PSB Speakers received
FIVE Editors’ Choice Awards from The Perfect
Vision. For loudspeakers, Subwoofers and In-wall
speakers
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PSB’s Position: Performance and Value — The PSB Story
To those familiar
with PSB, the acronym (Paul & Sue Barton) could very well
mean People, Sound and Business. For years, audio critics have
attributed the performance of PSB Speakers with founder, Paul
Barton and his love and passion for music and loudspeakers. A
look back into the history of PSB will show you why… Paul’s
admiration for natural sound recreation was key to PSB’s
beginnings. However, today, it is easy to see that PSB is no
longer a small business operation; it’s no longer about just
one individual or two, or even 10. PSB Speakers International is
about a much larger team of good people who, themselves, are the
vital foundation for the company’s success. Today, PSB brings
audio enjoyment to customers all over the globe, through its
nearly 50 distributors and approximately 1000 dealers/retailers.
And yet, while the company itself has grown into the magnitude
of worldwide distribution, the company’s philosophy of
performance and value has remained unchanged for more than 40
years.
In-Cabinet
More and more
high-performance theaters are moving toward in-cabinet
applications. In the past, installers were challenged with trying
to incorporate traditional speakers into these custom cabinets and
pillars without adversely affecting the performance
characteristics of the speakers’ enclosure — the results were
often mediocre at best.
PSB now introduces a line of speakers designed to be placed into
cabinet-type installations, with crossovers
that defeat the resonance, standing waves and other anomalies
typically associated with these complex installs. Audition a pair
for yourself and see why audio-critics
rave about our latest custom installation achievement.
Sacrificing
space doesn’t mean sacrificing sound with PSB’s new
line of high-performance, in-wall
speakers. In the spirit of lifestyle media
systems and clutter-free living spaces, PSB introduced a
line of speakers evolved from our traditional
loudspeakers so that there is no loss in performance,
while still remaining value oriented. The CW Series
in-walls incorporate the same speaker arrays as found in
our highly acclaimed Platinum
Series speakers to offer true audiophile
performance…and that’s only the beginning. Each
in-wall speaker is hand-built and backed by PSB’s
commitment to audio excellence.
A New
Standard of Sonic Performance, Setup Flexibility, and
Installability.
As the quote from E-Town indicates, our new CustomSound
architectural in-wall speakers seem destined to turn some heads.
The CustomSound Series offers not just the level of sonic
performance associated with our speakers but a wholly new level
of setup flexibility and installability. Technical
Specifications
When PSB surveyed the in-wall situation in our industry, it was
clear that no model they knew of had really thought the in-wall
situation through as thoroughly as they felt was necessary from
both the listener's and the installer's points of view. They
think they've achieved an unprecedented combination of three
factors in the speakers they've developed:
Sonic
Performance
Performance, of course, was a critical objective. And Paul
Barton spent his usual long hours at the National Research
Council in Ottawa, working out the details of four basic designs
with repeating testing and listening sessions. For all four
models, he chose 6-1/2-inch polypropylene woofers with rubber
surrounds, and a 1-inch aluminum-dome tweeter with a neodymium
magnet. The tweeter features a swivel mounting to allow it to be
aimed to adjust to differing in-wall locations.. Three of the
four models, including the top of the line, have the tweeter
mounted coaxially, and Paul paid a great deal of attention to
maximizing performance of this configuration. He also focused on
building-in effective equalization measures (detailed below) to
compensate for less-than- optimum positioning. And, as usual, he
concentrated on making sure the four models were exact timbral
matches, for mixing and matching in Home Theater applications.
The three core PSB objectives of wide range (both frequency and
dynamic), lifelike tonal balance, and crisp spatial imaging were
at the center of things. You will find further details under the
individual model descriptions.
Drivers, crossovers, and frames are all custom designed. with
highest-quality, heavy-duty materials. Setup Flexibility
In-wall speakers don't automatically sound their best, and
simple adaptations of out-in-the-room designs are unlikely to
deliver fully satisfying performance under varying conditions.
So PSB took three steps to give our new speakers the kind of
flexibility listeners (and the installers wanting to please
them) need:
All
of the CustomSound models use a low-profile, compact,
swivel-mounted tweeter to increase the ease and flexibility of
locating speakers off-axis from the listener in different wall
locations. You can't angle in-wall speaker installations up,
down, or sideways, so giving the tweeter the swivel feature
provides effective adjustment for the placements that your room
(and home construction) indicate.
Heavy-duty, front-mounted high and mid-frequency equalization
switches allow you to tailor response, especially for working
with an independent subwoofer. Again, in-wall installation can't
compete with the placement flexibility -- and placement
adjustment for room acoustics -- of freestanding speakers. So
they compensate by providing a two-position equalization
adjustment to tailor the balance of high and mid frequencies to
your needs. It can be especially valuable for transitioning to a
subwoofer or overcoming bassy sound from a location too near a
room corner. The front position of the EQ switch makes it easy
to use at any time after installation.
All
models have matching woofers and tweeters to assure timbral
balance in different configurations. In-wall Home Theater
requires direct radiation from surround speakers, rather than
the dipole configuration that produces reflected sound from
surrounds. With nothing to mask any timbral differences, it's
very important to get timbral balance right. Which is why Paul
Barton spent many hours at the NRC on the issue. You will
appreciate the work.
Common dimensions between models eases not only original
installation but future additions and upgrades. This isn't an
initial sonic consideration, but if you decide to make any
changes in your in-wall configuration over time, this feature
can help make sure that an upgrade is really an upgrade rather
than a questionable change.
Biamplification jumpers and terminals allow increased dynamic
response and power handling.
Installability
Typical in-wall designs seem to expect the building world to be
nicely rational and straightforward to deal with. It's not.
Construction is full of irregularities, tight spaces, and
mistake-correction. Its tolerances need understanding, and so do
the differences between new construction, existing construction,
and remodeling situations. Most of the speakers designed for
in-wall use are not even complete. They often require different,
additional bracketry and added expense to meet the requirements
of new construction. They were determined to make installation
of the CustomSound series as easy, flexible, and convenient as
possible for contractors, dealers, and do-it-yourself installers
alike — in any and all likely situations.
When
you look at the illustrations on the succeeding product pages,
two of our innovations in the CustomSound series are easy to
see. One is the SplitRing back frame on all models, which
provides efficient and secure full-perimeter clamping in both
new construction and remodels. The other, our SlideOn mounting
bars, allow fast, accurate, and secure new construction
installation.
Two
small niceties will be enormously appreciated by many
installers, especially those doing it over and over in different
situations day after day. One is the center hairlines on all
four sides of the backframe on each model, which are a major aid
to initial rough-in. The other is the elongated mounting holes,
which make it easy to true things up in final installation. (In
our initial demos of the CustomSound series, this little feature
lit up the faces of many people who work in the trenches of
construction and installation.)
Integral wire clamps and 12AWG, gold-plated terminal posts
ensure fast and secure rough-in and finish wiring.
Low-root, black oxide stainless steel screws, into countersunk
holes throughout, ease and speed fastening.
All
of the CustomSound models come complete with all features.
There's no last-minute running out for the missing element.
All
of the CustomSound models use a low-profile, compact,
swivel-mounted tweeter to increase the ease and flexibility of
locating speakers off-axis from the listener in different wall
locations. You can't angle in-wall speaker installations up,
down, or sideways, so giving the tweeter the swivel feature
provides effective adjustment for the placements that your room
(and home construction) indicate.