Unlike Grammy award-winning musicians, the life of the people behind the music is relatively unknown. There is a horde of players such as sound engineers, speaker designers, record producers, recordists and engineers etc., who quietly push sonic boundaries behind the console. These are the unsung heroes behind the evolution of sound and technology we use to listen to music.
From this passionate cohort, the name of the legendary speaker designer Andrew Jones keeps surfacing in many discussions about modern speaker design. A self-proclaimed speaker geek and acoustics and electromagnetics enthusiasts, he is the name behind many great audio electronics. With over 3 decades of experience, he has worked with KEF, Philips, TAD, Pioneer and is currently associated with the German high-fidelity brand Elac.
At Ooberpad, we’re already raving about the Debut & Uni-Fi from Elac designed by the man being discussed. We thought it would be a great idea to look at another speaker engineering marvel that is still ruling many dance floors at home. During Andrew’s stint at Pioneer, he was the driving force behind a series of home theatre speakers that blended a rare combination of high-fidelity sound and cost-effective pricing. Let’s get to know Pioneer’s SP series better and where Ooberpad fits in this trinity.
Andrew Jones Designed 5.1 Channel Speaker Package
This home theatre system is backed with a remarkable pedigree of over 70 years of the Japanese-brand Pioneer's audio heritage and industry firsts. This lineage is clubbed with the knowledge and gifted ears of the internationally renowned speaker designer, Andrew Jones. Designed with uncompromising attention to detail, these loudspeakers are perfect for home theatre systems, offering remarkable audio quality during music, movies, gaming and other applications at an affordable price-point.
The speakers are designed with new-age materials integrated into the driver cones and magnets that not only accentuate the higher-end frequencies but also extends the bass response. The speakers sport a curved cabinet design that not makes the speaker aesthetically pleasing but also improve the listening experience. The cabinet also features a stiffer design which reduces standing sound waves inside the cabinet. Apart from this, the speakers feature multi-element crossovers with high-performance components and gold-plated 5-way binding post connectors for maximum signal integrity.
The series includes the Pioneer SP-FS52 floorstanding speakers, SP-BS22-LR compact bookshelf speakers, the SP-C22 centre channel speaker, the SP-T22A-LR Dolby Atmos speakers, the SP-BS22A-LR bookshelf Dolby Atmos speakers and the SW-8MK2 subwoofer. Let’s get to know each of the speakers from the series.
Pioneer SP-FS52 Floorstanding Speakers
The series starts with 3-way Bass-reflex Floorstanding speaker that is capable of delivering up to 130W of a powerful output with a nominal impedance of 6 Ohms. It incorporates 1 x 5.25” midrange driver, 2 x 5.25” LF driver along with a 1” high-efficiency soft dome tweeter. The drivers feature a vented the pole piece to significantly improve bass response from the same size woofers. With a sensitivity of 87 dB (2.83 V) and a frequency response between 40Hz-20 kHz, the Pioneer SP-FS52 tower style floorstanding speaker delivers a massive sound with a thunderous bass response, even without a subwoofer.Pioneer SP-BS22-LR Bookshelf Speakers
The next speaker in the series is the single bass-reflex bookshelf variant that is capable of delivering up to 80W of a powerful output with a nominal impedance of 6 Ohms. It incorporates a structured surface 4” mid-bass driver along with a 1” high-efficiency soft dome tweeter. The drivers incorporate a vented the pole piece to significantly improve bass response. With a sensitivity of 85 dB (2.83 V) and a frequency response between 55Hz-20 kHz, the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR bookshelf speaker delivers a powerful and well-defined sound from a compact cabinet design.Pioneer SP-C22 Center-Channel Speaker
For impeccable dialogue delivery and to let users hear every sung by the artist, the series features a dedicated center-channel speaker. This single bass-reflex speaker delivers up to 90W of a powerful output with a nominal impedance of 6 Ohms. It incorporates two structured-surface 4” mid-bass driver along with a 1” high-efficiency soft dome tweeter. With a sensitivity of 88 dB (2.83 V) and a frequency response between 55Hz-20 kHz, the Pioneer SP-C22 center-channel speaker delivers a powerful and well-defined sound from a compact cabinet design.Pioneer SP-T22A-LR Dedicated Atmos Speaker
The SP-T22A-LR add-on speakers are designed to bring Dolby Atmos to existing home theatre systems. It sports an upward-firing concentric speaker array with a ½-inch soft-dome tweeter mounted in the centre of a 4-inch woofer. The SP-T22A-LR’s tweeter is the key to the add-on speaker’s superior sound quality with high-frequency reproduction comparable to that of a high-quality conventional speaker. Because the tweeter is mounted at the centre of the woofer, the cone acts as a “horn” to control the tweeter’s dispersion. Thanks to the separate woofer and tweeter, the SP-T22A-LR has much more natural and spacious-sounding treble than Atmos-compatible speakers that use a full-range driver.Pioneer SP-BS22A-LR Bookshelf Speakers with Atmos
The series also features a pair of compact speakers for Dolby Atmos® designed by Andrew Jones. It features an upward firing concentric speaker comprising of a ½-inch soft-dome tweeter mounted in the centre of a 4-inch woofer. This speaker reflects sound off the ceiling to produce an immersive surround sound landscape. Thanks to its two-way design, Pioneer SP-BS22A-LR produces a more spacious and detailed sound than speakers using a single full-range driver. In simpler words, this model is a combination of the SP-BS22-LR and SP-T22A-LR crammed into one speaker.Pioneer SW-8MK2 Powered Subwoofer
To take over the low-frequency reproduction duties, the series also features a powered subwoofer. The Pioneer SW-8MK2 incorporates a high-excursion 8” bass driver with a 100W amplifier to deliver a 50W FTC power output for a thunderous bass response. The powered subwoofer has a frequency range 38Hz-150Hz. The back panel features crossover frequency selectable between 40Hz to 150Hz, phase selection switch, speaker level knob, line level Inputs and high- and low-level inputs for a flexible installation.So where does Ooberpad fit into all of this? At Ooberpad, we have most of the speakers from the Pioneer SP series readily available in India. These speakers can be used to create a 5.1,2 7.1.2 or any other surround sound home theatre system. Do check them out on Ooberpad!
