Calsod, A Loudspeaker Design Package

62 FE January 1989 CALSOD, A LOUDSPEAKER DESIGN PACKAGE Until recently, computer-aided loudspeaker design and optimizing could only be implemented on mainframes. Fortunately, that has changed, and a new, comprehensive, design package, CALSOD, is now available for PCs as well. This article reviews CALSOD, and reports on its use in a practical test. Designing a good-quality loudspeaker box invariably requires solid background knowledge, a lot of time, and reliable test equipment. If any one of these three ingredients is lacking, the final design will almost certainly fail to give satisfac- tory results. Serious designers will no doubt have the relevant equipment and background knowledge, but often lack time to go through the stages of testing and redesigning the box. The design of a multi-way loudspeaker system invariably commences with setting up a theoretical model on the basis of available data on the drive units to be used. Next, a proto- type is built to clear the way for pract...