A question about speaker grills - cloth or metal??

[boogietube]

I've started gathering parts for my first tube amp build. (Hoffman AB763 head with two 2x12  cabs.)
I was wondering if anyone had used perforated aluminum for their grills?

See it here:
http://www.speakerworks.com/custom_speaker_grill_p/cg1.htm

Would there be a great deal of sound difference if I used this instead of normal cloth?
I have the same type of grill on my Yorkville Elite M600 P.A. speakers and they sound awesome.

Thanks,
Sean

[jacobyjd]

Expect a metal grille to look like crap the moment it gets its first dent--approximately 10 minutes after it's installed.

[petemoore]

  So generous..
  they do make great protectors, I've never seen a metal grid bend through to take out a speaker cone.
  Sonically different, actually hard to tell in A/B tests unless the metal was resonant, we used old steel grid stuff, salvaged from out of an old Bread or Postal Vans, heavy but rugged.

[Toddy]

It's a matter of personal taste and budget. Call me old fashioned or old school but I prefer cloth. It kind of lends a cloak of mystery to what is hidden beneath. I have even seen cloth over metal mesh but that was a 1980s stereo speaker...go figure!

Toddy

[jacobyjd]

--Yeah, I guess I wasn't thinking too hard about durability--I had a cab with metal mesh and always got picked on by my band-mates for how ghetto it looked

Durability is one of those things I don't really think about when it comes to grille covering--I tend to make extra sure the speaker isn't going to be assaulted by anything but sound at my gigs, but then again, I only play combos. ymmv.

[svstee]

I've used them on all my builds to date for to main reasons:
1: I got a bunch of it for free.
2: it is easier for me to install than cloth.
3: it is more durable.

No sonic issues I've noticed.

[Mark Hammer]

If you want, Sean, pop over to Lee Valley and they can cut you some really attractive woven cane.

[liddokun]

If you're worried about aesthetics, why don't you do what Traynor does for a lot of their amps? They have the full metal grille, but also cover over that grille with the clothe. That way you get the protection of the metal grille, but the look of the clothe grille.

[Paul Marossy]

If you're worried about aesthetics, why don't you do what Traynor does for a lot of their amps? They have the full metal grille, but also cover over that grille with the clothe. That way you get the protection of the metal grille, but the look of the clothe grille.

That's not a bad idea.

[littlephil]

I'm kind of in between on metal grills. I think alot of them look crap (old Mesa vertical 2x12's with the huge grill) but some of them look good. I've got an old Laney 4x12 and I think it looks alright. But I also havent seen many cloth grills that I havent liked.
As for affecting tone, I doubt you could hear the difference, but Eric Johnson may tell you otherwise

[bassmannate]

My Hartke looks pretty snazzy with its metal grill. Although, it helps show off the aluminum driver underneath. I don't think the cloth would show the nice, shiny cone.

[JKowalski]

My brother picked up a pair of these EXCELLENT kenwood speakers from the thrift store today for $7 total - great range (5 diff. speakers in each), great construction, wonderful sound. I Thought I'd share how they did their grill - I think it looks amazing, the pics don't do it justice. Looks a little hard to do DIY, though  .

You have the cloth look, with a spaced out and very pretty metal design over it, and on top of that the metal frame is virtually indestructible, considering the way it is constructed.

Here's a pic of someone else's (Im too lazy to take a pic of my own  )

[connie_c]

ive used metal. works fine. The stuff i used was like the stuff on gibsons amps from a few years back.



I used it to cover the front like cloth would and i put rubber strips between the baffle and grill to stop vibrations.