Australian designer Tom Fereday collaborated with Tasmanian audio model Pitt & Giblin to create the Solid speaker, clad nearly fully in marine-grade aluminium.
The speaker, shortlisted within the client product design class of the Dezeen Awards 2024, incorporates a stripped-back supplies palette that units it aside from different audio tools available on the market, in line with Fereday.
“Audio system typically function a number of supplies and finishes,” he advised Dezeen. “With Solid, we needed to current a mono-material method to ship each high quality and class.”
Apart from the rear management panel, the speaker is totally encased in marine-grade aluminum, chosen partly for its acoustic and sound-enhancing properties.
The fabric can be much less prone to oxidation and degradation over time than lower-grade aluminum, leading to a chunk that Fereday mentioned will age gracefully.
“We opted for a hand-finished and waxed floor, leaving the fabric as pure and uncooked as doable to distinction the traditional notion of a speaker,” he defined. “The end result was a handcrafted look designed to final a lifetime.”
Consequently, the entrance of the speaker has a seamless, cohesive look, punctuated solely by a small gap within the heart of the waveguide.
“The round waveguide is each the acoustic and visible heart of the piece,” mentioned Fereday. “The form is extraordinarily refined and promotes constant protection all through the room because of its form, which leads to a clean and relentless sound.”
“The form of the waveguide is a purposeful aspect, and the geometry informs the remainder of the piece,” he added.
The marginally curved cone and rounded triangular base create a play of sunshine and shadow, born from the power of aluminum to be simply molded into complicated shapes.
The speaker's statuesque form and appreciable peak of 87 centimeters implies that reasonably than being hidden and prioritized for its operate, it might probably act as a sculptural object in its personal proper.
“The sculptural items work each as single audio system and as a pair, offering an audio piece that may work in lots of environments and be celebrated not hidden within the residence,” mentioned the designer.
A management panel is hidden behind the speaker, whereas the cubic head homes a 10-inch subwoofer, guaranteeing the monitor stays purposeful regardless of its smooth design.
Different metallic works by Fereday which have been revealed on Dezeen embrace a chair designed on the subject of previous chairs present in factories and a recycled aluminum chair that has mirror-polished sides.
Pictures is by Pier Carthew.