Wisdom Audio was founded in 1996 with one goal in mind, to create the world’s finest loudspeakers unbound by the limitations of current technologies and past design. Our pioneering use of large-scale thin film planar-magnetic transducers, electronic crossovers in place of passive designs, and innovative woofer designs were all developed to solve problems inherent in the limitations of traditional designs and how they interact with the listening room. The result is an experience like no other.
Our passion to provide high-end expressions of our art encompasses contemporary home entertainment requirements including multi-channel designs. Whether your interest is in traditional two-channel music reproduction or multichannel music and film playback, there is a Wisdom system to address your needs.
Over 20 Years Of Unbeatable Sound
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1996
Tom and Debi Bohlender found Wisdom Audio. The company will cater to the music lover and audiophile seeking the highest levels of performance, providing products based on thin-film planar-magnetic technology implemented in a line-source configuration and used in conjunction with underhung voice coil woofer designs.
1997
Wisdom develops the first Adrenaline speakers, the M-50 Monopole and D-75 Dipole.
1998
Wisdom moves to a manufacturing and design facility in Carson City, Nevada. The company sells 57 systems after receiving praise from Soundstage.com, the New York Audiophile Society, Hong Kong based Hi Fidelity, and winning Best-of-Show awards in London, Copenhagen, Bangkok and Las Vegas.
2000
Wisdom develops the Adrenaline “Rush” system, raising the standard for high-end audio performance.
The Absolute Sound magazine awards Wisdom the coveted “Golden Ear Award” for the M-75 system.
2001
Wisdom’s SMART planar technology is incorporated into the Adrenaline product line, providing technical and performance advantages over other thin-film technology.
The Baby Adrenaline makes its debut as Wisdom’s first point source design and below $15,000 speaker.
2003
The NS-27 speaker is introduced incorporating planar-magnetic drivers into a innovatively designed point source speaker, allowing Wisdom’s technology to be available at entry high-end pricing.
The M-27C center channel is introduced, allowing true multichannel Adrenaline level systems to be assembled
2006
Wisdom relocates to a larger facility to accommodate a growing staff, increased production, and additional in-house manufacturing of its products and their components.
2002
Wisdom debuts the Infinite Series in a demonstration of the “Cost No Object Million Dollar” system during CES in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Wisdom introduces the model 7-B dedicated subwoofer utilizing the first 18 inch woofer with an underhung quad voice coil, capable of producing a low frequency response of 7Hz.
2007
Wisdom develops next generation planar magnetic line source and point source drivers for in-house manufacture, first to be used in the Sage Series. These new generation PMDs offer unprecedented thermo-dynamic performance in point source planar magnetic drivers.
Wisdom becomes a licensee of Audyssey room correction software, to be first implemented in the Sage Series SC-1 system controller/electronic crossover.
The Sage Series of floor-standing and architectural products premieres at CEDIA in September with the L75i and P20i in-wall based system capturing “Best Sound at Show” accolades from two trade journals.
2008
Eric Graul joins as VP Manufacturing in May.
Wisdom Audio doubles its size, taking a lease on an adjoining space, to achieve better manufacturing efficiencies and allow for improved work flow.
Wisdom appoints its first dealers in North America for the new Sage Series.
WisdomAudio.com is refreshed, with a focus on the Sage Series.
The L150i Reference model and S90i subwoofer are launched at CEDIA Expo in September. The L150i is the largest line source offered in the Sage Series and offers unprecedented performance among architectural products. The complementary folded horn design of the S90i produces high output, response to 20 Hz and a timbre matched response to the planar magnetic hybrid Sage models.
Sage Series receives awards from Custom Retailer and Residential Systems.
International distributors are added in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK.
Independent environmental testing of planar magnetic transducers is completed yielding manufacturing and reliability benefits relevant to marine and high heat/humidity installations.
2009
Eric Graul joins as VP Manufacturing in May.
Wisdom Audio doubles its size, taking a lease on an adjoining space, to achieve better manufacturing efficiencies and allow for improved work flow.
Wisdom appoints its first dealers in North America for the new Sage Series.
WisdomAudio.com is refreshed, with a focus on the Sage Series.
