Over the summer, I had the opportunity to spend time with Audeze CEO, Sankar Thiagasamudram, at a private event in NYC and one of the things that he made clear as she showed me their new CRBN technology and MRI headphones, was that Audeze was going to be branching out. The California-based company decided before the pandemic was even a reality that they needed to expand into different verticals because there are only so many people willing to spend over $1,000 on a pair of headphones.
But surely, based on the changing world that we live in — there are probably more remote or hybrid workers willing to consider something like the Audeze FILTER Planar Magnetic Speakerphone.
As someone who listens to planar loudspeakers on a daily basis in his primary living space, I totally get the appeal. Before the pandemic shut everything down, I spent my days in an office and stuck in meetings for hours each day. The most annoying part of those meetings was the horrific sound quality of the desktop conference room audio speakers.
I won’t even mention the brand but their systems were overly complicated to use and our internal phone system always seemed to screw things up whenever we had a call with China or Poland.
Fast forward to the pandemic and the transfer of millions of office workers in N. America overnight to home office scenarios — and total chaos ensued.
Those of us with high-end desktop speaker systems, 1080p cameras stuck to our iMacs, and podcast setups were in much better shape than 99% of our colleagues.
Audeze clearly understands the old way of doing business is dead and is targeting those of us who work from home or operate in hybrid mode.
The FILTER speakerphone includes a conference speaker utilizing a planar magnetic driver and a series of noise cancelling microphones. Connectivity inlcudes both bluetooth and USB for phone/computer options and noise cancellation that senses what type of background sound is causing the interference.
The Audeze FILTER promises to reduce ambient noises like vacuum cleaners, pets, and even baby screaming. Good luck with the last one.
Introducing Audeze FILTER
FILTER is the first high-performance compact wireless speaker that effectively eliminates background noises. Experience the most dynamic portable wireless speaker designed for use from the conference room to the remote office, anchored on awarding-winning audio technology and advanced AI-based noise-cancellation technology.
Zero-Noise Microphone, AI on the Edge Technology
The first high-performance wireless conference speakerphone engineered with AI on the edge noise-cancellation, effectively eliminating unwanted background sounds. FILTER includes Audeze’s planar magnetic drivers achieving the most powerful magnetic diaphragm control possible, resulting in the most accurate audio possible.
Availability
Update: Audeze FILTER was first available via Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign beginning November 16, 2021. By December 22, 2022 all orders were shipped to original backers after raising $141,735 USD by 776 backers. Audeze FILTER is now available for order direct from the company’s website for $249 at Audeze as well as at Amazon.
Update: See our full in-depth review of Audeze Filter Speakerphone (December 2023)
