Shumazing, being a young father a while ago with crawling peanuts, my response is that your question is an oxymoron -- there ain't no such thing as child=proof anything. I used to call one of my babies the "finder of all lost things" because he would get into places that no normal human could be and come back with stuff I thought was lost long ago. The best way to protect your rig is to protect your baby -- whatever it takes, whatever it takes!!
Child-Proof Speakers
I have a six-month-old now and in the process of trying to child-proof the house. I'd like to keep the sound system in the living room, where the whole family can enjoy it, but concerned about the little one knocking something over, getting hurt in the process and/or breaking a valuable piece of equipment. I recently got a cover for my Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum (so she doesn't get burned on hot output tubes) and bought an equipment rack with closable doors. The next step is potentially replacing my stand-mounted speakers (Sonics Anima) with less tip-able floor-standing ones with more robust drivers (less vulnerable to being prodded by child fingers). Any recommendations on speakers in the <$3000 range? I listen to mainly rock, reggae, world and jazz, and usually on vinyl. I really like the Sonics and Audio Physic sound as well but looking for other options too.
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I converted from Maggies to Martin Logans once my kids became mobile. I wasn't as happy with the sound, but the speakers were indestructible. Once they are old enough (around 5) you can go back to anything you'd like. Now, my 14 year old is cautious enough that I let him use my system, and he's very careful with his own table and system. |
I did the same thing when I had Watt Puppies with child gates, The only child proof speakers are electrostats as the drivers are protected by stators which are usually stamped from metal. The only issue then becomes the panels may look really attractive to getting small objects pushed into them. I would recommend the new Janszen ZA 2.1 unfortunately they cost $7.5k but the sound quality is amazing! I just got a pair and in many ways they sound more like $15-20k, they are very sturdy and nearly indestructible, and the drivers are nicely hidden by non removable grills so there is no chance of little hands mashing up drivers. Call up Janszen and see if you can get a pair to hear they are really remarkable speakers. |
The most child proof speakers I know of are the Yamaha NS1000 monitors. All three drivers have strong cages. You can get them used for @$1000 on up. They are now a "cult speaker" and extremely loved by those that love them. They may not be exactly what you want but they will survive anything that is not thermonuclear. Denny |
I had the same concerns with my 3 children. It turned out that teaching them to respect "Daddy's stereo" was the easy part. Their curious friends and playmates are the ones to look out for. My best advice would be to prepare yourself mentally that everything will get broken or damaged. That way when it does, it's not so upsetting. |
The ADS 710s, 810s, and 910s from the early 80 had terrific metal grills. There is NO way for a kid to access the drivers thru those. Floor stand them or mate them to the low-profile, tilted ADS stands or the Auralex SpeakerDudes stands and you'd have a fairly kid-proof setup. Those ADS speakers sounded damn good and can be purchased dirt cheap nowadays... http://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_speakerdudes/speakerdudes.asp -RW- |
These would most likely do the trick: Vitavox Loudspeakers Note the "Blast-proof" models further down the page. |
Give it all up, I am sure more children to come. They need your undivided attention, not to mention the saving to their college funds. Listening to music is a distraction from good parenting. So, sell off the equipment for now. Once they leave for good, hopefully that is after college, build a new and better system. For now, learn to live off tunes on your iPhone. |
Vandersteen 5's, though a little above your budget, are fantastic sounding speakers with the drivers mostly well out of reach. Have you considered keeping the Anima stand mounts and simply placing them atop a low console or credenza? I had the same concerns about stand mounts or floor standing speakers and went this route... no issues so far. TV and speakers are on a low credenza with nothing on the floor. An added benefit is greater WAF, at least in my case. |
I installed Joseph Audio Insider speakers in my wall about 5 feet from the floor. They have a metal grill and sound like a great stand mount. I run the speaker cables below the floor and up inside the wall from my rack that is protected by a baby cage. This is a fairly baby proof system that the whole family enjoys for around 12 hours a day. I do miss my Vienna Acoustics Beethoven floor standers but I don't miss the stress of worrying about them getting knocked over and crushing my kids. Cheers, Jim |
Train your kids properly and you should have no issues. I've got a 3 year old and a 6 month old in a relatively small condo with my rig in the main living room and there is no issue. My entire stereo is referred to as "daddys speakers" and he knows not to touch them. I'd worry more about them accidentally getting burned on exposed tubes... |
My daughter walked at 10 months (this was 22 or so years ago), and we never childproofed anything. No issues, period. The secret is to WATCH YOUR KID all the time, and don't assume kids are stupid (although this could be a matter of degree)...we told our daughter what things to avoid, from eating random plants outside to touching my hifi, and she listened and got the drift even when she was really small...anything else is lame and all the childproofing in the world won't allow you to not be paying attention to a toddler when the toddler is toddling. Kid gets hurt, it's on you. Hang the speakers on the wall and just go back to the game? Really? |