The L150i Reference model and S90i subwoofer are launched at CEDIA Expo in September. The L150i is the largest line source offered in the Sage Series and offers unprecedented performance among architectural products. The complementary folded horn design of the S90i produces high output, response to 20 Hz and a timbre matched response to the planar magnetic hybrid Sage models.
Sage Series receives awards from Custom Retailer and Residential Systems.
International distributors are added in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK.
Independent environmental testing of planar magnetic transducers is completed yielding manufacturing and reliability benefits relevant to marine and high heat/humidity installations.
2010
Wisdom attends CES at The Venetian in Las Vegas and demonstrates the L100i in-walls and a pair of S90i in-wall subwoofers. The response was consistent…folks couldn’t believe the sound we were getting in the suite, no less with in-walls! We hosted distributors from Russia, Greece, Brazil and Australia for training at the Wisdom factory in Carson City, NV, which also included a trip to visit Lake Tahoe nearby.
Genesis Technologies once again hosted Wisdom Audio at ISE 2010 in Amsterdam. Jon Herron of Wisdom trained our dealers and distributors on the Sage Series and specific setup of the SC-1 System Controller.
Mark Glazier visits Clarity AV in Singapore in May for training and press events.
Three days of distributor and dealer training is held in May at the Wisdom factory.
Ozhifi hosts Wisdom Audio at CEDIA Expo 10 in Melbourne, Australia in June.
Mark Glazier and Jon Herron are hosted in China by Fusheng Hi-Fi in June.
The STS Subwoofer is launched at CEDIA Expo in September and is named both as a Finalist in CE Pro’s BEST Awards and a EXC!TE Award winner as best subwoofer by Custom Retailer. Three days of distributor and dealer training is held immediately following CEDIA at the Wisdom factory.
2011
Wisdom attends CES at The Venetian in Las Vegas and demonstrates the new Wisdom Series LS4 on-walls and STS subwoofers. Many attendees expressed that they felt we stole the show for best sound. Please visit our News:Articles page for articles that have been written about this demonstration. We hosted several distributors and US dealers for training at the Wisdom factory in Carson City, NV following CES.
North American Dealer and In’l Distributor training sessions are held at the Wisdom factory in March, April, May and July.
At CEDIA Expo in Indianapolis, we unveil a completely new booth on the convention floor, which features a Wisdom Series LS4 & LS3 wall, numerous Sage Series walls showing the range of in-wall, on-wall and freestanding models, and a Insight Series wall that includes a prototype of a new model for this new series below the Sage Series. Patrick Turnmire and Tony Grimani deliver training sessions on room acoustics and a new room layout and Wisdom speaker specification software tool which we’ll make available to our dealers and distributors in 2012.
North American Dealer and In’l Distributor training is held at the Wisdom factory in October.
Wisdom’s Jon Herron features the Wisdom Series LS4 and STS in public and press events at Stereo Exchange in Manhattan and Sound Components in Coral Gables, Florida.
2012
Wisdom attends CES at The Venetian in Las Vegas and demonstrates the Wisdom Series LS4’s as freestanding models on bases, and two STS subwoofers. Demonstrations for the new Insight Series were met with universally great praise from attendees. Please visit our News:Articles page for articles that have been written about these demonstrations. We hosted several distributors and US dealers for training at the Wisdom factory in Carson City, NV following CES.
North American Dealer and In’l Distributor training sessions are held at the Wisdom factory in March, May, July and September.
In June, Wisdom’s Jon Herron demonstrates the Wisdom Series LS4 in our debut at T.H.E. Show in Newport Beach, CA, with the demonstration ballroom hosted by Wisdom Audio dealer Digital Ear.
At CEDIA Expo in Indianapolis, we exhibit at two different locations for the first time – a booth on the convention floor used for meetings and static displays of products across all series, and a demonstration room at The Marriott hotel across the street that featured our new Insight Series. The responses to our demonstrations of the Insight L8i, P4i, P2i and multiple SCS subwoofers were universally of high praise.
In October, Wisdom’s Jon Herron and Todd Sutherland demonstrate a 2.1-channel Sage Series L75 and SCS system in our debut at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (RMAF) in Denver, CO.
