FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
5 January 2006
WOODBURY, NY — At CES 2006, JBL, celebrating its 60th anniversary as a leading manufacturer of professional and consumer loudspeakers, and Audioaccess, a division of JBL that provides advanced whole-house audio/video solutions, are showcasing a variety of innovative home entertainment products and systems in suites at the Las Vegas Hilton (January 5 — 8). JBL is debuting its JBL Cinema Sound lineup of loudspeaker components, which combine elegant contemporary design with superlative sound quality. JBL is also featuring the first-ever active demonstration of its ultrahigh-end Project Array model
1000 Array loudspeakers, engineered to deliver the ultimate in sonic accuracy and musicality.
The revolutionary JBL Synthesis Array Module (SAM) loudspeakers, which bring the configurable installation versatility of the company’s VerTec line-array concert sound reinforcement loudspeakers to home listeners, are also on exhibit. Rounding out the company’s CES 2006 featured products are the JBL Cinema Vision complete, integrated home theater audio and video system, which is now available with an optional in-wall flush-mounting loudspeaker kit; Studio L Series loudspeakers, incorporating technologies derived from JBL’s professional recording studio monitors; the Performance Series high-end turnkey home theater audio systems; and a selection of upgraded JBL Synthesis loudspeakers.
Audioaccess is showcasing its W.H.E.N. (Whole-House Entertainment Network) advanced-technology home theater and multiroom audio/video system for custom residential installation; its iPod docking station, which connects a compatible iPod with the Audioaccess PX-700 multizone audio system, and additional versatile whole-house audio/video components.
Paul Bente, president of JBL Consumer Products, stated: “For 60 years, JBL has been dedicated to providing home listeners everywhere with the same level of professional-quality JBL sound that is heard in concert halls, recording studios and movie theaters. At CES 2006, JBL and Audioaccess are showcasing a selection of their newest and most advanced products and systems, all of which demonstrate that dedication as never before, and which offer consumers the absolute best in high-performance audio, video and multiroom home entertainment solutions.”
Following are highlights of the JBL and Audioaccess products and systems featured at CES 2006.
JBL Cinema Sound: Superlative Performance, Attractive Design and Easy Installation
JBL Cinema Sound is an all-new range of loudspeaker components that combines distinctively contemporary design with superlative sound quality, and integrates beautifully into any multichannel music or home theater system. JBL Cinema Sound components include the CST55 slim-design floorstanding tower loudspeaker, the CSC55 center channel speaker and the CSS10 10-inch, 150-watt powered subwoofer. The loudspeakers’ sleek, elegant styling and silver-and-black finish perfectly complements today’s DLP rear-projection TVs, as well as flat-panel LCDs and plasma displays.
The CST55 tower and CSC55 center channel loudspeakers both feature a 3/4-inch titanium-laminate tweeter that delivers extended frequency response to 30kHz, for exceptionally open and detailed high-frequency reproduction. The tweeter operates in conjunction with JBL’s exclusive Elliptical Oblate Spheroidal (EOS) waveguide to deliver smooth, accurate tonal balance off-axis as well as on-axis, along with more precise imaging and localization of music, dialogue and effects.
The CST55 and CSC55 incorporate dual 5-inch woofers that utilize JBL’s proprietary PolyPlas polymer-coated-cellulose-fiber cone material; the added rigidity and damping of the PolyPlas treatment provides a smooth frequency response with a detailed midrange and natural vocal and instrumental reproduction.
The woofers also have refinements such as large-diameter 1-1/2-inch voice coils with high-efficiency neodymium magnets, which provide improved dynamic response with lower distortion. The CST55 and CSC55 both include JBL’s Straight-Line Signal Path (SSP) crossover network, which employs a short signal path and premium-quality parts to maintain maximum sonic purity. The CSS10 powered subwoofer features a built-in amplifier (300-watt peak/150-watt RMS) and a high-excursion 10-inch woofer, operating in a down-firing enclosure. All JBL Cinema Sound models including the CSS10 are magnetically shielded.
JBL Cinema Sound loudspeakers are distinctively elegant in appearance, with rich metallic-silver enclosures and trim, contrasting high-gloss-black front panels and removable black grilles. The sleek, slim-tower design and integral small-footprint circular base of the CST55 floorstanding loudspeaker enable it to be easily placed in a home entertainment system, and the thin depth of the CSC55 center channel speaker makes it perfect for installation above or below flat-panel displays or above ultrathin rear-projection televisions.
