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Thin Walled Speakers -Tonian, Musical Affairs, etc

Hello,
It seems that a few speaker makers are using the thin walled, lightweight, less damping approach to building. For example Tonian, Musical Affairs and some others.

http://tonianlabs.com/
http://musicalaffairs.com/
http://vimeo.com/28295029

And I've read some very positive reviews of such speakers. I can see how they would sound unreal with vocals, acoustic instruments etc. But how do they sound with other more spectrally complex music- lets say rock. Do they turn to sonic mud?

I'd be curious to hear feedback from anyone who actually owns or has heard such speakers.

Thanks
anchan
stanwal's avatar
stanwal
3,147 posts
 
Light weight and less damping do not go together; the BBC "Thin Wall" design was based on designing a cabinet with a resonance at a less critical point and then damping that frequency. Not easy to do; requires skill in design and building. Can work very well if properly executed but simply making the cabinet thin and cutting down on the damping is likely to give a colored sound. I currently have 6 pairs of the "Thin Wall" construction as well as others of heavier construction. Actually my S 100s weigh around 80 lb. so thin wall does not mean light weight.
yogiboy's avatar
yogiboy
5,464 posts
 
I am a long time Spendor guy. They rock with the best of them.
nonoise's avatar
nonoise
10,544 posts
 
I have Tonian TL-D1s and yes, they can rock without the use of a mudroom. Even electronic fare like Trent Reznor's and Atticus Ross' soundtracks sound wonderful, varied and nuanced.

Just because a speaker is designed/voiced like an instrument, it will still give you a gratifying listening experience. In all genres.

Granted, it may be off a bit, but what isn't? What matters is, is it convincing enough to allow you to suspend belief?
With the Tonians, I always leave my brain behind.
philjolet's avatar
philjolet
2,305 posts
 
the Musical Affair speakers (and video) are very interesting

thanks!
gsm18439
895 posts
 
To me, this is one of the more interesting speaker design issues. That two opposite approaches - eliminating vs controlling/incorporating cabinet resonance - can both work if optimized. For example, Audio Note uses cabinet resonance to its advantage - like the body of a stringed instrument. I believe that Living Voice does as well, but perhaps not to the same extent.
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