WHY...............Bamboo? Science or marketing? How do you make cabinets out of bamboo? Don't the Panda's get pissed? Taking away their Breakfast, Lunch, AND Dinner. This could be classified Animal abuse. Heeeeeeeeeere's PETA

How about the new full range loudspeaker from China which has a cone made from toilet paper?

Several speaker manufacturers, such as Audioengine and Infinity, are experimenting with bamboo. Others, such as Living Voice and Escalante Design, are already producing speakers with bamboo enclosures.

I think this is great, especially because bamboo is a sustainable resource. It's strong and grows fast; Bamboo has been documented to grow at a rate of around 18 inches a day, and up to nearly 50 inches in a 24-hour period. I also find it to be beautiful.

Speaker designers are, understandably, concerned about how bamboo enclosures will influence the sound of their products. I, however, would happily accept inferior sound quality, if it means protecting our environment.

I don't know all the facts on this, but I'm interested. I love trees, yes.

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I, however, would happily accept inferior sound quality, if it means protecting our environment.
I love trees, yes.

I take it then, Stephen, that you would be happy with solar powered electronics...and thus have limited use of your stereo equipment.

On a more serious note, though...I am very curious about the bamboo speaker cabinet. Obviously the bamboo needs to be processed in some manner to make it usable to make a speaker enclosure. After all, isn't the reason for using MDF board for speakers is to have a consistent density of cabinet and thus a consistant sound quality from like speakers?
Is it that the bamboo will be used as a veneer, of some sort, to make the speaker look appealing? It would certainly be a more tropical look.

Yup, Bamboo multiplies faster than clothes hangers. That stuff is extremely invasive.

Maybe you can put together a "green system" consisting of class D amplification, Bamboo speakers with hemp cones and a battery operated music server...rechargeables, of course. I would bet you could make something sound pretty good for less than a dimes worth of energy a day.

Bamboo is hard (harder than maple) and very dense. It's cell structure is such that it resonates differently than "tree wood". It is also pretty. Neat fact: when heated the sugars in the wood carmelize to a nice warm golden brown - a wonderful natural coloration.

In the U.S. we are just beginning to appreciate bamboo. Most of us are used to only seeing the cheap hollow stuff used to prop up garden plants and the like. This is not the product that is used for cutting boards, flooring, cabinets, etc.

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Maybe you can put together a "green system" consisting of class D amplification, Bamboo speakers with hemp cones and a battery operated music server...rechargeables, of course.

Hey Monty.
Yes! This is something I've been considering. It just doesn't seem to jive with my other idea of putting together a $1000 system. Yet.

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WHY...............Bamboo? Science or marketing? How do you make cabinets out of bamboo? Don't the Panda's get pissed? Taking away their Breakfast, Lunch, AND Dinner. This could be classified Animal abuse. Heeeeeeeeeere's PETA

Apparently, science

http://forum.ascendacoustics.com/showthread.php?t=2597&page=1

Bamboo looks very promising. I think it looks great as a finished product IMHO. Here is a list of densities for loudspeaker cabinet walls we did at the BBC Loudspeaker Research Dept, way back when.

One wouldn't think that chipboard could be denser than mahogany.

Hi Guys,

Stephen sent me an invitation to join your discussion on the new bamboo enclosure loudspeakers we are releasing.

Bamboo has proven to be a wonderful material for speaker enclosures, both for its natural beauty and rigidity. We have taken accelerometer measurements of various enclosures comparing vertically laminated bamboo and MDF and the results for the bamboo enclosures were most impressive. Here is some good info: http://forum.ascendacoustics.com/showthread.php?t=2597

If you are not familiar with the material, at first you do indeed think of that odd looking yellow bamboo chair over at Pier 1 or Crate & Barrel (or if we go way back, Gilligan's Island, where everything was made with bamboo ) but the material has gone high-tech and is being used for many applications now.

The bamboo we use is actually a laminate. The bamboo stalk is initially split lengthwise into strips. The strips are kiln dried and sanded to a smooth surface for laminating. They are then glued face to face to form vertically laminated panels. The material is extremely rigid. Here is a graphic illustration of the process:

http://forum.ascendacoustics.com///images/ascenduploads/bamboo_tec3.jpg

We use the vertical panel orientation which we have found to offer superior strength and better damping.

It is also extremely earth friendly -- bamboo grows to maturity in about 3 years and does not need to be replanted. It is technically a grass and spreads from the root -- it grows like a weed.

I would be happy to answer any of your questions! Please feel free to email me at davef@ascendacoustics.com

Take Care!

David Fabrikant
Ascend Acoustics, Inc.

Interesting, things I didn't know about Bamboo. you are right, old images of Bamboo are mere sticks to build huts, well they actually make scaffolding in China with it, that's BIZZARE looking but i guess it works.
You know you have to have a model called PANDA