Suggested retail pricing for JBL Cinema Sound loudspeakers is as follows: CST55, $379 each; CSC55, $329 each; CSS10, $429 each. All models are currently available.
JBL Project Array: A Breakthrough in Ultrahigh-End Loudspeaker Design
JBL’s ultrahigh-end Project Array loudspeakers combine JBL’s innovative compression driver technologies with state-of-the-art dynamic drivers to take advantage of the sonic strengths of both designs. Project Array models include the 1400 Array and 1000 Array floorstanding loudspeakers, the 800 Array stand-mounted loudspeaker; the 880 Array center channel loudspeaker; and the 1500 Array powered subwoofer with a built-in 1000-watt amplifier. In active demonstrations at CES 2006, the 1000 Array is featured in a two-channel JBL Synthesis system, showcasing its capability of reproducing music with remarkable purity and realism.
Project Array loudspeakers combine the exceptional dynamic range, transient response and “effortless” sound quality of horn-loaded compression drivers with the precise imaging, three-dimensional soundstage and articulate low-frequency impact provided by the finest dynamic drivers. The Project Array Series truly offers the best of both designs, along with unsurpassed resolution and a smooth, natural tonal balance.
To achieve their superlative performance, the 1400 Array, 1000 Array and 800 Array loudspeakers feature advanced-technology Bi-Radial-horn compression drivers mounted vertically in a freestanding configuration. This design eliminates enclosure diffraction effects to provide ultrastable imaging and an expansive soundstage. The 880 Array employs a vertically mounted Bi-Radial-horn compression driver flanked by dual woofers to deliver articulate reproduction of dialogue and effects. The Bi-Radial drivers are made from an extremely dense and inert material to eliminate unwanted sonic colorations, and incorporate their midrange/high-frequency and ultrahigh-frequency transducers into a unified horn assembly that optimizes the horn’s dispersion pattern and tonal accuracy, both on- and off-axis.
To complement these unique transducers, Project Array loudspeakers employ ultimate-quality low-frequency drivers that are engineered to deliver extended and articulate bass response. JBL Project Array loudspeakers are constructed from only the highest grade materials and components.
Project Array loudspeakers are as distinctive in appearance as they are in performance. All models are available in an elegant lacquered-wood finish, complemented by an ultraflat, soft-touch, rubberized black finish for the top surfaces — a unique design that blends classic and high-tech elements.
JBL Project Array loudspeakers are currently available with suggested retail pricing beginning at $3,000 each.
Synthesis Array Module Loudspeakers: Groundbreaking Design and Installation Flexibility
JBL’s Synthesis Array Module (SAM) loudspeakers offer an entirely new concept in custom-installation loudspeaker design. The SAM 1 midrange/high-frequency array and SAM 2 low-frequency array, now included in the company’s upgraded Synthesis One and Synthesis Two complete home theater audio systems, are engineered to deliver extraordinary sonic performance and bring the configurable installation versatility of the company’s acclaimed VerTec line-array professional audio loudspeakers to home listeners.
The SAM 1 midrange/high-frequency module shares many of the driver technologies found in JBL’s ultrahigh-end K2 Series and Project Array loudspeakers. These include the company’s exclusive BiRadial-horn compression drivers, which provide remarkable midrange clarity and resolution, along with detailed and extended high-frequency response to beyond 40kHz.
The SAM 2 employs dual 8-inch woofers that utilize exclusive JBL Metal Matrix technology, in which the aluminum woofer cones are deep-anodized to produce rigid yet lightweight driver diaphragms to provide superlative transient response and articulation. The woofer domes are also fabricated from Metal Matrix material and bonded directly to the voice coil (not to the cone, as in conventional woofer designs) to reduce mid-bass distortion to extremely low levels. SAM 2 woofers incorporate a host of additional refinements such as a unique dual-neodymium-magnet motor structure with the magnets inside the voice coil, rather than outside it, to provide increased acoustic output and improved magnetic shielding. The crossover between the SAM 1 and SAM 2 modules is active, enabling the tonal balance of the arrays to be optimized in any listening environment.
