Hi Joe- Congrats and good luck!!! The manufacturers you mentioned are a great asset here and we are all the better for their contributions. Please keep your thoughts and ideas coming.
Trelja- announcement and disclaimer
Hello.
It is with a bit of unease combined with excitement that I initiate this thread. The one thing that I have always tried to present here, above all else, is honesty. Therefore, in that light, here I am with an announcement.
Which brings me to this...
Since I have been a child, I have been fascinated withmusic, and because of that, audio. I feel a deep sense of respect for the pioneers of the craft, those who have blazed the path that has allowed us to reap what we do today. People like Saul Marantz, Peter Walker, David Hafler, Dick Sequerra, and, Bud Fried.
With me being a Philadelphian, Bud has always occupied a special interest to me. He represents the Philadelphia spirit - feistiness, dedication, craftiness, hard work, and above all else, passion. Bud blended these characteristics with intelligence, engineering, logic, and the feeling of never being satisfied with today’s achievements. Before continuous improvement was the catch phrase of the quality industry, Bud applied textbook evolutionary design and improvement to his designs and products. The Fried loudspeaker company put Bud's beliefs in the superiority of Transmission Line bass loading and Series Crossovers into the real world. His was not a company that put forth theory without substance. Fried speakers have always highly respected, and still sought after to this day.
I think it has been apparent that I am a speaker guy first. I think they are the most important of all the manufactured components in the system. Of course, many disagree - that's why they make vanilla AND chocolate, and even strawberry cheesecake.
Today, Bud Fried is again returning to the business of loudspeakers. The company that bears his name is being reborn. A team of dedicated, passionate, and creative people now come together to bring forth the theories and spirit of Fried, melded with the superiority of the parts available today. The prospects of this combination look particularly exciting. The goals of the new company are not small; an American speaker company that will contend with the best.
The opportunity presented itself to me to become involved, in a small part. I am happy to say that I have seized this opportunity, am now a part of the Fried family. I want to be clear that my involvement in the company did not stem from seeking profit. I am doing this to honor the legacy of Bud Fried. To ensure that end, I do hope the company succeeds. Going forth, my objectivity or subjectivity, call it what you will, shall remain. I am still a fan of, and will continue to own, other brands of loudspeakers. I will say what I believe are good products, and what I believe are poor products. I intend to remain a serious audiophile, and have no dreams of ever leaving my “real job” for audio. Like it or not, I intend to remain as active as I have ever been in the audio discussion. I just wanted to make my relationship with the new company known for ethical reasons.
Joe
It is with a bit of unease combined with excitement that I initiate this thread. The one thing that I have always tried to present here, above all else, is honesty. Therefore, in that light, here I am with an announcement.
Which brings me to this...
Since I have been a child, I have been fascinated withmusic, and because of that, audio. I feel a deep sense of respect for the pioneers of the craft, those who have blazed the path that has allowed us to reap what we do today. People like Saul Marantz, Peter Walker, David Hafler, Dick Sequerra, and, Bud Fried.
With me being a Philadelphian, Bud has always occupied a special interest to me. He represents the Philadelphia spirit - feistiness, dedication, craftiness, hard work, and above all else, passion. Bud blended these characteristics with intelligence, engineering, logic, and the feeling of never being satisfied with today’s achievements. Before continuous improvement was the catch phrase of the quality industry, Bud applied textbook evolutionary design and improvement to his designs and products. The Fried loudspeaker company put Bud's beliefs in the superiority of Transmission Line bass loading and Series Crossovers into the real world. His was not a company that put forth theory without substance. Fried speakers have always highly respected, and still sought after to this day.
I think it has been apparent that I am a speaker guy first. I think they are the most important of all the manufactured components in the system. Of course, many disagree - that's why they make vanilla AND chocolate, and even strawberry cheesecake.
Today, Bud Fried is again returning to the business of loudspeakers. The company that bears his name is being reborn. A team of dedicated, passionate, and creative people now come together to bring forth the theories and spirit of Fried, melded with the superiority of the parts available today. The prospects of this combination look particularly exciting. The goals of the new company are not small; an American speaker company that will contend with the best.
The opportunity presented itself to me to become involved, in a small part. I am happy to say that I have seized this opportunity, am now a part of the Fried family. I want to be clear that my involvement in the company did not stem from seeking profit. I am doing this to honor the legacy of Bud Fried. To ensure that end, I do hope the company succeeds. Going forth, my objectivity or subjectivity, call it what you will, shall remain. I am still a fan of, and will continue to own, other brands of loudspeakers. I will say what I believe are good products, and what I believe are poor products. I intend to remain a serious audiophile, and have no dreams of ever leaving my “real job” for audio. Like it or not, I intend to remain as active as I have ever been in the audio discussion. I just wanted to make my relationship with the new company known for ethical reasons.
