Polk Audio, Inc. is an American manufacturer of audio products best known for its home and automobile speakers. The company also produces a wide range of other
audio products, such as
amplifiers and FM tuners. The company's headquarters is in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. In 2006, it was bought by
Directed Electronics. Polk Audio has also introduced
smart speaker
A smart speaker is a type of loudspeaker and voice command device with an integrated virtual assistant (artificial intelligence), virtual assistant that offers interactive actions and Hands-free computing, hands-free activation with the help of o ...
s for
Google Assistant
Google Assistant is a virtual assistant software application developed by Google that is primarily available on home automation and mobile devices. Based on artificial intelligence, Google Assistant can engage in two-way conversations, unlike ...
and
Amazon Alexa
Amazon Alexa is a virtual assistant technology marketed by Amazon and implemented in software applications for smart phones, tablets, wireless smart speakers, and other electronic appliances.
Alexa was largely developed from a Polish speech s ...
.
Background
Polk Audio was founded by Matthew Polk, George Klopfer and Sandy Gross in 1972. The three first met one another while attending classes at
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
in
Baltimore
Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
. After graduating in 1971, the team collaborated on producing a sound system for a local
bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Bluegrass has roots in African America ...
convention. Polk designed the
speaker system, and Klopfer built the cabinets. After it was discovered the producers of the convention could not afford the system, Klopfer designed a logo for Polk Audio and attached it to the speakers. Gross organized the marketing of Polk Audio and helped build Polk's worldwide dealer network.
After spending a short period of time dabbling in
professional audio, Polk Audio turned its attention to affordable high-performance
home audio
Home audio refer to audio consumer electronics designed for home entertainment, such as integrated systems like shelf stereos, as well as individual components like loudspeakers and surround sound receivers.
The evolution of home audio began ...
. With the release of the first successful model in 1974, the Monitor 7, Polk Audio was gaining recognition in
audiophile
An audiophile (from + ) is a person who is enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound reproduction. The audiophile seeks to achieve high sound quality in the audio reproduction of recorded music, typically in a quiet listening space in a room with ...
circles. Polk Audio used a two-way configuration on almost all its speakers, such as the popular Monitor 10 and Monitor 12, typically with 6.5-inch mid/bass drivers with rubber surrounds and passive radiators. The Monitor 12 was quite capable for its day, having bass response to 18 Hz, a free-air mounted tweeter, and 500-watt RMS power handling. Later Polk speaker models used arrays of drivers—Stereo Dimensional Array (SDA)—to cancel the crosstalk from the left speaker to the right ear and from the right speaker to the left ear, so as to expand the stereo image beyond the space between two stereo speakers. The SDA effect is used in some current Polk speakers. The company also makes automobile speakers.
In early 2015, most or all of Polk's non-technical jobs were moved from the Baltimore office to the headquarters of the parent company, Sound United, in Carlsbad, California. At that time, Polk's engineers joined with those of Definitive Technology, and the Audio and Acoustics Research and Development
RADcenter was established in Owings Mills. ARAD remains the center for most loudspeaker development by Sound United, which also owns the brands
Bowers & Wilkins,
Classé,
Definitive Technology
Definitive Technology (sometimes referred to as Def Tech) is an American unit based in Vista, California, of the Sound United division of electronics company DEI Holdings, that designs, develops and sells home theater audio systems, soundbars an ...
,
Denon
is a Japanese electronics company dealing with audio equipment. The Denon brand came from a merger of Denki Onkyo (not to be confused with the other Onkyo) and others in 1939. It originally started as Nippon Chikuonki Shoukai in 1910 by Freder ...
, and
Marantz
Marantz is a company that develops and sells high-end audio products. The company was founded in New York, but is now based in California.
The first Marantz audio product was designed and built by Saul Marantz in his home in Kew Gardens, Quee ...
.
Products
* Passive Component Speakers for Home Theater and Hi-Fi Listening
* Powered Subwoofers
* Soundbar Systems with Wireless Subwoofers and Surround Speakers
* Outdoor, All-Weather Speakers
* Car and Boat Audio
* In-wall and In-Ceiling Architectural Speakers
See also
*
IP speaker
References
{{reflist
External links
Polk Audio- official Web site
Manufacturing companies based in Baltimore
Loudspeaker manufacturers
Audio equipment manufacturers of the United States