Aren't all of these gentleman, Paul Barton, Kevin Voecks, Floyd Toole, Sean Olive, Allan Devantier and Ian Paisley graduates of or at the least contributors to the psycho-acoustic loudspeaker research conducted at the NRC?
Along with Axioms own Ian Colquhoun and Andrew Welker of course! Aren't several of them associated with the continuing research at Harman International? As well as at PSB and at the former API.
cheers Jeff
Andrew wasn't old enough to be doing that research but he definitely is a SME on it. Sean Olive and Floyd Toole were certainly affiliated/worked with Harman. Where are Harman's speakers that don't compress until 125dB and with equal listening window and sound power curves?
I can't say enough about how awesome my 11 years with these people at the NRC was. We should add Martin Stec to this group, he was a co-founder of Paradigm. Great people, great research, and a lot of fun. Floyd is not only brilliant, he is just an amazing human being. We still keep in touch every once-in-awhile just to see how it is going. The psycho-acoustical research at NRC began when Floyd arrived there and ended when he went to Harman. For me it was 11 years of intense learning. After it ended a number of us went on to build our own laboratories modeled after the one at NRC so we could continue research on our own.
There's a good interview with Martin Stec at the link below. He seems like a very genuine fellow.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Bns-rZvgaQQ
That is a good interview. Martin is definitely genuine and a fantastic speaker designer. Like all of us from the NRC he is rooted in the real science behind how we hear, what we prefer, and why. Unfortunately the core of the science, the family of amplitude response curves, does not make for very exciting marketing. Hence the speaker business has been overrun with talk surrounding things that make zero or near-zero difference while the elephant in the room goes unnoticed.
It has been a few decades since I have seen Martin and that is too bad. In the old days we consumed our fair share of libations together and it was great fun.
I really wonder how, across the industry, design staff views the FOC (FARTs - Family of Amplitude Response Traces...LOL). Does a speaker designer want to spend his life running and interpreting spinoramas and adjusting cross-overs or do something more sexy like bringing to market new drivers and cabinets? I don't know the answer - just asking - but I think its viewed as a necessary mundane task like designing for safety and EMC compliance.
There's also inertia. Is a company willing to take the risk associated with transformation? Look at Axiom. There was no fear. Large 'nad mass there. I can see it all the way over here. LOL!
That was a good interview. Sent it to a few audio friends.
They should have a 10 minute history blurb from everyone who did early work at the NRC that now sits in some audio role of designer, company owner.
It would be interesting to hear the perspectives of those who created Paradigm, PSB...
Ian should do one for Axiom.
Mike, Note that I think Martin still works on Angstroms like the ones you own.