speaker

Abstract

This invention describes a loudspeaker comprising a housing and a plurality of sound transducers disposed within the housing, wherein the housing has two sides, a front side, and a rear side, as well as a top and a bottom side, disposed on opposite sides of an x-y plane, the mutual distance between the sides being measured along a z-axis orthogonal to the x-y plane, wherein a first sound transducer is disposed within a first cavity within the loudspeaker housing, wherein the first cavity has a narrow first slit disposed in the rear side along the y-direction, the first slit having a width z1 along the z-direction and a length y1 along the y-direction, wherein the length y1 along the y-direction is greater than the width z1 along the z-direction; a second sound transducer is disposed within a second cavity separated from the first cavity within the loudspeaker housing, wherein the second cavity has a narrow second slit disposed in the front side along the y-direction, the second slit having a width z2 along the z-direction and a length y2 along the y-direction, wherein the length y2 along the y-direction is greater than the width z2 along the z-direction.

Description

Field of the Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a loudspeaker, wherein the arrangement of a sound transducer within a loudspeaker housing, in particular the arrangement of a sound emitting opening in the loudspeaker housing together with the sound transducer, allows an unconventional and novel construction of the loudspeaker. Background of the Invention

[0002] It is well known in the art to arrange sound transducers within a speaker housing, wherein the sound transducers can emit sound in different directions, depending on the frequency range in which they emit sound. For example, a low-frequency sound transducer (woofer) can be directed toward the floor, while a mid-range sound transducer and a high-range sound transducer (tweeter) can be directed toward the position of the listener, thereby representing all audible frequencies. The arrangement of the sound transducers and the direction in which they emit sound have an impact on the propagation of sound waves of different frequencies. The small wavelength of high frequencies (compared to the size of the sound transducer) means that high-frequency sound transducers should be pointed toward the listener so that the listener enjoys the full frequency spectrum emitted by, for example, tweeters and mid-range sound transducers, while for low frequencies, the sound tends to be more widely spread, so the direction of the sound emission is less important.

[0003] The outer dimensions of a typical loudspeaker are determined by the size of the sound transducer, since it is common practice to arrange the sound transducer so that it emits sound generally perpendicularly to the front facing side of the loudspeaker housing, and / or to arrange the woofer or subwoofer so that it emits sound towards the floor, and therefore the front side and the bottom of the loudspeaker housing have an area corresponding at least to the area of ​​the front of the corresponding sound transducer. This of course leads to the fact that a powerful loudspeaker unit will have a certain size in order to accommodate a sound transducer unit mounted in this way, and may therefore be quite bulky.

[0004] Purpose of the Invention

[0005] It is often desirable to have a better compromise between a good and powerful sound and the size of a more compact loudspeaker housing. Up to now, this has not been possible in conventional loudspeaker devices without sacrificing sound quality, but this is where the present invention provides a solution.

[0006] Description of the invention

[0007] The present invention provides a loudspeaker, comprising a housing and a plurality of sound transducers arranged in the housing, wherein the housing has two side faces arranged on both sides of an xy plane and a front side and a rear side (rear facing side) and a top and a bottom, the mutual distances between the side faces being measured along a z-axis orthogonal to the xy plane, wherein

[0008] a. a first sound transducer is arranged in a first cavity in the speaker housing, wherein the first cavity has a narrow first slit arranged in the rear side along the y direction, wherein the first slit has a width z1 along the z direction and a length y1 along the y direction, wherein the length y1 along the y direction is greater than the width z1 along the z direction;

[0009] b. The second sound transducer is arranged in a second cavity separated from the first cavity in the speaker housing, wherein the second cavity is provided with a narrow second slit arranged in the front side along the y direction, wherein the second slit has a width z2 along the z direction and a length y2 along the y direction, wherein the length y2 along the y direction is greater than the width z2 along the z direction.

[0010] By arranging the first sound transducer and the second sound transducer in separate cavities, wherein each cavity is provided with a slit, the sound from one cavity is substantially isolated from the sound from the other cavity, while the slit will act as a means of directing the sound in a determined direction. Since the slit is relatively narrow in width relative to its height, a relatively slim design of the loudspeaker can be achieved. The cavity opens to the surroundings only through the slit, whereby the sound generated by the sound transducer in each cavity is emitted only through the slit.