2013
Wisdom attends CES at The Venetian in Las Vegas and demonstrates the Wisdom Series LS4’s as on-walls, along with a single STS subwoofer, combined with a dCS Vivaldi, D’Agostino amplification and Transparent Audio cables. The bedroom portion of the suite featured a demonstration of the new Insight P6i’s and a single SCS subwoofer. We received many compliments regarding the results we achieved in both rooms and recommend you visit our News:Articles page for articles that have been written about these demonstrations. We hosted several distributors and US dealers for training at the Wisdom factory in Carson City, NV following CES.
North American Dealer and In’l Distributor training sessions are held at the Wisdom factory in March, May, June and August.
At CEDIA Expo in Denver, we demonstrate a Wisdom Series reference-level system for the first time, featuring the new LS3i in-walls in a stacked configuration as ten-foot-tall line sources for the LCR channels. The responses to this demonstration were universally of high praise, with numerous attendees stating it was the finest demonstration they’ve ever experienced. Visit our News:Articles page for articles that have been written about this demonstration.
2014
Together with partners Datasat and HTE, Wisdom attended ISE in Amsterdam and demonstrated prototypes of the S110 subwoofers, combined with LS4i LCR and six Sage L75m surrounds, for a complete line source theater.
North American Dealer and In’l Distributor training sessions are held at the Wisdom factory in February, May, July and October.
At CEDIA Expo in Denver, we partnered again with Datasat and HTE to build a custom HTE theater on the show floor, featuring the same all-line-source theater that was used at ISE. Attendees were lined up at hear the demonstration as soon as the show opened, after hearing the Wisdom demonstration the previous year at Expo and anticipating what we’d do as an encore. The demonstration didn’t disappoint and we were told by numerous attendees they felt we were the best demonstration at Expo.
2015
Together with HTE, Wisdom attended ISE in Amsterdam and demonstrated a complete line source theater using Insight model L8i, along with four pieces of the very popular model S90i in-wall subwoofer. Wisdom amplification was used for all channels and a Datasat RS20i as a surround processor and for room optimization. This entry level system demonstrated was a huge hit with ISE attendees.
North American Dealer and In’l Distributor training sessions are held at the Wisdom factory in January, March, June, and August.
At CEDIA Expo in Dallas in October, we introduce and demonstrate a Sage Cinema Series system for the first time, featuring the new Line 2 in-wall line sources for the LCR channels, eight new Point 2 surrounds, four S90i subwoofers and all Wisdom amplification for a 7.4.4 Dolby Atmos presentation decoded using the Datasat RS20i surround processor with their Atmos upgrade.
We partnered again with Maurizio Conti and team of HTE to build a custom HTE theater on the show floor. The theater was quiet inside (no small feat on the show floor!), gorgeuous, and sounded extremely good. We were told by many attendees they felt we were the best demonstration at Expo.
2017
At the 2017 ISE Show in Amsterdam we introduced the World’s First Planar Magnetic Driver (PMD) multi-purpose in-ceiling speaker. The Sage ICS7a.
Behind the high-performance sound of the new Sage Series ICS7a in-ceiling speaker is a redesign of Wisdom’s award-winning Sage P20 driver. This reengineering introduces a breakthrough in the power shading capabilities of Wisdom Audio’s planar magnetic driver (PMD), delivering a fully passive Sage Series point-source product that’s capable of achieving high output down to 57Hz. To ensure maximum clarity, the angled PMD design allows the on-axis energy to be focused straight at the listening area. An optional laser alignment tool (LAT-IC) — sold separately from the system — was created to assist installers in achieving ultra-precise driver orientation, improving focus and delivering incredible imaging. The system does not require active crossover or bi-amplification, allowing dealers worldwide to offer Sage Series performance at a lower price point.
The key driver behind the development of this solution was flexibility — which is why the ICS7a includes an optional Extended Coverage Waveguide that is designed to enhance its polar pattern and allow for greater placement options. As a result, the system is a perfect fit for applications requiring surround and overhead channels.
2018
Opening of our experience Centre. Training over 100 specialized expert Custom Installer through four dealers
academy. After 12 month the In-Ceiling ICS7a become our best sellers.
