The Loudspeaker Industry Sourcebook (LIS) has been published every year for the past 27 years, and more industry professionals are now familiar with LIS and its online directory format (www.loudspeakerindustrysourcebook.com). Each year, this online resource serves as a reference for everyone working in R&D, manufacturing, sourcing, product management, technical support, marketing, and sales in the loudspeaker and related industries.
The listings submitted online are compiled annually to generate the printed edition, but the LIS publication and website also contains must-read articles, interviews with audio professionals on trending industry topics, and annual industry reports about the state of the industry. And new articles are published every year with every new issue of LIS.
In our 2023 edition, you don't want to miss the State of Speaker Industry overview by J. Martins, titled "The Year to Rebuild, Reimagine." A complete overview of the loudspeaker industry entails looking at many application segments and industries. This 2022/2023 analysis does just that and also looks more closely at how the consumer market is shaping up, offering perspective on voice, spatial audio, soundbars, wireless audio and high-end home audio applications.
Following current market trends closely, this edition of LIS includes a feature article written by members of the UWB Alliance. Since 2019, Ultra Wide Band (UWB) has been expanding into a mainstream consumer technology for smartphones, wearables, automotive, and industry, forecasted to drive sales volumes in excess of one billion devices annually by 2025. Building upon the standardization work performed by its staff and members within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standards Association (IEEE) on the 802.15.4z framework, the organization is focused on providing a favorable regulatory and spectrum management landscape to maximize UWB growth.
Another key ongoing industry effort is Analog Devices' A2B (Automotive Audio Bus) , which Dan Foley (Founder of Do No Harm Music) explains adds yet another dimension to the digital evolution in the audio realm — with eficiency, cost savings, space savings, weight savings, and reduction of the carbon footprint caused by audio wiring. All great reasons why A2B technology is finding increasing uses for distributed sound applications.
Next up, Steve Temme (Founder & President, Listen) discusses a new transient distortion measurement technique that is more accurate and reliable than current methods. As well as improved performance, this new algorithm also aids understanding of the correlation between measurement results and audibility, since it is possible to isolate and listen to just the transient distortion artifacts.
In another important feature, Tony Ostrom (President, WiSA Association) tells us Why 2023 Is the Year to Upgrade Your Home Theater. In the years since COVID-19, TVs have positioned themselves at the center of the home entertainment experience and in 2023, WiSA predicts the importance of great audio wrapped around these TVs will become a stronger focus because today’s immersive A/V content demands big, beautiful screens and immersive, high-resolution, three-dimensional audio.
Signaling the 75 Years of the Audio Engineering Society, Roger Shively revisits the organization's history and its relation with the evolution of loudspeakers. A history that involves the work of Harry Olson, Paul Klipsch, Robert Ashley, Roy Allison, Ernest Benson, Siegfried Linkwitz, Richard Heyser, Richard Small, and Neville Thiele.
Discussing another standards-related effort, Jeff Berryman (Chair, OCA Alliance Technical Committee) writes about AES70, an Audio Engineering Society (AES) standards suite for remote control and monitoring of professional audio devices and systems via digital networks. Its focus has so far excluded consumer and automotive applications but all product designers should find this article interesting.
A tradition of every Loudspeaker Industry Sourcebook is our list of questions that we send out to several notable industry professionals, which always offer a valuable sampling of multiple perspectives of the industry. This year's responses provide a broad overview in multiple industry verticals, with contributions submitted by Rob Abbott (Nureva), Ulderico Arcidiaco (Sfera Labs), Ekin Binal (Crestron), Espartaco Saez (Beyma), Simon Godfrey (Wharfedale Pro), Siamäk Naghian (Genelec), Mathias Johansson (Dirac), George Krampera, Jr. (KV2 Audio), Daniel Knighten (Audio Precision), Jon Kiachian (Knowles), Claudio Lastrucci and Antonio Peruch (Powersoft), and Zami Schwartzman (ServoBass).
Markets have reopened in 2023 and we have learned to better appreciate our partnerships and suppliers, with a growing understanding of how interconnected we all are. But things are also evolving, and the audio industry is more open to exploring new sources and solutions. And we can see manufacturers investing in geographical dispersion and vertical integration again — where it makes sense and to avoid future disruptions.
More importantly, the audio industry continues to innovate and expand, with audio increasingly recognized as a vital part of everyone’s life. As always, all this is reflected in the pages of this industry publication and its directories. Please enjoy the 2023 edition of LIS!
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About the Cover Sponsor
Founded in 1924, Celestion has been building transducers for commercial applications for almost 100 years and has grown to become one of the leading the leading manufacturers of professional audio loudspeakers for fixed installation and touring sound reinforcement. The LIS 2023 cover shows Celestion's 18" PowerProX18 subwoofer for professional audio applications.