Joe
27 responses Add your response
Michael, we certainly missed you in NYC, but graduation and moving takes precedence of course. Yes, we had some great times checking out gear. Now that I look back on things, it seems almost surreal the time we visited our good friend David Lewis. The thing I keep thinking about was how you commented with disdain that there was nothing hooked up and no music was playing. The other funny time was when we discovered the TDS. What a BS artist that guy was. I have a smile on my face right now just thinking about it. Of course, when you come back for visits, I have a feeling we'll just go back to doing what we normally do. Good luck with your residency! |
Bud Fried's original IMF designs are the motivating force behind Ted Karson's Kinetic Audio designs. I've been using a pair of KA Labyrinths for almost 9 years now (those are my actual speakers in the web page photo). The current Fried lineup looks like a natural evolution. That's great because Bud's right. Nothing better than TL bass loading done right ("right" being the big caveat there). Congrats! |
Thanks for all the well wishes from my good friends here! To be truthful, I detest a company selling in the threads, but I have always welcomed manufacturers sharing insight so I appreciate Ralph Karsten, Bobby Palkovic, Israel Blume, Kevin Halverson, etc. contributing here. Again, the purpose of this thread is to just announce that while I am such an insignificant piece of the puzzle here, I need to let everyone know that I am involved in a high end audio company. Jond, you are so right about Smarty. Honestly, I was devastated Saturday. For a while I had the sinking feeling that he would lose, as our teams have so conditioned us to get to this point and fail that we expect it. But, he is such a happy looking fellow that he will forever be our favorite horse. Drubin, your prayers have probably been answered. But, please raise concerns like this here, as it gives me ammunition to let folks know what we want, as opposed to it being my opinion only. The cabinets you saw somehow looked all wrong. Unstable, unsettled. What will be sold differs in height - shorter, but gives it a more reassured, solid look and feel. The speakers you heard were basically a disaster, and the impetus for this group of people, along with Bud, being here this time. The sound is so much better now that I can't even describe it to you. All at the same $5000 price. Let's just say that a $24K statement product was made and its technology is just pouring in as opposed to tricking down. Credit correct line damping, much better yet lower cost drivers, and better crossovers for the improvements. You will finally hear the speaker image, and a more open, detailed, refined, yet easier to listen to sound. The new Vifa line flat out blows me away, and will be a boon for all of us audiophiles as it arrives into the marketplace in whomever's speakers that use them correctly and intelligently. Performance reserved for much more expensive drivers is now a reality at a significantly lower price point. The $65 Ring Radiator runs with their (our designer says beats it) more expensive ScanSpeak Revelator that I just dropped into my Coincident Digital Masters (had I only known!), at least to my ears, at 25% of the cost. The kevlar midrange and woofers are superb, and tailor made for Bud's well known theories on using low Q drivers in his TL designs and first order crossovers overall. The savings allow us to funnel the money into crossover parts quality unheard of in non statement loudspeakers. The standard finish will be a light cherry that is actually much closer to maple in color. Personally, I am not in love with it, but that's my opinion. This is where you all get to have a real impact, so speak up. My own feeling is that maple, dark red stained cherry, and black lacquer all represent today, but what do I know? I am told a customer can get any veneer he wants. Gunbei, http:www.friedproducts.com is the website, and is the more appropriate source of information, as opposed to me, once this thread runs its course. Pbb, Fried is pronounced like greed, and the pun was funny. I guess we will instruct people to say it like "freed". Tomryan, from what I understand, there will be an extensive dealer network in the fall, so you should trust your own ears to judge the speakers, as opposed to my big mouth. Albert, the $24K upmarket speaker is probably more your speed. I have not heard it, so cannot comment on it. But, I love the fact that those who are involved have been jaded by it to the point where they are doing whatever possible to make the $5K version reach up to it. This is my own personal opinion here, and may not reflect the company at all... We in America can compete with anyone, in any company, in any country, in any forum. It will require a new way of thinking and doing business. It will require intelligence, creativity, luck, the ability to think freely and try new things, and to not be afraid of failure. It will require us to listen to the customer and the marketplace, and actually react to it. My feeling is that this will be critical in the high end audio marketplace. The Chinese are coming, and there is no doubt whatsoever about that. Building a $10K power amp simply because that is what the market bears will have disastrous effects when a competitor introduces a superior sounding, well built product at 25% of that cost. There is more complacency and lack of creativity these days than there should be. Where are the technologies of Apogee, Acoustat, Carver Amazing, etc? I am excited because beyond Meadowlark and PMC, who offers a true Transmission Line loudspeaker? Like time alignment, lots of companies may say they have a TL, but the reality is different. Beyond Kharma and Roman Audio, who offers the series crossover network? Bud's ideas on superior, if more difficult to implement, technologies deserve one last good attempt. I have a lot of strong opinions on high end, which has probably been too evident over the past years of my participation here. This isn't the right time to express them, but I hope we can all make this hobby prosper far into the future. Thank you again! |
Congratulations. I hope to someday be more involved in the music reproduction business. Truth is, we are all biased in many ways regardless of our affiliation with a particular company. Thanks for giving us a heads up, but I would bet a lot of money that you and your insights and integrity will continue to be forever joined. |
VERY cool, Joe, and I'm pleased for you! As you know from our occasional swaps of E-mails, I also think that speakers are the most variable and most important component in the audio chain. I also hold Bud Fried in high regard, and one of my close business friends owns two pairs of his speakers and swears by them. I look forward to future posts from you. |
Joe, Speaking as someone who knows you solely from your postings here you seem like an honest and honorable guy. Your involvement with Fried should not in any way preclude you from posting here, if you did we would all be the lesser off for it. You are obviously brimming with excitement over this venture, I wish you nothing but the best of luck. Perhaps this can ease the sting of Philly failing yet again in the world of sports. (Smarty Jones) Just kidding, I couldn't help myself. Congratulations. Jon |
