Audio College Education...

[Paprika]

Lets say I am a student, which I am a Junior in High school. Well I am very much interested at this time in going to college for electrical engineering, along with that I want to learn stuff about audio, amps, how to build them, and such stuff like that because maybe I want to design and build stereos...

What would I be looking for as far as major if not electrical engineering when it comes to designing speakers and such?

[SY]

Physics. With that as your base, you can pick up whatever specialized knowledge you need to do just about anything technical.

[BrianGT]

Originally posted by Paprika
Lets say I am a student, which I am a Junior in High school. Well I am very much interested at this time in going to college for electrical engineering, along with that I want to learn stuff about audio, amps, how to build them, and such stuff like that because maybe I want to design and build stereos...

What would I be looking for as far as major if not electrical engineering when it comes to designing speakers and such?

I recently graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology, and they have pretty decent EE program, with several analog classes that would help, including op amp design, low noise electronics design and audio engineering. I think that EE would be best if you want to learn the basics, then you can pick up the rest on your own.

I had a mixed up college career, starting off as computer science, and changing half way through to computer engineering, and changing over to electrical engineering my last year in order to take a couple of these classes. I didn't have time to take all the courses that I wanted to, and could have if I started off as EE. My computer engineering courses filled most of my EE elective courses.

I have a couple of friends who started off as EE, and co-oped with companies like Bose and JBL and learned some stuff relating to making speakers and amplifiers. This might be worth trying if you go to a school with a co-op program.

--
Brian

[roddyama]

Originally posted by SY
Physics. With that as your base, you can pick up whatever specialized knowledge you need to do just about anything technical.

I took some time off after high school (since no one was going to pay my tuition). I went back and started in Physics for the first year, but in Detroit, the thinking is generally automotive and there was just more opportunities as an EE. The audio part can be obtained on your own.

If your really serious, I think that there is as big a focus on digital in todays audio as in analog. It just means that much more you have have to learn because in the end, it's always transmitted to your ear in analog form.

[Da5id4Vz]

Mechanical E would not be a bad background for speaker design. Some background in advanced composite materials wouldn’t hurt either.

Physics really does hit the subject right up the middle. But leaves a lot of physical analysis in the ideal world. Applying the engineering curriculum, mechanics, thermodynamics and E&M really rounds it out.

The big trick is to walk a way not just with a fixed body of knowledge, but also with the ability to continually educate yourself in the areas where you will apply the education for your career. Do that and you’ll always be a step ahead of you co-workers.

[Gsteg]

I'm on the same track as you.

Physics is fun at time