[0011] In another embodiment of the present invention, regarding the first slit, the width z1 is between 10% and 60% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer, and the length y1 is between 50% and 300% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer.

[0012] Acoustically, the slit must be sized relative to the size of the active area of ​​the sound transducer, which is typically the diameter of the membrane of the sound transducer, or in the case of a non-circular membrane, the largest dimension of the membrane of the sound transducer. The membrane is agitated when it is in motion, moving air. In order for this air to move in and out of the cavity in a way that the sound is not distorted by the acoustic air velocity, the slit needs to have a certain area. Therefore, by relating the size and dimensions of the slit to the size of the membrane of the sound transducer, a relationship is obtained between the acoustic air velocity and minimizing distortion.

[0013] It is also an aspect of another advantageous embodiment, wherein with respect to the second slit, the width z2 is between 10%-60% and the length y2 is between 50%-300% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the second sound transducer.

[0014] In another inventive embodiment of the present invention, a third sound transducer is arranged in the front side, wherein the third sound transducer is arranged in a separate third cavity or in an acoustic volume created behind the membrane of the first sound transducer.

[0015] A tweeter is usually an independent unit and therefore has its own acoustic volume behind its membrane which, when arranged in a loudspeaker structure, will not interfere with other sound transducers. However, it may also be advantageous to install a "bare" tweeter, which offers the possibility to design the cavity and the acoustic volume and thereby influence the acoustic properties of the high range of the sound reproduction. In this case, it would be necessary to create / provide a cavity or at least an acoustic volume behind the tweeter which is separated from the acoustic volumes or cavities of the other sound transducers in the structure.

[0016] In a further advantageous embodiment of the invention the first sound transducer is tilted such that it emits sound primarily along an axis W, wherein said axis W is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane and wherein said axis W is substantially parallel to the xz plane.

[0017] By tilting the first sound transducer relative to the surface of the housing from which it normally emits sound (in this case the rear side), a slimmer / narrower housing can be created without sacrificing the size of the sound transducer. Typically, the size of a speaker provides a more powerful sound while also providing a richer sound. Therefore, by tilting the sound transducer relative to the side of the housing from which sound is emitted, the housing can be made slimmer and still maintain a pure sound image emitted through the slit due to the provision of a cavity.

[0018] In another advantageous embodiment, the second sound transducer is tilted such that it emits sound primarily along an axis K, wherein said axis K is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane and said axis K is substantially parallel to the xz plane.

[0019] It is also contemplated that the W-axis or the K-axis may be tilted slightly out of a plane parallel to the xz plane in order to optimize placement of the sound transducer within the speaker housing or to minimize the overall footprint of the speaker.

[0020] In a further advantageous embodiment, the first sound transducer is tilted such that the cavity between the membrane of the first sound transducer and a housing side covering the front of the first sound transducer is wedge-shaped, the thick end of the wedge-shaped cavity being adjacent to the slit.

[0021] In this way, the cavity can be designed so that the opening in the rear side is large enough to reduce the air velocity through the slit, while maximizing the acoustic volume behind the first sound transducer. The air flow is greatest near the slit, since all the air must pass through this area. By having the largest cavity cross section near the slit, the air velocity (equal to the air flow divided by the area of ​​the cross section of the opening) is kept at an acceptable level, thereby avoiding air turbulence and the resulting sound distortion.

[0022] Unwanted sound distortions in the first transducer cavity or slot caused by air turbulence may be further avoided by limiting the air velocity using a compression algorithm (eg implemented in a digital signal processing device) in the signal chain of the first sound transducer.

[0023] In another advantageous embodiment, the second sound transducer is tilted so that any resonance occurring in the second cavity is shifted to as high a frequency as possible while leaving room for optional absorbing material for damping the resonance. The tilt angle is also selected so that turbulence noise due to high air speeds is avoided.

