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The long-awaited HUMAN 81 DK is now available.
Best viewed in "landscape" mode.

Product Cosmetic Finishes

HUMAN Speakers come in a variety of finishes, depending on the model and your taste.

These fall into four broad categories, as follows:

Wood Veneers

Cabinets finished in real wood veneer, most of which will be oak, provide the ultimate in cabinet appearance. Built with individual attention to detail to my demanding standards, they are pair-matched for grain and tone as they are built.

While I usually default to oak, or black-lacquered oak with a full grain finish, almost any environmentally responsible wood is possible for special orders under the right circumstances.

Some of the models I have built using "off the shelf" cabinets, these have appeared in cherry, maple, and a high-gloss black.

Since we have shifted from what I call "open grain" finishes that require periodic oiling to sealed finishes over the decades, very little care besides dusting is required.

Vinyl Laminates

Modern vinyl finishes are a cost effective way to make a speaker look very good. They are also easy to care for. The ones that resemble wood do it very well, and the "black ash look" blends in very well with any modern decor.

Care is very simple, consisting of occasional dusting or cleaning with a cloth that has been slightly moistened with mild soap and water.

Painted

Not to be confused with piano-finish gloss lacquers, these are your basic industrial satin black paint, carefully applied, directly over properly filled and sanded MDF. While they won't win any "best of show" awards, they are not going to call attention to themselves, either. Appropriate for center channel speakers, which often cannot be seen anyway, and a great way to save money on the larger models.

These can also be dusted or gently cleaned with ease.

Carpeted

The HUMAN car speaker plates are covered with a durable carpet type material. It hides wear and tear well, and blends nicely with most automotive interiors. The car speakers also incorporate grills built using heavy duty "waffle" type steel mesh, covered with matching acoustic cloth. Models usually intended for home use can also be finished this way, if you like.

Occasional light brushing or vacuuming of the carpeted surface will remove any soil that accumulates.

Special Note on Care

Note: with any of these finishes and cleaning methods, be sure to avoid the speaker elements. They should not be exposed to soap and water, wax, oil or dusting compounds. Lightly removing dust from them with packaged compressed air (sold for cleaning cameras, computer keyboards, and other delicate products) is all that should ever be necessary.

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