Pioneer shares affordable line of speakers, snobs sob

After releasing a bevy of value-packed Elite receivers, iPod Docks, and Blu-ray players in recent months, Pioneer has now announced a new line of entry-level speakers just in time for man cave upgrade season. Consisting of the SP-DS21-LR and smaller SP-BS41-LR bookshelf monitor, the SP-FS51-LR floor standing mini tower, the SP-C21 center channel, and SW-8 sub, the entire line is on sale now at selected retailers for a reasonable $79 to $199 depending on the component. Despite these wallet-friendly price tags though, all of the speakers sport higher-end details like radio frequency bonded, curved cabinets, improved multi-component crossovers, and gold-plated five-way binding posts -- which seems to fall nicely in line with Pioneer's recent recession-appropriate bang for your buck approach. In case that idea alone wasn't enough to make audiophiles roll over in their acoustically-perfect coffins, Pioneer's release also says the speaker packaging will feature QR barcodes that, when scanned, will direct consumers to YouTube videos of lead designer Andrew Jones discussing the new line. Luckily for you, we've embedded the video along with the full PR after the break, so you can skip the unnecessary mobile hassle and get straight to the unintentional laughs.

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Pioneer Introduces New Home Theater and Music Speakers

Bookshelf Speaker Line Delivers Uncompromised Home Listening Experience at an Affordable Price
LONG BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. today announced its new speaker line for home theater and music reproduction, designed from the ground up by Pioneer USA's chief speaker engineer, Andrew Jones. The entire line, featuring bookshelf (SP-BS21-LR, SP-BS41-LR), floorstanding (SP-FS51-LR) and center channel (SP-C21) speakers as well as a subwoofer (SW-8), is engineered to deliver exceptional audio performance, whether used as a two channel music system or a full 7.1 channel home theater system.

"Pioneer began manufacturing speakers more than 70 years ago," said Russ Johnston, executive vice president of home entertainment and business solutions groups at Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. "Since then, we've built upon decades of engineering experience and passion to craft this new line of high quality speakers that deliver high performance and exceptional quality for both music and movie sources at an attractive price point."

Build Quality and Performance

Typical speakers in the entry level price category utilize a low cost, flat-sided style cabinet. The entire Home Theater and Music Speaker line utilizes radio frequency bonded, curved cabinets which provide not only a distinct cosmetic look but a stiffer and stronger structure, resulting in better sound reproduction through reduced cabinet resonance.
Featuring quality components both inside and out, each speaker utilizes flush mounted grills for each driver instead of a single grill for the entire front of the cabinet. Instead of cloth, the speaker grills are made out of metal for better protection. The grills add to the cosmetic appeal of the speaker while improving its durability in both home and retail environments.

Properly Engineered

Most entry level speakers make significant sacrifices in order to reduce cost. One of the most commonly compromised items is the speaker's internal crossover network. Vital to the speaker's overall performance, it splits the full range audio signal into separate frequency bands and sends them to the individual drivers optimized for those bands. The simplest crossover networks often used by other manufacturers consist of a single capacitor and inductor, but this limited, cost- driven design can leave a lot to be desired for the listener.
To improve sound quality, Pioneer's new speaker series uses a sophisticated multi-component crossover that achieves a more accurate frequency division and a more precise re-creation of sound. All speakers in the line also feature gold plated 5-way binding posts that provide superior conductivity and flexible connection methods.
"Pioneer began manufacturing speakers more than 70 years ago"
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Pioneer Introduces New Home Theater and Music Speakers | Business Wire 9/8/10 5:57 PM
"It brings me great pleasure to pursue high sound quality across all the different levels of products we make. It's a challenge and a reward to be able to achieve such high performance at this price point," said Jones.
Packaging

A first for Pioneer, the speaker packaging features a Quick Response (QR) Code, a unique barcode which consists of black modules in a square shape on white background. For instant information on the product while at a retail store, consumers can scan the image with a smartphone equipped with a barcode reader app, and will be automatically directed to a YouTube video of Andrew Jones discussing the process and philosophy of the new speaker line. The new packaging also provides additional information on Pioneer's rich audio heritage, proper room setup and is complete with Andrew Jones's signature. The packaging also contains descriptions in English, Spanish and French.

The new Pioneer Home Theater and Music Speaker line is available now for suggested retail prices ranging from $79 to $199.

Andrew Jones has been designing speakers for 30 years and has worked for some of the world's finest loudspeaker companies. As chief engineer at both KEF and Infinity Jones played a crucial role in developing many highly regarded products. Joining Pioneer in 1994 he led a multi-national engineering team to develop many new and innovative speaker products. Since 2001, when he started the development of the remarkable series of TAD home audio speakers, Jones has served the dual roles of director of engineering for TAD as well as chief speaker engineer for Pioneer designing both the best and the best value speaker products.

About Pioneer Electronics

It all began with a passion for music that Pioneer founder Nozomu Matsumoto hoped to share with the world. He started Pioneer in 1938 as a specialty speaker company, building products out of his garage. Today, Pioneer's Home Entertainment and Business Solutions Group continues Matsumoto's enthusiasm, developing award-winning audio and video home theater products including A/V receivers, Blu-ray Disc® and DVD players, and speakers. Long-standing partnerships and collaborations with the creative community have provided Pioneer unique insight in its quest to capture the purity of a movie or musical artist's original vision into its broad range of home entertainment products. The company's brands include Pioneer® and Elite®. More details can be found at www.pioneerelectronics.com.