2019
Targeting high-performance media rooms and living spaces introduction of Insight On-Wall a High Gloss solution for any living Space and Media room. Our Partner Paradise theatre team up to create a 15.6.8 Immersive Dolby Atmos All Line Source Wisdom Audio demonstration in our facility.
Raising the Bar Wisdom demonstrate the Ultra-High-Resolution Wisdom Series Reference in the largest theatre demonstration ever presented the 11.6.6 using 11 LS4 secure the company reputation for best in class Private Cinema
2020
After a couple year of R&D our new SPMD Spherical Planar magnetic Driver integrates the Minimal Aperture the first High End 3 inch Sub Satellite solution.
The P2m and S10 received the AV Top audio Awards in Guangzhou and the product of the year Hifi Test Germany.
2021
Introduction of Eight Channel amplifier SA-8 | A year of engineering on Passive cooling allows a new High Power MTM moving into two new loudspeakers: Introduction of Point3 V2 an all passive redesigned product | first hybrid Horizontal line source LSCC
2022
Next Generation Speaker Profiles for Guaranteed Maximum Performance. Higher-performance loudspeaker profiles using digital driver alignment and FIR filter for superior phase linearity. These higher-performance DSP solutions are exclusively available through Wisdom Audio SA-DSP amplifiers.
Our Technologies
A review of the thousands of companies offering loudspeaker systems will expose that virtually all share the same basic technologies. Although design implementation and details may differ, after a century of loudspeaker development, most domestic and professional systems are based on designs fundamentally unchanged from more than 50 years ago.
Of the hundreds of companies focused on providing systems for home use, there are but a few dedicated to the highest levels of the craft. Of these, an even smaller number maintains the commitment and resources to produce systems employing technologies and transducers of their own design and manufacture and we are proud to be one of them.
When speakers using this technology are implemented well, they reproduce tremendous detail and create an involving experience that is hard to forget. For people who like to “get away from it all” in the comfort and privacy of their home, it is tough to beat a quality A/V system based on excellent planar magnetic drivers.
Many people wrongly assume they won’t be able to hear the difference between a decent system and a truly great one. This is a shame, since the enjoyment that can be derived from a great system is almost unlimited, and almost everyone can appreciate the difference. In fact, about the only people who lack the “golden ears” to which you refer are people whose hearing has been badly damaged, whether by prolonged exposure to excessive noise or by advanced age.
If you don’t use hearing aids, you can hear the difference. We encourage you to listen to a truly great system and hear what you’ve been missing.
It depends on what you’ve seen.
Some “flat” speakers are essentially the same as the common cones-and-domes you have seen elsewhere, except that the diaphragms have been flattened out, sometimes for purely aesthetic reasons, and sometimes for performance reasons. But the underlying technology of these speakers is the same as all the others you typically see.
Other “flat” speakers are “electrostatic” in nature. They use different technology, but share similar goals to planar magnetics in terms of fine detail and accuracy. Electrostatic speakers tend to be quite large, however, and are sometimes difficult to integrate into the home’s décor.
Finally, we come to our preferred technology, planar magnetic speakers. In our opinion, planar magnetics offer the best combination of detail, dynamics, and low distortion.
If you are interested in learning more about how all these speaker technologies work, you might want to read our white paper on Planar Magnetic Technology. It reviews the major types of speaker technology, giving the strengths and weaknesses of each.
There is confusion around this terminology, and it is true that some companies wrongly refer to planar magnetics as “ribbons.” However, there is an important distinction between the two. If you would like detailed information, we suggest reading our Planar Magnetic Technology white paper, which goes into detail on both these and other types of speakers.
For the purposes of this FAQ, you can tell the difference between a true ribbon speaker and a true planar magnetic speaker this way: a ribbon speaker’s magnets flank both edges of a tall, narrow “ribbon” of pleated metal (usually aluminum) that is attached only at the two ends; a planar magnetic speaker’s magnets lie behind and/or in front of the diaphragm, which is flat and under some tension, like a trampoline. In general, ribbons tend to be quite delicate, whereas planar magnetics are quite robust. Both can deliver exceptional sound quality.
For one thing, planar magnetic devices (PMDs) are difficult to manufacture, particularly at the level required for the performance Wisdom Audio demands. This is one reason why we design and build all our own drivers — PMDs represent a fairly specialized technology that is little understood outside a small group of people.
