What the speaker design has changed over the past 100 years?

In the past 100 years, objects were mostly made by artisans in small quantities, and there was no design to speak of. It was only after the Industrial Revolution that the word design gradually emerged, as mass machines produced it to meet the needs of more people. Now people‘s requirements for objects are not only functional, appearance is a bridge between people and objects. Again pleasant sound box, if the exterior and people‘s aesthetic antipathetic, believe also won‘t be welcomed.

I try to talk about the shape design of the speaker from history, design style and culture.

The 1930s

The earliest speakers

Architecture and speakers

The electric loudspeaker (speaker) was invented in the 20‘s of last century, and the speaker is slowly approaching life with the invention of loudspeaker.

Sound box as a new thing, no previous basis can refer to

So people get design inspiration from architecture and furniture.

Referring to the gothic architectural symmetry, high in the middle and low on both sides as well as the arch voucher at the top, it is simplified to form such a speaker model

At that time, there was still a legacy of artisans, and everything was decorated, and these speakers (radios) were in line with the tradition.

1940s and 1950s

Furniture speakers

Speakers began to become a part of the furniture, culminating in large speakers like the JBL.

60 time, sound box serves as the attribute of electric equipment is clear, simplify gradually drop the complex adornment that does not concern with the function.

Speakers with a protruding border have long been a mainstay of design.

Electroacoustic technology developed by leaps and bounds over the next 30 years, and our current theory of electroacoustic was fully formed in the 1970s.

Be in this paragraph of time, the technology of sound box rises ceaselessly, but the frame type with square basically is given first place, do not have too much adornment at the same time.

Founder frame structure, production process is relatively simple, suitable for mass production,

In fact, at that time, more attention was paid to sound than decorative appearance, and speakers before the 1970s were mainly simple in shape.

Sound box design for the industrial age

Industry develops greatly, sound box also followed this agitation at the same time, resemble machine general, have trendible edges and corners, highlight horn frame with metallic color

The look below is a representation of that industrial era, which remained a mainstay until the 1980s.

Avant-garde minimalist design

In the 1970s, sound technology was very mature, and visual art design was emphasized. People were no longer satisfied with sameness, began to have personalized pursuit, there were a lot of avant-garde designs, some of which still look very fashionable today.

Fever fever in China from the 1990s to the present

In the most prevalent era of fever wind in China, a large number of acoustics entered the family, and a lot of friends here also started to have a fever from this time.

The most classic and mature sound box modelling was formed at this time, so far the modelling with very heavy woodiness feeling is still mainstream.

A few 90 time homebred sound box, modelling in regular moment

Fever in the 21st century, the tide gradually subsided, streamline, dynamic, structured design concept into the sound, the user positioning various speakers is very obvious, large and small, all kinds of speakers appeared on the market, of course, this time for the attention of the shape is unprecedented, grandiose, retro, the avant-garde in the market, the selling point of shape more than the demand for voice. To the user demand of sound box, also gradually subdivide a computer multimedia box, AV home cinema, HIFI appreciate box, professional sound box and so on. At the same time, it also divides into various grades, from dozens of yuan to hundreds of thousands of yuan. The rich can play with luxury speakers. This is the age of individuation.