Yes, unfortunately it looks as if major improvements are a thing of the past. Since the 1930s it’s difficult to think of major breakthroughs.
Maybe only 2 -
1947 Tannoy Dual Concentric by Ronald Rackham
1954 Edgar Villchur invents the acoustic suspension loudspeaker
[1957’s Peter Walker’s Quad Electrostatic is an alternative design but it’s difficult to ever see it attaining the popularity of the moving coil design].
The rest seems to be a case of endless experiment and refinement within certain budgets. Whichever way you look at it loudspeakers remain tremendously inefficient, wasting up to 99% of energy fed in through heat.
Still the search for improvements goes on with different approaches proving that there is still no one set formula for designing a loudspeaker. In fact there’s no clear evidence that even the original cone material (paper) has ever truly been improved upon.
Two recent approaches I am aware of include the Monopulse designs which are distinctly different with their obsessive devotion to timing to merit an audition.
The other is the approach taken by the Ohm Walsh 2000s which are steadily generating a good word of mouth following.
Both, with their alternate approaches may be significant incremental steps forward as opposed to mere refinement or just a reshuffling of sonic priorities.
Whether either will ever demonstrate a clear superiority over existing designs remains yet to be seen.
Maybe only 2 -
1947 Tannoy Dual Concentric by Ronald Rackham
1954 Edgar Villchur invents the acoustic suspension loudspeaker
[1957’s Peter Walker’s Quad Electrostatic is an alternative design but it’s difficult to ever see it attaining the popularity of the moving coil design].
The rest seems to be a case of endless experiment and refinement within certain budgets. Whichever way you look at it loudspeakers remain tremendously inefficient, wasting up to 99% of energy fed in through heat.
Still the search for improvements goes on with different approaches proving that there is still no one set formula for designing a loudspeaker. In fact there’s no clear evidence that even the original cone material (paper) has ever truly been improved upon.
Two recent approaches I am aware of include the Monopulse designs which are distinctly different with their obsessive devotion to timing to merit an audition.
The other is the approach taken by the Ohm Walsh 2000s which are steadily generating a good word of mouth following.
Both, with their alternate approaches may be significant incremental steps forward as opposed to mere refinement or just a reshuffling of sonic priorities.
Whether either will ever demonstrate a clear superiority over existing designs remains yet to be seen.