Steve Bennett Hi Fi

Perfect for the sunburnt country, with its droughts and flooding rains.....

Having quality sound outside is a popular pursuit these days, especially in Australia, with our outdoor lifestyle. But what is required of a speaker to allow it to perform in a sometimes hostile environ?

The most obvious enemy of an outdoor speaker is water. Speakers and water just don’t get along. Even if not directly exposed to liquid, the moisture present in the night air, or in the humid atmosphere of our northern states, soon corrodes a conventional speaker. Exposure to sunlight also has a predictably negative effect.

Another, often overlooked, area is the way that the speaker sounds outside. A typical outdoor setting offers a near ‘anechoic’ environment. There are few wall boundaries to reflect and indeed re-enforce the sound coming from the speaker. This is especially true of the bass frequencies. When used indoors, the walls, ceiling and floor of a typical room dramatically affect the sound you hear. Not so outside. Interestingly, when quality speakers are being designed, they are usually tested for evenness of sound output across all frequencies (frequency response) in an ‘anechoic chamber’. This room is devoid of all sound reflecting surfaces and the true measure of the speaker can be observed. Putting a speaker outside is very close to that test.

In most cases, when offering an outdoor speaker, manufacturers concentrate on the weatherproofing of the product. The sound takes a back seat. Plastic cabinets are almost always used, being fairly inert to weather extremes. While plastic is robust, it also resonates at frequencies that detract from a speaker’s performance. That’s why you don’t see speakers of quality for indoor use made from plastic. It’s not a speaker designer’s first choice where sound fidelity is paramount.

Bowers and Wilkins with the WM (weather monitor) series of outdoor speakers have gone all out to address these issues. The cabinets are made from sturdy Polypropylene and have a rubberised ‘shroud’ that damps unwanted resonance, while adding a touch of style, not usually seen in outdoor speakers. A unique ‘J-Port’ vents the speaker enclosure in such a way that dramatically improves bass response without letting water in.

The WM4 and WM6 benefit from B&W’s famous NautilusTM tube loaded metal dome tweeter design that extends high frequency clarity noticeably.  All models (including the WM2) feature woven fibreglass bass drivers. The WM6 has a larger bass unit providing more power to disturb the peace. Another nice feature of the WM4 and WM6 is the crafty mounting bracket that allows angle adjustment in two planes.  WM4 and WM6 speakers are available in black and white finishes and sell for $799 and $999 respectively.

WM2 is shares the same bass unit and cabinet as the WM4 but utilises the 25mm ring radiator tweeter used in the LM1 and VM1 speakers in order to reduce costs. That aside, the WM2 still sounds great in our showroom and at dozens of homes that we have installed them in. WM2 speakers are available in black and white finishes and sell for $599.

The Bowers and Wilkins Weather Monitor speakers are the last word on quality outdoor listening. They have been designed to adhere to the same exacting standards that have made B&W speakers so desirable by serious music lovers the world over.

Once you have your B&W Weather Monitors, there are several ways to set-up your system for outdoor sound. 

The simplest is a pair of outdoor speakers connected to the ‘Speakers B’ outputs of your indoor hi-fi amplifier. You can set your music playing indoors from the CD player, iPod or radio and preset the volume level to your favourite setting for outdoors, pour a drink into an acrylic glass, head outside and enjoy.

But what if your amplifier doesn’t have ‘Speakers B’? Well, external speaker switches have come a long way since the bad-old-days. Impedance-corrected switches ensure that your amplifier operates at optimum no matter how many speakers you choose to run at once.

The very best sound quality comes from a discrete ‘Zone 2’ amplifier that effectively isolates the operation - and performance - of your new outdoor speakers from the operation and sound quality of your main rig. Connected to ‘Tape Record Outputs’ a second amplifier discretely powers your new external speakers at their own discrete volume level.

Speakers are usually placed high and separated to allow the most even spread of sound over a large area. Where you site the speakers contributes significantly to your enjoyment of outdoor music. Sound radiates from the speaker boxes on the same way that light radiates from a flood-light - so imagine that you’re lighting the area, but with sound. The best results come from speakers that are placed in positions that will provide the most even distribution of sound from both speakers.

Once the sound is sorted, the other thing to consider is how you plan to control the sound when you’re outdoors. At one end of the scale you simply preset the system controls before you head outside. At the other end, a touch-screen remote handset will intelligently operate your whole hi-fi system ‘through walls’ using WiFi technology. Let’s take a look at the options in more depth.

Presetting the system is simplicity in itself. The downside is that, once you’re outside, if the music is too soft or loud - or turns out to be the wrong music for the occasion - you have to go inside to change it. It may take a few round trips before all is well with the world outside.

Volume is the most convenient element of the sound to take control of. Wall-mounted volume controls are fitted to plates that are the same size and style of the  general power outlets in your home and they connect in-line between your amplifier and your outdoor speakers. A wall-mounted volume control is designed to cut the volume from your preset level over 10 steps down to zero. The best preset volume, then, for your sound outdoors will be the maximum that you might choose to play music at and then you can fine-tune the result ,on a wall-mounted volume control, to to suit your mood and preference. A wall-mounted volume control can be mounted outdoors and maintained for a number of years mounted within a weatherproof box. Wall-mounted volume controls retail for around $130.

Volume - and other system functions - can also be adjusted using infra-red remote control. A repeater system, such as the units from Xantech, relay infra-red remote control commands from a sensor unit, through CAT5 wire, to an emitter kit. This technology will allow outdoor adjustment of every function that your regular indoor remote control affords when you point it at the outdoor sensor.

Sensors are tiny, measuring just a couple on inches long, and can be discretely mounted under eaves or to the speakers or outdoor volume control. Simply point your remote control at the sensor and operate your hi-fi system just as you would if you were indoors. Volume can be adjusted up or down at will, music can be changed from radio to CD and so forth, radio stations and CD tracks can be changed - everything you can do inside can be done outside. The only downside to this level of control is that you can’t see what is happening to the displays of your hi-fi system. The remote handset that was supplied with your hi-fi was really designed to be used in conjunction with the displays on your electronics and sophisticated operation can sometimes get unstuck.

You may not necessarily know which radio station you’re listening to which input your amplifier is switched to, etc. and in that respect, you may end up back inside from time-to-time. Still, it’s an economical way to provide slightly more advanced control to your favourite outdoor pastimes. Remote control repeater kits retail from $399.

Complete control of your indoor hi-fi system is available from custom-programmed touch-screen remote handsets. They add a luxury and simplicity to any complex hi-fi system by incorporating a series of commands into the touch of just one button.

‘Secret’ remote commands provided expressly for custom remote programming ensures that when you touch the ACBFM icon on the handset display, the remote will ensure that your radio and amplifier are switched on and that your amplifier is switched to the correct settings and that ABCFM is tuned in and ready for you to listen to - all with the touch of a button. WiFi technology ensures that commands are sent to emitters attached to your hi-fi components  absolutely reliably no matter where you point the remote handset. That level of convenience is a luxury inside - but it’s a necessity for advanced operation of your hi-fi system from outdoors. The best part is you don’t need to purchase an additional handset. Special commands for outside can be incorporated into a screen on the handset that you use inside!  Custom-programmed touch-screen handsets with RF repeaters are priced from $2,499.