Sound Lab iconic electrostat manufacturer has for over 45 years stayed ‘under the radar’. Rare to be heard, the goal of this channel is to introduce Sound Lab and increase awareness of their speaker's uncompromising performance. Understanding what is the technology behind electrostats, why & how Sound Lab excels in its application of electrostatic theory is to be explored. This is a story worth knowing and is meant to inspire especially those who love and are passionate about live acoustical music reproduced to a level that feels like the musicians and instruments are there before you in your listening space.
Amazing - first person I’ve heard from (physically or digitally) that not only knows of the APL, but actually has them! Yes , amazing amps. Found them at Chicago AXPONA in 2012 and took both them and the Leonardo (now Alysvox) speakers to Japan to represent.
Seth Kaufman, title track from "Circling Noon". I used to go listen to him back when he was a medical student. And I listened to his albums on SoundLabs. Small world! Also check out "Repercussion" off of his album "Red Descending." I could tell on my SoundLabs that it was THE SAME Yamaha Grand piano he played live at Snug Harbor. And he confirmed that indeed it was, he'd had HIS Yamaha crated and shipped to Los Angeles to the recording studio. THAT's how revealing SoundLab electrostats are.
I admire Sound Lab. Anyone considering any ESL or amplifier to drive them should absolutely read Roger Sanders’ factual White Papers on the Sanders Sound Systems website.
Even though I'm listening on a pair of $20 earphones straight from my laptop without a dac, I could still tell that setup for that style of music produces a very realistic live feel. Also even though I didn't particularly care for the music itself, I was still tapping my feet to it and I was drawn in enough to listen to it to the end. So that's quite amazing.
@@soundlabelectrostats I think the big criticism of electrostatic speakers is that they lack bass, so music that showcases deep bass with speed and control, but then are bass-heads the kind of audience that is going to splash the amount of money required to buy these, I don't know.
Fascinating, creative and genus implementation of what to me is the optimum way to bring music into our listening rooms. There is tech here that makes Sound Lab the smartest approach in electrostatic speaker design. I'm a firm believer in getting rid of the "box" . . . as a matter of fact a great deal of R&D and cost goes into eliminating resonances in typical box speakers not to mention the sometimes overwhelming cost of making them look nice! My deepest respect and admiration to Dr. West and his team. I hope one day soon to avail myself of a pair Sound Lab ESL's ! It's ironic and rather a shame that they don't get more well deserved recognition in the audio press. NICE video . . . please bring us some more about Dr.West's genius :-) . . . greatly appreciated !
Yes, Roger has indeed found several special answers to the challenge of electrostats, and I can assure you that nobody else has followed his path and very unlikely anyone will, because it was a long rocky road full of determination and endless trial and error and the implementation of which requires a love of the results seeing the satisfaction in true music lovers faces when they listen the first time.... and not the 'business' - because this really is a labor of love. Hope more might have access soon to hear. Please don't hesitate to ask anything.
Thank you for watching and commenting. Please stay tuned as I can prepare more to share. Don't hesitate to inquire, a new website showing the many options for personal customization is coming soon - and the real re-introduction of Sound Lab may begin.
Thanks for the video, Roger, Chris and Brett!! I intend to share it with some of my friends who are not the audio enthusiasts we are, but have heard my SoundLabs and have marveled at their size and wondered about their construction, design and the principles of their sound reproduction. I've been a satisfied, happy SoundLab owner for over 2-decades. Over that time, I've auditioned several other speaker types and NOTHING has compared to Dr. West’s electrostat’s! As it is with other subjective hobbies, nothing is the best. Every bit and bob within the active and passive audio chain matters! But SoundLabs are in a league with the best of the best and in my humble opinion, they are the best. They do more things right than ANY of the other hundreds of other devices that I've heard. My advice to those seeking loudspeakers is to listen, listen, listen to really great systems in order to develop a baseline of your sonic preferences. Thereafter, when shopping for speakers, audition the various TYPES. Types for example, as enclosed cones and domes, magnetic planars, horns, open baffle cones and domes, electrostatics etc. From there choose your preference TYPE and shop within that type. I would consider it a GRAVE mistake to choose one speaker type over another, without first hearing all the several types that are available! I did this when I was a youngster. After hearing Arthur JansZen’s electrostatic panels in my youth, I heard what I had been seeking in a loudspeaker, but hadn’t yet found! The JansZen panels were small, they had little bass and they sparked when driven loudly. Being young, loud was good and louder was better😊 So, I didn’t pursue the JansZen’s. But I never forgot that, oh so beautiful and accurate mid-range electrostatic sound! Years later, I made the connection between Roger and the JansZen’s I had heard. I wondered had the intervening years and materials turned the electrostatic concept into more of a reality. I found that they had and bought my first SoundLab pair. Since then, I have owned 3-different pairs of SoundLabs. I changed, as modifications have been made to the electronics and to the panels and lastly, I have increased the panel size. Over the decades, I have enjoyed untold hours of musical enjoyment! Low level detail and mid and upper-range purities are well-known and loved attributes of electrostatic speakers; but once a full-range SoundLab electrostatic speaker is heard, especially its accurate electrostatic bass, it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to move to another speaker technology and type!
Great video! On the acoustic side of things, SoundLabs do two things better than any other loudspeakers (when set up properly): They get the direct sound correct; and they get the reflected sound correct. These are both easier said than done. I know of no other loudspeaker that does either of these things as well, let alone BOTH of them. You can listen to a pair of SoundLabs all day long day after day and they NEVER become fatiguing. Every recording is more interesting, more engaging, more elevating than it was before.
Fantastic video, thank you Chris and Roger! Looking forward to meeting you Chris at the 2024 SouthWest Audio Fest. And, Hi Brett! In my opinion SoundLabs do more things right THAT REALLY MATTER than any other speakers. I am a loudspeaker manufacturer and I told Roger West that my hope is to build the SECOND BEST speakers. In my opinion first place has already been taken by SoundLab. SoundLabs have more natural timbre, better low-level detail, better coherence, and are less fatiguing for long-term listening than anything else out there. Set up properly, they sound more like real voices and instruments than anything else, including speakers costing many times their price. They are the most intelligent loudspeaker design I have ever encountered.
