Smallest Speakers: Are Speakers Made This Small?

  • Thread starter Thread starter mat337d
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Speaker
AI Thread Summary
Speakers in the size range of 1-5 mm are extremely limited, with common options being in-ear monitors and audiophile earphones, which may utilize small speaker elements. Ultrasonic speakers exist but typically do not cover the human hearing range needed for music or cellphone signals. The output amplitude of such small speakers is also a significant limitation. Hearing aids, while compact, generally target a narrower frequency range and may not meet the desired audio quality for music. Piezoelectric devices could be a potential solution, as they are designed for space optimization and can produce loud sounds within a limited frequency range.
mat337d
Messages
16
Reaction score
0
I am looking for a speaker that is roughly 1-5 mm in size. Are speakers made this small? I looked on google but could only find speakers around 25mm in diameter. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
Engineering news on Phys.org
What is the frequency range required? I have seen ultrasonic speakers that are close to that size.
 
I need one in the range of human hearing. say for playing music or for cellphone signal.
 
You won't be able to get much signal amplitude with a speaker that small.

Common earphones are probably as small as you will find.
 
In-ear audio monitoring

mat337d said:
I am looking for a speaker that is roughly 1-5 mm in size. Are speakers made this small?
Musicians' in-ear monitors seem to use speaker elements that are pretty small. There are also consumer audiophile in-ear speakers from Etymotic that also may use pretty small elements.
 
Ivan Seeking said:
You won't be able to get much signal amplitude with a speaker that small.

Common earphones are probably as small as you will find.
What about hearing aids? You would think that they have a fairly good frequency range and they're small too.

Regards

Don
 
dlgoff said:
What about hearing aids? You would think that they have a fairly good frequency range
No. I would think that they shoot for 3K. If you're looking for good frequency range, you're looking for Etymotic or musicians' in-ear monitors.
 
thank you for your responses they have been very helpful.
 
  • #10
You might be able to find something in the piezo family that will suit your needs - phones that have speakerphone or laptops typically have some very space-optimized designs.

Frequency range and output level are 2 important things to keep in mind - the range in the typical conversation and the restricted range used in phone systems are examples of this applied to a real life scenario. Ever listen to music from someone else's phone?

Some piezo devices used for phone rings and stuff are very loud for their size but can only do tones in a very narrow frequency range (and one where our ears are very sensitive).

Cliff

P.S. I've heard from reliable sources the guy behind Etymotic is a real genius in his field and his products reflect that IMO. The basic flat frequency response generic ear plugs (far better than the ones at a music store) are like $15 but the custom made ones are nearly $300 plus a visit to an audiologist to get them fitted!
 
Last edited:

Similar threads

Back
Top