High-performance planar magnetic devices also require advanced materials technology of a kind that is more common in the aerospace industry than in the music business. In fact, the type of film used in Wisdom Audio PMDs is also in use today on the Mars Rovers. Few speaker designers have the necessary experience to evaluate such materials. Frankly, it is a lot easier to design and build conventional cones-and-domes.
One of the great things about planar magnetic speakers is that they are extremely robust. Unlike some “audiophile” designs, you can get rowdy with Wisdom Audio speakers without undue concern. In fact, when you compare our planar magnetic drivers to the next-best design approach, you discover that you would need an electrostatic speaker to be between 10-20 times the size of a Wisdom Audio speaker before it could reproduce a similar dynamic range.
Absolutely. When an amplifier runs out of power, it generates a large amount of high-frequency distortion, effectively skewing the distribution of power toward the tweeter. In severe cases, a tweeter that might normally handle between 5-10% of the total power coming from the amplifier might suddenly be exposed to 40% of the amplifier’s total power. Most tweeters are damaged quickly under these conditions.
Wisdom Audio planar magnetic speakers are quite sensitive (meaning, they produce a lot of sound for a given amount of power), so your amplifiers will not have to work as hard. The planar magnetic drivers are also extremely easy loads for your amplifier to drive, ensuring that it is not unduly taxed. They also handle extreme power levels more easily than traditional speakers. Ultimately, they are less susceptible to this sort of distortion-induced abuse than most speakers. But no speaker is completely immune from it. Besides, even if nothing is damaged, you won’t like the sound of a distorting amplifier.
Our advice: buy more, high-quality power than you think you will need. That way, you can relax and enjoy your system without wondering whether the next climax is going to harm anything.
Probably. Most modern televisions, whether they use plasma, LCD, LCOS, or DLP technology, are not sensitive to magnetic fields. The only ones you need to be concerned about are the old-fashioned “tube” televisions. Such televisions should probably be kept at least three feet (roughly 1m) away from the closest Wisdom Audio speaker.
We make some speakers that behave as “point sources” and others that behave as “line sources.” This distinction bears some explanation.
Most speakers in this world are point sources, whose sound expands away from the speaker as an ever-enlarging sphere. The reason for this is that the vibrating diaphragm is small compared to the sound waves it is producing. The sound spreads out like ripples from a pebble thrown into a pond… except in three dimensions.
When the vibrating diaphragm approaches the size of the sound wave it is producing, the sound becomes more directional, moving away from the speaker like a spotlight instead of a flood light.
When you have an extremely tall and narrow driver like those in our tallest speakers, the sound radiates outward in a cylindrical fashion. This is because the width of the diaphragm is small compared to the sound waves (wide dispersion), while the height of the diaphragm is large (resulting in controlled directivity in the vertical plane).
Because more of the sound is being focused where your ears are (somewhere in the horizontal plane of the speaker, not up on the ceiling or down on the floor), the difference in volume as you move away from the speaker is significantly less. In technical terms, it falls off in a linear way rather than as the square of the distance.
In more common language, the perceived volume is quite uniform throughout the listening area. This is a big advantage when entertaining, since even in a large room you can set a single volume that supports conversation for all… even those close to the speakers.
In a typical home environment, a true line source must be on the order of five to six feet tall (or more). While this setup isn’t for everyone, the result is a level of realism that few people have experienced. It is genuinely like “being there,” whether that means attending a great concert or feeling as though you are there in the action of your favorite movie or TV show. Both musical detail and dialog intelligibility are significantly improved, and you can expect more consistent results since the nature of the way the speaker radiates sound into the room allows you to hear more of the speaker itself, and less of the room.
There are solid technical reasons for true line sources having this subjective effect. They project sound into the room as an expanding cylinder, which minimizes unwanted reflections from the floor and ceiling. (Most speakers generally act as “point sources” whose sound radiates outward in all directions.) This same behavior also serves to create a more uniform level of sound throughout the room (people sitting near the speakers are not as overwhelmed by the volume as they tend to be with normal speakers). In effect, the sound is focused where the people are, and minimized in other directions, creating an even envelopment while minimizing potential adverse room interactions.
