Subj : The future of audio? Worlds first solid-state speakers may transf
To   : All
From : TechnologyDaily
Date : Tue Apr 18 2023 14:15:03

The future of audio? Worlds first solid-state speakers may transform earbuds

Date:
Tue, 18 Apr 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Description:
The worlds first solid-state speakers aim to replace the coils and magnets 
that have powered speakers for 100 years.

FULL STORY
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Solid state drives transformed computer storage, offering greater capacity 
that proved cheaper and more reliable. And much smaller! You might not have 
heard about it, but solid-state tech also handily changed the market for 
condenser mics, offering smaller devices that are easier to incorporate with 
other circuits. Theyre just better  and cheaper. 

Today, a company called xMEMS Labs is introducing the worlds first 
solid-state speakers, teeny weeny little devices meant to replace the coils 
and magnets that have powered speakers since the technology was invented over 
a hundred years ago. 

You can be forgiven for not recognizing the name MEMS. Micro-electrical 
mechanical systems use piezo tech (simply put, it converts electrical 
impulses into mechanical movement) to reshape inkjet printing years ago, 
offering a way to finely control the spray of micro drops from a printer 
head. 

Theyre micro-spraying sound into your ears 

Now theyre micro-spraying sound into your ears. The Cowell is the worlds 
smallest solid-state micro speaker, xMEMS Labs says, the Montara Plus offers 
the worlds highest output, and the Skyline DynamicVent offers vents to enable 
advanced adaptive noise canceling that literally shuts out the world. 

But are they better than those AirPods Pro 2 ? To see just how good these 
devices are, I joined VP of marketing and biz dev Mike Housholder for an 
early demo of the technology using prototype devices. The prototypes look 
like rough versions of any earbud you might use, but they sound absolutely 
incredible. 

Unless you use ultrahigh-end earbuds like fancy Sennheisers , you probably 
dont think twice about the fact that sound from your existing buds is kind of 
crummy. And dont take our word for it: Go pop your current buds in your ears 
for a second and actually think about what youre listening to. It isnt great. 
A wafer containing hundreds of tiny, silicon-based speakers from xMEMS (Image 
credit: Future / Jeremy Kaplan) 

By employing that thin film piezo technology as the speaker actuator instead 
of a coil and magnet, and using silicon instead of a paper or plastic speaker 
cone, xMEMS has built a better sound trap. The speakers are 40% smaller than 
ordinary drivers, 90% lighter, and with no moving parts, theyre far more 
durable. 

Solid state fidelity is a game changer, Housholder said. 

The new speakers support high-res audio and boast audiophile specs, but more 
than anything else, they capture the depth and range of music that I miss in 
most streaming audio. I listened to Kacey Musgraves' Slow Burn and caught 
nuance in the guitar work Id missed in other listens, for example. 

You wont be able to buy speakers based on this technology anytime soon, but 
xMEMS says it is shipping the components now. Expect to see products using 
them on the market this holiday season for under $200, a killer entry point 
for pro-level audio.



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Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/news/the-future-of-audio-worlds-first-solid-state-sp
eakers-may-transform-earbuds


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