The SAM 1 and SAM 2’s modular design provides never-before-available installation options. They can be easily attached together, using their built-in fastening system, to create loudspeaker arrays in a variety of configurations. For example, one SAM 1, linked to either one or two SAM 2s, can be used for the left front channel and the right front channel arrays in a multichannel system, and two SAM 2 enclosures can be attached on either side of an SAM 1 module for use as a center channel array. These configurations can be expanded, and the SAM 1 and SAM 2 can also be used for the surround channels in larger-scale installations and rooms. The SAM 1 and SAM 2 are designed for ease of mounting in custom installations, behind perforated screens and cabinet grilles, or recessed into custom cabinetry.
JBL has also upgraded a number of its Synthesis loudspeakers to provide superior sound quality and greater installation flexibility. The S3VA vertical loudspeaker and the S3HA horizontal center channel loudspeaker now incorporate dual 6-inch woofers with the same Metal Matrix technology used in the woofers in the SAM 2 Synthesis Array Module, yielding increased clarity, resolution and dynamic impact. The S3VA and S3HA also feature premium-quality Bi-Radial-horn compression drivers.
The S4Ai multipolar vertical/horizontal in-wall surround-effects loudspeaker now includes controls on the outside of its sealed enclosure, enabling it to be easily switched to bipole, dipole or direct-radiating operation. The S4Ai’s tweeters and midrange drivers are mounted in movable, internal subenclosures that can be switched to radiate either in-phase or out-of-phase with the rest of the speaker’s driver complement to provide a choice of selectable dipole or bipole dispersion modes. In addition, the S4Ai can be bi-amplified to serve as two separate speakers in a single enclosure, conserving installation space in a multichannel surround sound system.
Suggested retail pricing and availability of the JBL SAM 1 Synthesis Array Module, SAM 2 Synthesis Array Module and upgraded S3VA, S3HA and S4Ai loudspeakers will be announced.
JBL Cinema Vision: Striking Design, and Spectacular Picture and Sound Quality
JBL Cinema Vision is a complete, integrated audio and video home entertainment system that combines superlative audio and video performance with unmatched ease of use. JBL Cinema Vision, which is showcased in active demonstrations at CES 2006, includes a multichannel loudspeaker package, a 50-inch high-definition plasma monitor and an A/V system controller that includes a DVD audio/video changer, receiver and video processor. A new, optional in-wall flush-mounting kit for the loudspeakers is now available, which enables the satellite and center channel speakers to be recessed into a wall, creating
a clean, elegant appearance in custom installations and architectural applications.
JBL Cinema Vision incorporates innovative features such as exclusive JBL Digital Link technology, which maintains 100-percent digital audio signal paths throughout the system for the best-possible sound quality, and uses a dedicated, single-cable connection between the A/V system controller and the plasma monitor to greatly simplify setup and installation.
Its 50-inch plasma display offers true high-definition-display capability with the highest possible resolution and color accuracy, and its loudspeakers are directly derived from JBL’s professional cinema and studio loudspeakers to deliver extraordinary sonic realism. Although highly sophisticated in its capabilities, JBL Cinema Vision offers easy, intuitive operation, with a “smart” remote control and an integrated design that anticipates users’ needs, and automates key functions. All of the system’s components blend harmoniously to create an elegant, unified appearance, and provide a seamless integration of style and function.
JBL Cinema Vision is available at a suggested retail price of $15,000, through authorized JBL dealers.
JBL Performance Series: A Complete Lineup of High-End Home Theater Audio Systems
The JBL Performance Series is a full range of high-end turnkey home theater audio systems that includes electronics and loudspeakers. The Performance Series offers a variety of multichannel home theater audio solutions, all designed to offer extraordinary sonic realism, along with unmatched operational flexibility and ease of use, in rooms of up to 5,000 cubic feet.
Each JBL Performance Series system is based around the Performance Series 7.1-channel AV1 Surround Processor/System Controller and AVA7 7-Channel Power Amplifier, both engineered to deliver state-of-the-art sound quality and connectivity in the widest range of custom-installation home theater systems. JBL Performance Series systems can be configured with a broad variety of matched 7.1- and 5.1-channel in-wall and on-wall speaker systems to accommodate specific customer and room applications.
A variety of loudspeakers is offered, including the Performance P941 and P81 advanced-technology in-wall speakers, which are now available with optional back boxes that provide acoustical isolation and improved sound quality. Other models include the Performance PT800 tower main/surround loudspeaker, the Performance PC600 center channel speaker, the PS1400 14-inch, 400-watt powered subwoofer, and JBL’s HTPS400 12-inch, 1000-watt powered subwoofer, which features a compact enclosure that enables it to be easily situated in any room.
