I have a first generation Echo and at that time, they didn't have a choice of finishes. Now I'm looking to buy the latest generation Echo as a graduation present for a relative. I had no idea there were so many choices! Does the speaker's finish impact sound quality? Some appear to be fabric, some wood, and some metal.
Wayne Parham Messages: 18786 Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
None of the "smart speakers" are designed for high-fidelity so it doesn't make sense to talk about their sound-quality aspects. What they're designed for is internet-connectivity and speech-recognition.
Personally, I like my Echo and think it sounds good, but he's more particular so I was concerned that the finishes could make the sound worse/ I mostly use mine to listen to audiobooks while I clean. Well, guess I'd better hunt for something else then. It's too bad the graduate prefers an actual gift to cash and Bose is out of my price range for this. Thanks for setting me straight!
I think that Echo gets the job done, Madison. I don't think it's bad for casual listening. If that's all you think he'd use it for, then I don't think it would be a bad purchase. I would've been excited to get something like that for my graduation.
You brought up an interesting question though. Do finishes have any kind of effect on high-fidelity speakers?
johnnycamp5 Messages: 354 Registered: June 2015 Location: NJ
Grand Master
I don't think they do...
or at least, I don't think they "should".
Ive always thought of the enclosure and driver baffles of a loudspeaker to be inert, and therefore indifferent (acoustically) to what they are finished with.
I have understood (perhaps in error) that this is not the case with very thin walled "acoustic" instruments such as guitars/violins and such.
Wayne Parham Messages: 18786 Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
You're right that acoustic instruments use panel resonance as well as cavity resonance to create their characteristic sound.
But loudspeakers aren't supposed to create any of their own sound. As such, they need an acoustically "dead" cabinet and so the construction and materials used are intended to be non-resonant.
I have to admit that I too thought that the Echo was primarily a speaker. Then I was lucky to be selected as a beta tester for the new model and realized that it's not really a speaker - or rather that is just one of its uses.
As a speaker, it's not great for music. But it's fine for talk radio and talk podcasts - and I listen to a lot of both. It also helps me to find, download and organise my podcasts very efficiently.
Given that I have decent speakers already I'm not sure that I'd have gone out and bought an Echo. But now I use it everyday.
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