in all its simplicity, carlsson’s quote reveals the secret to why his speakers came to revolutionize the world of hifi. stig carlsson’s competitors designed their speakers to generate great audio output in a completely muted and echo-free anechoic chamber. in such a room, a flat frequency response curve could be achieved – the proof of a pure and direct sound. there’s just one small problem with this approach: nobody actually lives in an anechoic chamber. if you put a conventional speaker in a regular home, you will get a completely different result than you would in an anechoic chamber. instead of a beautiful and flat frequency response curve, what you end up with looks more like a downhill slope. the sound is distorted by the many reflections, and by the fact that the sound waves keep crashing into each other, causing them to reach the ear at slightly different intervals. the brain interprets all this in the only way it can: as poor quality of sound.
OD-11 FREQUENCY RESPONSE CURVE MEASURED AT 0 DB IN A REGULAR ROOM.
stig carlsson was a sound pioneer whose endeavors to generate great sound from small boxes begun all the way back in the early 50’s. two decades later, carlsson’s hard work resulted in one of his greatest commercial successes: OD-11, launched in 1974. it was an instant hit that soon earned its own nick-name: the ’carlsson cube’.
ABOVE: AUDIENCE PATIENTLY WAITING FOR JOHN CAGE TO APPEAR ON STAGE AT MODERNA MUSEET, STOCKHOLM. LEFT: STIG'S INVOLVEMENT IN THE ELECTRONIC MUSIC SCENE AND AVANT GARDE MOVEMENT IN THE LATE 60'S LED HIM TO RECORD AND DOCUMENT SEVERAL LIVE PERFORMANCES IN THAT PERIOD.
A SELECTION OF CARLSSON LOUDSPEAKERS FROM 1972-2014
OA-14 1972
OA 5 type II 1975
OA-50 1994
OA-116 1981
OD-11 1974 / 2014
OA-2212 1979
OD-11 was and remains stig carlsson’s smallest model ever. the construction differed somewhat from carlsson’s previous principles. instead of having several cone-tweeters, this new speaker had just 1 peerless cone tweeter and 1 mid woofer. that’s what the number 11 (1+1) in the name hints at. LEFT STIG IN AN ADVERT FOR OA-5. RIGHT SPREAD FROM A PRODUCT CATALOG YEAR 1978.
despite its small format, the OD-11 generated great sound thanks to the high-end built-in frequency filter and a groundbreaking box construction with recessed, angled speakers. the ingenious angled positioning in a cast glass fiber re-inforced plastic baffle remains unequalled to this day. the unique construction directs the sound diagonally - both sideways upwards and outwards.
OD is an acronym for ortho directional. by the unique positioning, carlsson could minimize the number of tweeters in the box while still achieving a sound output similar to that of his previous loudspeakers. furthermore, the OD-11 is engineered especially with stereo sound output in mind. the result is a full-bodied, natural and evenly distributed sound.
the OD-11 sounds great. no matter if it is standing on the floor, in a book-shelf or if mounted on the wall. the design, characterized by simple and pure lines, further contributed to its past success. it didn’t just sound great, it was also easy to place in any room; a fact that was further emphasized by the selection of cabinets. the original OD-11 came in all primary colors: white, black, yellow, red and blue. and at an additional cost rosewood, walnut and teak were offered.
in the years 1974-1978, more than 100.000 OD-11 units were sold. an upgrade was planned but never realized. with the passing of stig carlsson, the ortho acoustic philosophy and the manufacture of one of the best and most beautiful speakers of all time became a thing of the past. until now.
the new OD-11 is a result of a close collaboration with the stig carlsson foundation, building on the tradition of stig carlsson's work and his life-long mission for great natural sound. every detail has been carefully considered, all the way down to the speaker grille, specified in the original technical documents as ’järnduk no. 10’, woven steel mesh size 10.
carlsson, OD-11, carlsson loudspeakers and carlsson ortho-acoustic are trademarks of SSC, stiftelsen stig carlsson. OD-11 is made under license from SSC
OD-11 overview
carlsson story
technology
ortho remote
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