Matthew Jabloner
Crackle finish periwinkle amplifier, anyone? Or maybe knobs that only reveal control markings when you touch the amplifier? Or how about an amplifier with a built-in mini-projector? Or how about….okay, I will stop, but these are the kind of random ideas I throw out with my Apos colleagues. All ideas are accepted with grace, riffed on, built up with the experience and enthusiasm of the team. It is a lovely experience.
With Apos I worked on a wall-mounted audio rack. Got some great feedback via the Apos 𝒙 process which definitely made it a better product. It has a top shelf for a turntable that you can adjust to make it dead level. That shelf has a silicone constrained layer for vibration transmission damping. It is a unique and cool product.
The Apos modular integrated amplifier project is in process. Not your traditional integrated amplifier. You pick what components you want. Want a tape player? Just slot that in. This was a colleague's idea and I am proud to have a role in development. Projects like these connect to my past days as an engineer. It also connects to my current work as a designer.
Other projects with Salad and retailed via Apos are the Halo Headphone Stand, Vinyl Flip Rack, and the Salad-XC turntable. The Salad-SC turntable is really cool. These projects have a warm aesthetic that we focus on at Salad. Local hardwood such as Alder, brass accents, and wool felt.
My interest in the audio field came with commissions to build two pairs of transmission line speakers. Both using Markaudio drivers. Shortly after that I transitioned my business from custom furniture to audio gear. Turns out speaker design is really complex and it took me six stressful months to get that first speaker sounding good. Equally complicated was to make it ready-to-assemble. It is the only RTA high-end speaker on the market - no glue or clamps required. As opposed to speaker kits that require woodworking tools and experience.
On the design stage with Apos is a speaker system in the form of shelves including a tight little subwoofer. The system has an amazing off-axis frequency response. Now to make it into a system. This system will be in the warm wood tone that, for manufacturing, works well with my CNC shop. Leaning toward a console system with lots of shelf storage.
In the future I would like to expand my design pallet to include formed aluminum in the Dieter Rams style. Incorporate the color palette used in inuit art prints (google Cape Dorset prints). Warning inuit art prints are addictive. I have too many. So pretty, expressive and sometimes just fun too. Can you use epoxy to make a semi-soft felt housing for a speaker? I hope so and will give it a try. Periwinkle!
