About our quality...
"As a recording engineer, I have had an
opportunity to listen to reference monitors costing upwards of $65,000 per
pair. When we build a speaker system, we approach our job from that frame of
reference." - Jim Salk
there is a difference
We often hear people say, "My hearing is not that
acute. I doubt I could really hear the difference." Our experience says
otherwise.
With rare exceptions (primarily audio professionals),
those who audition our speakers instantly recognize sound quality at a level
they have never before experienced.
how good do they sound?
To paraphrase an old saying, "for those who have
heard them, no explanation is necessary...for those who have not, none is
possible."
Strong words perhaps, but people can only rely on their
current frame of reference to interpret information. Since most people have
never heard music reproduced through world-class reference monitors, it is
difficult for us to effectively convey, in words, the clarity, definition,
accuracy and detail you will experience with our custom speakers.
Suffice it to say that few retail speakers approach this
level of performance and those that do are stratospherically priced. So how is
it that we can produce reasonably priced systems that perform to world-class
standards? Simple.
we sell direct
Most everyone knows that audio retail mark-ups are
typically high. A speaker that retails for $1000 may actually cost the retailer
as little as $500 to $600. Then there are marketing costs (slick four-color
magazine ads are expensive), overhead costs and sales commissions. All of which
leaves little for the manufacturer to invest in parts.
We eliminate those costs and allocate the savings to
increase quality. Our speakers sound better simply because they are
better. They are superior in at least four distinct areas:
better cabinets
First, our cabinets are are more massive.
Building materials may represent a small portion of a
speaker's cost, but retail speaker manufacturers must control weight in order
to control shipping costs. We do not (you, our customers, pay the freight).
If you lift one of our speakers, you'll notice it is
heavier than you expected. Here's why that's important: A speaker driver
produces sound by vibrating and transmitting those vibrations to the air. These
same vibrations are produced in reverse by the rear side of the driver inside
the cabinet. If the walls of the cabinet are thin, made of a light material
and/or not properly braced, they too will resonate and transmit vibrations to
the air. The cabinet walls actually become active components of the speaker,
producing unwanted side effects that are manifested in the form of muddy,
ill-defined sound.
By using more massive materials, juditiously bracing the
walls where needed and applying high-tech sound deadening and absorption
materials, we produce a heavier cabinet with minimal wall resonance. So our
speakers produce cleaner, crisper sound than speakers built with with lesser
cabinets.
better drivers
The second area of superiority is the quality of our
drivers (the actual speakers themselves).
There are a fixed number of driver manufacturers who
supply the industry. These manufacturers produce drivers that vary widely in
performance and price.
Most offer high-volume, "mid-fi" drivers for mass market
speaker manufacturers. But many also "show their stuff" with cutting-edge
drivers that, due to cost, have limited market potential. We choose from among
these high-performance drivers. Some are even hand-made.
Naturally, they carry higher price tags--too high for
use in most speakers designed for retail sale. But you can't produce a
world-class speaker with mid-fi, mass-market drivers. So we won't consider
them.
better crossover designs
The third factor influencing speaker quality is surely
the most important--crossover design. It is also the least understood or talked
about.
The job of a crossover is to divide the signal and
direct the appropriate frequencies to the appropriate driver, be it the
tweeter, midwoofer or woofer. And it must do so in a way that provides a flat,
seamless transition from one speaker driver to the next.
In a very real sense, the crossover is the "heart" of
the system and brings everything into focus. The very nature of the job means
that a crossover must be designed for a specific cabinet size and
configuration, a specific port configuration and the performance of the
specific drivers being used.
This is the most difficult part of effective speaker
design and is both an art and skill possessed by few. We rely exclusively on
designers with proven track records. In this area, we are simply unwilling to
compromise.
premium crossover
components
Finally, we insure quality by utilizing only premium
crossover components. These unseen components can actually cost two to three
times as much as the speaker drivers themselves.
From a marketing point of view, there is something very
sexy about the latest "kevlar" or "titanium" drivers. Speaker advertising is
filled with driver tecno-facts. But if you really want to know how a speaker
will perform, investigate what parts are employed in the crossover
circuitry.
Premium crossover parts are expensive. But the better
the components, the greater the clarity, detail and openness a speaker will
exhibit. We incorporate only top-tier components.
and that's just for starters
These four criteria: cabinet construction, driver
selection, crossover design, and crossover component quality are major drivers
of our product quality. But we don't stop there.
Our attention is focused on even the smallest details,
including the use of a specific type of solder and specific high-performance
wire for all internal connections. The list goes on and on.
Because our signature goes on every product, we can't
afford anything less.
implications
We feel our business approach allows us to provide
extremely high value to our customers. But it does have implications.
For us, it means our products will never be
mass-marketed, our production volumes will be relatively low and our name will
never become a household word.
For our customers, it means they will not be able to
impress friends with their brand-name speakers. But it also means they will own
some of the highest performance speakers available anywhere. And with our
manufacturing model, we can custom-finish these speakers in exotic materials,
resulting in exclusive, one-of-a-kind products.
We produce only a limited number of speaker systems. We
would prefer to place them in homes where performance is valued over bragging
rights and where there is a high level of appreciation for quality.
one last detail
We feel it only fair to mention the following:
Our speakers feature a level of accuracy, clarity and
detail that will bring out subtle nuances normally hidden in great recordings.
(Which means you can actually "re-discover" detail in vintage recordings you
have enjoyed in the past.) At the same time, they will lay bare any
deficiencies in poor recordings. There is no hiding where our speakers are
concerned.
Along those same lines, deficiencies in source
components (CD and DVD players, amplifiers, etc.) may be painfully evident as
well. But there are three positive things that can be said in this regard:
- First, our speakers will elicit the best possible
performance from your current source equipment.
- Second, the path to even better sound is always
available should you decide to upgrade your source equipment.
- And finally, you should never need to upgrade your
speakers.
in the end
That said, if you are searching for reasonably-priced
speakers that perform to world-class standards, you've found them. Since our
speakers are custom made for your specific application and decor, we would
suggest you contact us to open a dialog. While we do offer certain models on
this web site, this selection by no means covers the range of speaker products
we can custom build for you.
contact us for further info
Custom speaker projects can vary greatly in cost and
scale. Contact us to discuss your specific
requirements.
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