For years Audiophiles reveled at the new line of speakers,
pre-amps and amplifiers and source components that continued to
get better and better. Today, in terms of capable
audiophile-grade technology, we are literally light years beyond
where we were -- even a decade ago.
It has always been this love and passion for Audio that PSB and
a few others were built on. And these factors have all played a
major role in the development of our speaker line. Our lineup of
speakers in the Alpha thru the Platinum series all insure that
our customers old and new will find something that meets there
needs while accommodating their budget and listening
preferences.
We simply cannot afford to discard the foundation this company
was built on. And in part, helped to create in the world of
high-fidelity home theater through our passion -- through our
products. It was high performance Audio that transformed 20-inch
televisions into big screens. It was Audio that gave birth to
home theater and yet, in recent years has been left out by many
with the advent of high definition television and
home-theater-in-a-box.
The Road to a New Consumer
During the late '90s, the consumer electronics industry was
booming, literally with the sounds of multiple speakers pouring
out the doors of retailers. ProLogic became 5.1, and grew into
6.1, 7.1 and beyond. Consumers had more disposable income and
audio seemed to be an appropriate place to dispose of it.
Then, an interesting thing happened. As consumers became
more-and-more obsessed with "everything high resolution;" DVD
players, displays, cameras, printers, etc., the world of high
fidelity took a backseat as a new format of Audio became the
craze -- MP3. MP3 is probably the best and worst thing to ever
happen to the consumer electronics industry. It was the
low-resolution MP3 format that stunted the growth of the
audiophile and literally placed speaker companies on "pause."
With a low-resolution format sweeping the globe in popularity --
aimed at the more, faster, cheaper (free downloads anyone?)
consumer, who would bother with paying money for high fidelity?
The consumer electronics industry responded by wielding a gun
and shooting itself in the foot. Yes, I'm talking about "home
theater in-a-box." Ah yes, a new category aimed at the more,
cheaper, faster animal. Companies once known for televisions
began to manufacture speakers that looked like electric shavers,
and sounded like electric shavers, but nobody knew the
difference, because everything sounded horrible anyway.
High Fidelity Back on Track...Almost
Then another interesting thing happened, the consumer began to
demand improved compression-format Audio. And it wasn't long
after that a couple of companies, armed with marketing budgets
and new compression algorithms created a new form of "lossless"
compressed Audio formats.
All at once there were literally millions of music-thirsty
consumers born into a new generation of Audiophile. And all at
once we were faced with a new customer -- with the same wants
and needs of the customers of yesterday -- high performance
sound at reasonable prices.
With literally millions of new Audiophiles born of MP3, and
high-definition television sales and programming increasing by
the day, the industry suddenly became quite polarized.
Effectively we have two consumers, the Audiophile and the
Videophile. How ironic that while many readily credit the home
theater industry (and big screens) as being spawned by the
popularity of Audio, now in many cases takes at back seat at the
retail level.
High Definition Home Theater
Before the days of the "big screen" it was always Audio systems
that made those little television screens seem so much larger.
Sadly, many who are buying plasmas and DLP TVs and anything
high-definition capable spend thousands on the size of the
screen and, yet, invest little into the Audio support that it
warrants. Effectively, the videophile defeats itself by not
matching the sound performance to the picture performance.
Let me put it more plainly. You can have high definition video.
And you can have high definition Audio. But you can never have
high definition home theater without a balanced marriage between
the two. The demands placed on the industry by Audiophiles and
videophiles have helped to shape and improve both Audio and
video. In fact, the new trend in flat-panel displays as well as
significantly lower prices on single-gun projectors has created
a new set of challenges in application specific installs. For
example, PSB got into the market to build in-cabinet speakers
early on, and yet waited to see how the emerging markets would
expand before introducing our in-wall and most recently on-wall
speakers. So in essence video buying trends have created new
demands by savvy consumers, and today PSB offers speakers for
literally every installation application.Challenge Yourself
It will take a strong commitment from manufacturers like PSB
Speakers to continue to offer high performance loudspeakers at
reasonable price points, and from dealers who are willing to
stand firm in teaching consumers the benefits of a solid Audio
system. Remember home-theater products are built to meet your
needs. So with products built for you and dealers who are
waiting to welcome you into the showroom to demonstrate what has
been built for you. What an exciting time this is for consumers!
Invariably your Audio or video purchase will help to shape your
needs. One experiment that we recommend you try (and you can try
this at many of our dealers) is to Audition a larger display,
say 50-inches or bigger with a smaller, entry level speaker
package. If it's an entry-level PSB ensemble then you'll
probably be quite satisfied. However, now watch the same demo
with the same screen and a larger (higher priced) speaker
package. If you're really brave, try to find a similar demo on a
smaller screen. Again, you will see the effects for yourself
audio makes or breaks the home theater experience and vice
versa. Our network of dealers is eager to demonstrate the
excitement of true high definition home theater without
expectation because we're all committed to sharing our passion
for what we do.
PSB Speakers (
http://www.psbspeakers.com ) has been around a
long time and has seen many changes and changing customers. And
we're certain there are many more to come. In the end, we're
just happy to be a part of it and enjoy the challenge of
remaining at the forefront of high fidelity sound.
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