To grill or not to grill.

I keep the grilles on, because Paradigm recommends to do so for these speakers.

I never bothered to research about speaker grilles, and what effect they may have on sound. some speakers come without grilles, so I guess for some speakers is more than just aesthetics.

ps: is the poll missing a choice?

[edit:grammar]

Charcoal is better than propane, no question.

Oh, you mean "grille"?  Why didn't you say so? 

I actually don't even have the grilles for my Infinity Renaissance 90 speakers - it's unfortunate because they're actually integral to the speaker design.  The grilles are shaped to optimize (reduce) diffraction off the front of the speaker.  They're an unusual design, however, made of a solid sheet of MDF with holes cut out for the drivers - the drivers actually stick out of the front of the speaker cabinet so they lay flush with the surface of the grille.

As for the fabric - it should be acoustically transparent but I have no idea how that actually transpires.  I can imagine that cheaper speakers may skimp on fabric, which may have a very slight attenuation of high frequencies.  You could measure it easily, if it's large enough to make an audible difference.  Grille fabric is thin though, so it won't have any effect on lower frequencies.

However, the effect of the grille frame may be larger than the fabric - as with the Renaissance 90, it could have either a positive or negative effect on diffraction.

As far as differences go - I would not rule out the psychological effect of seeing the drivers and knowing that there is "nothing between you and the music".  That perception may well increase the apparent transparency of the speakers.

Sounds different on mine. Polk Monitor 30 Series II. The screen as thin as it is, makes the sound come out in unison and somewhat blended. Without the screens, it's a lot clearer in my opinion. 

So I voted "I listen with the grilles off".  Which I do.  But I should have read the second option.  This poll is broken.  Both options are the same thing.

It has nothing to do with looks.  Grills cause comb filtering, which makes speakers fatiguing to listen to for long periods of time.  Other than listener fatigue though, the brain will compensate for sound passing through an "acoustically transparent" substance.

im debating if i should remove the grilles from my Swans MKIII

Even at 50 I can hear 'em, no matter what the speaker. No matter how thin the material. Well, OK unless it's a subwoofer, I'll leave those on. All grills dull the high-high end to some extent.

yeah i just took them off, the highs are bit better
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by sferic 

Even at 50 I can hear 'em, no matter what the speaker. No matter how thin the material. Well, OK unless it's a subwoofer, I'll leave those on. All grills dull the high-high end to some extent.

I thought the grills were for dust protection and keeping away the temptation of children poking the cones on speakers.

hey guys, so if i take the grilles off, and dust starts to accumulate, how do you clean it? I am afraid of damaging the drivers from touching it or wiping it too hard. I was thinking about using those air dusters for computers and keyboards but don't know if its a good idea to spray it at the drivers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by eclipes 

hey guys, so if i take the grilles off, and dust starts to accumulate, how do you clean it? I am afraid of damaging the drivers from touching it or wiping it too hard. I was thinking about using those air dusters for computers and keyboards but don't know if its a good idea to spray it at the drivers.

I use small soft paint brushes to clean bass driver cones. Dust on tweeters should be left alone. I've talked to a speaker company about this and they said that the dust won't harm the sound, but any attempt to clean a dome tweeter risks serious damage, even compressed air.

okay thanks for heads up, i guess i can use a small brush then.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaveBSC 

I use small soft paint brushes to clean bass driver cones. Dust on tweeters should be left alone. I've talked to a speaker company about this and they said that the dust won't harm the sound, but any attempt to clean a dome tweeter risks serious damage, even compressed air.

 

I think one of those antistatic cleaning pens ($6 on amazon) for cleaning DSLR camera lenses might work for dealing with any tweeter cleaning.