Speaker covers on or off??

[MacDaddyOJack]

Originally Posted by Weatherman

They disperse the sound waves (a property of any waves) making a more natural sound. Sound straight from a speaker is more unidirectional than sound being passed through a physical barrier.

High end home theaters have the same material (similar to the covers on your speakers) on the walls and ceiling to mitigate the problem of echoing and feedback.

This is not necessarily true. Most speakers have what manufacturers call "acoustically transparent" grill cloth meaning it does not absorb, reflect, or dampen the sound coming from the speaker.

The material on the walls of a commercial theater is actually carpet. Carpet absorbs and actually traps some of the sound waves that hit it. By doing so, it dampens the room and drastically reduces reflections allowing the speaker to create directionality, not room reflections.

In short, the grills main purpose is cosmetic. It also provides a very minimal amount of protection. Try listening to the same passage with them on and off, I doubt you will notice any difference at all. If you are one of those people who think they do hear a difference, then listen the way you want, its your home theater In any case, you certainly will not gain any advantages in directionality, panning, or imaging by leaving the grills on.