[0024] Naturally, the first sound transducer arranged in the first cavity can be a woofer with a larger diameter, so that by tilting the large sound transducer unit a significant saving in the width of the loudspeaker housing can be obtained. However, by tilting the midrange sound transducer further, it also provides the possibility to design the housing more freely (even slimmer).

[0025] Thus, in another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the distance in the z direction between the side faces is between 30% and 150% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer, the distance between the top and the bottom is between 150% and 500% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer, and the distance between the front and the back side is between 100% and 350% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer. By means of the above suggested arrangement of, for example, tilted sound transducer units, a loudspeaker can be designed which does not have a square or rectangular footprint, but can have a cross-section with non-parallel sides, so that, for example, the front side of the housing is narrower than the back side. In this way, the sound transducer unit can be accommodated, in particular when the sound transducer unit is tilted as suggested in one of the above advantageous embodiments.

[0026] In a further advantageous embodiment of the invention, the front side and / or the rear side is curved or semicircular (when projected onto the xz plane). Naturally, the sound transducers used in the loudspeaker device according to the invention may be chosen such that a very wide frequency range is achieved, such as the suggested frequency range between 40 Hz and 25000 Hz. The overall frequency response of the loudspeaker may be equalized using digital signal processing means in the signal chain of the loudspeaker and the individual sound transducers. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] The present invention will now be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0028] Figure 1 and Figure 2 An embodiment of the invention is shown in which the housing sides have been removed from the unit in order to illustrate the structure of the speaker;

[0029] Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 A schematic cross section of a possible embodiment is shown;

[0030] Figure 6 A schematic side view of a loudspeaker is shown.

[0031] Detailed Description of the Invention

[0032] exist Figure 1 1 shows an embodiment of the invention, wherein the housing side has been removed from the unit in order to show the structure of the loudspeaker. The loudspeaker 1 has a housing 10, which is partially removed in this illustration, but also see Figure 3-6 The housing 10 has two side surfaces 11 and 12. The side surfaces 11 and 12 are arranged on the Figure 1 The housing 10 is arranged on either side of an xy plane defined by an x-axis and a y-axis. The z-axis is indicated as being orthogonal to the xy plane, so that the side surfaces 11, 12 of the housing 10 are arranged on either side of the xy plane at a certain mutual distance, wherein the distance is measured along the z-axis. Furthermore, the loudspeaker 1 has a front side 14 and a rear side 16. Furthermore, a top 18 and a bottom 20 are provided.

[0033] The first sound transducer 22 is arranged in a separate first cavity 24 (see Figure 1 and Figure 3 ). The sound transducer 22 is provided with an acoustic volume 28 behind the sound transducer 22. The acoustic volume 28 is arranged on the rear side of the speaker membrane, i.e., on the side opposite to the position where the sound is expected to be emitted. The acoustic volume 28 runs through most of the volume of the speaker housing 10 to maximize the acoustic performance of the sound transducer 22. The sound transducer 22 is tilted from the traditional position in the rear side 16 where it mainly emits sound along the x-axis to a position where it will mainly emit sound along the axis W, wherein the axis W is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane and the axis W is substantially parallel to the xz plane. The first cavity 24 is provided with a narrow first slit 26 (see Figure 2 and Figure 3). The slot 26 is provided in the rear side 16 of the housing 10 and in this embodiment spans almost the entire height of the loudspeaker 1 in the y-direction. The slot 26 allows sound from the first sound transducer 22 to enter and exit the cavity 24 through the slot 26 in the rear side 16 in a direction substantially parallel to the xy plane despite the tilt of the sound transducer 22.

[0034] The second sound transducer 30 is arranged in a separate second cavity 34 (see Figure 2 and Figure 4 ). The sound transducer 30 is provided with a separate acoustic volume 32 behind the sound transducer 30. As in the case of the first sound transducer 22 discussed above, the sound transducer 30 is also tilted relative to the xy plane so that it will mainly emit sound along an axis K, wherein the axis K is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane and the axis K is substantially parallel to the xz plane. When the sound transducer 30 is arranged in a separate cavity 34 provided with a slit 36, since the slit 36 ​​is provided in the cavity 34, despite the tilt of the sound transducer 30, the sound will still enter and exit the cavity 34 through the slit 36 ​​in the front side 14 in a direction substantially parallel to the xy plane.

