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Loudspeakers have we really made that much progress since the 1930s?

Since I have a slight grasp on the history or loudspeaker design. And what is possible with modern. I do wonder if we have really made that much progress. I have access to some of the most modern transducers and design equipment. I also have  large collection of vintage.  I tend to spend the most time listening to my 1930 Shearer horns. For they do most things a good bit better than even the most advanced loudspeakers available. And I am not the only one to think so I have had a good num of designers retailers etc give them a listen. Sure weak points of the past are audible. These designs were meant to cover frequency ranges at the time. So adding a tweeter moves them up to modern performance. To me the tweeter has shown the most advancement in transducers but not so much the rest. Sure things are smaller but they really do not sound close to the Shearer.  http://www.audioheritage.org/html/profiles/lmco/shearer.htm
johnk
timlub
2,043 posts
 

Hi John,

      Even though what you post is correct. The arguments that you make are really out of context compared to the title of the thread that you have created... Yes, there has been huge advancements.  Yes the dome was invented around 1925, most of the technologies that we use were created between 1925 and 1930.

The Rice and Kellogg patents for the dome that your reference do not show a rim-driven, direct-radiator device designed for high frequencies, it wasn't until the late 1950's that the dome anywhere near how we know it started being used.... Rice and Kellogg experimented widely with all types of transducers.

There are too many to name above, but some excellent points made about advancements.  Maybe I mis took the original point. 

One of the best speakers that I had ever heard ... at least in high frequencies was the Hill Plasmatronic.  Not sure is Hill designed the plasma driver or if it was from the early days,  but there is a technology that I personally haven't seen before or since.

mapman's avatar
mapman
22,910 posts
 
http://www.cnet.com/news/forty-years-ago-the-ohm-f-speaker-was-a-game-changer-it-still-is/

The modern day descendants of these continue to improve regularly as well.  

Definite game changers for me. 
whart's avatar
whart
3,194 posts
 
The Acapella line includes a plasma tweeter, not sure what relation it bears to the Plasmatronic. (<What a great name).
xrayz
105 posts
 
@mapman  Really great memories of Ohm Fs. They were my first real audiophile speakers. I was just out of high school and $900 was a fortune then, but I had to have them. And I knew they were the best speakers in the world because Julian Hirsch told me so ;) The good old days.
johnk's avatar
johnk OP
1,976 posts
 
The plasma driver can be traced to 1900 and William Duddles singing arc The point I tried and failed to make is were is the modern equivalent in invention of something new not just refinement of very old tech to a the ribbon, dynamic, planar, electrostatic, plasma etc. Sure we have the 1950s bending wave transducer like Manger but I feel as far as design advancement we have greatly stagnated since the early spurt in designing for audio use. Pro or in home.
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