Perfected by Jack Wilson in his California garage in 1958, the Auratone Super Sound Cube reference monitor is a legend in the recording, broadcasting, and motion picture industries for its unfailing ability to represent mixes as they will so often appear in the “real world” – on small-format, zero-crossover loudspeakers. At the upcoming 139th AES Convention in New York City, TransAudio Group will be showcasing the Auratone Sound Cubes at Booth #935 and will be giving away a pair of speakers every day of the show to the lucky sweepstakes winner.
Auratones found their way into studios and recording trucks around the world in the 1970s and 80s because they were ridiculously affordable and represented a common-denominator tool that every engineer was familiar with. Most importantly, Auratones have a seemingly magic ability to raise an auditory “red flag” on any aspect of a mix that is imperfect. Alex Jacobsen, Jack Wilson’s grandson, has now taken the helm of Auratone. With the help of other family members, Alex provides Super Sound Cube components from contemporary suppliers in the USA to build a modern “5C Super Sound Cube” that has the exact same sound and magical properties of the vintage Auratone cubes.
“When I first heard that the Auratones were being provided by Alex, I asked for a vintage pair and a new production pair to play around with in my office,” explained Brad Lunde, founder and president of TransAudio Group, Auratone’s new U.S. distributor. “I put up some great mixes and some terrible mixes and some individual tracks, and it’s obvious why so many engineers swear by Auratones. They make good mixes obviously good and bad mixes obviously bad. Moreover, and unlike the cheap Auratone knock-offs, Alex’s new production sounds exactly like the vintage Auratones. There was no attempt to improve or alter the sound at all.”
“It took a lot of time,” said Jacobsen. “I pored over box after box of my grandfather’s specs, drawings, and records. I found new suppliers in the USA and carefully tested all of the huge number of possibilities to find combinations that were repeatable and that had the exact same sound as my grandfather’s vintage Sound Cubes. Our standards are strict because these ARE Auratones, they’re not a knock-off! It was daunting, but I got help from other members of the family, including my mom, who remembers helping my grandfather in the shop in the 1970s.”
In an age when more and more consumers are listening to music and watching programming using computer speakers, ear buds, car stereos, Bluetooth speakers, and so on, Auratones have a new relevance. “The Auratone Sound Cubes are a more professional and consistent way to check your mixes than running out to your unique car or listening on your unique boom box,” Lunde said. “And at $350 a pair, the price is right. In fact, they’re a great option for engineers on the go – it’s easy to take a small pair of Auratones and a small power amp and have an in-the-box recording or mix station set up anywhere. And the beauty of course, is that when it sounds good on the Auratones, it will sound good anywhere!”The specifications for these passive monitors are:
Dimensions: 6 1/2w x 6 1/2"h x 6"d
Frequency Response: 75-15,000 Hz
Impedance: 8 OHMS
Driver: 4 1/2" Full Range
SPL/Sensitivity: 90 DB @ 1w/1m
Cabinet: Sealed 5/8" MDF
Wattage: 25 Watt RMS/50 Watt Peak
www.transaudiogroup.com | www.auratonesoundcubes.com
