To speaker grill or to not speaker grill...that is the question!!

[madmac]

Hello all,

I'm always replying to other threads but rarely starting one so here it goes!.
What is your take on speaker grills?. Do you use yours or do you remove them....much to the chagrin of your better half!!??. Are yours ALWAYS off?. I thought of removing mine today and did for fun, and I'm sure it is no surprise to anyone here, they sounded different without them......certainly a little louder that's for sure!. Now as we all know, louder is often interpreted as being better to the human ear. Baring that in mind, is it better for you and if so, in what way??. Do you think speaker mfr's design and 'tune' their speakers to be used with the grills on?. Like a window screen that blocks out about 30% of incoming light, speaker grills undoubtedly block sound and somewhat shape it. My grills have a funky interior frame with many small plastic squares on the outside paremeters and bigger squares in the center. Do you think these frames are manufactured to work with the drivers to enhance performance??.

So....sound off peeps and lets get a good thread going here because it's been deathly quiet around here lately !!!

[june]

hello madmac,

i mix it up from time to time. i also do the large to small speaker thing with my paradigms.

[Kal Rubinson]

Do you think speaker mfr's design and 'tune' their speakers to be used with the grills on?

Some do. Some don't.

[Chris D]

Anytime I have an a setup where I can take them off, I do. But in general, I try to blend speakers into the decor so whatever room it's in is NOT a "shrine to A/V". This usually means leaving speaker grills on.

[madmac]

How do you guys interpret the sound when they are off vs. on?. Preferences? Observations?

[DelRay]

Mine didn't come with grills. And I'm sure they would sound different if they were grilled.

[Kal Rubinson]

How do you guys interpret the sound when they are off vs. on?. Preferences? Observations?

How can you generalize about this?

[madmac]

Mine play a little louder and are a tad too crisp in the treble with the grills off. Other than the dramatic change in the setup's appearance (Looks better with grills on...looks too studio like in the living room with them off), I have to say they sound better with the grills on, leading me to think that they were designed and tuned to play with the grills on, or maybe I'm just used to the sound now with them on. With a 5.1 system in the living room, with them off there's a LOT of woofer staring you in the face, that's for sure!!