CE Pro January 2023 - 16

Audio+Video
PSB Honors Anniversary with Passif 50 Loudspeaker
PSB SPEAKERS and
founder/chief designer Paul
Barton celebrated their 50th
anniversary in 2022 and
to honor the occasion the
company announced the
Passif 50 Anniversary Edition
Standmount Loudspeaker.
The design and technologies
of the Passif 50 model
leverage five decades of
dedicated research and pay
homage to the early Passif II
model first released in 1974,
according to PSB.
For a personal touch, PSB
was selling the first 500
units of the Passif 50 containing
a handwritten letter
from Barton.
In 1974, he developed the
Passif II at a time when his
initial acoustic research had
led to the establishment of
PSB's design philosophy,
the company says. Barton
The retro look includes
PSB Speakers' 1970s-style
logo and an open-grained
walnut-veneer cabinet.
mentioned during a CE Pro
Podcast about how much
influence Canada's National
Research Council and other
audio luminaries had on his
work at the time.
" The Passif II was the first
model to incorporate those
principles and demonstrate
what is now praised as the
brand's signature 'True to
Nature' sound. Paying tribute
to the Passif II, the Passif
50 represents the PSB legacy
that has remained strong
over 50 years of speaker
innovation - a series of
products marked by tonal
accuracy, spatial realism and
freedom from distortion, "
PSB states in announcing
the new product release.
The Passif 50 features
1970s-inspired elements
like an open-grained walnut
veneer cabinet, magnetically
attached woven cloth grilles
and dedicated stands.
Other embellishments, according
to the manufacturer,
include a pull tab on the
front grille, which sports the
retro PSB logo - originally
hand drawn by Barton in his
high school geography class
- and a rear-panel plaque
adorned by a maple leaf with
an inscription, " Passif 50 -
1972-2022. "
The 1-inch titanium dome
tweeter employs a neodymium
magnet and ferrofluid
damping, for higher output,
improved power handling,
and reduced distortion,
according to PSB. The
6.5-inch woofer and 8-inch
passive radiator use cast
aluminum baskets that resist
flexing, and filleted rubber
surrounds that dampen
cone resonances, resulting
in smoother response and
reduced distortion.
All joints in the heavily
braced enclosure are mitred
for improved fit and finish
and reduced cabinet vibration,
the company says. The
Passif 50 can be bi-wired or
bi-amped via its dual fiveway
binding posts.
Home Acoustics Alliance Unveils New Calibration Wizard App
DURING CEDIA EXPO IN DALLAS, the Home Acoustics
Alliance (HAA) announced its new Calibration Wizard App.
HAA points out that many integrators are already using
the app, and it stresses that through its partnership with the
CEDIA trade organization, all planned HAA/CEDIA Audio
Calibration workshops will be using the new dealer audio
calibration tool.
" We've been working with Andrew Smith at Studio Six
Digital for the last two years developing this app, " comments
Gerry Lemay, director of the Home Acoustics Alliance.
" I'm so pleased and satisfied with his attention to detail
and getting the mission of a professional calibration suite
right. In the last few HAA workshops, the beta version of the
app has transformed the training. Instead of taking extra time
to explain how to use the analysis tools, we have more time
to discuss acoustics and practical audio problem solving. I
can't say enough about how it has changed and expedited
the HAA calibration method. I highly recommend it. "
The app can be purchased by integrators from an iPad as
16 | CE Pro January 2023
an option with the popular
digital audio measurement
app AudioTools. HAA says that all integrators need to do is
install the AudioTools suite of measurement tools on their
iPads. The HAA Wizard App requires an in-app purchase to
facilitate access to the newly announced Calibration Wizard
App, which resides within AudioTools.
HAA notes that its
Wizard App requires an
in-app purchase within
AudioTools.
cepro.com
http://www.cepro.com
CE Pro January 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CE Pro January 2023