The modular design of the on-wall speakers allows the PT800 tower to be stacked atop the PS1400 subwoofer, mounted separately on a wall or installed on optional available stands. All the speakers have a unique shallow-profile enclosure that requires a minimum of floor space, and all models are constructed using professional-quality JBL drivers and components. The P941 and P81 in-wall speakers incorporate front-panel listener axis, high-frequency contour, high-frequency level and low-frequency boundary compensation controls that allow precise sonic tailoring in any installation.
JBL will also introduce its innovative JBL BassQ Automatic Room Mode Correction (RMC) Processor, which can be added to any Performance Series system, in 2006. The BassQ RMC processor is a low-frequency-response correction component that utilizes supplied measurement microphones and advanced DSP equalization to compensate for the peaks and dips in frequency response that are inherent in every room, to achieve smooth, accurate bass response.
Pricing for JBL Performance Series systems ranges from approximately $15,000 for JBL’s Performance System 7 5.1-channel in-wall system to $30,000 for the JBL Premier Performance 7.1-channel on-wall and in-wall packages. All Performance Series systems are currently shipping.
JBL Studio L Series: Bringing Professional Studio-Quality Sound to Home Listeners
JBL’s Studio L Series of home theater and stereo loudspeakers includes eight high-performance models that incorporate a host of design innovations and technologies directly derived from the company’s professional recording studio monitors to achieve exceptional sonic accuracy and musical realism. Along with superlative performance, JBL Studio L Series loudspeakers offer expanded installation options, and feature a distinctively contemporary design that complements every decor and home entertainment installation.
The Studio L Series includes two wall-mount/bookshelf monitors (models L810 and L820); a compact bookshelf loudspeaker (model L830); two floorstanding towers (models L880 and L890); two dedicated center channel loudspeakers (models LC1 and the wall-mountable LC2) and a 12-inch, 600-watt powered subwoofer (model L8400P). Suggested retail prices for the Studio L Series range from $650 to $1,598 per pair (SRP).
A key JBL innovation that is incorporated into every Studio L Series loudspeaker (except the L8400P subwoofer) is a newly developed ultrahigh-frequency horn transducer that provides extended frequency response to 40kHz. The UHF transducer is complemented by a pure-titanium-dome tweeter housed within an EOS waveguide, both configured in a “room friendly” design that delivers sound that’s closer to the real-life sound heard in the concert hall, and re-creates the acoustic environment captured on the original recording.
Studio L Series woofers and midrange drivers incorporate refinements such as JBL’s PolyPlas polymer-coated cellulose-fiber cones, which provide smooth frequency response with faster transients, and allow for higher playback levels without distortion. JBL Studio L Series loudspeakers also feature a host of additional enhancements, such as cabinets that are significantly improved from previous Studio Series models to minimize the possibility of sonic coloration from internal resonances, and JBL’s Straight-Line Signal Path (SSP) crossover network, which ensures maximum sonic purity.
JBL Studio L Series models offer wall-, stand- and floor-mounting installation options to accommodate any home theater or music system, and are available in a cherry, beech or black-ash finish, making it easy to complement any home decor.
Audioaccess iPod Docking Station: Whole-House iPod Connectivity
The new Audioaccess iPod docking station, which will begin shipping in January 2006, allows a compatible iPod to interface with an Audioaccess multiroom audio system, enabling the iPod to play music in any room in the system, and providing two-way operation of the iPod from a Color Audioaccess Touchscreen Controller (CATC) in a remote zone or a Web-enabled device such as a computer, Internet tablet or PDA.
The Audioaccess iPod docking station is a tabletop holder that operates in conjunction with Audioaccess system interface components and the Audioaccess PX-700 Multiroom Audio Controller, a multiroom audio component that offers flexible whole-house music-distribution capabilities along with exceptional sonic performance.
The iPod docking station connects to an Audioaccess system via a single proprietary cable to either the Audioaccess CATC/2WSI Two-Way Serial Interface, or the soon-to-be-released CS-IP Audioaccess Control Server. Both products are flexible, “intelligent” two-way interface units that link an outboard home device, such as the iPod docking station, with the PX-700 and the Color Audioaccess Touchscreen Controller, a wall-mountable touchscreen controller that provides operation of an Audioaccess PX-700-based multiroom audio system from a remote zone. Both devices interpret the data sent from the iPod and convert it for display on a CATC.
