Form and function Marcus Heinrich Abrahamsen, Industrial Designer at Dynaudio, explains how Scandi aesthetics and exceptional audio go hand-in-hand DYNAUDIO: 45 YEARS OF SCANDI SPEAKERS “As an industrial designer, I get to interact with the entire product- development process, from the first sketching session to building scale mock-ups and choosing the right materials. Many of our core principles are derived from or have roots in the Scandinavian design principles. One of them is craftsmanship, and has been so for 45 years: artisans with decades of experience hand-built our cabinets and drive units. If you treat it right, it will last you a lifetime. We strive to strike the right balance between leaving in, and taking away – there are no superfluous details. When choosing materials and colour-ways, we look to the nature here in Denmark. We get inspiration from the west coast, marshlands and many beautiful forests. Deep blues, mossy greens and soft earth tones. It’s all about inviting nature into our homes. We also seek to create products where form follows function. A perfect example is the baffle of Confidence, where the shape is blended into the waveguide for the tweeter. This mechanical element becomes beautifully integrated into the shape. The littlest changes in the geometry of the speaker, or the placement of drive units in relation to edges, will have an effect on the perceivable sound it produces. It’s rare that we are asked to slim down a product. It’s more common to be asked to increase the size of a speaker, to allow for more cabinet volume. It’s a fine balance. Over the past couple of years, we’ve been allowed to push the design to be more on par with the needs of the acoustics team. But we still have 45 years of hi-fi heritage to protect – so we tread firmly but lightly.” Confidence baffle Its shape is blended into the waveguide for the tweeter. See more on p118 Magazine 04 25
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