[0035] Additionally, the cavity 34 is optionally provided with an acoustic damping material 38 occupying at least a portion of the cavity 34. The acoustic damping material prevents undesirable acoustic resonances and distortions.

[0036] exist Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 A schematic cross section through an embodiment of a loudspeaker according to the invention is shown in FIG. Figure 5 , a cross section depicts a cross section in the upper part of the loudspeaker 1, wherein a tweeter 40 is arranged on the front face 14 and is in contact with the acoustic volume 28 behind the first sound transducer 22. This is possible because the tweeter 40 is enclosed by its own integrated acoustic volume. Figure 4 The cross section in is taken when the midrange sound transducer 30 is present in its separate cavity 34, so that the sound emitted by the midrange sound transducer 30 will be emitted toward the listener's position through the slit 36. Since the woofer 22 and the midrange sound transducer 30 can have overlapping frequency ranges, the separation of the two types of speakers in separate cavities 24, 34 prevents destructive interference between the sound transducers, which could distort the emitted sound.

[0037] exist Figure 3 and Figure 4Another aspect shown in the cross section in is the possibility of non-rectangular cross-sections of the loudspeaker. The inventive concept of tilting or canting the sound transducer makes it possible to depart from the normal loudspeaker design (square box) and in this way reduce the floor space or base area occupied by the loudspeaker and still maintain the sonic power and quality previously possessed by loudspeakers of larger size. This is achieved by tilting the sound transducer relative to the xy plane, as discussed above. This provides design possibilities that have heretofore been unavailable and is reflected in Figure 1 and Figure 2 In the design shown. In the particular embodiment shown, it is foreseen that the speaker unit 1 can be a stand-alone unit, including the necessary electronic circuits, energy storage and communication means to transmit sound from a remote source. Naturally, the speaker can also be a more conventional speaker, hard wired to a power supply, which also provides a signal to the speaker.

[0038] In the figures a wedge-shaped design is shown, but the arrangement of the loudspeaker tilted relative to the xy plane provides freedom to create nearly any shape of loudspeaker unit.

[0039] As discussed above, the high frequency sound transducer must be arranged so that the sound emission is generally directed towards the position of the listener, so in an embodiment of the present invention, a third sound transducer 40, such as a tweeter, is arranged, which tweeter can be as shown in FIG. Figure 5 The arrangement shown, wherein the sound transducer 40 emits sound substantially directly toward the listening position along the x-axis. Typically, the tweeter will have a smaller size, so the tweeter can be arranged between the housing sides 11, 12 so that the tweeter faces the listening position (corresponding to the x-axis).

[0040] In such Figure 6 In the side view of the loudspeaker according to the invention shown, it can be seen that the woofer 22 is generally arranged to emit sound almost perpendicularly to the xy plane, while the midrange sound transducer 30 is tilted in the other way, such as from Figure 4 It can be clearly seen that the mid-range sound transducer 30 emits sound in a less vertical direction than the woofer 22 and finally the tweeter 40 emits sound directly in the x-direction. The cavities 24, 34 and the slits 26, 36 help to direct the sound from the sound transducers 22, 30 in a determined direction, so that the sound impression of the sound emitted from the loudspeaker as shown with reference to the figures is perceived as if the sound transducer units were arranged in a more conventional manner. By arranging the sound transducer units as described above, it is possible to achieve Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 The slim design shown in the cross section above, while maintaining high quality sound.

