cabinet grill

[cellardweller]

Why do they put metal grills on cabinets?
Is this as bad as it would seem (for recording)?

I am not yet comfortable enough with my "surroundings" to permanently remove the protective grill, but should I concern myself when mic'ing it?

I will try to cease with my questions, I promise...

 

[Farview]

They put metal grills on cabinets because they think its cool. The metal grill isn't bad for recording unless it rattles. if it does rattle, go to the store and get some weather stripping (the foam rubber stuff with the adhesive on the back) take off the grill and put the weather stripping anywhere the grill touches. Put the grill back on and you're good to go.

 

[Massive Master]

I'd like to add to that - And Jason will back this up, as he and I were in a band together "back in the day" that had a Laney Amplifier endorsement.

I specifically remember changing grilles on our cabinets because they were dented after a period of extensive live use.

Dented, metal grilles.

Imagine the damage if those metal grilles were made of cloth... In other words, they stand up to abuse FAR better than cloth.

 

[Imaduck]

Yeah, I've actually gotten/helped other people with quite a few speakers without grills. The fact is, you need them, especially for road abuse, or your speakers will get destroyed. Speakers will rip, tear, and dent easily, so if you can't get a road case, a nice metal grill is the next best thing. Generally they're designed to allow proper airflow, so it shouldn't dampen the sound at all (I have several speakers with a tight wire mesh on them, and there is no audible difference with the grills on or off). I put most of my equipment through hell, so I wouldn't trust anything less than a metal grill, and yes, I have dented the grills on my cabs quite a few times.

 

[cellardweller]

Thanx for replies...

I'd hoped it wouldn't make a big difference. I know if it wasn't on there I would have been replacing the speakers on several occasions. It was just a passing thought as I crammed a mic in front of, and nearly touching the grill.

It would kill me if 2 years and 2000 work-arounds later, I found out that my crappy recordings were due to a vibrating grill.

Now I can go back to business as usual blaming the guy playing the guitar...



for now...