Memphis, Tenn. — Start-up Beale Street Audio, which markets custom-install speakers, has begun shipping its first two in-ceiling subwoofers as a follow up to the shipment earlier this month of its first products, which are in-wall and in-ceiling speakers.
The company is also expanding its dealer base and planning additional products.
“We started shipping our first in-ceiling and in-wall speakers about a month ago, and we’re currently approaching 100 dealers, with more signed up internationally,” said executive director Mark Cichowski. “Our philosophy is to only launch a product when it is ready to ship within 30 days, so you will never hear about a Beale Street Audio product unless it is imminently available for sale.”
The company’s in-wall and in-ceiling speakers come in 4-, 6.5- and 8-inch versions at prices from $79 to $379 each. Beale also offers a two-channel amp and plans to offer additional amps in the next month or so, a spokesman said. The company “will definitely not limit themselves in terms of product development, so any audio product is a possibility,” he added.
The new enclosed subwoofers consist of a $229 6.5-inch model and an 8-inch $319 model. Neither is said to require that don’t require heavy bracing or backboxes to prevent wall vibrations that damage walls and create sonic artifacts, the company said.
The company said it resolved the problem with Sonic Vortex Technology to deliver more bass and a flatter frequency response from an in-ceiling design. The design moves air more efficiently and at higher speeds through multiple ports in the specially designed, vortex-shaped enclosure, the company explained.
The subs feature rigid Kevlar woofer material and a butyl rubber surround to deliver balanced sound when listeners are off-axis.
“By controlling the speed and motion of air through a speaker enclosure, we found that you can create incredibly powerful and articulate bass without requiring movement that can damage its surroundings,” said Beale founder Jim Murray.
Sonic Vortex Technology separates the main port of the enclosure into multiple sections, or “fins,” that compress and move air at a high rate of speed without port noise and also add to the cabinet’s rigidity. Compared to sealed models, the design delivers a 6dB to 9dB boost in the mid-lower bass ranges, the company said.
The subs are also said to be amplifier-friendly because sound and perform like a sealed subwoofer cabinet with the same impedance curve, Beale added.
