Albina Manapova ED - 134

There is great variety in the types of speakers that are available in the market today. However, the basic principles of sound production are pretty much the same. Here is an attempt at answering the question: how do speakers work?

There are of course many other types of speakers that are available and in use. But for the most part, the next speaker that you will most likely buy, or the speaker that is on the desk next to you are probably speakers of the type that concern us.

Speaker Internals Looking at each part and what it does will help us understand how a speaker works. Magnet A powerful magnet is a static part of the speakers construction. It remains in place and at all times produces a strong magnetic field around it. Coil or Voice Coil The two ends of the coil are attached to the audio player (which could be a hi-fi system, a car audio system or the connection to the audio port of the computer). This coil functions like an electromagnet. Cross-over circuit This is an electronic circuit that channels different audio frequency ranges to different speaker/driver types.

This basic construction is called a driver. There are of course other pieces such as the frame in which the speaker is housed, a cloth spider which holds the cone in place, etc. but think of these as playing a supporting role in the production of sound. However, one critical piece bears mentioning.

Some computer displays have rather basic speakers built- in. Laptops come with integrated speakers. Restricted space available in laptops means these speakers usually produce low- quality sound.

Computer speakers range widely in quality and in price. The computer speakers typically packaged with computer systems are small, plastic, and have mediocre sound quality. Some computer speakers have equalization features such as bass and treble controls.

Computer speakers were introduced by Altec Lansing in 1990.

Features vary by manufacturer, but may include the following: 1)An LED power indicator. 2)A 3.5 mm headphone jack. 3)Controls for volume, and sometimes bass and treble. 4)A remote volume control or a device that uses the similar function of mouse scrolling for adjusting the volume.

There are full- range speakers that produce sound in almost the entire audible range, but for better sound quality, higher-end speaker systems tend to separate the different parts of the audible frequency range (done by the cross- over circuit) and use different drivers for each.