[0041] The present invention also relates to the following aspects:

[0042] 1. A loudspeaker (1), comprising a housing (10) and a plurality of sound transducers (22, 30, 40) arranged in the housing (10), wherein the housing (10) has two side surfaces (11, 12) arranged on both sides of an xy plane, a front side (14), a rear side (16), and a top (18) and a bottom (20), the mutual distance between the side surfaces (11, 12) being measured along a z-axis orthogonal to the xy plane, wherein

[0043] a. a first sound transducer (22) is arranged in a first cavity (24) in the speaker housing (10), wherein the first sound transducer comprises a membrane, wherein the first cavity (24) has a narrow first slit (26) arranged in the rear side (16) along the y direction, wherein the first slit (26) has a width z1 along the z direction and a length y1 along the y direction, wherein the length y1 along the y direction is greater than the width z1 along the z direction;

[0044] b. A second sound transducer (30) is arranged in a second cavity (34) separated from the first cavity (24) in the speaker housing (10), wherein the second sound transducer includes a membrane, and the second cavity (34) is provided with a narrow second slit (36) arranged in the front side (14) along the y direction, wherein the second slit (36) has a width z2 along the z direction and a length y2 along the y direction, wherein the length y2 along the y direction is greater than the width z2 along the z direction, and wherein the first sound transducer (22) is inclined so that the cavity (24) between the membrane of the first sound transducer and the housing side (12) covering the front of the first sound transducer (22) is wedge-shaped, and the thick end of the wedge-shaped cavity is adjacent to the slit (26).

[0045] 2. A loudspeaker according to aspect 1, wherein, with respect to the first slit (26), the width z1 is between 10%-60% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the length y1 is between 50%-300% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

[0046] 3. A loudspeaker according to aspect 1, wherein, with respect to the second slit (36), the width z2 is between 10%-60% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the second sound transducer (30), and wherein the length y2 is between 50%-300% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the second sound transducer (30).

[0047] 4. A loudspeaker according to aspect 1, wherein a third sound transducer (40) is arranged in the front side (14), the third sound transducer (40) being arranged in a separate third cavity or in an acoustic volume formed behind the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

[0048] 5. The loudspeaker according to aspect 1, wherein the two side surfaces (11, 12) are non-parallel, and the distance between the two side surfaces along the front side (14) is smaller than the distance between the two side surfaces along the rear side (16).

[0049] 6. A loudspeaker according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the first sound transducer (22) emits sound primarily along an axis W, wherein the axis W is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane, and wherein the axis W is substantially parallel to the xz plane.

[0050] 7. A loudspeaker according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the second sound transducer (30) emits sound primarily along an axis K, wherein the axis K is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane, and wherein the axis K is substantially parallel to the xz plane.

[0051] 8. A loudspeaker according to aspect 1 or 7, wherein the second sound transducer (30) is tilted so that any resonance occurring in the second cavity (34) is moved to as high a frequency as possible while leaving room for optional absorbing material (38) for damping the resonance.

[0052] 9. A loudspeaker according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the distance between the side surfaces (11, 12) in the z direction is between 30% and 150% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the top (18) and the bottom (20) is between 150% and 500% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the front side (14) and the rear side (16) is between 100% and 350% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

[0053] 10. Loudspeaker according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) are curved or semi-circular when projected onto the xz plane.

[0054] 11. A loudspeaker according to aspect 1, wherein the first sound transducer (22) is a woofer, the second sound transducer (30) is a mid-range sound transducer, the optional third sound transducer (40) is a tweeter, and wherein the sound transducers are selected to cover a combined frequency range from 40 Hz to 25,000 Hz.

Claims

1. A loudspeaker (1), comprising a housing (10) and a plurality of sound transducers (22, 30, 40) arranged in the housing (10), wherein the housing (10) has two side surfaces (11, 12) arranged on both sides of an xy plane, a front side (14), a rear side (16), and a top (18) and a bottom (20), the mutual distance between the side surfaces (11, 12) being measured along a z-axis orthogonal to the xy plane, wherein a. a first sound transducer (22) is arranged in a first cavity (24) in the housing (10), wherein the first sound transducer comprises a membrane, wherein the first cavity (24) has a narrow first slit (26) arranged in the rear side (16) along the y direction, wherein the first slit (26) has a width z1 along the z direction and a length y1 along the y direction, wherein the length y1 along the y direction is greater than the width z1 along the z direction; b. A second sound transducer (30) is arranged in a second cavity (34) separated from the first cavity (24) in the shell (10), wherein the second sound transducer includes a membrane, and the second cavity (34) is provided with a narrow second slit (36) arranged in the front side (14) along the y direction, wherein the second slit (36) has a width z2 along the z direction and a length y2 along the y direction, wherein the length y2 along the y direction is greater than the width z2 along the z direction, and wherein the first sound transducer (22) is inclined so that the cavity between the membrane of the first sound transducer and the side (12) covering the front of the first sound transducer (22) is wedge-shaped, and the thick end of the wedge-shaped cavity is adjacent to the first slit (26), wherein the two side surfaces (11, 12) are not parallel, and wherein the distance between the two side surfaces along the front side (14) is smaller than the distance between the two side surfaces along the rear side (16).

