Wave Field Synthesis Speaker

The Project

PS Audio wanted to explore whether a single, free-standing lifestyle loudspeaker could produce a convincing stereo image without requiring two physically separated speakers. The product needed to be placeable anywhere in a room while presenting directional stereo imaging to a listener at a defined position, a challenge that conventional speaker design simply cannot address. Achieving this required advanced spatial audio techniques typically reserved for research environments, adapted into a consumer-friendly form factor.

Our Solution

Grinalds Solutions designed a Wavefield Synthesis-based lifestyle speaker concept that uses precise phase manipulation, time delay, and time-of-arrival control to laterally steer perceived sound sources from a single enclosure. By applying a distributed DSP architecture, placing signal processing at each individual driver rather than in a centralized processor, we made Wavefield Synthesis feasible in a compact consumer product. This same architectural approach was proven in our prior Constant Beamwidth Transducer work, demonstrating the power of reusable engineering across projects.

Technical Implementation

The system combines a horizontal array of drivers with a vertical driver stack inside a single free-standing enclosure. Each driver receives a shared I2S audio stream and executes its own DSP locally via smart amplification, enabling precise per-driver phase and delay control without overwhelming a central processor. We used SPAT Revolution software for Wavefield Synthesis visualization and spatial audio design, translating research-grade spatial audio concepts into a practical, buildable prototype.

Results

The working prototype successfully demonstrated convincing stereo imaging from a single enclosure, proving that Wavefield Synthesis can be adapted to consumer-scale products with the right architecture. While the client ultimately chose not to proceed to commercialization due to internal product roadmap priorities (not technical limitations), the project validated a powerful architectural approach and demonstrated Grinalds Solutions' ability to translate cutting-edge audio research into real, functional hardware.