Design Insights DXR Series

2012 / POWERED SPEAKER

High-output powered speakers that compress superior sound quality
into a compact body.

Product site

With a polyhedral shape dictated by functionality, these speakers come in a unified form that perfectly meets user requirements.
They are available in a range of different sizes, but with a common design; they share common components,
such as the amp and the handles; and they can stand either upright or lie horizontally.

The edges that make up the polyhedron point forward, representing the direction in which acoustic pressure is projected.
In this way, a sense of the speaker’s power as a sound generator is expressed by the body of the unit itself.

As an item of equipment that is suitable for touring,
DXR Series speakers feature a high degree of protection so as to withstand arduous handling and movement,
and a compact housing that allows a considerable degree of flexibility when it comes to installation.

The speaker is equipped with a mixing function that allows direct input from a microphone, guitar, or audio player.
As well as being able to fit in easily with a PA system used on a large stage, the speaker also enables musicians performing small live shows
to configure a PA system themselves, thus extending the opportunities available on the music scene.

Yves Plattard: Designer; Yamaha Design Laboratory

A polyhedron—the optimal solution.

Incorporating a high-output power amp and mixer functionality in a compact housing, DXR Series speakers are ideal for use with PA systems at live shows and other events. The polyhedral shape was not chosen for its novelty value—it was devised as a balanced method of fulfilling the various requirements for the speaker (that is, it was the shape that represented the optimal solution).

In order to allow DXR speakers to be used as on-stage monitors (laid horizontally), the back had to be removed so as to direct the sound toward the performers. Since the power amps, pole sockets, and aluminum handles are the same size on each model in the range, the smaller the speaker, the more difficult it was to maintain enough space between them. The ABS resin used for the housing requires a taper of roughly five degrees for injection molding. These functional and production requirements naturally had to be satisfied; there were ergonomic considerations, including factors such as operability and portability; and then there was the device’s image of forward projection, which symbolized a sense of the speaker’s power as a device for generating sound. Given all these factors, this design represented the only solution to the equation involving the complex interrelationship among them.