2. A loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein, with respect to the first slit (26), the width z1 is between 10%-60% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the length y1 is between 50%-300% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

3. A loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein, with respect to the second slit (36), the width z2 is between 10%-60% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the second sound transducer (30), and wherein the length y2 is between 50%-300% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the second sound transducer (30).

4. The loudspeaker according to claim 1, wherein a third sound transducer (40) is arranged in the front side (14), the third sound transducer (40) being arranged in a separate third cavity or in an acoustic volume formed behind the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

5. The loudspeaker according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first sound transducer (22) emits sound primarily along an axis W, wherein the axis W is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane, and wherein the axis W is parallel to the xz plane.

6. Loudspeaker according to any of claims 1-4, wherein the second sound transducer (30) emits sound primarily along an axis K, wherein the axis K is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane, and wherein the axis K is parallel to the xz plane.

7. The loudspeaker of claim 5, wherein the second sound transducer (30) emits sound primarily along an axis K, wherein the axis K is at an angle between 45° and 90° relative to the xy plane, and wherein the axis K is parallel to the xz plane.

8. The loudspeaker of claim 1, wherein the second sound transducer (30) is tilted so as to leave space for an absorbing material (38) for damping resonances occurring in the second cavity (34).

9. The loudspeaker of claim 6, wherein the second sound transducer (30) is tilted so as to leave space for an absorbing material (38) for damping resonance occurring in the second cavity (34).

10. The loudspeaker of claim 7, wherein the second sound transducer (30) is tilted so as to leave space for an absorbing material (38) for damping resonance occurring in the second cavity (34).

11. A loudspeaker according to any one of claims 1-4, 7-10, wherein the distance between the side surfaces (11, 12) in the z direction is between 30% and 150% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the top (18) and the bottom (20) is between 150% and 500% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the front side (14) and the rear side (16) is between 100% and 350% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

12. A loudspeaker according to claim 5, wherein the distance between the side surfaces (11, 12) in the z-direction is between 30% and 150% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the top (18) and the bottom (20) is between 150% and 500% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the front side (14) and the rear side (16) is between 100% and 350% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

13. A loudspeaker according to claim 6, wherein the distance between the side surfaces (11, 12) in the z-direction is between 30% and 150% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the top (18) and the bottom (20) is between 150% and 500% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22), and wherein the distance between the front side (14) and the rear side (16) is between 100% and 350% of the maximum dimension of the membrane of the first sound transducer (22).

14. Loudspeaker according to any of claims 1-4, 7-10, 12-13, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) are curved when projected onto the xz plane.

15. Loudspeaker according to claim 14, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) are semicircular when projected onto the xz plane.

16. The loudspeaker of claim 5, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) are curved when projected onto the xz plane.

17. The loudspeaker of claim 6, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) are curved when projected onto the xz plane.

18. The loudspeaker of claim 11, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) are curved when projected onto the xz plane.

19. Loudspeaker according to any of claims 16-18, wherein the front side (14) and / or the rear side (16) is semicircular when projected onto the xz plane.

20. The loudspeaker according to claim 4, wherein the first sound transducer (22) is a woofer, the second sound transducer (30) is a midrange sound transducer, the third sound transducer (40) is a tweeter, and wherein the first sound transducer (22), the second sound transducer (30) and the third sound transducer (40) are selected to cover a combined frequency range from 40 Hz to 25000 Hz.

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