In addition, the CS-IP provides an IP (Internet protocol) address and a user control display to a Web-enabled device, allowing a compatible PC, Internet tablet or other Web-compatible wired or wireless device, such as a PDA or cell phone, to control the iPod and the Audioaccess multiroom system.
The docking station provides a direct audio connection from the iPod to the system, and the iPod is also powered from the docking station, with no batteries or external power adapter required. All menu information from the iPod, such as artist, album and track information, is displayed on the CATC or Web-enabled device, and all iPod music-playback functions, such as start, stop, pause and next track/previous track control are accessible via remote operation. The docking station can be used with all compatible iPod models featuring a docking connector.
Suggested retail pricing for the Audioaccess iPod docking station will be announced.
Audioaccess W.H.E.N.: Advanced Whole-House System Flexibility
Audioaccess is featuring its groundbreaking W.H.E.N. (Whole-House Entertainment Network) system at CES 2006. W.H.E.N. is the company’s first integrated home theater and multiroom audio/video system designed exclusively for custom residential installation; it will begin shipping in 2006.
The system is based around the W.H.E.N. AVR21EN Audio Video Receiver/System Controller, an innovative 7.1-channel A/V receiver and multiroom controller that offers a wide range of features and connectivity options, making it the heart of an advanced integrated home theater and whole-house control system. The system controls outboard A/V sources via dedicated IR outputs, a digital signal transfer bus that distributes audio and control signals, and three RS-232 ports that enable two-way control of specific high-capacity DVD/CD changers. The AVR21EN provides an extensive complement of advanced features, including five wide-bandwidth, HDTV-compatible component video inputs, an HDMI-compatible digital-video output, seven source trigger inputs and IR outputs, and two built-in FM/AM tuners.
The AVR21EN connects to an outboard W.H.E.N. AVH21 Audio Video Hub via a single Cat. 5 cable. Utilizing state-of-the-art technologies, the AVH21 also distributes video using coaxial cable and audio and control signals to remote locations via Cat. 5 cable. It can accommodate up to seven audio and six video remote locations, and has video routing capability for up to six video entertainment sources, plus seven video security cameras. Additional hubs and power supplies can be added to expand whole-house signal distribution for up to 20 rooms, facilitating comprehensive multizone installations.
The Multiroom Hub links to a W.H.E.N. KP21 Amplified Display Keypad located in each remote zone. Three operating modes are offered: Entertainment, Audio/Video Security and Paging. The KP21 features a large LCD and offers intuitive control of up to six audio/video sources connected to the AVR21EN, two built-in AM/FM tuners and a local-zone source. The keypad includes a 50-watt-per-channel digital stereo amplifier to power a pair of speakers, as well as a local source input and preamp outputs for use with a subwoofer or external amplifier. The keypad also includes an IR sensor, enabling control from a handheld remote, and a built-in microphone, which enables it to function as part of a whole-house paging system.
W.H.E.N. system components also include a compact door keypad/camera module, which can be used as part of a video security system, and in-wall and in-ceiling speakers, derived from JBL’s high-performance, industry-standard HTi Series.
The Audioaccess W.H.E.N. system is highly scalable for use in both smaller residences and more expansive homes. Suggested retail pricing ranges from approximately $3,000 for a base home theater and two remote audio zones system to more than $20,000 for a large-scale system comprising a main home theater and 20 remote room locations.
The Harman Consumer Group (HCG) is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of a wide range of high-fidelity loudspeakers, audio and video components, and multimedia systems for use in homes and automobiles, and with computers. The group’s brands include JBL, Infinity, Harman Kardon, Mark Levinson, Revel, Audioaccess and Lexicon.
HCG is a division of Harman International Industries, Incorporated. Harman International (www.harman.com)
is a leading manufacturer of high-quality, high-fidelity audio products and electronic systems for the automotive, consumer and professional markets. The company’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “HAR.”
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For additional information, contact:
Frank Doris
FM Group Public Relations
631-385-1304 ext. 402
frank.doris@fm-group.net
JBL, Audioaccess, Synthesis, JBL Synthesis, VerTec, Bi-Radial, K2 and Harman International are registered trademarks, and Cinema Sound, Project Array, JBL Cinema Vision, Studio Series, Performance Series, Elliptical Oblate Spheroidal (EOS), PolyPlas, Straight-Line Signal Path (SSP), JBL Digital Link, BassQ, Room Mode Correction (RMC) and HTi Series are trademarks, of Harman International Industries, Incorporated.
iPod is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
