recall there were production problems and it stopped them taking off like they were expected to. I do agree the design would be difficult to house - but this really is a case of design following function - according to the designer anyway. He is just not a big fan of boxed speakers. In reality there is no real reason that a speaker has to be a box - we have just gotten used to them that way. Avantgardes appear to sell well enough at their price point to show that some people can accept outrageous looking speakers in their living rooms / listening rooms - preumaby on the basis of sound. BTW - I too like that toaster - but not everything has to look retro to look good. Max, I'm not arguing about sonics here only aesthetics's. And yes it doesn't have to be retro to look cool. Many times modern industrial designers get it right, but it seems to me that in the speaker world they far too often go astray. Sorry Marty - it was not a critic of your original post. I was just trying to differentiate between designs that are based around the supposed sonic advantages and designs where there is simply no rhyme or reason in creating something that ugly. For example I think the B&W's in a previous response in this thread are in the former category whilst the bizzare hexagonal silver plastic things you see in large electronic retailers are in the latter. Talking of these stores I was in one recently and some of the mini-stereo designs are quite unbelievable. This does not usually extend to the speakers themselves - which are often the boring boxes we have become accustomed too - but the whole amp/CD/ MP3 etc. apparatus which now encompass seemingly complete disco light shows in bewildering arrays of colour. The motto now seems to be that you cannot be too garish - the more flashing lights the better. How anyone would live with that in a living room - let alone a bedroom I have no idea. At the other end of the spectrum Mark's iCats are, to me, a fabulous example of modern design - probably the coolest looking amps I have seen in a long while. I think I would be happy to have those in the living room - even if they weren't connected to anything - funds and ball-playing daughter permitting. Another example of winning design is the iPhone - again IMHO and all that. Time will tell how well it ages of course - but it looks way cool at the moment - certainly way better than my iJam - even if the functionality is more limited. Overall then - I do not think that this age lacks good design - but it is no more common than it ever was. As we have more products on offer than ever before this paucity is simply more obvious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldbuckster Posted September 19, 2007 Share Posted September 19, 2007 Anyone see the NEW subwoofer idea...................mounted IN the floor ? Vintage looks better to me all the time...Yuck !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ByteWrangler Posted September 19, 2007 Share Posted September 19, 2007 The motto now seems to be that you cannot be too garish - the more flashing lights the better. How anyone would live with that in a living room - let alone a bedroom I have no idea. How it looks in the living room or bedroom is not the point; how cool and "flashy" it looks in the store or catalog is. Once it's sold and taken home this isn't the manufacturer's problem. Besides, there's always black electrical tape. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebes Posted September 19, 2007 Author Share Posted September 19, 2007 That last one was probably not the right speaker to choose Marty - go listen to them if you get a chance and report back. These speakers - when originally launched - threatened to turn the audio world on its head - just check out the reviews. As far as I can recall there were production problems and it stopped them taking off like they were expected to. I do agree the design would be difficult to house - but this really is a case of design following function - according to the designer anyway. He is just not a big fan of boxed speakers. In reality there is no real reason that a speaker has to be a box - we have just gotten used to them that way. Avantgardes appear to sell well enough at their price point to show that some people can accept outrageous looking speakers in their living rooms / listening rooms - preumaby on the basis of sound. BTW - I too like that toaster - but not everything has to look retro to look good. Max, I'm not arguing about sonics here only aesthetics's. And yes it doesn't have to be retro to look cool. Many times modern industrial designers get it right, but it seems to me that in the speaker world they far too often go astray. Sorry Marty - it was not a critic of your original post. I was just trying to differentiate between designs that are based around the supposed sonic advantages and designs where there is simply no rhyme or reason in creating something that ugly. For example I think the B&W's in a previous response in this thread are in the former category whilst the bizzare hexagonal silver plastic things you see in large electronic retailers are in the latter. Talking of these stores I was in one recently and some of the mini-stereo designs are quite unbelievable. This does not usually extend to the speakers themselves - which are often the boring boxes we have become accustomed too - but the whole amp/CD/ MP3 etc. apparatus which now encompass seemingly complete disco light shows in bewildering arrays of colour. The motto now seems to be that you cannot be too garish - the more flashing lights the better. How anyone would live with that in a living room - let alone a bedroom I have no idea. At the other end of the spectrum Mark's iCats are, to me, a fabulous example of modern design - probably the coolest looking amps I have seen in a long while. I think I would be happy to have those in the living room - even if they weren't connected to anything - funds and ball-playing daughter permitting. Another example of winning design is the iPhone - again IMHO and all that. Time will tell how well it ages of course - but it looks way cool at the moment - certainly way better than my iJam - even if the functionality is more limited. Overall then - I do not think that this age lacks good design - but it is no more common than it ever was. As we have more products on offer than ever before this paucity is simply more obvious. Points very well taken and I certainly understood that you were not launching a critique. After all we're a couple of classy guys and we deal with each other in, well, a classy manner.[] I couldn't agree with you more that there is is a lot of very creative and aestetically beautiful industrial design out there. My main point must remain the same, though, and that is in the realm of gussying up speakers there is an entire industry that seems to have mostly missed the boat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebes Posted September 19, 2007 Author Share Posted September 19, 2007 The motto now seems to be that you cannot be too garish - the more flashing lights the better. How anyone would live with that in a living room - let alone a bedroom I have no idea. How it looks in the living room or bedroom is not the point; how cool and "flashy" it looks in the store or catalog is. Once it's sold and taken home this isn't the manufacturer's problem. Besides, there's always black electrical tape. Good point Wrangler and maybe that is their approach. However, when Joe Sixpack plunks that silver cube down next to his Barcolounger he's either going to start feeling his whole house looks like a dump or he's brought a silver/plastic ugly thing into his house that clashes with his decor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaiser SET say Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 I know the B&W Nautilus series is supposed to sound great...but yuck I think you just broke Mr. Cardas's heart[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 Then there are the MBL 101Es. To any Dr Who fan, they look like a pair of Daleks, and Daleks are always trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted September 20, 2007 Share Posted September 20, 2007 Those MBLs look weird from any angle... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebes Posted September 20, 2007 Author Share Posted September 20, 2007 Those MBLs look weird from any angle... That is just too funny. They look like street lamps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Or possibly I dream of jeannie modern bottles on a blender base... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaiser SET say Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Mmm OT, a young Barbara Eden[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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