audioXpress Magazine October 2025

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audioXpress Magazine October 2025

audioXpress remains the authority on audio and reproduced sound by connecting manufacturers and distributors with developers, buyers and consultants around the globe! It's readers are the audio product designers, consultants, integrators, DIY enthusiasts, opinion leaders and your best customers. All of them agree that the coverage of trending topics, unique in the audio industry, make audioXpress a must read.

Every month, audioXpress combines the best educational articles on topic such audio electronics, speaker and headphone design, amplifiers (from tube to Class D), acoustics, practical test and measurement, audio engineering praxis, and standards. audioXpress provides inside stories on new audio developments, on R&D Stories, the most complete objective reviews of innovative products and software, and selects some of the best DIY audio projects from worldwide experts.

The Appealing Promise Of Tiny MEMS Speakers
Thinking of the analogy between the CV equation and the inherent merits of MEMS.
Editorial By J. Martins
audioXpress has been reporting on the promise of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) speakers for nearly 10 years. Mike Klasco first gave a talk about MEMS loudspeakers at the ALMA Symposium and Expo event, preceding CES 2015, and wrote regularly about MEMS speakers' evolution. A decade later, we are seeing some actual progress, and products are available in the market. But MEMS speaker drivers are far from their original promise of disrupting the industry or even rivaling established technologies. Which raises questions until we dive into the details to understand that there's very little in common among all the MEMS transducers products that have been launched and promoted in the microspeaker class. The main thing in common is that MEMS typically include "microscale" mechanical structures (such as movable parts) and microelectronics all embedded on a silicon substrate. Other than the foundational technology, multiple MEMS devices share the same manufacturing processes derived from semiconductor fabrication. As we stand in 2025, the pioneering companies that have entered the industry with "MEMS speakers" have done so with completely different approaches. And some very interesting original concepts have not yet even made it to market.
---> The Appealing Promise Of Tiny MEMS Speakers.

5 Supporting Companies

Speakers
8 Pushing the Boundaries of
DIY Audio
The 2025 Ohio Speaker Design Competition
By Sarah Stephens
One of the most important annual audio events is the
Ohio Speaker Design Competition held in Springboro,
OH. Here is a behind-the-scenes look at this year's
competition.

Market Update
16 MEMS Speakers
Finding the Right Problem to Solve
By J. Martins and Mike Klasco
Many functions traditionally provided by complex,
multi-component assemblies can now be delivered
by MEMS devices. MEMS microspeakers are the
most recent category to make it to market. It took a
decade, and the players who have made it to market
are now rethinking their pipeline of future products.
Who will crack the code?

26 Subjective Evaluation
of Production Vehicle
Audio System Variance
By Steve Hutt and Roger Shively
Audio system measurements of production vehicles
are known to exhibit vehicle-to-vehicle performance
variance. To quantify if listeners can perceive
this variance and how much it affects Subjective
Preference Ratings, manufacturers and automotive
audio partners can benefit from the methods
described in this article.

36 The StreamAmp Platform
Make Your Speaker Designs Active, Networked,
and Connected
By Thomas Huber and Christoph Apel
This article explores the modular hardware and
software architecture of the StreamAmp module
for active speaker systems. Designed to deliver
all the features of modern speaker categories,
StreamUnlimited combined state-of-the-art
amplification, audio streaming, pre-certified wireless,
and audio processing in one comprehensive package,
designed to minimize integration complexity and
reduce time to market.

60 The HTL-100 High-Fidelity
Multimedia Loudspeakers
By George Ntanavaras
The HTL-100 is a floor-standing speaker designed
around two compact full-range drivers. Its tall and
slim profile, combined with a narrow baffle, allows it
to occupy minimal floor space while maintaining an
elegant and stylish appearance.

Features
44 Instrumental Assessment of Audio Quality for Cars
and Headphones
By Magnus Schäfer
Is there a benefit to expanding the existing Multi-Dimensional
Audio Quality Score (MDAQS) to specific product categories,
when the generic approach has proven a good
predictor for human perception of audio quality?
This article details the research to expand the base
method and provides the conclusions.

54 Nugen Audio DialogCheck
Measuring Speech Clarity
By Estefanía Cano
DialogCheck is a new dialog intelligibility meter that
provides an objective measurement of speech clarity.
It was developed by Nugen Audio, a UK-based software
developer of professional loudness metering/correction,
mixing/mastering, and audio analysis software tools. DialogCheck
employs the Listening Effort Meter (LE-Meter) developed by
Fraunhofer IDMT, in another example of a technology that has
found its way into commercial application.

Columns
Sound Control
49 Acoustic Absorption in Ceilings
By Richard Honeycutt
Ceilings play a crucial role in acoustics. This article
looks at the valuable role of absorption in ceiling
design and treatment, and how sound-absorptive
materials can be used to control noise buildup and RT
particularly in public spaces and large venues.